Knowledge mapping of research on peri urban areas: a bibliometric analysis

Peri urban areas have been a key interest area in the literature because of their dynamic and transformative nature. The expansion of the urban population worldwide and the substantial urbanization of the periphery have long been implicit topics of urban and regional studies as one of the developing phenomena of this century. Peri urban area is this peripheral, or the area where the future population growth will be accommodated. Cities rapid urbanization and growth has led to the emergence of peri-urban spaces, which act as transitional zones between rural and urban ecosystems. The paper aims to explore and map the literature in the domain of peri urban areas through conducting a bibliometric analysis. A dataset of 1817 articles from Web of Science were reviewed and analyzed to understand the thematic evolution of the domain and the gap areas in the knowledge domain. It was found that peri urbanization or peri urban areas have been studied in the context of change of land use and land cover, the process of urbanization and the resulting environmental impacts. The domain remains under-researched or limited research in context of spatial mapping and analysis through geographic information system and remote sensing with case based empirical studies, social dimension of peri urban challenges and status and governance in these areas. The findings of this research can be used to better understand the evolution of the concept, process and its implications. It is important for planners, policy makers, academicians and scholars to address the gap areas through further research in the sectors in order to be able to recommend suitable strategies and actionable insights for better planning and management of the dynamic peri urban areas.