The Process of Urbanization changes in Guilan Province

One of the characteristics of our age is urbanization, increasing of urban population and developing and growing of towns and cities. The third millennium has been called urbanization age because urban population has increased from 29 million in 1800 to 2/8 billion in 2000. It is forecasted that urban population will be 3/3 billion in 2030, and 90 percent of this population will live in the third world cities. Urbanization in Gilan province has ever been less than its average in Iran but its urban system has been similar to the rest of Iran. Urban pyramid is unbalanced and unequal in Gilan, and the top of the pyramid is very narrow due to existence of big cities, and the base of the pyramid is very wide due to existence of many small towns..
This research based on studying in Guilan province is going to analyze urbanization dimensions and trends, the increase of city numbers through transformation of villages to towns, and primate city indexes in it. The type of research is applied and its method is descriptive-analytical. Required data has been collected through the results of public Censuses of Housing and Population from 1956 to 2006.
The survey of population and urbanization in Guilan province shows that urban population were increasing from 1956 to 1986, and had a falling trend from 1986 to 1996; in all of these periods urban population growth rate was more than rural and total population growth rate but rural population was always more than urban population. In 2006, for the first time urban population has transcended to rural population. The increase of extent and ratio of urbanization has been due to increase of rural immigration and the transformation of villages to towns. During the late five decades, Guilan province has ever faced with increasing of city numbers. The average of population of villages transformed to towns is low. Grouping of cities shows that the cities with population between 10000 and100000 have increased from 1966 to 2006, but cities with population more than 100000 havent changed so much. The survey of numbers and population of cities in different groups shows that small towns (less than 25000 populations) have had the least population and the most numbers in all periods of Censuses. Primate city indexes in Guilan indicate that urban system is unbalanced; it means that primate city degree and centralization are high there. The main reason for this centralization is the state's policies and modernization.
Surveys indicate urbanization level in Guilan province has increased and rural population ratio has decreased in five recent decades. Rasht city (the capital of the province) has had the most urban population; within the six periods of Censuses the average of its population has been 43/1 percent of urban population of Guilan province. This unbalanced population distribution in the province is because of unbalanced distribution of services and facilities there. So it is necessary to change or improve the population settlement and settling pattern in order to achieve development.