Residents’ perception of earthen dwellings in Iran

Ahmadreza Foruzanmehr

doi:10.1080/19463138.2012.718278

Residents’ perception of earthen dwellings in Iran

Foruzanmehr, Ahmadreza 2013-11-01 00:00:00 International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 2013 Vol. 5, No. 2, 179–199, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19463138.2012.718278 Ahmadreza Foruzanmehr* School of the Built Environment, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK; Oxford Designers Ltd., Oxford, UK (Received 5 March 2012; ﬁnal version received 27 July 2012) Although examples of traditional courtyard houses still exist in traditional neighbourhoods of many cities in central Iran, these buildings have been subject to fundamental changes. Considering the impact of all of these changes, the likelihood of a continuing close match between design and user requirements in the traditional house is rather dubious, requires further exploration and explanation, and systematic empirical work. Furthermore, in spite of the existence of a situation where vernacular houses are seen in a state of decline, being replaced by modern counterparts or used for new purposes, these buildings are still cited in academic literature as models of socially acceptable and sustainable practice. In order to ﬁnd out more about this paradoxical situation, we need to know not only about the buildings themselves, but also about the attitudes and opinions of the actual users of these buildings. This article critically and systematically analyses the way in which actual vernacular environments have been subject to changes due to socio-cul- tural challenges, taking into account the perception of their actual users. It encourages an awareness of how relevant many traditional features are to the modern challenges for building sustainable environments. This also generates an understanding of how they may be upgraded to help provide truly sustainable and comfortable buildings for the new millennium. Keywords: traditional; central courtyard houses; vernacular dwellings; Iran; earth buildings; sustainable; change 1. Introduction and Alsayyad 1989, p. 23). In this process, many vernacular traditions have become associated with Technological innovations of the ﬁrst half of the past, underdevelopment and poverty, lead- the twentieth century (Beazley 1977, p. 89) and ing to the perception of vernacular (urban and the steady process of modernisation, urbanisa- architectural) designs as obstacles on the road to tion and globalisation (Vellinga et al. 2007,p. progress rather than as works that are well adapted xiii) have exerted increasing pressure on tradi- to local cultures and environments (Cain et al. tional cultures throughout the world, leading to 1976; Fardeheb 1987; Vellinga et al. 2007, p. xiii). changes of social and economic structures, the ero- Globally and particularly in the Middle East, tra- sion of local cultural values and, with respect to ditional societies and everything associated with the built environment, the internationalisation of them have been thought to indicate backwardness urban/architectural practices, forms and materials. (Madanipour 1998, p. 246). This has led to the When traditional lifestyles and building and cities abandonment and replacement of many distinctive come into contact with forces of change and mod- and unique vernacular urban spaces and, above all, ernisation, conﬂicts are bound to exist (Bourdier *Email: aforuzanmehr@yahoo.com The author was formerly with Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK. © 2013 Taylor & Francis 180 A. Foruzanmehr buildings (Vellinga et al. 2007, p. xiii). This break 2. Vernacular dwellings in hot dry climates with the past has meant that the new forms of urban A large part of the earth (i.e. around 20–30% of environment no longer develop out of the existing its total area) is under the inﬂuence of hot and dry ones, and are often poorly adapted to local needs climates; this part is expanding by 15% as a result and conditions with their sustainability seriously of global warming (Moran 2000, p. 182). Hot dry under question. regions are characterised by a harsh climate: high In contemporary Iran, degradation of tradi- summer daytime temperatures, low relative humid- tional urban fabric and particularly vernacular ity, intense solar radiation, a high rate of night dwellings is among the main challenges con- sky radiation and very low annual rainfall (Konya fronting those who are involved in architectural 1980; Fardeheb 1987, p. 22; Givoni 1998; Hyde and urban activities (both academia and practice). 2000, p. 25). According to the Statistical Centre of Iran (2008), Local people have traditionally learned how out of 15.9 million dwellings (counted in the to cope with this harsh climate during the hottest nationwide census of 2006) in Iran, 11.5 million days of the year. The traditional urban fabric are located in the cities. It has also been pre- and the architecture of vernacular houses in these dicted (Habibi et al. 2007, p. 19) that the surface regions and particularly in the Middle East repre- area of urban spaces in Iran will be doubled by sent a signiﬁcant wealth of traditional technologies 2021 if the rate of population growth and urban- based on climate-responsive buildings (Fardeheb ism stays as it is. The disorganised development 1987). As a repeatedly cited example (such as of cities regardless of the vernacular cultural val- in Heidari 2000 and Schoenauer 2000, p. 150), ues has resulted in traditional urban areas being the Iranian traditional courtyard house is said to abandoned and becoming more prone to degrada- be a combination of experience and invention to tion (Foruzanmehr 2009). A scarcity of appropriate face socio-economic, environmental and cultural public projects in accordance with local people’s challenges and provide a sustainable and liveable needs, and the neglect of the existing traditions in environment. the older areas have doubled the pace of degra- The investigation of the traditional Iranian dation. This is happening despite the fact that urban dwelling and its principles gives a great vernacular urban cores, with their physical and cul- insight into the vernacular architecture of the tural values, could help to create a sense of unity Middle East region. This is because the design within cities and provide a real sense of local iden- of vernacular dwellings in Iran has strongly inﬂu- tity (Foruzanmehr 2009). They could protect cities enced the dwellings in neighbouring regions in the from internal degradation and restrict their unstruc- Middle East (Shoenauer 2000, p. 168). In addition, tured development, leading to more sustainable considering that dwellings are the most common living environments. The economic, social, cul- form of vernacular architecture (Lawrence 2000, tural, environmental and physical signiﬁcance of p. 53), any research on vernacular dwellings will traditional urban fabric and buildings necessitate broaden the knowledge of vernacular architecture their conservation, rehabilitation and regeneration; in general. In this study, vernacular dwellings in the before everything else calls for understanding the hot dry regions of central Iran, particularly those in ways in which they have evolved and changed. the city of Yazd are studied to see how they were Understanding the reasons why some building tra- used in the past, have changed through time, and ditions have ﬂourished and others have struggled are perceived at the present. This will shed light on or declined can help provide new approaches to whether these past architectural and urban design design sustainable spaces, places, localities and solutions are still sustainable in the present-day cities. environments. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 181 2.1. Yazd The history of Yazd dates back to the pre-Islamic era. From then, the city developed The city of Yazd is situated at the fringe of desert slowly until the 1920s, when fast modernising in central Iran, almost 600 kilometres south of the interventions changed the nature and process of capital city of Tehran (Figure 1), at an elevation of development from traditional and slow to mod- 1230 meters above sea level (Iran Meteorological ern and speedy. Figure 2 shows the city and the Organisation 2009). In 2009, Yazd had a popula- location of its traditional (or historic) area. The tra- tion of 527,276 (Statistical Centre of Iran 2009). ditional area encompasses the areas developed in It is an administrative, industrial and market centre various stages from the pre-Islamic periods to early in the region. twentieth century. Yazd has a hot, dry summer and a cold, According to Kalantari and Hataminejad dry winter. The summer and winter periods are (2006), there were 11,200 dwelling units in the his- much longer than the spring and autumn mak- toric area in 1996 (comprising 53% earth buildings, ing it a two-season city (Oliver 1997, p. 134). 41% steel and brick buildings and 6% concrete The annual average temperature is 19.3 C, the or mixed construction). Thirty-seven percent of maximum and minimum recorded temperatures ◦ ◦ the dwellings in the historic area are more than being 45.6 C (recorded in July 1982) and –16 C 70 years old. Sixty-seven percent of the houses (recorded in December 1963), respectively, show- in the historic area are one-storey buildings, 26% ing that the city has experienced a ﬂuctuation of are two-storey buildings and the rest are three- 61.6 C. There is a considerable temperature dif- or multiple-storey buildings. The average area of ference between day and night. In summer, the dwellings in the historic area is 361 m .The average relative humidity is about 18%. The annual average size of a household is 4.5 people per precipitation is low and the average annual rain- household in Yazd, while that of the historic area fall in the city is 71 mm (Iran Meteorological is 3.0. Organization 2009). Figure 1. Map of Iran and the location of Yazd. Source: Adapted from Armanshahr (2009). 182 A. Foruzanmehr Figure 2. The city of Yazd and the location of the historic area. Source: Adapted from Kalantari and Hataminejad (2006). 3. The traditional house in central Iran house, according to Madanipour (1998, p. 141), (kha-ne-ye sonnati) Memarian (1998, p. 101), Noghsan-Mohammadi (2001, p. 158), Sultanzadeh (2005, p. 60) and The typical traditional dwelling type in central Iran Abbott (1977, p. 82), is the commonest type is believed to be the one- or two-storey house throughout the cities of central Iran (Figure 3). centred upon one or two central courtyards (Von It generally contains a symmetrical private open Hardenberg 1982; Vaziritabar 1990; Kheirabadi space in the form of a courtyard (Noghsan- 1991, p. 35; Heidari 2000, p. 27). According Mohammadi 2001, p. 158) which is ﬂanked by to Roaf (1988, p. 120), traditional houses of rooms and loggias on two, three or even four the city of Yazd have almost exclusively been sides. courtyard houses. The single central-courtyard Figure 3. Central courtyard houses in Yazd. Source: Municipality of Yazd: Sazman-e Nosazi va Behsazi-e Shahrdari, Mr. Nematollahi. