6 Factors influencing rural settlement

There are several factors that may play part in rural settlement in any region on the world. The major ones include the following:

Factors Affecting The Rural Settlement

Water supply: people in the rural areas settle in areas with water bodies especially rivers
Land: people want to settle in areas with fertile soils for the to practice agriculture
Upland: villages are located on uplands which is not prone to flooding. Thus in low lying rivers basins people chose to settle on terraces and levees which are “dry points.”
Building materials: the availability of building materials such as those for constructing houses

Mining: people have settled in areas with mineral e.g. in the copperbelt
Transport: most settlements tend to develop along the lines of communications e.g. along roads and railway line