Spatio-temporal Evolution And Driving Mechanism Of Rural Settlements

The method and technology of Geography theory have become the basis for many important issuesfacing in human society. The process and mechanism of geographic spatial pattern has been the key study.Theoretical research must be carried out in the domain of discourse. Any one theory has its scope, ifbeyond its threshold, the application of theory will becomes the fallacy from the truth. The normativeanalysis of Christaller’s Central Place Theory is carried out under the strict assumptions, its coreassumptions is homogeneous plains which does not have a prerequisite of reality in the geography uniqueresearch. The fact is more unrealistic that the evolution is not given, and seems to exist solidifying betweenthe different levels of central place assumed that levels of increase or decrease can not be performed; thedominant factors can not be changed. From a long term point of view, this is obviously a fatal flaw. Thechange of dominant factor is bound to bring about changes in the spatial structure (hierarchy). For theverification of the performance of the human practice can not complete only through once, it often requiresa long period of time. The structure is a long period historical phenomenon which restrict and constraint thehistory, in order to grasp and explain all historical phenomenons only through a variety of structures in theunderlying historical process. With learning from a long period of time theory of French Annales School,GIS spatial analysis, and the analysis methods of landscape ecology, the paper shows the spatial-temporalevolution of the spatial structure and driving mechanism of rural settlements from the point of history view,the concern is not only the logic understanding of spatial structure changes in the long period, but also toexplore the historical basis and path clues of the formation of the current spatial pattern, and try to figureout the evolution trend of the rural settlements spatial structure as well as the necessity and rationality ofadjustment for planning the relevant national policy formulation. For seeking truth from the historicalperspective, it must be re-established the intrinsic link between history, reality and future according to thetask to make it possible to go beyond the traditional thinking. The results show that:(1) The constraints of geographical environment. The settlement is the most significant and mostimportant characterization of the man-land relationship. From the whole of the geographical environmentand the long-term history of human society development, the role of geographical factors on human society is a trade-off, even if one factor in the geographical environment may weaken the role of the human society,but the other geographical factors may be enhanced. Only by understanding the geographical environmentin historical period, the people could correctly explain the impacts on settlement and settlement spatialstructure. The man-land relationship is a cyclical history with a slow passage, which often repeatedly andconstantly re-starts, more and more geographic and human factors have been taken into the factors of therural settlements. With the development of human society, many of the natural environment and humanenvironment will be included in the scope of the geographical environment, so that the connotation andextension of the geographical environment change. More and more geographic and human factors to ruralsettlements, the constraints of geographical environment must be a force throughout the evolution of ruralsettlements spatial structure.(2) The long-term stability of structure. The events are likely to be exaggerated in short time, but theroles will appear only in a long time perspective. Only in a greater destiny, the event could be gotten a realunderstanding and interpretation. The historical event is a one-time, but the daily life is repeated whichmakes the general, and even become structural. All structures are both support also obstacles, in which timeonly plays a minimal role on. Political change, dynasty change, a large-scale war and natural disasters haveenough power to destroy the settlement spatial structure evolution, but if the influence factors have notchange, it will be rebuilt on the ruins of the original. The long, endless cycle must contain a very tightstructure. The settlement have the ability to adapt to changes in the social environment, the formation ofspatial structure have the lasting vitality, the county government has long stationed in laocheng village,zhanjie town, and the huiguo town (shaocai village, Luozhuang village, qingyi town) have been in the topof hierarchy. The stability structure seems doomed from the outset, almost did not see the traces of timecarved in the sands of time outside.(3) The self-improvement of rural settlement level. The change in the rural settlement spatial structureis always built on the basis of the geographical environment of human use, the evolution of core towns arebased on human use for the geographical environment in the different periods. In the prehistoric times, thesettlement was mainly used to avoid natural disasters according to the microtopography, there were no ruralsettlement spatial structure; in the period of civilization, there were alliances or domination betweensettlements, settlement differentiation and spatial structure would form around the core settlements; in agricultural society, the settlements are mainly used for agricultural production, the settlements spatialstructure are based on soil fertility; the bazaar and specialization towns rise to the hierarchical structure ofthe market principles; the introduction of high-yielding crops promote the development of settlementsspatial structure to the mountain, the new centers of settlements form in the mountainous; the promotion ofrural industrialization, the settlements increase a industrial production functions, the settlements in themountain rely mineral resulting settlements spatial structure bias to mountain; the modern settlementresidential function highlights, both agricultural production and industrial production retire secondly, thespatial structure of rural settlements are into the functions of the new transition to the primary function ofliving. Therefore, the factors had been considered to be favorable conditions, with the development ofsociety, the potential to transform a limiting factor which is considered to be the limiting factor, but can becontributed to the stimulation of economic development and the formation of urban-town. In the cycle ofusing different elements of the geographical environment, rural settlements spatial structure are fromscratch, from the prehistoric "isolated point", to “structure point” in the agricultural community, and thusupgrade "area" for part of "structure point", and now the settlements spatial structure do not a hierarchicalstructure of points, but become "the convergence of point-line-area"——the net structure of ruralsettlement which aggregates of point, line and area, and achieves self-improvement.(4) The conversions of driving mechanism. The evolution of rural settlement spatial structure and thecore towns are always on the basis of the geographical environment of human use transformation in thedifferent periods. The different periods of topographical factors, location factors and socio-economicfactors may have different coupling mode. The evolution of the different periods of the core towns, alwaysbuilt on the basis of the geographical environment of human use transformation. From a long term point ofview, the laws of driving mechanism seem to dominate the spatial structure of rural settlements industryand transportation interaction promote. For complex terrain and with a long history of small-scale area,long-term formation of the spatial structure of rural settlements "path dependence", it’s hard to be changedwithin a short time, the speed of self-evolution is relatively slow, and the role of socio-economic factorsmay not be obvious. The goal of planning will be in advance, which will change Rural Settlement Spatialstructure under the freedom of choice.