Does the long history of urbanization present identifiable ­regularities through time and space? Are there long-run trends in the development process? In the complex evolution of human ­societies are there other determining factors than political ­decisions, statesmen, wars, economic crises, religions, races, cultures, languages, and sociological values? Is the geographical space a simple setting or a major element of the urban world's evolution? Those are some ­fundamental questions this book addresses in an original way that mixes historical facts, a world scope, an encyclopedic culture, reflections, and space-economic theory. From Çatalhöyük and Jericho to London, São Paulo, Los Angeles, Johannesburg, Shanghai and Tokyo, it reconstitutes the fascinating journey of the urban evolution.