Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Theory?
The Central Place Theory was used to explain the size, distribution, and
number of institutions and urban centers.
Los Angeles, California, is an example of a "regional capital" under the Central Place Theory.
What is Central Place Theory?
Based on his assessment of the retail and services network in Southern Germany, Walter
Christaller invented the Central Place Theory (CPT) in 1933. Christaller was building
upon the works of von Thünen and Weber who also built the foundation for location
theory. A central place is defined as an area that attracts people from its surrounding who
then engage in the exchange of services and goods. The Central Place Theory was used to
explain the size, distribution, and number of institutions and urban centers. The Central
Place Theory was guided by three principles called the marketing principle,
administrative principle, and transport principle. These principles defined the formation
of settlements in central places.