In search of divided spaces: socio-economic vulnerability and foreign citizens’ settlement patterns in some major cities of northern and southern Italy

Divided cities are blended cities. Often, if the social fabric is divided, so too is the urban space. Such a division is frequently associated with socio-economic polarization, fuelling spatial segregation of the most fragile population. The latest studies on this subject found a clear North–South hierarchy of urban areas in Europe, within a context of increasing multiculturalism and socio-economic inequalities. It has been reported that southern urban areas with higher levels of segregation also tend to be those combining a weaker economy with a higher degree of social vulnerability. The main purpose of this article is to test this hypothesis in two different urban models of Italy by contrasting Milan and Turin (northern Italy) with Bari and Naples (southern Italy). Our analytical strategy is conducted at the sub-municipality level using data from the last Italian census and ad hoc spatial units. Through the use of the bivariate local Moran’s I index, we assess the local spatial correlation between the degree of potential vulnerability and the spatial concentration of foreign citizens (compared to Italians). The results reveal local heterogeneities that only partially confirm some of the well-known spatial disparities within the Italian context, thereby underscoring the importance of adopting local approaches in such analyses. In northern cities, patterns appear more polarized, whereas in the south spatial inequality is more widespread. In the latter context, Italian citizens are more concentrated in local clusters characterized by high potential vulnerability and a low presence of foreign residents compared to northern cities.