InEngland,Wales andNorthern Ireland, atown traditionally was a settlement which had a charter to hold a market or fair and therefore became a "market town". InScotland, the equivalent is known as aburgh. There are two types of burgh:royal burghs and burghs of barony.
TheLocal Government Act 1972 allowsParish Councils in England and Wales to resolve themselves to beTown Councils, under section (245 subsection 6) and thus declare that the settlement is a town. Many formerurban districts andmunicipal boroughs have such a status, along with other settlements with no prior town status. Historically, villages became towns by award of amarket charter. The cultural importance placed on charters remains, and it is not an unusual event for towns across the UK to celebrate their charter in an annualCharter Day (normally afair or medieval market).
It is sometimes considered that avillage becomes ade facto town as soon as it reaches a significant size orpopulation, although this is an informal definition and no particular numbers are agreed upon.[1] Some very large villages, such asKidlington in Oxfordshire, have resolved not to become a town.
Ranked by population:
There is no single definition of a town. According to the Ordnance Survey, a town is a centre of business and population with an area in excess of 2.5 square kilometres. Some places may be smaller but were historically considered towns, for example market or former county towns.