Evolutionary Model of the City Size Distribution. (1st April 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kaldasch, Joachim
• Other Names: Le Gallo J. Academic Editor.; Yeldan E. Academic Editor.
• Is Part Of: ISRN economics. Volume 2014(2014)
• Publication Date: 2014-04-01
• Subjects: Economics -- Periodicals; Economics; Periodicals; 330
• DOI: 10.1155/2014/498125
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2090-8938

Abstract

Abstract : An evolutionary model of the city size distribution is presented that explains the size of a city from the reproduction process and the migration of humans between cities. The model suggests that the city size distribution is a lognormal distribution with a power law tail in agreement with empirical results and computer simulations. The main idea of the model is that the competition between cities in the migration process is the origin of Gibrat's law. While growth rate fluctuations generate the lognormal branch of the size distribution, the power law tail for large cities is caused by a small mean growth rate.