Population Settlement in the Caspian Region

The paper examines the characteristics of settlement patterns in the littoral (coastal) areas of the Caspian region. The author’s historical excursion into the region’s past illustrates the complexity of the intertwined fates of the peoples who presently inhabit the littoral areas around the Caspian...

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Main Author: Čingiz Ismailov
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies 2002-04-01
Series:Migracijske i etničke teme
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hrcak.srce.hr/file/158231
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author Čingiz Ismailov
author_facet Čingiz Ismailov
author_sort Čingiz Ismailov
collection DOAJ
description The paper examines the characteristics of settlement patterns in the littoral (coastal) areas of the Caspian region. The author’s historical excursion into the region’s past illustrates the complexity of the intertwined fates of the peoples who presently inhabit the littoral areas around the Caspian Sea. From the 18th century, Russia began to penetrate into the region, in opposition to Iran. For this purpose, Peter I [Peter the Great] ordered the construction, in the coastal areas, of outpost forts that eventually turned into settlements (Fort Petrovsk, Fort Shevchenko, Krasnovodsk and others). The development of settlements in the coastal areas brought about an expansion of the web of transportation communications. Yet territorial differences arose in the level of development of certain forms of transportation. Such a situation, to a great extent, was determined by the particularities pertaining to the economic-geographical situation of various sections of the Caspian littoral area. In order to determine the population density of littoral areas an important methological approach would entail a delimitation of the borders of the littoral areas. The author analyses diverse approaches used to establish the outlines of settlement regions in the littoral areas. He distinguishes several coastal strips, with various degrees of population attraction. Owing to natural-climatic conditions and the degree of adaptation, the littoral areas of the Caspian region show diversities in the level of development of urban settlements. The highest level of urbanisation is evident in the littoral strip of Azerbaijan, in which the most populous town in the Caspian region is located (Baku). A comparison of the population settlement traits in the coastal areas of the Caspian region indicates that the highest level of concentration is found along the Iranian strip of the coast, and the least concentration along the Turkmenian strip. In this sense, in the most settled areas (on the territory of Iran and Azerbaijan) the dominant type of settlement is centrifugal, whereas in the least settled areas (in Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan) the dominant settlement patterns are dispersed and nidificative locations.
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spelling doaj.art-b68266c506bd466bb475f34f87dd64182024-03-02T02:13:53ZengInstitute for Migration and Ethnic StudiesMigracijske i etničke teme1333-25461848-91842002-04-0118199112Population Settlement in the Caspian RegionČingiz Ismailov0Caspian Research and Information Centre, Baku, RussiaThe paper examines the characteristics of settlement patterns in the littoral (coastal) areas of the Caspian region. The author’s historical excursion into the region’s past illustrates the complexity of the intertwined fates of the peoples who presently inhabit the littoral areas around the Caspian Sea. From the 18th century, Russia began to penetrate into the region, in opposition to Iran. For this purpose, Peter I [Peter the Great] ordered the construction, in the coastal areas, of outpost forts that eventually turned into settlements (Fort Petrovsk, Fort Shevchenko, Krasnovodsk and others). The development of settlements in the coastal areas brought about an expansion of the web of transportation communications. Yet territorial differences arose in the level of development of certain forms of transportation. Such a situation, to a great extent, was determined by the particularities pertaining to the economic-geographical situation of various sections of the Caspian littoral area. In order to determine the population density of littoral areas an important methological approach would entail a delimitation of the borders of the littoral areas. The author analyses diverse approaches used to establish the outlines of settlement regions in the littoral areas. He distinguishes several coastal strips, with various degrees of population attraction. Owing to natural-climatic conditions and the degree of adaptation, the littoral areas of the Caspian region show diversities in the level of development of urban settlements. The highest level of urbanisation is evident in the littoral strip of Azerbaijan, in which the most populous town in the Caspian region is located (Baku). A comparison of the population settlement traits in the coastal areas of the Caspian region indicates that the highest level of concentration is found along the Iranian strip of the coast, and the least concentration along the Turkmenian strip. In this sense, in the most settled areas (on the territory of Iran and Azerbaijan) the dominant type of settlement is centrifugal, whereas in the least settled areas (in Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan) the dominant settlement patterns are dispersed and nidificative locations.http://hrcak.srce.hr/file/158231settlement patternscoastal (littoral) areasdelimitationeconomic developmentthe Caspian Region
spellingShingle Čingiz Ismailov
Population Settlement in the Caspian Region
Migracijske i etničke teme
settlement patterns
coastal (littoral) areas
delimitation
economic development
the Caspian Region
title Population Settlement in the Caspian Region
title_full Population Settlement in the Caspian Region
title_fullStr Population Settlement in the Caspian Region
title_full_unstemmed Population Settlement in the Caspian Region
title_short Population Settlement in the Caspian Region
title_sort population settlement in the caspian region
topic settlement patterns
coastal (littoral) areas
delimitation
economic development
the Caspian Region
url http://hrcak.srce.hr/file/158231
work_keys_str_mv AT cingizismailov populationsettlementinthecaspianregion