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 183 Figure 4. A view of a typical central courtyard house. The central courtyard has a small pool of use of different areas of the house during differ- water and beds of mixed planting around it ent seasons has given rise to the term ‘four-season (Figure 4). The house always faces inwards, turning houses’ (Foruzanmehr 2006, p. 27) or ‘year round blank lofty walls to the streets and spaces out- houses’ (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 159). side, responding to traditional social attitudes and Rooms have thick walls and roofs are made the desire for privacy (Abbott 1977; Vaziritabar of sundried or baked (ﬁred) bricks (Abbott 1977, 1990, p. 82; Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 229; p. 82; Kheirabadi 1991, p. 35). Rooms open onto Memarian and Brown 2006, p. 22). In this type the courtyard, and windows on the peripheral of house, the courtyard level is slightly lower than walls are normally lacking or else present only street level. The shape of a courtyard is closely occasionally, of minimal size and above the eye related to the size of the plot, the rectangle being level (Vaziritabar 1990). The lack or small size the most common shape (Noghsan-Mohammadi of windows facilitates keeping out wind and 2001, p. 158). In the typical traditional dwelling, dust from the living spaces and promotes privacy apart from the main central courtyard, there may (Bonine 2000). The walls of contiguous courtyard be a separate courtyard for guests to show respect houses present a solid face to the outside, a barrier and to exhibit the ﬁnancial power of the landlord; to weather, strangers and in many places encroach- but the extra courtyard is usually smaller than the ing sand (The Aga Khan Award for Architecture main one. 1981, p. 48). Rooms and spaces located in the north of the Walking through the narrow streets of Yazd courtyard are exposed to the solar radiation and and other cities in central Iran, one observes that form the winter quarter. Rooms and spaces on the the only opening to a traditional house is its por- south side of the courtyard form the summer quar- tal entrance. The portal entrance normally projects ter. This is the area that receives the most of the (or sets back) from the massive surface of exterior shade and therefore is cooler than the winter quar- walls (Figure 5). It is simply a heavy front door in ter. The main space of the summer quarter is a small houses, while in large houses it could have semi-open space called the talar or eyvan. It is open elaborate elements such as a stone bench, pilasters, to the courtyard and sometimes has a wind-catcher portal arch and a timber front door (Memarian (or badgir) to aid in its cooling. Dwellers migrated 1998, p. 129). The location of the entrance in cen- through the house when the seasons dictated. The tral courtyard houses is related to the shape of the 184 A. Foruzanmehr Figure 5. A portal entrance in Yazd. plot and the position of the surrounding streets hexagonal or octagonal and has a domed roof (Memarian 1998, p. 209). (Bonine 1980, p. 211). There is a long corridor In addition to the existence of a central court- (dalan), designed so that women can be given yard and lofty walls, the attention to privacy is time to wear appropriate dress before the guest also manifested in the front door itself (Memarian gets inside, from the hashti to the main courtyard. 1998, p. 100). The front door has two separate To add to the provision of privacy, the corridor door knockers: the larger one for men (a metal is off axis and has a bend in it to cut the direct hammer) and the smaller one for women (a metal view of the inside of the house from the hashti ring) (see Figure 6). This is to signal to the house- or the street (Beazley and Harverson 1985; Taghi hold that they have male or female guests so that 1990, p. 92; Vaziritabar 1990, p. 14; Memarian the appropriate action can be taken by the occu- 1998, p. 208; Oliver 2003, p. 137; Sultanzade 2005, pants of the house. The practice is now obsolescent, p. 60). Figure 7 shows the plan of a typical entrance however, and most houses today have replaced the to a vernacular house in Yazd. traditional ﬁttings with modern bells (Memarian The vestibule or hashti is a stopping point and 1998, p. 100). The front door opens on to a recep- can be used as a temporary reception room for tion foyer, called hashti, which is usually either those persons who do not need to enter the guest International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 185 Figure 6. A traditional front door in Yazd. room. It usually has two or three niches which beneath (Fardeheb 1987). It also protects the fam- provide a place for people to sit (Taghi 1990, ily from excessive dust and wind (Bonine 1980, p. 93; Memarian 1998, p. 100). In double-courtyard p. 197). However, sleeping on the rooftop and in houses, the vestibule is an element that gives access the courtyard is an obsolete practice due to lower to both reception and private areas. levels of convenience and privacy (because of the Rooftops of vernacular houses in Yazd are commanding view from neighbouring taller build- mostly ﬂat (Figure 8). They were used in sum- ings) and higher levels of air pollution in modern mer for a number of domestic tasks such as drying cities (Madanipour 1998, p. 254). Besides using the washing, getting vegetables and fruits dried, as well roof for sleeping, Iranians turned the roof space to as sleeping (Vaziritabar 1990). Flat rooftops were good account as a place for socialising in the late also used for sleeping during the summer nights. evenings when it was not too hot, an important cul- There the family could enjoy the breezes and cooler tural practice found in many areas of the Middle temperatures unavailable inside the house. The East (Bonine 1980, p. 197; Sibley 2006, p. 53). family’s privacy on the roof was ensured by a para- There is often a basement (zir-zamin) under the pet, higher than standing eye-level, surrounding the summer quarter. The basement was used for rest- edges of the roof. This parapet provides shading ing and sleeping as well as storage. Not only did and allows a portion of the roof surface to stay dwellers migrate through the house during the year relatively cooler and assist cooling in the space from north to south and back but also they did so 186 A. Foruzanmehr Figure 7. Plan of a typical entrance in Nain, Iran. Source: Sultanzade (2005, p. 60). Figure 8. Rooftop of vernacular houses in Yazd. Source: Municipality of Yazd: Sazman-e Nosazi va Behsazi-e Shahrdari, Mr. Nematollahi. throughout the day. In summer, they slept on the The family, having slept on the roof, will rise between 5:30–6:30 am, when the sun rises, and, roof and spent daytime moving around from court- having had a light breakfast including tea, the men yard to summer quarter to the basement depending will leave for their work at 7–7:30 am. The hottest on the outdoor temperature. This is called diur- part of the day, between 1 and 4 pm, is usually nal migration, or according to Fardeheb (1987), spent eating, talking and sleeping, often in that ‘internal nomadism’ and has been well explained order, in the basement or courtyard depending on the month. Many men such as those who work in by Fethi and Roaf (1986, p. 49) in central houses in the markets will go back to their occupations at Baghdad: International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 187 4–5 pm, where they stay until 7–8 pm. The women 3.1. Social life in traditional houses in central of the household will sweep ﬂoors, bake, cook, Iran wash and potter in the courtyard or the summer The basic traditional household unit was the room until lunchtime when they join the rest of extended patriarchal family in which moral attitude the family in the basement or the covered court- yard for the largest meal of the day. The family between children and parents and also between assembles in the courtyard or the summer room in female and male members of the household was, the evening and the men may entertain in the guest in spiritual and cultural terms, clearly deﬁned and room. A light supper is eaten between 8 and 11 pm followed in a hierarchic structure. According to after which the fruit, tea and sweets may be taken. Vaziritabar (1990, p. 8), the family was headed The family retires intermittently between 10 pm and 12 pm to sleep together on the roof. by the father, followed by his wife, married and then unmarried sons, unmarried daughters and Similarly, a typical daily life in the hot season daughters-in-law, and ﬁnally grandsons and grand- in an Iranian traditional central courtyard house, daughters. Junior members in the extended families according to Roaf (1988, p. 207), has been sum- were generally economically dependent upon the marised in Table 1. It can be seen from the family head and lived together with him in the table that the family was traditionally in contin- family courtyard house. Usually, three generations ual motion around the house both horizontally lived together. Each was obedient to the previous and vertically, in search of an optimum climatic one. Family members were also supportive to each environment. In contrast to the modern approach other and had some responsibilities and roles in the to comfort and design in which the individual family. Family life structure and relations deﬁned the chooses the climate for a room, the residents of structure of spaces in the home. The central court- traditional houses, selected a room for its cli- yard house, which is particularly suited to hot cli- mate (Roaf 1988, p. 204). Such choice and move- mate regions, was a social response to the extended ment around a house during a day constitutes a family organisation (Afshar et al. 1975). The gen- behavioural adjustment that has been an essential eral arrangement of interconnected rooms and the adaptation by the traditional populations of such way they were used were in line with the empha- hot desert regions, enabling them to inhabit a seem- sised group life, constant interactions and patterns ingly hostile environment with some degree of of living and sharing together, rather than the comfort. Table 1. Typical daily life in old Yazd. Time Space Men Women Meal 6 am Roof Waking/rising Waking/rising Breakfast 7 am Courtyard Sitting/eating Sitting/eating Breakfast 7:30 am Courtyard Working Sitting – 9:30 am Summer quarter Working Housework – 11 am Kitchen Working Cooking – 12:30 pm Basement Returning from work Sitting – 2 pm Basement Eating Eating Lunch 3 pm Basement Sleeping Sleeping – 5 pm Basement Sitting Sitting Tea 6pm Talar Sitting Sitting Fruit 7:30 pm Courtyard Some men back to work Sitting Tea 9 pm Kitchen – Cooking – 10–11 pm Courtyard Eating Eating Dinner 12–1 am Roof Going to sleep Sleeping Cold water Source: Adapted from Roaf (1988). 