Changes in the Shapes of Chinese Cities, 1934–1974

The Boyce-Clark shape index was employed to study changes in the shapes of twenty-three Chinese cities between 1934 and 1974. With the aid of shapes curves and cluster analysis, types of city growth since 1934 were identified. It was found that, on the whole, city shapes have changed only moderately, although cities in the north and northeast tended to experience greater changes. This suggests that these have been priority areas of Chinese urban planning. City shape and population size were employed to produce a simple typology of Chinese cities. The results suggest the persistence of square or rectangle shapes, although some cities in the south and north also experienced linear development.