What separates cities from villages?

Question

I see suburbs with tens of thousands of people that are labeled villages AND I see little hick burgs with barely 2000 people that ar labeled cities. What gives?

Answer 1

Well all those little hick towns or villages will be cities soon because of the population explosion and the only thing that really separates them is time.

Answer 2

...Politics.   (ask the Politicians)

Answer 3

Originally, it was by population.  Then what happened is what 500 years ago was considered highly populated, today the numbers are small, but you cannot take away the title of city, so city sticks.

Answer 4

population... state by state has its own guidelines... BUT if it was a village 100 years ago it could be a city population wise but still be called a village...

Answer 5

If it has a cathedral it is a city x

Answer 6

Cities are incorporated, towns or villages are not.

At least in the US.

Answer 7

Villages start with the idea that it's primarily a residential community. Cities start out with the concept that they are a hub of local commerce and industry. Today these terms have been manipulated to attract attention to a perception the community desires. So as growth occurs, the concept of the community changes with development or lack there of. The terms "city" and "village" are synonymous, so the difference can be very little or opposite, the original concept.

Answer 8

Population doesn't have everything to do with labeling a city, village, or town. It has to do with the way it was incorporated when it was established.

Cities are responsible for providing services (sanitation, police, fire, etc.) and collect taxes in order to pay for these services.

Villages are usually smaller area that are usually part of a larger town. The town, and usually the county its in, collect the taxes and provide the services.