188 A. Foruzanmehr individuality signiﬁed and symbolised by owning a 4. Change in traditional architectural and room (Vaziritabar 1990, p. 10). The many linkages urban patterns of most rooms or spaces to one another depicted There is a consensus that after the industrial revo- the tight integration and interdependencies of fam- lution in Iran in the early twentieth century, partic- ily members and their life, activities and behaviour, ularly in the 1920s, traditional patterns of streets, symbolising the unity of the family as one domestic buildings, households and labour in the people. cities changed in tens of years, whereas in the Among factors which facilitated the ﬂexibil- earlier centuries these changes had occurred over ity of the house were lack of personal territories hundred of years (Proudlove 1969; Lawrence 1987; (one’s own room); few personal possessions and Roaf 1988, p. 144; Madanipour 1998; Memarian belongings; little, light and easily moveable furni- 1998; Heidari 2000; Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001; ture and absence of modern and heavy furniture. Habibi et al. 2007, p. 68). All of these changes For instance, beds were not present. For sitting, have inﬂuenced the way that traditional houses and mattresses and cushions were used. Dining table their elements are used at the present time, and and chairs were not present. In rather formal spaces resulted in the creation of building types which are like reception rooms, however, chairs and small fundamentally different from traditional ones. The tables were common and often present. following sections explain some of these changes. In terms of privacy, the traditional house was graded from the highly private to the semi-private, 4.1. Change in street systems called andarooni (inner or inside) and birooni (outer or outside), respectively (Memarian and Until the beginning of the twentieth century, the Brown 2006, p. 26). The former was to accom- traditional street system in Iran was based on modate family life and activities and was primarily pedestrian movement. It was a hierarchical distri- the domain for women of the house and for chil- bution pattern of narrow, twisting, partly roofed dren. It was not often directly related to the outside streets leading to culs-de-sac which ended in world. The birooni, primarily the domain for men, groups of buildings (Madanipour 1998, p. 119). provided a buffer space between the andarooni Upon this pattern, which had evolved over long and the outside world. The Birooni in traditional periods of time according to strong social and envi- houses in Yazd was sometimes furnished with a ronmental rationalities, was imposed an orthogonal second courtyard. The Birooni’s function was to network of roads for modernising (Madanipour make it possible to receive male visitors and indi- 1998, p. 119). The dimensions of the modern viduals from outside the immediate family with- Iranian city, as a result of increasing population and out interfering with the family’s life. The private falling development densities, became greater than part of home served as one room in which the was convenient for pedestrian activity (Proudlove whole family lived as one people. Thus, the inter- 1969, p. 16). As distances become comparatively nal arrangement and the use of spaces within this great, within-city travel was increasingly done private section were of minimal concern; rather, by vehicle, and distance or mobility became an the enclosure of, and relationship, between this important dimension in everyday life (Proudlove space and other parts of the house as well as out- 1969, p. 18). Vehicular travel became general, and side seemed to be the main concern. According to a road system became the essential structuring and element of new development or large Vaziritabar (1990, p. 16), the unity of the family orienting scale renewal. Wide new avenues for motorised as one people required, and was associated with, vehicular trafﬁc were cut through the old, com- a certain type of time structuring which meant that the family worked, ate, went to bed and did pactly structured urban texture (Proudlove 1969, many routinised activities together almost at the p. 13; Schoenauer 2000, p. 173), and led to a same time. fundamental change in building patterns. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 189 4.2. Change of building patterns: orientation, of Yazd, the transition from traditional patterns to materials and form modern began to take place in 1923. A transfor- mation in the concept of the arrangement of spaces Changes in building form in Iran were largely around a courtyard occurred, and the spatial pattern associated with the change in the street sys- of spaces in a dwelling unit changed. No longer tem (Madanipour 1998, p. 125). Lawrence (1987, was an internally oriented architecture in fashion p. 10) claims that the motorcar was the most signif- in new dwellings (Vaziritabar 1990,p.5). The icant factor that transformed the Iranian residential pattern of a central courtyard was abandoned; environment in the twentieth century during which the traditional central courtyard was replaced pedestrian access was segregated from vehicular by a courtyard close to the street behind or in access, and the traditional relationship between the front of the house (Heidari 2000, p. 25; Noghsan- house and the street was completely transformed in Mohammadi 2001, p. 327). New buildings became Iranian cities (Lawrence 1987, p. 10). The orien- extroverted (Madanipour 1998, p. 243) and con- tation of the buildings was largely determined by structed without central courtyards, meaning that the orientation of the street system (Madanipour all rooms came to face the street, opening their 1998, p. 125). The new system of land subdivi- windows on to the streets (Madanipour 1998, sion, the rationalisation and the standardisation of p. 134). It is said that, even in traditional courtyard the size and shape of land parcels which was con- houses, there was for the ﬁrst time, as a gesture sistent with the orthogonal blocks and streets led to of modernity by some, a tendency to open some new building forms (Figure 9a and b). windows in the external blank walls facing the Newer housing areas were much more regular alleyway (Vaziritabar 1990, p. 5). A rigorous north in their arrangement and layout, clearly resulting and south orientation developed, and at least one from more formal subdivision of large land tracts vehicular access to each property became essential. and a more technological approach to house New layouts of housing and car parkings were con- design and construction. The development of the structed (Lawrence 1987, p. 10) in a way that from new building form was, like the new street pat- no provision at all at the turn of the twentieth cen- tern, a part of a package of goods, ideas and tury; there is now usually at least one parking space images imported from the West (Madanipour 1998, for each dwelling unit. Almost all new dwelling p. 125). units have direct access to the linear streets pro- Houses in Iran underwent signiﬁcant changes vided to make vehicular and pedestrian access to after 1925 (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 167). the plots (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 266). According to Modarres (2006, p. 84), in the city Figure 9. (a) New and (b) non-traditional building forms in Yazd. Source: Municipality of Yazd: Sazman-e Nosazi va Behsazi-e Shahrdari, Mr. Nematollahi. 190 A. Foruzanmehr Morton claims (2008, p. 13) that in Africa led to a new housing morphology and a transition and the Middle East, earth buildings have been from low-rise, inward-looking courtyard houses to replaced with buildings made of concrete and medium- to high-rise, outward-looking apartments steel, because ‘these materials symbolise the mod- (Madanipour 1998, p. 127; Miraftab 1999). New, ernising progress to which people commonly non-traditional dwellings, also called ‘contempo- aspire’. However, this has not been the only rea- rary’ (Heidari 2000, p. 25) and ‘modern’ dwellings son in the case of Iranian houses. From the late (Roaf 1988, p. 144), became generally smaller and Qajar period (1900 AD) and the early Pahlavi a culture of living in ﬂats developed. period (1930 AD), new materials were increas- New or non-traditional houses consist of a liv- ingly adopted in Iranian house construction and ing room, one or more bedrooms, a kitchen and structural systems changed from the traditional a bathroom around a central-roofed hall. External methods (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 157). and internal walls and roofs are constructed of Timber joists were replaced with steel I-beams, baked brick, plastered internally with gypsum plas- again imported from outside Iran. Roofs were ter (Roaf 1988, p. 138; Heidari 2000, p. 25). constructed ﬂat covered with mosaic tiles. The These houses represent a complete stylistic break external walls of the building units were often from the traditional courtyard house, with the cen- made of bricks, which might on occasions be plas- tral living area now covered (Roaf 1988, p. 139). tered (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 266). Small Furthermore, it became increasingly common for a wooden windows also gave way to large metal- house to include a bathroom and toilet, rather than framed windows, and some parts of the houses rely on communal facilities. Solid fuel ranges for were rendered with a cement mixture (Memarian space heating were gradually replaced with gas and 1998, p. 115). Availability of building materi- then electrical appliances (Lawrence 1987, p. 10). als inﬂuenced the external facades. The general The micro-climate of the non-traditional house external modesty of the buildings which had changed compared to a traditional one, as a result stemmed from social and religious norms and a of change in its orientation, size, location, posi- need for security were increasingly undermined tion of windows and thermal resistance and heat by the demand for spatial expression of indi- capacity of its envelope (Heidari 2000). In the vidualism in new buildings (Madanipour 1998, 1960s in Iran, a big change occurred: swamp cool- p. 125). Concrete and glass became the most ers (evaporative coolers) were introduced, which popular building materials, together with other have been used since then (Heidarinejad et al. imperishable surfacing such as marble or granite 2008). The swamp cooler is installed on the roof (Proudlove 1969, p. 20). Structural techniques per- of the house. It consists of an electric fan which mitted the construction of multi-storied, steel- or draws external air into the room across water- concrete-framed buildings (Proudlove 1969,p.20), soaked straw panels, thus introducing cooled air which replaced the traditional load-bearing wall with considerable water content. Such coolers are systems, and became the most popular style, and popular and widely used in all types of houses altered the horizontal skyline of the city (Noghsan- in Yazd (Roaf 1988, p. 199). The popularity of Mohammadi 2001, p. 327). evaporative coolers relates to several factors: effec- As mentioned before, the form of vernacular tiveness; simplicity of installation; low initial, oper- dwelling before the twentieth century was predom- ation and maintenance cost; elimination of dust, inantly single-storey courtyard