What role do site and situation play in the development of primate cities?
Many primate cities are found along a coastline, and often enjoy a mild climate, which makes them a good place to live. Primate cities located away from a coast are usually along a river. Being next to an ocean or a river has helped many cities to become important trading centers. Their location by bodies of water can also have helped to protect them from attack.
What relationship do you see between primate cities and capital cities?
Most primate cities are also capital cities, because many countries choose their largest and wealthiest city to be their capital. Not all capital cities have twice the population of the next largest city in the country. Other capital cities, such as Ankara, Turkey, or Canberra, Australia, have been chosen as capitals because they were not their country’s largest cities as a way of spreading power more evenly throughout a country.
What might explain why some countries do not have a primate city?
Countries that don't have primate cities usually have many large cities, but no city is the largest and most important in the country. This is true of very large countries such as India and the United States. In countries, there are often several very large cities with substantial economic power and culture.