A Regional Core, Adjacent, Periphery Model for National Economic Geography Analysis

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core regions Niederbayern (D) and Oost Vlaanderen (B) are classified as C4:5, indicating five urban
centres with a population density of more than 500 people per square kilometre but less than 1000.

The symbolism used in the CAP model thus reflects two important characteristics of a region,
namely, urban population density and the number of urban areas in the region with a similar or greater
population density. The same notation is used for the adjacent and periphery regions.

The initial core region urban population density criterion is contravened in the case of a C5
core region. This classification symbolises a core region in an autonomous national country that has
one major urban centre (agglomerate) having a population density less than 500,000. The C5
symbolism applies to Belfast, in Northern Ireland, and Dublin in the region called the East.

5 The Classification and Distribution of the EU Regions

The objective of this section is to classify the administrative regions into core, adjacent, and
periphery regions, and to examine their distribution throughout the countries of the EU. The
significance of the classification of the regions lies in the subsequent ability to identify and compare
industry location and concentration before and after the complete removal of trade barriers in 1992.
Unification encourages the former border periphery regions to establish interindustry and interregional
economic linkages to stimulate their economic development. As such, the creation of an integrated
geographic market results in a reclassification of the border periphery regions contiguous to foreign
core regions.

This section focuses on regional classification, rather than on the comparison of interregional
industry concentration. The former analysis must precede the latter, which becomes a topic for
subsequent research. ¹² The analysis in this section yields answers to several key questions. First, how
many CAP regions are there in each individual member state? The answer to this query will reveal the
number of CAP regions in each country, and the change in the classification of periphery regions to

¹² Core regions are agglomerates. These agglomerates are distributed throughout the individual EU countries. Identifying
their location contributes significantly to the analysis of industry concentration in the EU. Furthermore, it facilitates the EU
interregional comparison of regional industry structures, concentration, and specialisation.

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