Abstract:
Since the 1990s, China has witnessed unprecedented urbanization that has led millions of Chinese to move from the countryside to the cities. In order to face this urban population growth, during the past three decades, the Chinese government has been financing the construction of hundreds of new cities and new districts projects. Since this urbanization process outpaced the migratory flow, the new-built urban infrastructures remain largely empty. Based on these assumptions, the international media have spread all over the world the so-called Chinese "ghost town". The aim of this paper is to describe the traits of “ghost cities” and to explain which are the causes behind the shaping of this city image. Starting from the history of Chinese urban evolution in the first chapter, the focus of the second is shifted on the analysis of this urban phenomenon’s process. Using Ordos as a case of study to further explain the phenomenon, the third chapter proposes the translation of a master thesis about Ordos and its transformation in a "ghost city". Finally, the comment of the translated passage is presented in the fourth chapter.
