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Objective
After completing this section, you will be able to identify what counties make up the Austin metropolitan area as well as the principal cities. You will also be able to identify some of the suburbs within the area.
Definition
What exactly is the Austin metropolitan area anyway?
A metropolitan area usually refers to an urban region, connecting principal cities with surrounding territory they have socioeconomic ties with.
For this guide, we'll refer to the definition set by the Office of Management and Budget which dictates the counties and principal cities that make up the Austin metropolitan area, also referred to as Greater Austin.
Counties
Five counties make up the Greater Austin area: Williamson, Travis, Bastrop, Caldwell, and Hays.
Bastrop: situated on the east side, this county shares its name with the city of Bastrop.
Caldwell: located southeast, this county has the smallest population out of the five counties.
Hays: on the southwest side, the largest city in the county is San Marcos which also serves as county seat.
Travis: in the center, this county is home to the city of Austin although portions of it also lies in Williamson and Hays.
Williamson: residing in the north, Georgetown serves as county seat although Round Rock is the largest city in the county.
Source: The Portal to Texas History
Principal Cities
Two cities within Greater Austin are designated as principal cities: Austin, the capital city of Texas, and Round Rock, north of Austin.
Think About It
The definition above mentions socioeconomic ties. What do you think that means? Why would several areas be bound together to form a region? For a hint, look at the map here and consider the major highways and where they go.
In the next section, you will learn about some of the major communities located within the Greater Austin area.
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