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

Human Settlement Definitions | DeepSwipe