rural?ly adv.
Synonyms: rural, bucolic, rustic, pastoral
These adjectives all mean of or typical of the country as distinguished from the city. Rural applies to sparsely settled or agricultural country: ?I do love quiet, rural England? (George Meredith). Bucolic is often used pejoratively or facetiously of country people or their manners: ?The keenest of bucolic minds felt a whispering awe at the sight of the gentry? (George Eliot). Rustic frequently suggests a lack of sophistication or elegance, but it may also connote artless and pleasing simplicity: ?some rustic phrases which I had learned at the farmer's house? (Jonathan Swift). The hiker slept in a charming, rustic cottage. Pastoral, which evokes the image of shepherds, sheep, and verdant countryside, suggests serenity: The train passed through pastoral landscapes.
I wouldn't look at it as the "number of people" but pertaining to the above characteristics. I also heard that rural dentist are prone to burn out...
