What does shantytown mean?
A shantytown is a settlement or neighborhood in which people live in makeshift dwellings, often constructed from inexpensive or scavenged materials. The word commonly evokes poverty, insecure housing, overcrowding, and the displacement of families or communities, although it can also describe settlements formed for political or social reasons rather than solely because of economic hardship. In figurative use, “shantytown” can characterize a run-down urban area or a chaotic cluster of temporary structures. The term appears frequently in journalism, literature, political reporting, and discussions of urban development and humanitarian crises. Because it can carry a derogatory or stigmatizing implication, speakers sometimes choose “informal settlement,” “favela,” or “squatter settlement” when those terms are more precise or respectful. The word combines “shanty,” meaning a rough shelter or hut, with “town,” emphasizing that the feature is not an individual building but a whole community formed around such shelters.
nounA settlement or neighborhood consisting of makeshift, often poor-quality dwellings. The term can also figuratively describe a densely populated area marked by deprivation and substandard housing.
- A settlement made up of makeshift, often poorly constructed dwellings.
- A poor or densely populated neighborhood likened to such a settlement.
"After the earthquake, thousands of families were forced to build a shantytown on the outskirts of the city."
"The flood left many families living in a shantytown beside the river."
"The novel depicts the industrial district as a sprawling shantytown crowded with laborers."
The regular plural is “shantytowns.”
"Several shantytowns appeared along the road after the flood."
“Shantytown” names an entire landscape of improvised homes rather than a single shelter—and its history carries the unmistakable association with poverty and displacement.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does shantytown come from?
“Shantytown” is an English compound formed from “shanty” and “town.” “Shanty” was borrowed from French “chantier,” a word historically associated with rough shelters, huts, and building sites, and the compound developed during the nineteenth century for settlements of makeshift dwellings. The English variant spelling “shantih” and French “chantier” reflect the same source tradition.
Related word forms
How shantytown is actually used
The word is common in British and American English and is also widely used internationally. It is descriptive but can sound pejorative when used to characterize an established community; many speakers prefer terms such as “informal settlement” or “squatter settlement” in formal or humanitarian contexts.