摘要:The Southern Carpathians cover 21% of the Carpathian area in Romania and encompass 19% of allrural settlements. The population of this geographical space numbers some 640,000 people. The human habitatconsists of numerous urban and rural communities grouped administratively into 11 counties and fourdevelopment regions. It is the medium-sized communes that have the highest concentration of population. Thevaried range of landforms in the Southern Carpathians (depressions, valley corridors, and mountain slopes)have always offered favourable condition for the development of human settlements. The expansion of thehousehold, its organisation and functional typology are influenced by the geographical position. Thedemographic transition has changed the age-group structure, the young-population group decreasing throughmigration in search for better-paid jobs (as did also other age-groups), ageing of the population, etc.