housing (Abbott dirt and ﬂies (compared to traditional cooling sys- 1977, p. 82; Madanipour 1998, p. 141; Memarian tems) and the lower rate of energy consumption 1998, p. 101; Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 158; (compared to electro-mechanical air-conditioning Sultanzade 2005, p. 60). The continued pres- (Bahadori et al. 2008; Heidarinejad et al. systems) sure on urban space from the rising population 2008). Evaporative coolers seem to work well with and the introduction of western dwelling types of the climate but suffer from the disadvantage that in two-storey terraced houses and multi-storey ﬂats Yazd, as in many other cities of the Middle East, in International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 191 mid-afternoon in summer, when the maximum load modernisation. The assumption of the lower qual- is placed on electricity supply system, frequent ity of life in traditional neighbourhoods was the power failures occur in the city (Roaf 1988, p. 197). result of several things. These neighbourhoods did In addition to power failure risk, the high levels not have enough urban facilities (such as leisure of humidity which swamp-coolers provide (Givoni centres, ﬁre stations, parking and green space), 1984) are often remarked upon by Yazdis to be good public transport and good accessibility for harmful to health, causing colds and rheumatism cars. In addition, the existence of low-quality and (Roaf 1988, p. 197). Also, these swamp coolers are unsafe structures in buildings and replacement of sometimes considered to be ‘noisy and unsightly the original residents with migrants from lower protuberance’ on buildings (Ghiabaklou 2001). income/cultural classes who had less attachment to the neighbourhood accounted for the lower qual- ity of life in these neighbourhoods (Habibi et al. 4.3. Changes in households 2007). As a result, many traditional houses and In the second half of the nineteenth century in Iran, neighbourhoods lost their wealthier residents. the economic necessity of large, extended families Since then, some large traditional central- declined. The patriarchal economic structure of the courtyard houses have been used for multi- extended family was undermined by the weaken- occupancy renting which could be a source of ing of the traditional sources of income on which income for the family or accommodation for the it was based. Money in the community shifted into household’s offspring (Madanipour 1998, p. 141). the hands of young workers, juniors in the old fam- Sometimes, if the owner died, the house would ily hierarchy. These younger members often chose be passed on to a number of beneﬁciaries who to live independently. They left the older genera- would never come back to the house. In such cases, tion behind in their neighbourhoods, villages and the house might be rented out to immigrants, per- towns. haps several families. Examples of this can still The pattern of household structure and cen- be seen in cities such as Shiraz and Yazd, which tral family unit in Iran changed rapidly from the accommodate large numbers of refugees from the large extended families to the small nuclear fam- Iranian border with Iraq and from neighbouring ilies in the twentieth century (Vaziritabar 1990, countries such as Afghanistan. Immigrants were p. 21). This dictated the smaller sizes of houses drawn particularly to the historic centres because (Roaf 1988, p. 139), and therefore meant a demand of the abundance of large houses and the number of for more dwellings for the same number of people empty properties (Memarian 1998, p. 103). In this (Madanipour 1998, p. 140). This demand was also case, generally little or no repair was carried out, triggered by increasing living standards and rising and the houses suffered a great deal of deteriora- expectations, as well as the population growth tion (Memarian 1998, p. 105). In addition, some- (Madanipour 1998, p. 140). The high land prices times the house was sold to state organisations, also led to the development of smaller and smaller and the function of dwelling units was altered to dwellings (Madanipour 1998, p. 91). governmental ofﬁces, museums or even higher edu- cational buildings like the School of Architecture in Yazd. 4.4. Traditional courtyard houses and new occupation patterns 4.5. Vernacular dwelling in the present day In the process of modernisation, traditional multi- courtyard (and also large single-courtyard) houses In spite of the changes which have occurred in Iran, also underwent extensive changes. They usually examples of traditional courtyard houses still exist belonged to afﬂuent people who moved to newer in traditional neighbourhoods of many cities in sections of the city in search of a better quality central Iran. Nevertheless, considering the impact of life (Schoenauer 2000, p. 177) and to adopt that all of these and other changes might have 192 A. Foruzanmehr introduced to individuals, families and society at questionnaire respondents and 12 local experts large, the likelihood of a continuing close match (i.e. architects, academics, professional builders between design and user requirements in the tradi- and local authorities). In addition, spatial patterns, tional house is rather dubious, and requires further architectural design and elements, and levels of use exploration and explanation, and systematic empir- and maintenance were observed, recorded and doc- ical work. In spite of the existence of a situation umented throughout the ﬁeldwork period in the where vernacular houses are seen in a state of form of photographs, plans, drawings and writ- decline or being replaced by modern counterparts ten notes. All data were analysed and triangulated or used for new purposes, these buildings are still using a combination of qualitative and quantita- cited in academic literature as models of socially tive methods including coding and content analy- acceptable and sustainable practice. In order to ﬁnd sis. For more detail, see Foruzanmehr (2010) and out more about this paradoxical situation, we need Foruzanmehr and Vellinga (2011). to know not only about the buildings themselves, but also about the attitudes and opinions of the 6. Findings: traditional houses and people’s actual users of these buildings. perceptions In this regard, drawing upon the ﬁndings of research on vernacular cooling systems in Iran Research participants were asked to list the two (Foruzanmehr 2010), this article explores the main aspects they most liked (i.e. positive points) users’ perceptions regarding earth central court- and the two they most disliked (i.e. negative points) yard dwellings in central Iran in the following about central-courtyard earth houses. sections. 6.1. Statements on positive points 5. Methodology Table 2 summarises the main positive comments In the summer of 2008, 360 self-completion stated by each sample where (F) is the frequency questionnaires were administered to three sam- of the comments and (%) is the percentage. Items ple groups in the city of Yazd, Iran. The ﬁrst on the list are ranked according to the frequency of sample was composed of the inhabitants of a mention. traditional neighbourhood (Fahadan), who were As can be seen, among the total 350 com- living in vernacular houses and were thus the actual ments made across the three samples, the most users (inhabitants) of vernacular earth dwellings. frequently stated positive point about earth houses The second and third samples consisted of inhabi- in Yazd was the perception of being ‘well-matched tants of a non-traditional neighbourhood (Safaiyeh) to the climate’. This attribute was also the most who were living in non-traditional houses and frequently stated positive point in each individ- blocks of ﬂats, respectively. Living in the same city, ual sample and can be suggested to be the main the inhabitants of non-traditional dwellings were positive feature of earth houses which was per- very likely to know about traditional earth houses. ceived by the population under scrutiny. This is in They could have either lived in traditional build- line with the widespread assumption (e.g. Fardeheb ings themselves, or had some relatives, friends 1987 and Shoenauer 2000) that vernacular central- or acquaintances living in them. Therefore, their courtyard houses are exemplary models of envi- views on the positive and negative aspects of earth ronmental practice. The second highest number houses could be interestingly different from or of positive comment was that central courtyard similar to the ﬁrst group. earth houses are ‘beautiful and pleasantly spacious In order to explore the ﬁndings in further (commodious)’. As was said by Vaziritabar (1990); detail the questionnaires were followed by in- Noghsan Mohammadi (2001) and Memarian and depth, semi-structured interviews with 12 of the Brown (2006), the ‘high level of privacy and safety’ International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 193 Table 2. Positive comments about traditional central-courtyard earth houses. Traditional Non-traditional Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3 Central New Whole courtyard courtyard sample houses houses Flats Comments F % F % F % F % Well-matched to the climate 114 32.6 54 42.2 40 29.4 20 23.3 Beautiful and pleasantly spacious (commodious) 84 24 38 29.7 27 19.9 19 22.1 High level of privacy and safety 36 10.3 14 10.9 15 11 7 8.1 Possessing cultural, traditional and spiritual value 22 6.3 4 3.1 9 6.6 9 10.5 Spacious 21 6 4 3.1 9 6.6 8 9.3 In accordance with nature 14 4 0 0 6 4.4 8 9.3 Lower energy use/bills 14 4 0 0 12 8.8 2 2.3 High level of natural light 10 2.9 4 3.1 2 1.5 4 4.7 Fresh air and good ventilation 10 2.9 4 3.1 4 2.9 2 2.3 Separate rooms for various functions 7 2 2 1.6 4 2.9 1 1.2 Low level of noise from outside 5 1.4 0 0 3 2.2 2 2.3 Durability and robustness 4 1.1 2 1.6 1 0.7 1 1.2 Other 9 2.6 2 1.6 4 2.9 3 3.5 Total 350 100 128 100 136 100 86 100 was the third most frequently stated remark about • Beautiful and pleasant traditional earth houses in Yazd. Having large courtyards and gardens, traditional 6.2. Description of the statements on positive houses are pleasant, relaxing and beautiful. They aspects give the feeling of being free in the space. Their traditional Iranian design is up-lifting, giv- The following is the grouping of major positive ing freshness. They are pleasantly spacious and comments on traditional houses made by the have interesting architecture. Rooms have high respondents in all three samples and the intervie- ceilings and hence are not depressing. They wees: are eye catching, silent and safe. The existence of open spaces, large courtyard and water fea- • Well-matched to climate tures is cheerful and relieving for inhabitants. Greenery and courtyards full of trees energises the These buildings are climatically designed, using spirit. natural and renewable resources consuming less energy in summer and winter. They use climatic • High level of privacy and safety modiﬁers such as thick walls, domed roofs, base- ments, wind-catchers and small windows. These buildings are well matched to desert conditions and These buildings are inward looking with no com- usable in all four seasons. They provide good light manding view from outside. Being away from and ventilation. They are cool in summer and warm direct view of neighbours because of their high in winter. Thick walls in these buildings act as and lofty walls and surrounding rooms, the central thermal insulation and provide thermal mass and courtyard provides a sense of privacy. Public and moderate internal temperatures. private spaces are separate. 