THE ESSENCE AND PROBLEMS OF DEFINING THE TERM «RURAL TERRITORY»

This article is devoted not to urbanized territories, but to rural territories. It turned out that when considering this term, there is a need for an in-depth study of the origins of the formation of the concept of "village". Historically, a village is both a diversity of resources and a place of production capacities and agricultural products. The village has always been a mirror of the spirituality of peoples, traditions and reflected its national exclusivity. The village is rich in natural biodiversity and cultural heritage. All this requires the need to study, develop and improve rural territories. But it turned out that in the Ukrainian legislation the concept of "rural territories" is not officially approved. The term is used in state acts, but its definition in the legal field is not officially. This concept has been studied by many scientists in different fields of scientific activity. The term "rural territories" is used in various concepts and development strategies, for example: "Draft Strategy for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Territories of Ukraine for the Period up to 2030"; in the legal field; in political slogans, etc. The term "rural territories" is used, but unfortunately, it has not yet been officially enshrined in law. And this has led to many problems, such as: confusion in the theoretical aspect, corruption schemes at the practical level, incorrect interpretation in regulatory documents, and with all this, the failure to allocate funds due to the uncertainty of the object, which leads to the decline of rural areas. But there is a fact of population migration from urbanized cities to the hinterland (villages, suburban areas, etc.). This is explained by poor ecology, the inadequate condition of Ukrainian cities, the development of viruses (Covid, hepatitis, etc.) in cities with a population of over a million, and military actions. Therefore, the article discusses some of the positive aspects of living in rural areas, and also studies the problems that a modern resident may face. Domestic and foreign researchers helped to understand the question of what "rural territories" are and what characterizes them. The article provides an interdisciplinary analysis of the definition of rural areas from different scientific points of view. There are many definitions in different countries. They vary depending on the economic, social, demographic and political characteristics of the states. In the article, we also gave our individual definition of the term "rural territories " from the point of view of a new look at town planning science. We consider it important to pay special attention to the development of rural areas in the urban development aspect. This study can help the Ukrainian Legislation and regulatory framework to achieve success in the tasks set on the topic of regional development. And it can also become a good foundation for subsequent scientific works.