Abstract

In 2007, the United Nations declared that more than half of the world’s population now lives in urban areas. By utilizing the word urban, writers evoked a mental image associated with certain spatial characteristics. The words urban and rural are so frequently used that it would seem their meanings are highly defined and widely shared. However, there is no consensus regarding their definitions. Given the words’ current multiple meanings, academic and professional fields have defined urban and rural in ways befitting each discipline. Some disciplines have focused on using quantitative demographic tools, while others have utilized intensity and frequency of social interactions. Moreover, the definitions have been somewhat malleable over time. This article defines urban and rural utilizing human perception of the physical manifestation of energy density. Defining urban and rural is not simply an etymological undertaking: these evocative words encapsulate tremendous meaning and are fundamental to the discourse of various disciplines that examine human-built environment interactions. The definitions must be precise enough to reflect observable reality, but robust enough to incorporate connotative conditions used across disciplines. The article first presents the definitions and lists key terms and concepts. Next, it traces humanity’s relationship between energy and built environments, utilizing Hannah Arendt’s argument on the emergence of culture to propose urban and rural, not as opposite conditions, but as regions found along a continuous spectrum. Then, after analyzing how labor produces phenomenological experiences associated with spatial practices, the article states corollary concepts to empirically explain perceptual experiences. Finally, the article utilizes the definitions to briefly explore practical implications.