The Functional Evolution And Spatial Differentiation Of Rural Settlements

The rapid process of industrialization and urbanization in China has an important effect on its rural development, which results in diversification in rural function and its morphology. Therefore, it is a key point to research the evolution of rural settlements. The participatory rural appraisal was employed to study the land use transition and households’livelihood evolution of the rural settlements. In this paper, some typical study rural settlements were selected in Yishui County, Shandong province. This paper studied the spatial-temporal evolution of rural settlements and their functional evolution from a microcosmic perspective. And then proposed new models of rural residential land consolidation based on the functional requirement of rural households. The main conclusions are as follows:(1) It’s found that the new rural settlements were established firstly on the plains, and then on the hills and mountains during the period of agricultural society based on historical data. Rural households of the new settlements were firstly from outside Shandong province and Yishui County to inside Yishui County. It is also found that in agricultural society, a society based around producing and maintaining crops and farmland, the quantity and quality of the available arable land is the main driving force of the appearance and development of rural settlements. Rural households firstly select plain with a relatively high quality cultivated land to establish settlement. However, the later choice of households’ establishment to hills and mountains was made in the sharp contradiction between land and population.(2) Using statistics and field survey data, it is found that the characteristics of evolution of rural settlements in Yishui County transformed from increase in number and change in spatial layout to livelihood diversification which means non-agriculture and differentiation of rural economy and rural households’livelihoods. Based on the surveys involved16rural settlements, this paper also found that, non-agricultural level of the villages is between37.54%and90.65%, which showed that non-agricultural is common. However, it presents obviously spatial differentiation in study area.(3) Study on spatial-temporal evolution of rural settlements productive function found that, agricultural productive function was the dominated function of rural settlement before the reform and opening up. Productive function was homogeneity. Rural settlements’productive function was gradually diversified after China’s Reform and Opening-up Policy. Agricultural dominated, industrial dominated, commercial dominated and productive function atrophic rural settlements are coexistence. Productive function of rural settlements is heterogeneity.Rural households arrange livelihood strategies with principle of utility maximization is the direct driving force to productive function evolution of rural settlements. Countryside development policies determine the evolution of rural settlements function from agricultural production to non-agricultural and to agricultural production. Both Geographical environment and livelihood assets determine the spatial differentiation of productive function of rural settlements.(4) Study on spatial-temporal evolution of rural settlements productive function found that, as time goes by, rural households continuously optimize rural settlements dwelling function by improving the materials quality of constructional building, expanding dwelling space and renovating houses. Meanwhile, the idle and abandonment of rural houses, and the outspread of rural settlements coexist since the21st century, which affects the improvement of rural households’ living status in rural environment. Life service function of rural settlements is insufficient, which still presents spatial differentiation. As approaching the counties and cities, the degree of rural basic public service facilities is on the rise, which is a key to promote urban-rural integrationPursing utility maximization with family unit, consequently, while the fruitful achivements of livelihoods are increasing, rural households prefer to invest in housing, which leads to the improvement of rural households dwelling function. However, given the lack of motivation to invest in rural basic public service facilities, the life service function of rural settlement optimize is slowly developing. Rural settlements in the fringe of counties and cities are sharing the outward function of the urban public service, leads to the spatial differentiation of rural settlements life service function.(5) Based on the spatial-temporal evolution of rural settlements function, this paper suggested that rural residential consolidation should according to the demand of production, life function and spatial differentiation of rural households. Then discuss the potential of rural residential consolidation and construction mode of new rural settlements. This paper argues that, rural residential consolidation based on the functional requirement would fully meet the requirement for households’ production and living function, which has the important theoretical and practical significance of supporting practical guiding.