As a non-American, I’m very confused by this. If it’s a town, it’s not rural by definition. Because, you-know, it’s urban.

Also, could we get a definition of town vs small town. Do you not have the concept of a village? (Village in the UK would be a settlement with a population of a couple of thousand, with usually a pub, local shop, maybe a post office and primary school if you’re lucky).

  • Contemporarium@lemm.eeEnglish
    7·
    4 days ago

    There’s villages, towns and cities.

    Cities can have unlimited traffic lights, towns are limited, and villages can have one.

    I moved from Orange County CA to the rust belt and there are a lot of former thriving towns around the main city I live in that have since turned to villages. It’s wild because you’ll see intersections that obviously used to have lights that now have stop signs or just nothing

    • bitjunkie@lemmy.world
      3·
      3 days ago

      I’ve never once heard an American use the term “village” to describe a municipality, even ironically.

      • Contemporarium@lemm.eeEnglish
        1·
        23 hours ago

        It’s not rly a term that’s used but it’s the correct term as well as what it says on welcome signs. Like “welcome to the village of [name]”. Most people just use the term town/small town. I was just explaining the true difference between the three for OPs question

      • tmyakal@lemm.ee
        3·
        3 days ago

        It’s dependent on a given state’s terminology. New York, for example, has villages. They’re municipalities that fall within towns, but collectively offer additional services that the town does not. So I could live in the village of Pomona, in the town of Haverstraw, and I’d need to pay taxes to the village and the town separately.