194 A. Foruzanmehr • Possessing cultural, traditional and spiritual • Separate rooms for various functions, low value levels of noise, and durability Traditional buildings are loyal to national and reli- In traditional houses, different spaces are allocated gious values. They show the history and culture of to different uses and for different times. There is people. They are traditionally designed, bring fam- not any disturbing noise from mechanical devices ilies closer together and create more family attach- in these buildings. Thick high walls also act as ments. Traditional spaces are matched to family sound insulators, bringing down the level of noise activities. They are well matched to local culture. coming from outside to these buildings is low. They and act like identiﬁcation cards for the city. They have genuineness; are memorable, part of 6.3. Statements on negative aspects cultural heritage; and preserve the national identity. Table 3 shows the main negative points about tra- ditional earth houses stated by respondents in all • Spacious three samples. It shows that among a total 304 neg- ative comments made across the three samples, the Traditional houses are large and spacious, suitable most frequently stated negative point about tradi- for a big family to live together and for a person tional earth houses was the ‘low structural stability to move freely around. There are large numbers of and non-standardised materials‘ (with 25.3% of independent rooms and diversity of spaces in this the comments). This is in agreement with Bonine type of houses. (2000) who claims that traditional earth structures are prone to collapse with seismic waves. This • In accordance with nature also justiﬁes why Konya (1980) and Afshat et al. (1975) stated that earth buildings require peri- These buildings are well adapted and matched to odic maintenance. Low space efﬁciency, unsuit- nature. Natural ventilation, light and resources are able internal access and difﬁcult maintenance and used in these buildings. cleaning are the next most frequently stated nega- tive comments about traditional central-courtyard • Lower energy use/bills houses. Traditional buildings are energy efﬁcient. Less energy is used to provide and maintain the com- 6.4. Description of the statements on negative fort. In these houses, electricity is less (or even not) aspects needed for cooling. The following is the grouping of major negative comments made about traditional houses by the • High level of natural light respondents in all three samples and the intervie- wees: Rooms in the house are bright with large windows, and therefore, are not gloomy. They have better nat- ural light compared to the rooms in non-traditional • Low structural stability and non-stand- buildings. ardised materials • Fresh air and good ventilation Traditional buildings are made of mud and adobe. They are not durable and robust. They have weak There is more fresh and pleasant air and better ven- structure, and are worn out, excessively used and tilation in traditional buildings as a result of direct in a state of disrepair. They are of low resistance to connection to outside air. (and not safe at the time of) an earthquake. They International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 195 Table 3. Negative comments about traditional central-courtyard houses. Traditional Non-traditional Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3 Central New Whole courtyard courtyard sample houses houses Flats Comments F % F % F % F % Low structural stability and non-standardised 77 25.3 24 21.8 36 30 17 23 materials Low space efﬁciency: costly and land intensive 44 14.5 12 10.9 21 17.5 11 14.9 Unsuitable internal access 42 13.8 12 10.9 22 18.3 8 10.8 Difﬁcult to clean up, maintain and repair 40 13.2 18 16.4 11 9.2 11 14.9 Difﬁcult to alter and upgrade with new 35 11.5 10 9.1 15 12.5 10 13.5 technologies/not applicable to modern requirements Problems of neighbourhood 23 7.6 16 14.5 4 3.3 3 4.1 Difﬁcult to cool and heat 18 5.9 6 5.5 8 6.7 4 5.4 Safety and privacy 8 2.6 2 1.8 1 0.8 5 6.8 Aesthetically unbeautiful 7 2.3 6 5.5 0 0 1 1.4 Existence of vermin 5 1.6 2 1.8 2 1.7 1 1.4 Others 5 1.6 2 1.8 0 0 3 4.1 Total 304 100 110 100 120 100 74 100 are old and have reached the end of their natural They just worked in the past in the situation where lifespan. Their materials might have lost their population were less and land price was low. These strength after all these years. They are vulnerable to buildings are too large and lavish and full of non- damp, heavy rain and snow. They do not conform habitable and storage spaces. to solidness and ﬁrmness standards such as the 2800 byelaw (regulation). Collapse is possible in • Unsuitable internal access these buildings. Building materials are easily worn away from the building’s surface by the action of All rooms, kitchens and bathrooms are scattered water and weather. Their foundation is weak. There and dispersed in the house. Rooms are remote from are no steel or other new materials used in their kitchens and toilets and from each other. There structure. They are fragile. are too many steps in the house which make it difﬁcult to move around especially for older peo- • Low space efﬁciency: costly and land inten- ple. Courtyards act as a transitional space through sive which kitchens and toilets are accessed. Passing through the courtyard is unavoidable if one needs Although the buildings are oversized the rooms to go from one room to another. Bathroom, kitchen are small and cramped (2 by 3 m or 3 by 4 m). and lavatories are secluded, cut off and far apart Walls are thick and take up much land and useful from living spaces and are difﬁcult to access. spaces. In these buildings land is used inefﬁciently. Moving between summer and winter rooms causes Distinct summer and winter rooms are unused in difﬁculties. the wrong season. Land prices no longer allow for large courtyards with water features and greenery areas. These buildings are too large and expensive. • Difﬁcult to clean up, maintain and repair 196 A. Foruzanmehr Traditional buildings are oversized and difﬁcult cool down or warm up. Traditional cooling systems to keep clean and tidy. They are made of earth, only provide coverage for their immediate areas. with open windows and talars encouraging dust. Cooling systems are not usable in winter because A large amount of dust penetrates inside the build- they cannot be turned into/adapted as heating sys- ing. The increasing air pollution in cities does not tems. In the winter, it is difﬁcult to warm up the allow the courtyard to work as it did in the past. rooms because of the existence of massive walls Maintenance is relatively expensive and associ- and high ceilings. ated with some problems, for instance, the use of modern damp-proofs is not easily allowed. • Safety and privacy • Difﬁcult to alter and upgrade with new Security is an issue in traditional neighbourhoods technologies/not applicable to modern and buildings. The traditional building is large and requirements open, and therefore less safe than the apartments. If several families live in them, there is less privacy It is difﬁcult to incorporate new technologies into available. traditional buildings. They are not ﬂexible enough for major alterations. This way of construction is not well suited for high rise and vertical devel- 6.5. Have traditional buildings become opment. The units of traditional buildings are too out-of-date? large and not in accordance with the scale of house- The research respondents were asked whether they holds. They are not suitable for new furniture and perceived traditional earth houses to be out-of- not matched to new technologies. They are out of date. In the whole sample, 40% of the respondents date and not compatible with fashionable equip- thought that traditional buildings were out-of-date. ment and lack modern facilities such as heating and This percentage was 53% in sample one; 39% and cooling systems. 23% among the residents of new courtyard houses and ﬂats, respectively. This shows that the residents • Problems of neighbourhood of traditional houses have a lower opinion of tradi- tional houses in relation to people who do not live Traditional buildings are located in the old urban in them. It also shows that people who are not res- neighbourhoods that have the problem of transport. idents of traditional houses ﬁnd vernacular build- Public transport does not come to the neighbour- ings to be more desirable than the inhabitants of hood which are also not easily accessible by car. traditional houses. The reason behind this may be There are not enough public amenities/utilities. that the non-inhabitants of traditional houses do not Traditional neighbourhood are not well managed in regularly encounter the difﬁculties of inhabitants. terms of cleanliness; there is a lack of greenery and car park areas in them. The level of safety in the 7. Conclusion and discussion neighbourhood is low. This article has presented the data from the ques- • Difﬁcult to cool and heat tionnaire survey and interviews regarding the per- ceptions of users about their vernacular dwellings Traditional buildings are oversized and consume in Yazd. more electricity for heating, cooling and lighting, The ﬁndings show that traditional buildings are and more water for plants and for cleaning. The not considered to be out-of-date, and the relatively doors open directly to the courtyard which causes plain/modest external appearance of traditional the loss of both cooled and heated air. There are buildings has not detracted from the acceptability a large number of rooms which are difﬁcult to of these buildings compared to their non-traditional International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 197 counterparts. Also, the residents of traditional of the past, it does not necessarily do so for the dwellings note highly the cultural and historic val- problems of the present or future. Broadly speak- ues of their homes but have some concerns about ing, if it fails to stand the pace of the present-day their structural soundness. life, its success and sustainability is thrown into The research has shown that a variety of pos- question. itive comments has been attributed to traditional The research reveals that inhabitants try to earth houses in Yazd. These positive attributes make a compromise and keep a balance between range from decent climatic performance, high aes- the positive and negative factors of their living thetic and cultural importance to spaciousness and area. If, for any reason, the negative factors out- high levels of safety and privacy. The multiplicity weigh the positive ones, the