The urban environment plays a strong role in the culture and diversity of the people in the cities. A person living in New York City will experience the amazing cultural diversity that the “Big Apple” has to offer. New York City has over a 150 languages spoken there and more than 30 percent of its population is foreign born. Moreover, places like Times Square have been regarded as the “Crossroads of the World”.

New York City residents will also identify density in a different way from people in other parts of the world. This is because the crowds in Midtown Manhattan are only seen during certain time periods. During the rest of the day, the streets are empty as the people are in the buildings. A person in New York City may prefer a certain sports team based on which part of town they grew up in. This differs from someone who grew up in Mumbai, India where most of the citizens watch cricket and cheer on the Indian cricket team.

People separate themselves according to different things like age, interests, religion and language. The type of interest is a reason for division. In college, cheerleaders may band together and so would football players. Additionally, a person’s ethnicity and race makes them identify themselves differently. This is often seen in the way African Americans seem to be hyper segregated in inner city areas. This isolation makes it hard for those in hyper segregation to escape from the poverty.

Nationalities are ways of dividing people too (Italian, Irish, Japanese, Liberian, Australian et al). In high school, Asians may be together and other new immigrants may be clustered with their groups. The level of a person’s income and wealth is a major factor in identity. Richer people tend to be better educated, wear nicer clothes and play different sports than poorer people.

What makes a city is the higher magnitude of the interactions. There are more entertainment options often on an international scale, diversity, religious affiliations and architectural styles. Cities all across the globe share these aspects from Los Angeles to Istanbul to London. It is not strange to see a Hindu temple in Toronto or many Japanese restaurants in Atlanta.

Younger people tend to live in the city. As they get older, they move out into the residential havens in the suburbs which offer a better quality education. In American cities, the suburbs are areas of great affluence. The city inhabitants like to work in the central business district and then leave to their homes in suburbs where they also enjoy lesser taxes.

This has resulted in poorer people occupying the inner city because higher income individuals are moving out and finding better housing in the suburbs. However, the city has produced a lot of creativity among its inhabitants. There have been a lot of success stories in business, politics and other fields in the urban environment. This is evident by the number of patents awarded to urban versus rural areas. This could also be due to the world class institutions being present in the large metropolitan areas like the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities or the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois.

A downside to cities is the sense of detachment that is apparent as opposed to rural areas. On the flip side of the coin, cities have a sense of camaraderie. People feel that they belong to a greater community. Residents are loyal to local teams and brands if they are from a particular city. The Los Angeles Lakers, Clippers and Dodgers enjoy great support from the area. Crowds come together during home games and to celebrate their victories.