Spain: Changing Century, Changing Cycle? Large Spanish Cities on the Threshold of the Twenty-first Century

During the second half of the twentieth century the large Spanish cities underwent the most decisive transformations in their history, characterised by a first stage (1959–1975) of concentration of population and activities in main urban areas and followed by a second stage (1975–1996) of more moderate demographic growth and certain dispersal of urbanisation. The growth and opening of economy, the general modernisation of the society, the democratisation and convergence with the rest of Europe are the main causes of these transformations.