The small town of Flora, Oregon, US, is unincorporated, but considered a populated place.

A 'settlement' is not the same everywhere

Countries do not classify settlements in one universal way. A place called a town in one country might count as a village or even a city somewhere else.

Human Settlement Definitions

Close-up of a detailed road map highlighting routes in southeastern Australia.

Governments use their own labels

Australia defines a populated place as a named settlement with 200 or more people. In the United States, agencies use separate labels for things like populated places, census areas, and civil divisions.

Human Settlement Definitions