Degraderade städer - En studie av urbanitet hos städer i Polen som förlorat sina stadsrättigheter
UrbanityDegraded townFormer townEx-townTown privilegesCivic rightsUrban degradationUrgan restitutionUrban morphologyGreater PolandWielkopolskaPoland
Using the example of 55 former towns in Greater Poland, the author investigates the belief thattowns formerly deprived of town privileges are the most likely to be qualified as future formalurban entities. This paper approaches the subject of urban deprivation and restitution with amultiaspectual study of the concept of urbanity. Since a preponderance of Polish degraded townspossess a prominent urban physical structure, the study focuses mainly on urban morphology as acontributing factor to urbanity. Other approaches include the central place theory, demographicconditions and the role of urban perception. Taking into account Poland?s shifting geopoliticalhistory the study also seeks to identify and explain spatial patterns of varying degrees of urbanityamong the studied towns. A secondary spatial approach analyses the distribution of urbanity inrelation to greater regional centers according to the concept of core?periphery. By applying anintegrated index scale based on an array of scientific theories the study measures and classifies thepresent urbanity status of former towns. Given their overall high summary values the studyverifies that former towns are highly predestined to have their town privileges restored. Finally,the prevailing inertia to restitutions of town privileges in Poland is discussed, concluding that lackof legal criteria as well as common ignorance are the main barriers hampering the evolution of aproportional urban network.