Zipf's law and urban scaling: Hypotheses towards a Unified Urban Theory

Abstract

We propose hypotheses describing the empirical finding of an association between the exponents of urban GDP scaling and Zipf's law for cities. These hypotheses represent various combinations of directional or reciprocal causal links between the two phenomena and include inter- and intra-city processes. Future theories and models can be motivated with and categorized according to these hypotheses. This paper intends to stimulate the discussion around the processes behind these phenomena and pave the way to a Unified Urban Theory.