Published October 21, 2026 | Version v1
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Demographic hierarchy and spatial centrality of settlements: a GIS-based central place analysis of Karabakh, Azerbaijan

Authors/Creators

  • 1. EDMO icon Baku State University

Description

Settlement hierarchy is commonly associated with population size, yet demographic scale does not necessarily correspond to the spatial centrality of settlements within regional systems. This study examines the demographic and proximity-based hierarchy of settlements in the Karabakh Economic Region of Azerbaijan and evaluates the extent to which its spatial organization corresponds to the principles of Central Place Theory (CPT). The analysis integrates official administrative and demographic statistics with OpenStreetMap-derived geospatial data in a GIS-based framework. The official settlement system comprises 669 settlements, including 11 cities, 37 towns, and 621 villages, with a total population of 751.1 thousand people as of 1 January 2026. For settlement-level spatial analysis, 752 OSM-defined village and hamlet points were assigned to their geographically nearest potential central places using Euclidean distance. Population-based classification, nearest-centre allocation, mean, median and maximum distance measures, Voronoi (Thiessen) hinterland delineation, and Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses were applied.

The results reveal a pronounced divergence between demographic hierarchy and proximity-based spatial centrality. Barda recorded the largest number of allocated rural settlements (Ni=95), followed by Aghdara (88), Khojaly (74), Fuzuli (71), and Khojavand (59). However, hinterland configurations differed substantially: Barda combined the highest Ni with a mean settlement distance of 8.75 km, whereas Aghdara exhibited a considerably more dispersed pattern with a mean distance of 16.83 km and a maximum of 41.62 km. Central-place population was not significantly associated with either the number of allocated rural settlements (Pearson r=0.232, p=0.355; Spearman ρ=0.255, p=0.308) or their mean distance (r=0.183, p=0.468; ρ=0.285, p=0.252). In contrast, the number of allocated settlements and mean distance were significantly positively related (r=0.707, p=0.001; ρ=0.618, p=0.006).

These findings demonstrate that demographic size and proximity-based centrality constitute distinct dimensions of the Karabakh settlement system. The results provide partial support for CPT by identifying differentiated central places and theoretical hinterlands, while showing that their hierarchy cannot be explained by population size alone. The study provides a spatial baseline for subsequent integration of transport-network accessibility and service-function indicators into a multidimensional assessment of settlement centrality.

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ISSN
3006-8703
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https://www.researchgate.net/publication/416623224

References

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