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The question of which are the world's largest cities does not admit of a single, simple answer. It depends on which definitions of "city" and "size" are used, and how those definitions are applied. Complex political/cultural/social situations, sometimes controversial or disputed, further confuse the discussion. Debate on this field is highly vulnerable to bias or manipulation, as people tend to prefer whichever definition most flatters their own city.

The "size" of a city can refer to either its land area or, more typically, its population.

The borders of a city can also be defined in any of several ways:

Morphological

"City" defined as a physically contiguous urban area, without regard to territorial or other boundaries. The delineation is usually done using some type of urban density, such as population density or density of buildings (for instance, gaps between structures may not exceed 200 metres.) Satellite and/or aerial maps may be used. For statistical convenience, such areas are sometimes adjusted to appropriate administrative boundaries, yielding an agglomeration.

Main articles: List of urban areas by population and World's largest urban agglomerations

Functional

"City" as defined by the habits of its demographic population, as by metropolitan area, labor market area, or similar. Such definitions are usually based on commuting between home and work. Commuter flow thresholds into the core urban area are established by the national census authority, determining which areas are included.

Main article: List of metropolitan areas by population

Administrative

"City" as strictly defined by a given government (city proper). Typically based on a municipality or equivalent entity, or sometimes a group of municipalities under a regional government.

Main articles: List of cities proper by population and List of cities by surface area

See also

• List of towns and cities with 100,000 or more inhabitants
• List of largest cities throughout history
• Historical urban community sizes

Wikipedia content modification information:

• This page was last modified on 13 November 2008, at 00:54.

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