Beépítettség

Beépítettség is primarily a planning-oriented term in Hungarian that denotes the share of a land area, usually a parcel or district, that has been developed with built structures or impervious surfaces. It is typically expressed as a percentage: beépítettség = built area / total land area × 100%. The concept is used to describe urban density, guide land-use decisions, and regulate development through zoning and building regulations. Calculation methods vary by jurisdiction; what counts as built area can include building footprints and sometimes areas occupied by courtyards, parking, or other impervious surfaces, while green spaces and certain public spaces may be evaluated separately.

In practical terms, higher beépítettség indicates denser development and less open space, influencing street geometry, infrastructure needs, and environmental performance. Local planning codes frequently specify maximum or minimum beépítettségi értékek (values) for different zones, balancing needs for housing, commerce, and public spaces with considerations such as flood risk, heat islands, and accessibility.

Beyond urban planning, beépítettség is sometimes encountered in broader discussions of how built form shapes environments. However, the closely related concept of embeddedness in social theory—describing how economic activity is shaped by social relations and institutions—is more commonly rendered in Hungarian as beágyazottság rather than beépítettség.

Etymology: the term derives from beépíteni and beépítés, meaning to build into or to embed; beépítettség, therefore, denotes the extent to which an area is built up.

See also: zoning, building density, land-use planning.