balance is removed, of positive factors – which altogether form a more and the change will become inevitable to main- general concept of sustainability – shows why ver- tain the balance. This is almost always applicable nacular earth houses are considered valuable and to many architectural traditions in the world and should be preserved at the present day. The eco- shows that the sustainability of vernacular architec- nomic, social, cultural, environmental and physical ture or broadly speaking, any traditional context in signiﬁcance of traditional buildings necessitates the present-day environment continues unless the their protection, and calls for understanding the balance between the design and user requirements methods by which they are conserved, rehabilitated, is removed. Social, cultural, ﬁnancial changes and regenerated and kept for future generations. behavioural adjustments to adapt to the new envi- The ﬁndings suggest that although the vernacu- ronment are the ways forwards to get the balance lar built environment may have become associated right and achieve the sustainability. with the past, it is still perceived as the work that Furthermore, the article has proved that there is well adapted to some of the present-day local are lessons to be learnt from the past to enable cultures and environments. Vernacular spaces, developments to be more appropriate, acceptable buildings, places and urban areas retain certain and sustainable for the present-day users. In order valuable aspects which are still relevant to the to slow the fast disappearance of vernacular build- current challenges for building sustainable envi- ing and urban areas, they would have to be prop- ronments. This is why these buildings are still cited erly assessed in the context of present lifestyles. in academic literature as models of sustainable In the case of vernacular dwellings, if they are practice. to sustain and be put into use again, all their However, a diversity of negative factors has attributes including socio-cultural, economic, aes- also been assigned to vernacular earth houses, thetic, health, convenience and comfort, should be including low structural stability, low space efﬁ- holistically taken into consideration and adjusted ciency, difﬁcult internal access and inconvenient accordingly. Importantly, user perception should be clean up and maintenance. All these indicate systematically examined, evaluated and put into the lack of a close match between design and practice. In that case, the knowledge and awareness user requirements in the traditional house. The of vernacular design can contribute positively to existence of negative factors may account for the sustainable urban and architectural improvements failure of some of these buildings as a sustainable in both developing and developed countries by and suitable place for their residents, and justify providing practical solutions that are socially and why vernacular houses are in the state of decline, culturally acceptable. being replaced by modern counterparts or used for new purposes. Notes on contributor In a wider picture, the results of this study Ahmadreza Foruzanmehr: School of the Built suggest that although the vernacular built environ- Environment, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK; ment represents successful solutions to the problem Oxford Designers Ltd., Oxford, UK 198 A. Foruzanmehr References 15–16; New Castle (UK): University of Newcastle upon Tyne. p. 41–49. Abbott J. 1977. The Iranians: how they live and work. Foruzanmehr A. 2006. 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Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Copyright: © Taylor & Francis
ISSN: 1946-3146
eISSN: 1946-3138
DOI: 10.1080/19463138.2012.718278
Publisher site: See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 2013 Vol. 5, No. 2, 179–199, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19463138.2012.718278 Ahmadreza Foruzanmehr* School of the Built Environment, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK; Oxford Designers Ltd., Oxford, UK (Received 5 March 2012; ﬁnal version received 27 July 2012) Although examples of traditional courtyard houses still exist in traditional neighbourhoods of many cities in central Iran, these buildings have been subject to fundamental changes. Considering the impact of all of these changes, the likelihood of a continuing close match between design and user requirements in the traditional house is rather dubious, requires further exploration and explanation, and systematic empirical work. Furthermore, in spite of the existence of a situation where vernacular houses are seen in a state of decline, being replaced by modern counterparts or used for new purposes, these buildings are still cited in academic literature as models of socially acceptable and sustainable practice. In order to ﬁnd out more about this paradoxical situation, we need to know not only about the buildings themselves, but also about the attitudes and opinions of the actual users of these buildings. This article critically and systematically analyses the way in which actual vernacular environments have been subject to changes due to socio-cul- tural challenges, taking into account the perception of their actual users. It encourages an awareness of how relevant many traditional features are to the modern challenges for building sustainable environments. This also generates an understanding of how they may be upgraded to help provide truly sustainable and comfortable buildings for the new millennium. Keywords: traditional; central courtyard houses; vernacular dwellings; Iran; earth buildings; sustainable; change 1. Introduction and Alsayyad 1989, p. 23). In this process, many vernacular traditions have become associated with Technological innovations of the ﬁrst half of the past, underdevelopment and poverty, lead- the twentieth century (Beazley 1977, p. 89) and ing to the perception of vernacular (urban and the steady process of modernisation, urbanisa- architectural) designs as obstacles on the road to tion and globalisation (Vellinga et al. 2007,p. progress rather than as works that are well adapted xiii) have exerted increasing pressure on tradi- to local cultures and environments (Cain et al. tional cultures throughout the world, leading to 1976; Fardeheb 1987; Vellinga et al. 2007, p. xiii). changes of social and economic structures, the ero- Globally and particularly in the Middle East, tra- sion of local cultural values and, with respect to ditional societies and everything associated with the built environment, the internationalisation of them have been thought to indicate backwardness urban/architectural practices, forms and materials. (Madanipour 1998, p. 246). This has led to the When traditional lifestyles and building and cities abandonment and replacement of many distinctive come into contact with forces of change and mod- and unique vernacular urban spaces and, above all, ernisation, conﬂicts are bound to exist (Bourdier *Email: aforuzanmehr@yahoo.com The author was formerly with Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK. © 2013 Taylor & Francis 180 A. Foruzanmehr buildings (Vellinga et al. 2007, p. xiii). This break 2. Vernacular dwellings in hot dry climates with the past has meant that the new forms of urban A large part of the earth (i.e. around 20–30% of environment no longer develop out of the existing its total area) is under the inﬂuence of hot and dry ones, and are often poorly adapted to local needs climates; this part is expanding by 15% as a result and conditions with their sustainability seriously of global warming (Moran 2000, p. 182). Hot dry under question. regions are characterised by a harsh climate: high In contemporary Iran, degradation of tradi- summer daytime temperatures, low relative humid- tional urban fabric and particularly vernacular ity, intense solar radiation, a high rate of night dwellings is among the main challenges con- sky radiation and very low annual rainfall (Konya fronting those who are involved in architectural 1980; Fardeheb 1987, p. 22; Givoni 1998; Hyde and urban activities (both academia and practice). 2000, p. 25). According to the Statistical Centre of Iran (2008), Local people have traditionally learned how out of 15.9 million dwellings (counted in the to cope with this harsh climate during the hottest nationwide census of 2006) in Iran, 11.5 million days of the year. The traditional urban fabric are located in the cities. It has also been pre- and the architecture of vernacular houses in these dicted (Habibi et al. 2007, p. 19) that the surface regions and particularly in the Middle East repre- area of urban spaces in Iran will be doubled by sent a signiﬁcant wealth of traditional technologies 2021 if the rate of population growth and urban- based on climate-responsive buildings (Fardeheb ism stays as it is. The disorganised development 1987). As a repeatedly cited example (such as of cities regardless of the vernacular cultural val- in Heidari 2000 and Schoenauer 2000, p. 150), ues has resulted in traditional urban areas being the Iranian traditional courtyard house is said to abandoned and becoming more prone to degrada- be a combination of experience and invention to tion (Foruzanmehr 2009). A scarcity of appropriate face socio-economic, environmental and cultural public projects in accordance with local people’s challenges and provide a sustainable and liveable needs, and the neglect of the existing traditions in environment. the older areas have doubled the pace of degra- The investigation of the traditional Iranian dation. This is happening despite the fact that urban dwelling and its principles gives a great vernacular urban cores, with their physical and cul- insight into the vernacular architecture of the tural values, could help to create a sense of unity Middle East region. This is because the design within cities and provide a real sense of local iden- of vernacular dwellings in Iran has strongly inﬂu- tity (Foruzanmehr 2009). They could protect cities enced the dwellings in neighbouring regions in the from internal degradation and restrict their unstruc- Middle East (Shoenauer 2000, p. 168). In addition, tured development, leading to more sustainable considering that dwellings are the most common living environments. The economic, social, cul- form of vernacular architecture (Lawrence 2000, tural, environmental and physical signiﬁcance of p. 53), any research on vernacular dwellings will traditional urban fabric and buildings necessitate broaden the knowledge of vernacular architecture their conservation, rehabilitation and regeneration; in general. In this study, vernacular dwellings in the before everything else calls for understanding the hot dry regions of central Iran, particularly those in ways in which they have evolved and changed. the city of Yazd are studied to see how they were Understanding the reasons why some building tra- used in the past, have changed through time, and ditions have ﬂourished and others have struggled are perceived at the present. This will shed light on or declined can help provide new approaches to whether these past architectural and urban design design sustainable spaces, places, localities and solutions are still sustainable in the present-day cities. environments. