A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metropolitan area usually comprises multiple principal cities, jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships, boroughs, cities, towns, exurbs, suburbs, counties, districts and even states and nations in areas like the eurodistricts. As social, economic and political institutions have changed, metropolitan areas have become key economic and political regions.
In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the region. Such regions are not legally incorporated as a city or town would be and are not legal administrative divisions like counties or separate entities such as states. As a result, sometimes the precise definition of a given metropolitan area will vary between sources. The statistical criteria for a standard metropolitan area were defined in 1949 and redefined as a metropolitan statistical area in 1983.
A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
A core-based statistical area (CBSA) is a U.S. geographic area defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). It contains a large population nucleus, or urban area, and adjacent communities that have a high degree of integration with that nucleus.
The census geographic units of Canada are the census subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's quinquennial census. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own. They exist on four levels: the top-level (first-level) divisions are Canada's provinces and territories; these are divided into second-level census divisions, which in turn are divided into third-level census subdivisions and fourth-level dissemination areas.
An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. This is the core of a metropolitan statistical area in the United States, if it contains a population of more than 50,000.
In geography, statistics and archaeology, a settlement, locality or populated place is a community of people living in a particular place. The complexity of a settlement can range from a minuscule number of dwellings grouped together to the largest of cities with surrounding urbanized areas. Settlements may include hamlets, villages, towns and cities. A settlement may have known historical properties such as the date or era in which it was first settled, or first settled by particular people. The process of settlement involves human migration.
The U.S. State of Illinois currently has 43 statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On March 6, 2020, the OMB delineated 11 combined statistical areas, 13 metropolitan statistical areas, and 19 micropolitan statistical areas in Illinois.
The U.S. state of New York currently has 34 statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On March 6, 2020, the OMB delineated seven combined statistical areas, 14 metropolitan statistical areas, and 13 micropolitan statistical areas in New York.
The U.S. State of Wisconsin currently has 36 statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On March 6, 2020, the OMB delineated nine combined statistical areas, 15 metropolitan statistical areas, and 12 micropolitan statistical areas in Wisconsin.
The U.S. State of California currently has 39 statistical areas that have been delineated by the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On March 6, 2020, the OMB delineated five combined statistical areas, 26 metropolitan statistical areas, and eight micropolitan statistical areas in California.
The U.S. State of Iowa currently has 30 statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On March 6, 2020, the OMB delineated six combined statistical areas, nine metropolitan statistical areas, and 15 micropolitan statistical areas in Iowa.
The United States Census Bureau defines a place as a concentration of population which has a name, is locally recognized, and is not part of any other place. A place typically has a residential nucleus and a closely spaced street pattern, and it frequently includes commercial property and other urban land uses. A place may be an incorporated place or it may be a census-designated place (CDP). Incorporated places are defined by the laws of the states in which they are contained. The Census Bureau delineates CDPs. A small settlement in the open countryside or the densely settled fringe of a large city may not be a place as defined by the Census Bureau. As of the census, 26% of the people in the United States lived outside of places.
