1. Semi- Compact Settlement: As the name suggests, the dwellings or houses are not well-knitted. Such settlements are characterized by a small but compact nucleus around which hamlets are dispersed. It covers more area than the compact settlements. These settlements are found both in plains and plateaus depending upon the environmental conditions prevailing in that area. Such settlements are situated along streams in Manipur Mandla and Balaghat districts of Madhya Pradesh, and Rajgarh district of Chhattisgarh. Different tribal groups inhabit such settlements in the Chhota Nagpur region. In Nagaland, such settlements may be in the form of blushing villages. Like compact settlements, semi-compact settlements may also have different patterns.

Some of the patterns are

(i) Checkerboard Pattern: This is a type of settlement found generally at the junction of two roads. The village streets meet each other at an angle or are parallel to each other. This is because of the tendency to align the dwellings along cardinal axes. This pattern is common in the northern plains.

(ii) Elongated Pattern: Such settlement occurs as a result of elongation of the rectangular pattern due to influence of site features. For instance, in the Ganga plains, in areas liable to inundation, the rectangular pattern becomes unusually elongated along the high ground. Even otherwise the advantage offered by riverside location forces such a pattern.

(iii) Fan Shaped Pattern: This is seen where some focal points or line is situated at one end of the village. A focal object may be a tank a Riverside, a road, an orchard, a well or even a place of worship. Such Patterns are common in the delta region where the dwellings simply Follow the fan shaped profile of the delta as in the case of Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Cauvery, etc. Such patterns are also common in the Himalayan foothills.

3. Hamleted Settlements: These types of settlements, are fragmented into several small units. The main settlement does not have much influence on the other units. Very often the original site is not easily distinguishable, and these hamlets are often spread over the area with intervening fields.

This segregation is often influenced by social and ethnic factors. The hamlets are locally named as faliya, para, dhana, dhani, nanglay etc. These settlements are generally found in West Bengal, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and coastal plains. Geographically it covers lower Ganga plain, lower valleys of the Himalayas and central plateau or upland region of the country.

4. Dispersed Settlements: This is also known as isolated settlements. Here the settlement is characterized by units of small size which may consist of a single house to a small group of houses. It varies from two to seven huts.

Therefore, in this type, hamlets are scattered over a vast area and does not have any specific pattern. Such type of settlements is found in tribal areas of central part of India covering Chhota Nagpur plateau, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, etc. Such patterns are also common in the hills of north Bengal, Jammu & Kashmir, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

There are three factors that influence the type of settlements in India. These factors

• Physical
• Ethnic or cultural and
• Historical or defence.

(i) Physical Factors: These include relief, altitude, soil capability, climate,

drainage, ground water level, etc. These factors influence the type and spacing of dwelling or instance, in dry regions of Rajasthan, water is a crucial factor and, therefore, houses are situated along a pond or well which guides the compactness of the settlement.

(ii) Ethnic and Cultural Factors: These include aspects like caste, community, ethnicity and religion. In India it is commonly found that the mainland owning caste resides at the centre of the village and the other service providing castes on the periphery. This leads to social segregation and fragmentation of a settlement into several units

(iii) Historical or Defence Factors: In the past, mostly border areas of northwestern plains were conquered or attacked frequently by outsiders. For a long time, apart from attack from outsiders, there had been continuous fight between princely states and kingdom within the country; therefore, security concerns favoured the evolution of nucleated settlements.