Could someone please explain in detail the differences between 辺、そば、近く「ちかく」、辺り「あたり」，一帯、周り、付近 ? They all seem very similar, even after looking at example sentences.

[s0apgun]

My quick impressions... as far as their most common uses

辺 - area
That area is dangerous.

そば - besides, by
そばに　＝ besides
そばの　＝ nearby, neighboring
Stay beside me. We passed by a school.

近く - near, close
I am close to work. There is a park near.

周り - circumference, around
Whats the circumference of the ball? They gathered around the table.

Hope that helps?

s0apgun Wrote:周り - circumference, around
Whats the circumference of the ball? They gathered around the table.

周り can also be used in the sense of one's surroundings/vicinity (in both the (1) social and (2) physical sense).

Examples:
(1) 周りで何が起きているか知っている
be aware of what is taking place around（自分の）

(2) 周りと折り合いが悪い
be ill at ease with the world

I cannot recommend this website enough when it comes to understanding the nuance between words: http://www.alc.co.jp/ Both of the example sentences above were pulled from the same website.

ありがとう。