Analyzing the regional relations of urban peripherals with the center of Zanjan province

Peri-urban territories as a socio-economic space with a combination of urban and rural characteristics are often known as surrounding areas where agricultural, urban, and natural systems are in stable and continuous interaction with each other. In these areas, there are various connections according to the conditions and economic bases. These connections can create development or anti-development effects for any of the urban or rural spaces (especially villages). By understanding the mentioned issue, this research aims to analyze these regional relations in the center of Zanjan province. Therefore, with a descriptive-analytical method, the method of mutual communication between the surrounding sample villages and the city of Zanjan has been studied, and in this regard, the relevant indicators that were extracted by trusted sources have reached acceptable validity and have been used for the analysis of the research. Documentary and survey information data was collected. AHP and TOPSIS models were used for data analysis. On the other hand, based on the collaborative method carried out by the researchers of this research and some available scientific documents and sources, the degree of dependence of each of the peripheral sample villages to the center of Zanjan city has been determined. The obtained results indicated that peri-urban settlements, despite their spatial integration with urban areas, can be distinguished from both urban and rural areas due to their rapid growth, dynamics, and mixed social, economic, and environmental characteristics. Also, the final results of the research indicate the high dependence of Valaroud village on Zanjan city, and the villages of Dovasb, Dizjabad, and Razbin are placed in the next ranks respectively.