Medium-Sized Cities in Brazil: Peculiarities of Modern Development and Position in the Settlement System

Abstract

This paper examines the phenomenon of medium-sized cities in Brazil, which in recent decades have played an increasingly prominent role in the socio-economic development of the country. The criterion of urban population in a municipality (between 100,000 and 500,000 people) is used to classify cities as medium-sized, but their geographical location and socio-economic characteristics are also considered to assess the function of such cities in the settlement system. The article aims to identify the importance of medium-sized cities in Brazil and their characteristics. The growth of medium-sized cities peaked in the 1970–1990s and was associated with the intensive development of urbanisation and industrialisation. The population growth rate of medium-sized cities is gradually slowing down due to demographic changes and changes in the direction and intensity of migration. The analysis of the municipal employment structure based on the calculations of the Herfindahl-Hirschman index and the localisation coefficient showed the heterogeneity of this type of cities depending on their location relative to agglomeration centers. The study identified 9 types of medium-sized cities in Brazil, the most common of which were the growing suburbs of large agglomerations, as well as medium-sized cities with small migration outflows, located in the interior of the states in the old-developed part of the country. The article also presents the characteristics of medium-sized cities in Brazil according to their belonging to macro-regions: Northeast, Southeast, South, North and Central-West. Medium-sized cities are important elements in the hierarchy of urban centers in Brazil, contributing to the deconcentration of population in areas of high population density and in areas of influence of the largest urban agglomerations, as well as acting as anchor points in areas of new development.