The Effects of Cultural Values on Traditional Islamic-Arabic Houses in the Middle East
Culture and design determine the space-influenced values; they specifically outline space variations between values within a culture in relation to design space-influenced values. By the vision of an ideal life, one can shape and mold the vision of space by reflecting cultural forces such as religious beliefs. The purpose of this study will determine cultural values and religious beliefs and, in turn, assess the effects on the formation of houses in the Middle East. For this principle, the elements of traditional Islamic-Arabic homes showed effects by determining certain elements such as the bent entrance, the courtyard, the Haramlek and Salamlik (women’s and men’s quarters), and the Mashrabiya (wooden windows). Qualitative analysis was used as the method to analyze the case studies comparing traditional courtyard homes to today’s housing. The results have shown that today’s housing was unsuccessful when trying to imitate the provision of privacy as it was in the houses during the past.
Urban Regeneration/Heritage Tourism Endeavours: The Case of Salt, Jordan ‘Local Actors, International Donors, and the State’
This paper focuses on several urban regeneration/heritage tourism projects in Jordan funded and orchestrated by international donor agencies in the 1990s. The research attempts to understand the mechanisms, rationales, internal and external forces, actors, experts, and power networks that privileged a particular discourse on urban generation based on a particular case study (Historic Old Salt Development Project). Discourse analysis and ethnographic encounters enabled the researcher to situate the Historic Old Salt Development Project as part of the overall strategy to upgrade the tourism sector and not out of a conscious motivation of urban regeneration and heritage management. The practice of urban regeneration/heritage management in Salt is tied to sporadic agents of power that generate shock treatments and very modest outcomes in the form of architectural cosmetics rather than an institutionalised practice.
More than a master plan: Amman 2025
Abstract The recent plan for Amman, Jordan, combined elements of both master planning and strategic planning while pushing beyond the boundaries of both to incorporate governmental reorganization, national development concerns, and the “branding” of the city. The paper explores this deviation from traditional master planning and documents the innovations that emerged from a commitment to bring planning and implementation closer together in time and use the planning process to build planning capacity in Amman and throughout Jordan. As planners continue to negotiate between holistic visions and the pressures of development, Amman 2025 exposes the strengths and weaknesses of strategic planning and offers useful lessons.