城市化是随着生产力的发展在人类历史进程中必然出现的普遍趋势。我国社会主义初级阶段发展社会生产力所要解决的历史课题之一,就是实现工业化。而城市化是工业化的必然结果,即随着工业化进程的推进,人口和经济必然要在一定程度上向城市空间集中。西部地区城市的发展既是西部地区经济发展的必然结果,又是西部地区生产力进一步发展的增长极。本文在系统考察西部地区城市现状的基础上,对如何协调城乡关系,进一步发挥城市在西部发展和开发中的作用进行一些探讨。一、西部城市化状况的考察西部地区是我国黄河、长江、珠江等主要流域的发源地,也是中华民族的主要发祥地。在中国古代,先后有十几个王朝在西部的陕西、四川、宁夏等建都,故而在西部形成了一些都市和城镇,成为当时西部甚至全国的政治、经济、文化的中心。从公元前11 Urbanization is a general trend inevitable in the course of human history with the development of productive forces. One of the historical issues to be solved in the development of social productive forces in the initial stage of our socialism is to achieve industrialization. Urbanization is the inevitable result of industrialization. With the advancement of industrialization, population and economy are inevitably concentrated to urban space to a certain extent. The development of western cities is not only the inevitable result of the economic development in the western region but also the growth pole of the further development of the productive forces in the western region. On the basis of systematically examining the status quo of cities in western regions, this paper discusses how to coordinate the relationship between urban and rural areas and further develop the role of cities in the development and development of the western region. I. Investigation of the Urbanization in Western China The western region is the birthplace of China’s major river basins such as the Yellow River, the Yangtze River and the Pearl River. It is also the major cradle for the Chinese nation. In ancient China, more than a dozen dynasties built capital cities such as Shaanxi, Sichuan and Ningxia in the west. Therefore, some cities and towns were formed in the west and became the political, economic and cultural centers of the time in the west and even the whole country. From 11 BC