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A city is a human settlement of a notable size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agreed definition of the lower boundary for their size. In a more narrow sense, a city can be defined as a permanent and densely settled place with administratively defined boundaries whose members work primarily on non-agricultural tasks. Cities generally have extensive systems for housing, transportation, sanitation, utilities, land use, production of goods, and communication. Their density facilitates interaction between people, government organizations, and businesses, sometimes benefiting different parties in the process, such as improving the efficiency of goods and service distribution.

Historically, city dwellers have been a small proportion of humanity overall, but following two centuries of unprecedented and rapid urbanization, more than half of the world population now lives in cities, which has had profound consequences for global sustainability. Present-day cities usually form the core of larger metropolitan areas and urban areas—creating numerous commuters traveling toward city centres for employment, entertainment, and education. However, in a world of intensifying globalization, all cities are to varying degrees also connected globally beyond these regions. This increased influence means that cities also have significant influences on global issues, such as sustainable development, climate change, and global health. Because of these major influences on global issues, the international community has prioritized investment in sustainable cities through Sustainable Development Goal 11. Due to the efficiency of transportation and the smaller land consumption, dense cities hold the potential to have a smaller ecological footprint per inhabitant than more sparsely populated areas. Therefore, compact cities are often referred to as a crucial element in fighting climate change. However, this concentration can also have significant negative consequences, such as forming urban heat islands, concentrating pollution, and stressing water supplies and other resources. (Full article...)

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Skyline of Central Edinburgh

Edinburgh (/ˈɛdɪnbərə/ ^ⓘ Scots: [ˈɛdɪnbʌrə]; Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Èideann [ˌt̪un ˈeːtʲən̪ˠ]) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. The city is located in south-east Scotland, and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth estuary and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh had a population of 506,520 in mid-2020, making it the second-most populous city in Scotland and the seventh-most populous in the United Kingdom. The wider metropolitan area has a population of 912,490.

Recognised as the capital of Scotland since at least the 15th century, Edinburgh is the seat of the Scottish Government, the Scottish Parliament, the highest courts in Scotland, and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. It is also the annual venue of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. The city has long been a centre of education, particularly in the fields of medicine, Scottish law, literature, philosophy, the sciences and engineering. The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1582 and now one of three in the city, is considered one of the best research institutions in the world. It is the second-largest financial centre in the United Kingdom, the fourth largest in Europe, and the thirteenth largest internationally. (Full article...)

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... that it took almost as long to renovate New York City's Borough Hall station in the 1980s as it did to construct the original subway line?
... that the last five minutes of a 1977 game between Coventry City and Bristol City were played with neither team attempting to score?
... that the Sherwood Studio Building was characterized in 1892 as New York City's "uptown headquarters of Art", with many of its tenants having studied art together?
... that when the 68-story Metropolitan Tower in New York City was being built, its developer was forced to stop marketing it as a 78-story building?
... that the New York City-based fashion label Sandy Liang is inspired by grandmothers in Chinatown, and often features Liang's own grandmother as a model?
... that Sigismund Mohr lit the first electric street lamps in Quebec City to a crowd of 20,000 spectators?

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Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China. With 7.4 million residents of various nationalities in a 1,104-square-kilometre (426 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated territories in the world.

Hong Kong was established as a colony of the British Empire after the Qing dynasty ceded Hong Kong Island in 1841–1842 as a consequence of losing the First Opium War. The colony expanded to the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and was further extended when the United Kingdom obtained a 99-year lease of the New Territories in 1898. Hong Kong was occupied by Japan from 1941 to 1945 during World War II. The territory was handed over from the United Kingdom to China in 1997. Hong Kong maintains separate governing and economic systems from that of mainland China under the principle of one country, two systems. (Full article...)

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A company town is a place where practically all stores and housing are owned by the one company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schools, markets and recreation facilities.

Some company towns have had high ideals, but many have been regarded as controlling and/or exploitative. Others developed more or less in unplanned fashion, such as Summit Hill, Pennsylvania, United States, one of the oldest, which began as a Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company mining camp and mine site nine miles (14.5 km) from the nearest outside road. (Full article...)

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Image 1Constantinople, the largest and wealthiest city in Europe from the 9th through the 12th century (from History of cities)
Image 2The city of Arbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has a radial urban structure centred on an ancient fortress (from Urban structure)
Image 3The Avenue of the Dead in Teotihuacan originates with the Pyramid of the Moon, forming the basis of the city grid. (from History of cities)
Image 4A poster from the EPA entitled "Soak Up the Rain with Green Infrastructure." The poster depicts various green infrastructure that can be effective in preventing floods. (from Urban geography)
Image 5Glasgow slum in 1871 (from History of cities)
Image 6The "Great Colonnade" marks the cardo maximus of Apamea, Syria. (from History of cities)
Image 7Palmanova, Italy, constructed in 1593 according to the defensive ideal of the star fort, today retains its distinctive geometry. (from History of cities)
Image 8Aerial photograph shows the remains of the Sumerian city Ur, near Nasiriyah, Iraq. (from History of cities)
Image 9The Round city of Baghdad, the capital of Iraq (from History of cities)
Image 10Gdańsk in the 17th century (from History of cities)
Image 11A map showing the world energy consumption per capita based on 2013 data from the World Bank. (from Urban geography)
Image 12Daily life of people from the Song period at the capital, Bianjing, today's Kaifeng (from History of cities)
Image 13This woodcut shows Nuremberg as a prototype of a flourishing and independent city in the 15th century. (from History of cities)
Image 14Extent and major sites of the Indus Valley civilization of ancient India (from History of cities)
Image 15View of the Agora of Athens with the temple of Hephaestus to the left and the Stoa of Attalos to the right (from History of cities)
Image 16Excavated foundations of Çatalhöyük, Turkey. An Anatolian town dated to 7000 BCE. (from History of cities)
Image 17Cain founding the city of Enoch (from History of cities)
Image 18Mohenjo-daro, a World Heritage Site that was part of the Indus Valley civilization (from History of cities)
Image 19New York City, one of the largest urban areas in the world (from Urban geography)

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v t e Cities
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Urban government	City status Municipality direct-controlled Independent city City-state Autonomous city Capital city
Urban economics	World's cities by GDP Global city Central business district Most expensive cities Cheapest cities Most livable cities Urban decay Urban renewal Municipal bond Habitat III
Urban planning	History of urban planning Theories of urban planning Technical aspects of urban planning Urban planners Zoning Mixed-use development Urban design Grid plan Concentric zone model Sector model Multiple nuclei model Linear city Land use Smart city
Urban population	World's largest cities throughout history Most densely populated cities Most populous national capitals Most populous satellite cities
Urbanism	Urban warfare Urban studies Urban morphology Urban culture Urban sociology Anti-urbanism Urban exploration Urban homesteading Unitary urbanism
Environment	Climate change Green urbanism Sustainable city Sustainable urbanism Sustainable Development Goal 11 Urban heat island Urban ecology

v t e World's largest cities
City proper	Capitals Americas (North Latin Central South) Asia (Arab world ASEAN Arabia East, South and Southeast Asia) Europe (European Union Nordic)
Metropolitan area	Americas (North South West Indies) Europe (European Union Nordic) Asia Africa Middle East
Urban area/agglomeration	Asia Africa Europe European Union Nordic North America Oceania Transborder
Historical	World Europe
Related articles	Arcology Ecumenopolis Global city Megacity Megalopolis Conurbation Satellite city population Primate city Secondary city