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AP Human Geography Practice Quiz: The Size and Distribution of Cities

Written by AP Content Team, Verified for 2026 AP Exams, Last updated: May 2026

Test your understanding with short quizzes. This quiz has 7 questions to check your progress.

Question 1 of 7

According to the rank-size rule, if the largest city in a country has a population of 20 million, the second-largest city would have a population of approximately:

All Questions (7)

According to the rank-size rule, if the largest city in a country has a population of 20 million, the second-largest city would have a population of approximately:

A) 20 million

B) 15 million

C) 10 million

D) 5 million

Correct Answer: C

The rank-size rule states that the population of a city is inversely proportional to its rank in the urban hierarchy. Therefore, the second-largest city (rank 2) would have approximately half (1/2) the population of the largest city (20 million / 2 = 10 million).

Which of the following principles best explains a country's urban system where the largest city is more than twice the size of the next largest city, dominating the nation's economic and cultural life?

A) Rank-size rule

B) Primate city

C) Gravity model

D) Central place theory

Correct Answer: B

A primate city is a city that is disproportionately larger than any other in the country and serves as the center of its economy, culture, and government. This pattern is an exception to the rank-size rule.

Christaller’s central place theory uses concepts like range and threshold to explain the ________ of cities.

A) political history

B) internal social structure

C) hierarchy and spacing

D) rate of population growth

Correct Answer: C

Central place theory is a model that explains the number, size, and location of human settlements in an urban system. It posits that cities are distributed in a hierarchical pattern based on the services they provide, which directly relates to their spacing and relative size.

The gravity model is used to predict the degree of interaction and interdependence between two cities. Which two factors are most important in this model?

A) Cultural similarity and political alliance

B) Relative size (population) and distance

C) Economic specialization and climate

D) Historical connection and transportation infrastructure

Correct Answer: B

The gravity model posits that the interaction between two places is a function of their size (population) and the distance between them. Larger and closer cities have a higher degree of interaction and interdependence.

The concept that cities are organized into a series of levels, from small villages to large metropolises, each with a different level of economic and social function, is known as:

A) Urban interdependence

B) Urban hierarchy

C) The primate city rule

D) The gravity model

Correct Answer: B

An urban hierarchy is a ranking of settlements (cities, towns, villages) according to their size and the complexity of their functions. This concept is fundamental to understanding the distribution and interaction of cities.

Which of the following pairs of concepts offers contrasting explanations for the relative size of cities within a country?

A) Hierarchy and interdependence

B) Gravity model and central place theory

C) Rank-size rule and primate city

D) Spacing and relative size

Correct Answer: C

The rank-size rule describes a predictable, balanced distribution of city sizes, whereas the primate city concept describes an unbalanced distribution where one city is overwhelmingly dominant. They represent two different patterns of urban size distribution.

The idea that smaller towns rely on larger cities for specialized services like major hospitals or international airports, while larger cities rely on smaller towns for agricultural goods and labor, is an example of urban:

A) hierarchy

B) spacing

C) interdependence

D) primacy

Correct Answer: C

Interdependence refers to the two-way flow of goods, services, and people between cities of different sizes within an urban system. This mutual reliance is a key characteristic of how cities interact within a hierarchy.