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 181 2.1. Yazd The history of Yazd dates back to the pre-Islamic era. From then, the city developed The city of Yazd is situated at the fringe of desert slowly until the 1920s, when fast modernising in central Iran, almost 600 kilometres south of the interventions changed the nature and process of capital city of Tehran (Figure 1), at an elevation of development from traditional and slow to mod- 1230 meters above sea level (Iran Meteorological ern and speedy. Figure 2 shows the city and the Organisation 2009). In 2009, Yazd had a popula- location of its traditional (or historic) area. The tra- tion of 527,276 (Statistical Centre of Iran 2009). ditional area encompasses the areas developed in It is an administrative, industrial and market centre various stages from the pre-Islamic periods to early in the region. twentieth century. Yazd has a hot, dry summer and a cold, According to Kalantari and Hataminejad dry winter. The summer and winter periods are (2006), there were 11,200 dwelling units in the his- much longer than the spring and autumn mak- toric area in 1996 (comprising 53% earth buildings, ing it a two-season city (Oliver 1997, p. 134). 41% steel and brick buildings and 6% concrete The annual average temperature is 19.3 C, the or mixed construction). Thirty-seven percent of maximum and minimum recorded temperatures ◦ ◦ the dwellings in the historic area are more than being 45.6 C (recorded in July 1982) and –16 C 70 years old. Sixty-seven percent of the houses (recorded in December 1963), respectively, show- in the historic area are one-storey buildings, 26% ing that the city has experienced a ﬂuctuation of are two-storey buildings and the rest are three- 61.6 C. There is a considerable temperature dif- or multiple-storey buildings. The average area of ference between day and night. In summer, the dwellings in the historic area is 361 m .The average relative humidity is about 18%. The annual average size of a household is 4.5 people per precipitation is low and the average annual rain- household in Yazd, while that of the historic area fall in the city is 71 mm (Iran Meteorological is 3.0. Organization 2009). Figure 1. Map of Iran and the location of Yazd. Source: Adapted from Armanshahr (2009). 182 A. Foruzanmehr Figure 2. The city of Yazd and the location of the historic area. Source: Adapted from Kalantari and Hataminejad (2006). 3. The traditional house in central Iran house, according to Madanipour (1998, p. 141), (kha-ne-ye sonnati) Memarian (1998, p. 101), Noghsan-Mohammadi (2001, p. 158), Sultanzadeh (2005, p. 60) and The typical traditional dwelling type in central Iran Abbott (1977, p. 82), is the commonest type is believed to be the one- or two-storey house throughout the cities of central Iran (Figure 3). centred upon one or two central courtyards (Von It generally contains a symmetrical private open Hardenberg 1982; Vaziritabar 1990; Kheirabadi space in the form of a courtyard (Noghsan- 1991, p. 35; Heidari 2000, p. 27). According Mohammadi 2001, p. 158) which is ﬂanked by to Roaf (1988, p. 120), traditional houses of rooms and loggias on two, three or even four the city of Yazd have almost exclusively been sides. courtyard houses. The single central-courtyard Figure 3. Central courtyard houses in Yazd. Source: Municipality of Yazd: Sazman-e Nosazi va Behsazi-e Shahrdari, Mr. Nematollahi. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 183 Figure 4. A view of a typical central courtyard house. The central courtyard has a small pool of use of different areas of the house during differ- water and beds of mixed planting around it ent seasons has given rise to the term ‘four-season (Figure 4). The house always faces inwards, turning houses’ (Foruzanmehr 2006, p. 27) or ‘year round blank lofty walls to the streets and spaces out- houses’ (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 159). side, responding to traditional social attitudes and Rooms have thick walls and roofs are made the desire for privacy (Abbott 1977; Vaziritabar of sundried or baked (ﬁred) bricks (Abbott 1977, 1990, p. 82; Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 229; p. 82; Kheirabadi 1991, p. 35). Rooms open onto Memarian and Brown 2006, p. 22). In this type the courtyard, and windows on the peripheral of house, the courtyard level is slightly lower than walls are normally lacking or else present only street level. The shape of a courtyard is closely occasionally, of minimal size and above the eye related to the size of the plot, the rectangle being level (Vaziritabar 1990). The lack or small size the most common shape (Noghsan-Mohammadi of windows facilitates keeping out wind and 2001, p. 158). In the typical traditional dwelling, dust from the living spaces and promotes privacy apart from the main central courtyard, there may (Bonine 2000). The walls of contiguous courtyard be a separate courtyard for guests to show respect houses present a solid face to the outside, a barrier and to exhibit the ﬁnancial power of the landlord; to weather, strangers and in many places encroach- but the extra courtyard is usually smaller than the ing sand (The Aga Khan Award for Architecture main one. 1981, p. 48). Rooms and spaces located in the north of the Walking through the narrow streets of Yazd courtyard are exposed to the solar radiation and and other cities in central Iran, one observes that form the winter quarter. Rooms and spaces on the the only opening to a traditional house is its por- south side of the courtyard form the summer quar- tal entrance. The portal entrance normally projects ter. This is the area that receives the most of the (or sets back) from the massive surface of exterior shade and therefore is cooler than the winter quar- walls (Figure 5). It is simply a heavy front door in ter. The main space of the summer quarter is a small houses, while in large houses it could have semi-open space called the talar or eyvan. It is open elaborate elements such as a stone bench, pilasters, to the courtyard and sometimes has a wind-catcher portal arch and a timber front door (Memarian (or badgir) to aid in its cooling. Dwellers migrated 1998, p. 129). The location of the entrance in cen- through the house when the seasons dictated. The tral courtyard houses is related to the shape of the 184 A. Foruzanmehr Figure 5. A portal entrance in Yazd. plot and the position of the surrounding streets hexagonal or octagonal and has a domed roof (Memarian 1998, p. 209). (Bonine 1980, p. 211). There is a long corridor In addition to the existence of a central court- (dalan), designed so that women can be given yard and lofty walls, the attention to privacy is time to wear appropriate dress before the guest also manifested in the front door itself (Memarian gets inside, from the hashti to the main courtyard. 1998, p. 100). The front door has two separate To add to the provision of privacy, the corridor door knockers: the larger one for men (a metal is off axis and has a bend in it to cut the direct hammer) and the smaller one for women (a metal view of the inside of the house from the hashti ring) (see Figure 6). This is to signal to the house- or the street (Beazley and Harverson 1985; Taghi hold that they have male or female guests so that 1990, p. 92; Vaziritabar 1990, p. 14; Memarian the appropriate action can be taken by the occu- 1998, p. 208; Oliver 2003, p. 137; Sultanzade 2005, pants of the house. The practice is now obsolescent, p. 60). Figure 7 shows the plan of a typical entrance however, and most houses today have replaced the to a vernacular house in Yazd. traditional ﬁttings with modern bells (Memarian The vestibule or hashti is a stopping point and 1998, p. 100). The front door opens on to a recep- can be used as a temporary reception room for tion foyer, called hashti, which is usually either those persons who do not need to enter the guest International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 185 Figure 6. A traditional front door in Yazd. room. It usually has two or three niches which beneath (Fardeheb 1987). It also protects the fam- provide a place for people to sit (Taghi 1990, ily from excessive dust and wind (Bonine 1980, p. 93; Memarian 1998, p. 100). In double-courtyard p. 197). However, sleeping on the rooftop and in houses, the vestibule is an element that gives access the courtyard is an obsolete practice due to lower to both reception and private areas. levels of convenience and privacy (because of the Rooftops of vernacular houses in Yazd are commanding view from neighbouring taller build- mostly ﬂat (Figure 8). They were used in sum- ings) and higher levels of air pollution in modern mer for a number of domestic tasks such as drying cities (Madanipour 1998, p. 254). Besides using the washing, getting vegetables and fruits dried, as well roof for sleeping, Iranians turned the roof space to as sleeping (Vaziritabar 1990). Flat rooftops were good account as a place for socialising in the late also used for sleeping during the summer nights. evenings when it was not too hot, an important cul- There the family could enjoy the breezes and cooler tural practice found in many areas of the Middle temperatures unavailable inside the house. The East (Bonine 1980, p. 197; Sibley 2006, p. 53). family’s privacy on the roof was ensured by a para- There is often a basement (zir-zamin) under the pet, higher than standing eye-level, surrounding the summer quarter. The basement was used for rest- edges of the roof. This parapet provides shading ing and sleeping as well as storage. Not only did and allows a portion of the roof surface to stay dwellers migrate through the house during the year relatively cooler and assist cooling in the space from north to south and back but also they did so 186 A. Foruzanmehr Figure 7. Plan of a typical entrance in Nain, Iran. Source: Sultanzade (2005, p. 60). Figure 8. Rooftop of vernacular houses in Yazd. Source: Municipality of Yazd: Sazman-e Nosazi va Behsazi-e Shahrdari, Mr. Nematollahi. throughout the day. In summer, they slept on the The family, having slept on the roof, will rise between 5:30–6:30 am, when the sun rises, and, roof and spent daytime moving around from court- having had a light breakfast including tea, the men yard to summer quarter to the basement depending will leave for their work at 7–7:30 am. The hottest on the outdoor temperature. This is called diur- part of the day, between 1 and 4 pm, is usually nal migration, or according to Fardeheb (1987), spent eating, talking and sleeping, often in that ‘internal nomadism’ and has been well explained order, in the basement or courtyard depending on the month. Many men such as those who work in by Fethi and Roaf (1986, p. 49) in central houses in the markets will go back to their occupations at Baghdad: International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 187 4–5 pm, where they stay until 7–8 pm. The women 3.1. Social life in traditional houses in central of the