Spatial Patterns and Influencing Factors of People’s Commune Sites: A Case Study of Henan Province, China

The people’s commune was a social practice for achieving a communist society after the establishment of New China, but they were dismantled in the early 1980s, along with their legacy. This paper analyzes people’s commune sites, offering guidance for their protection and development. This study used the historical place names of the communes recorded in the Overview of People’s Commune, compiled a comprehensive database of people’s commune sites, and mathematically analyzed the quantity and type of communes. The spatial pattern of people’s commune sites was described via average nearest neighbors, spatial variability, kernel density analysis, and spatial correlation. Moreover, the driving mechanism was measured using the geodetector model. The survey results revealed 327 points related to people’s communes, which were categorized into three main types: agriculture-oriented, industry-oriented, and integrated. Agriculture-oriented communes are the most significant type of people’s commune, accounting for 87.0%. Communes in the northern region of Henan Province are more densely clustered, whereas those in the southeastern region are less concentrated. Moreover, precipitation is the most critical factor affecting the spatial pattern of people’s commune sites, followed by railroad accessibility. A comprehensive literature analysis revealed that water conservancy projects limited the development of communes during the people’s commune period. This paper analyzes the spatial distribution patterns of the sites that have existed historically according to historical gazetteers, revealing the factors that influenced the development of this particular political system. It enriches the spatial scope of the study of people’s communes and provides theoretical references for the future preservation of communal heritage from the perspective of regional heritage.