This report presents the characteristics and research trends in “Rural Planning and Settlement” from the standpoint of agricultural engineering. First, the agricultural and forestry administration which is in charge of rural planning and improvement is characterized as follows. 1) Agents authorized by the government to implement rural planning and improvement have shifted from farmers' groups to municipalities such as cities, towns, villages and settlements. 2) Zoning on agricultural promotion area (which is rural land governed by legislative forms) is to be formulated by municipal authorities by integrating individual plans laid by rural settlements. 3) Integrated improvement projects in farm villages basically consist of redevelopments of rural settlements by improving both production bases and living environment on the level of rural settlement where production and living are thoroughly connected. The report further describes the historical backgrounds from which these characteristics stem. However, despite the emphasis on the importance of rural settlement, the agricultural and forestry administration has not recognized comprehensively the importance of rural settlements and their spacial structure. Second, in reference to research trends on rural planningin the field of agricultural engineering, the author cites statistical data for each section presented at conferences and lecture meetings (or published in the journals of) the Japanese Society of Irrigation, Drainage and Reclamation Engineering, and also cites the transactions of the above society, etc. These sources and studies have a close and direct influence on rural improvement policies since there is only a small number of researchers. It is also noted that in spite of many studies on settlements, few of them include a global viewpoint. Future progress in rural planning and improvement calls for systematic improvement of rural settlements based on a total understanding of the space structure of settlements. Therefore, it is urgent to develop legislative means for land use planning which are closely linked to the spacial structure of rural settlements.