Metropolis is the term that designates the capital or main city of a particular country, state or province. The main characteristics of metropolises are their influence, whether social, economic or cultural, on other cities in the region.
The set of cities around a metropolis is called Metropolitan region. This region is made up of all other cities physically connected to the "mother city", providing a constant exchange of people and services. This formation is known asconurbation.
Etymologically, the word metropolis is composed of two elements in Greek: subway, which comes from meter, meters and means "mother". AND cops, which is "city". Metropolis is, therefore, the mother city.
In historical terms, the word metropolis was used to speak of European nations in relation to their colonies on the new continents.
Example: "Brazil reported to its metropolis, Portugal, on income".
Learn more about Metropolitan region.
Types of metropolises
Metropolises can be organized according to hierarchy and its levels. This classification depends on the complexity of the connections and the network to which the city is related.
Metropolises can be classified into:
Global Metropolis
These are those cities that exert a strong influence on cities in the national territory and international zones.
Capitals such as New York, Tokyo and São Paulo are good examples of global metropolises, as they are cities that have great economic power for both their country and the world.
National Metropolis
These are the cities that do not usually extrapolate their relations commercially and economically beyond the territory of their countries.
Cities such as Porto Alegre and Belo Horizonte are examples of national metropolises, as they concentrate their economic forces only on Brazil.
Regional Metropolis
Regional metropolises are cities that polarize a region of considerable size in the country, becoming an economic reference at the local level.
Manaus, Belém and Campinas are examples of regional metropolises, as their economic potential only circulates in the geographic region in which they are located.
See also the meaning of megalopolis.
