multiple-nuclei theory

In the social sciences, a model of urban land use in which a city grows from several independent points rather than from one central business district. Each point acts as a growth pole for a particular kind of land use, such as industry, retail, or high-quality housing. As these expand, they merge to form a single urban area.

The multiple-nuclei theory, developed by D Harris and E L Ullman in 1945, is the most complicated of the three standard urban land-use models and the only one that gives some insight into the growth of cities in the developing world.