Which is the Most Isolated City in the World?

[Sunspace]

Could one define Perth as being more isolated than Honolulu, because Hawaii is at a midpoint of major trade and shipping routes, and Perth isn’t? (Or is it?)

Maybe we could get some kind of size/isolation quotient going…

[Trygve]

Tbilisi, Georgia may not be very isolated as the crow flies, but given the road conditions in Georgia it sure feels like it. By road Istanbul is 36 hours away.

[MC_Master_of_Ceremonies]

*Originally posted by Wikkit *
**Holy cow, that’s a huge number to define a city. The city I grew up near was 1200, the one I’m in now just beat 50000. There are no cities in the state of Iowa, apparently.

I’d argue that you need to reduce your definition, by at least two orders of magnitude. **

That’s the US defintion of city, it varies round the world. I live in Reading, Berkshie UK which has a population of 146,700, yet we are still classified as a town. Usually in the UK a city was defined a somewhere with a cathedral.

[bordelond]

*Originally posted by dutchboy208 *
My money is on Vladivostok.

Less than 500 miles from Seoul, though. PyongYang, North Korea is even closer to Vladivostok than that.

[Really_Not_All_That_Bright]

Didn’t think of that… but good luck trying to travel from Vladivostok to Pyongyang.

[Wumpus]

Yah, Vladivostok is also only 665 miles from Tokyo and 827 miles from Beijing. Compared to Perth, it’s right in the middle of things!

There’s not much point obsessing over the definition the word “city” for this question, since the term is purely a legalism and is not likely to be a uniform size even within a single country (it certainly isn’t within the US.) It’s better to just say we’re interested in population centers of 500,000 or more, regardless of whether they’re called cities, SMSAs, towns, villages, boroughs, or wapentakes.

[t-keela]

Thanks flodnak I only mentioned it because they claim to be the northernmost city in the world.

As far as the OP goes, I’m pretty sure Honolulu answers Jervoise’s question.

But since we’re still throwing it around. The little island of Tristan de Cunha in the middle of the south Atlantic lays claim to most remote. Remote being far away AND out of the way. It’s about halfway between the souther extremes of Africa and South America. (See we’ve gotten away from cities as described in the OP)

It is permanently populated (barely) no tourism, no businesses IIRC, no airports, no established ports, not on a trade route. One ship stop off coast there once a year. The island was evacuated many years ago due to volcanic activity. (heh) most of them didn’t return.

damn, gotta go, see ya

[dantheman]

Well, dang, I was going to say Reykjavik! Guess that’s too close to the rest of Scandinavia, huh?

[Sofa_King]

I wonder if Auckland, New Zealand gives Perth a run for its money. It seems to be a little closer as the crow flies to Hobart and Sydney, but perhaps we could add extra points for a thousand-plus miles of ocean between them.

[Jake4]

*Originally posted by MC Master of Ceremonies *
**That’s the US defintion of city, it varies round the world. I live in Reading, Berkshie UK which has a population of 146,700, yet we are still classified as a town. Usually in the UK a city was defined a somewhere with a cathedral. **

I don’t recall there being a “US definition” of city, and if there is, it’s lower limit is definitely not 500,000. I live in “The City of Eugene,” pop. 137k+.

[interface2x]

*Originally posted by dantheman *
**Well, dang, I was going to say Reykjavik! Guess that’s too close to the rest of Scandinavia, huh? **

Hey, you’re not alone, I was gonna guess the same thing.

[Ike_Witt]

*Originally posted by syncrolecyne *
**I’m surprised none has mentioned Punta Arenas, Chile.
**

Ushuia, Argentina is within 200 - 300 miles.

[Ike_Witt]

*Originally posted by syncrolecyne *
**I’m surprised none has mentioned Punta Arenas, Chile.
**

Ushuia, Argentina is within 200 - 300 miles.

[Flymaster]

While we’re still debating the definition of city, in new england, a city has an elected mayor, and a town has a hired town manager, with an elected town council.

[SmackFu]

But Perth isn’t that isolated, I can easily fly to it in not much time at all. Are there any cities you can’t easily fly to?

[Achernar]

Bagdad?

[antechinus]

From hyperdictionary.com

2. A corporate town; in the United States, a town or
   collective body of inhabitants, incorporated and governed
   by a mayor and aldermen or a city council consisting of a
   board of aldermen and a common council; in Great Britain,
   a town corporate, which is or has been the seat of a
   bishop, or the capital of his see.

     A city is a town incorporated; which is, or has
     been, the see of a bishop; and though the bishopric
     has been dissolved, as at Westminster, it yet
     remaineth a city.                     --Blackstone
   
     When Gorges constituted York a city, he of course
     meant it to be the seat of a bishop, for the word
     city has no other meaning in English law. --Palfrey
   

**MC MofC ** said a city needs a cathedral. One definition above requires a bishop. Is a cathedral the ‘seat of a bishop’? Does a bishop require a cathedral to sit?

[clairobscur]

*Originally posted by antechinus *
**From hyperdictionary.com

**MC MofC ** said a city needs a cathedral. One definition above requires a bishop. Is a cathedral the ‘seat of a bishop’?

Yes. A cathedral doesn’t need to be an impressive building. It just needs a bishop.

** Does a bishop require a cathedral to sit? **

Nope, because a bishop isn’t necessarily the head of a bishopric. He might be a deputy to another bishop, hold some administrative job, be a bishop “in partibus”, etc…

[Jervoise]

*Originally posted by Sofa King *
**I wonder if Auckland, New Zealand gives Perth a run for its money. It seems to be a little closer as the crow flies to Hobart and Sydney, but perhaps we could add extra points for a thousand-plus miles of ocean between them. **

Don’t forget Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city on the North Island.

**Wumpus:

There’s not much point obsessing over the definition the word “city” for this question, since the term is purely a legalism and is not likely to be a uniform size even within a single country (it certainly isn’t within the US.) It’s better to just say we’re interested in population centers of 500,000 or more, regardless of whether they’re called cities, SMSAs, towns, villages, boroughs, or wapentakes.

**Good point. I also agree with those who said 500,000 may be setting the bar a little high; maybe 250,000 would be a more appropriate measure.

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

**Sunspace:

Could one define Perth as being more isolated than Honolulu, because Hawaii is at a midpoint of major trade and shipping routes, and Perth isn’t? (Or is it?)

Maybe we could get some kind of size/isolation quotient going…

The port of Fremantle, Perth handles some $13.7 billion worth of trade annually. Probably not to the scale of Honolulu, but its no backwater.

[dtilque]

In relationship to Auckland

*Originally posted by Jervoise *
Don’t forget Wellington, New Zealand’s capital city on the North Island.

But how large is the metro area of Wellington? The city itself is only about 150,000. However, Christchurch on South Island has a population of 295,000, so it’s metro area may be over the 500,000 limit.

According to the distance page someone posted above, it’s 1337 miles from Auckland to Sydney, which is 30 miles more than Perth to Adelaide. So if Wellington and Christchurch are less than 500,000 then Auckland is more remote than Perth.

Not that it makes much difference, as they are still less remote than Honolulu.

I also agree with those who said 500,000 may be setting the bar a little high; maybe 250,000 would be a more appropriate measure.

I still think it would be Honolulu.