household will sweep ﬂoors, bake, cook, Iran wash and potter in the courtyard or the summer The basic traditional household unit was the room until lunchtime when they join the rest of extended patriarchal family in which moral attitude the family in the basement or the covered court- yard for the largest meal of the day. The family between children and parents and also between assembles in the courtyard or the summer room in female and male members of the household was, the evening and the men may entertain in the guest in spiritual and cultural terms, clearly deﬁned and room. A light supper is eaten between 8 and 11 pm followed in a hierarchic structure. According to after which the fruit, tea and sweets may be taken. Vaziritabar (1990, p. 8), the family was headed The family retires intermittently between 10 pm and 12 pm to sleep together on the roof. by the father, followed by his wife, married and then unmarried sons, unmarried daughters and Similarly, a typical daily life in the hot season daughters-in-law, and ﬁnally grandsons and grand- in an Iranian traditional central courtyard house, daughters. Junior members in the extended families according to Roaf (1988, p. 207), has been sum- were generally economically dependent upon the marised in Table 1. It can be seen from the family head and lived together with him in the table that the family was traditionally in contin- family courtyard house. Usually, three generations ual motion around the house both horizontally lived together. Each was obedient to the previous and vertically, in search of an optimum climatic one. Family members were also supportive to each environment. In contrast to the modern approach other and had some responsibilities and roles in the to comfort and design in which the individual family. Family life structure and relations deﬁned the chooses the climate for a room, the residents of structure of spaces in the home. The central court- traditional houses, selected a room for its cli- yard house, which is particularly suited to hot cli- mate (Roaf 1988, p. 204). Such choice and move- mate regions, was a social response to the extended ment around a house during a day constitutes a family organisation (Afshar et al. 1975). The gen- behavioural adjustment that has been an essential eral arrangement of interconnected rooms and the adaptation by the traditional populations of such way they were used were in line with the empha- hot desert regions, enabling them to inhabit a seem- sised group life, constant interactions and patterns ingly hostile environment with some degree of of living and sharing together, rather than the comfort. Table 1. Typical daily life in old Yazd. Time Space Men Women Meal 6 am Roof Waking/rising Waking/rising Breakfast 7 am Courtyard Sitting/eating Sitting/eating Breakfast 7:30 am Courtyard Working Sitting – 9:30 am Summer quarter Working Housework – 11 am Kitchen Working Cooking – 12:30 pm Basement Returning from work Sitting – 2 pm Basement Eating Eating Lunch 3 pm Basement Sleeping Sleeping – 5 pm Basement Sitting Sitting Tea 6pm Talar Sitting Sitting Fruit 7:30 pm Courtyard Some men back to work Sitting Tea 9 pm Kitchen – Cooking – 10–11 pm Courtyard Eating Eating Dinner 12–1 am Roof Going to sleep Sleeping Cold water Source: Adapted from Roaf (1988). 188 A. Foruzanmehr individuality signiﬁed and symbolised by owning a 4. Change in traditional architectural and room (Vaziritabar 1990, p. 10). The many linkages urban patterns of most rooms or spaces to one another depicted There is a consensus that after the industrial revo- the tight integration and interdependencies of fam- lution in Iran in the early twentieth century, partic- ily members and their life, activities and behaviour, ularly in the 1920s, traditional patterns of streets, symbolising the unity of the family as one domestic buildings, households and labour in the people. cities changed in tens of years, whereas in the Among factors which facilitated the ﬂexibil- earlier centuries these changes had occurred over ity of the house were lack of personal territories hundred of years (Proudlove 1969; Lawrence 1987; (one’s own room); few personal possessions and Roaf 1988, p. 144; Madanipour 1998; Memarian belongings; little, light and easily moveable furni- 1998; Heidari 2000; Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001; ture and absence of modern and heavy furniture. Habibi et al. 2007, p. 68). All of these changes For instance, beds were not present. For sitting, have inﬂuenced the way that traditional houses and mattresses and cushions were used. Dining table their elements are used at the present time, and and chairs were not present. In rather formal spaces resulted in the creation of building types which are like reception rooms, however, chairs and small fundamentally different from traditional ones. The tables were common and often present. following sections explain some of these changes. In terms of privacy, the traditional house was graded from the highly private to the semi-private, 4.1. Change in street systems called andarooni (inner or inside) and birooni (outer or outside), respectively (Memarian and Until the beginning of the twentieth century, the Brown 2006, p. 26). The former was to accom- traditional street system in Iran was based on modate family life and activities and was primarily pedestrian movement. It was a hierarchical distri- the domain for women of the house and for chil- bution pattern of narrow, twisting, partly roofed dren. It was not often directly related to the outside streets leading to culs-de-sac which ended in world. The birooni, primarily the domain for men, groups of buildings (Madanipour 1998, p. 119). provided a buffer space between the andarooni Upon this pattern, which had evolved over long and the outside world. The Birooni in traditional periods of time according to strong social and envi- houses in Yazd was sometimes furnished with a ronmental rationalities, was imposed an orthogonal second courtyard. The Birooni’s function was to network of roads for modernising (Madanipour make it possible to receive male visitors and indi- 1998, p. 119). The dimensions of the modern viduals from outside the immediate family with- Iranian city, as a result of increasing population and out interfering with the family’s life. The private falling development densities, became greater than part of home served as one room in which the was convenient for pedestrian activity (Proudlove whole family lived as one people. Thus, the inter- 1969, p. 16). As distances become comparatively nal arrangement and the use of spaces within this great, within-city travel was increasingly done private section were of minimal concern; rather, by vehicle, and distance or mobility became an the enclosure of, and relationship, between this important dimension in everyday life (Proudlove space and other parts of the house as well as out- 1969, p. 18). Vehicular travel became general, and side seemed to be the main concern. According to a road system became the essential structuring and element of new development or large Vaziritabar (1990, p. 16), the unity of the family orienting scale renewal. Wide new avenues for motorised as one people required, and was associated with, vehicular trafﬁc were cut through the old, com- a certain type of time structuring which meant that the family worked, ate, went to bed and did pactly structured urban texture (Proudlove 1969, many routinised activities together almost at the p. 13; Schoenauer 2000, p. 173), and led to a same time. fundamental change in building patterns. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 189 4.2. Change of building patterns: orientation, of Yazd, the transition from traditional patterns to materials and form modern began to take place in 1923. A transfor- mation in the concept of the arrangement of spaces Changes in building form in Iran were largely around a courtyard occurred, and the spatial pattern associated with the change in the street sys- of spaces in a dwelling unit changed. No longer tem (Madanipour 1998, p. 125). Lawrence (1987, was an internally oriented architecture in fashion p. 10) claims that the motorcar was the most signif- in new dwellings (Vaziritabar 1990,p.5). The icant factor that transformed the Iranian residential pattern of a central courtyard was abandoned; environment in the twentieth century during which the traditional central courtyard was replaced pedestrian access was segregated from vehicular by a courtyard close to the street behind or in access, and the traditional relationship between the front of the house (Heidari 2000, p. 25; Noghsan- house and the street was completely transformed in Mohammadi 2001, p. 327). New buildings became Iranian cities (Lawrence 1987, p. 10). The orien- extroverted (Madanipour 1998, p. 243) and con- tation of the buildings was largely determined by structed without central courtyards, meaning that the orientation of the street system (Madanipour all rooms came to face the street, opening their 1998, p. 125). The new system of land subdivi- windows on to the streets (Madanipour 1998, sion, the rationalisation and the standardisation of p. 134). It is said that, even in traditional courtyard the size and shape of land parcels which was con- houses, there was for the ﬁrst time, as a gesture sistent with the orthogonal blocks and streets led to of modernity by some, a tendency to open some new building forms (Figure 9a and b). windows in the external blank walls facing the Newer housing areas were much more regular alleyway (Vaziritabar 1990, p. 5). A rigorous north in their arrangement and layout, clearly resulting and south orientation developed, and at least one from more formal subdivision of large land tracts vehicular access to each property became essential. and a more technological approach to house New layouts of housing and car parkings were con- design and construction. The development of the structed (Lawrence 1987, p. 10) in a way that from new building form was, like the new street pat- no provision at all at the turn of the twentieth cen- tern, a part of a package of goods, ideas and tury; there is now usually at least one parking space images imported from the West (Madanipour 1998, for each dwelling unit. Almost all new dwelling p. 125). units have direct access to the linear streets pro- Houses in Iran underwent signiﬁcant changes vided to make vehicular and pedestrian access to after 1925 (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 167). the plots (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 266). According to Modarres (2006, p. 84), in the city Figure 9. (a) New and (b) non-traditional building forms in Yazd. Source: Municipality of Yazd: Sazman-e Nosazi va Behsazi-e Shahrdari, Mr. Nematollahi. 190 A. Foruzanmehr Morton claims (2008, p. 13) that in Africa led to a new housing morphology and a transition and the Middle East, earth buildings have been from low-rise, inward-looking courtyard houses to replaced with buildings made of concrete and medium- to high-rise, outward-looking apartments steel, because ‘these materials symbolise the mod- (Madanipour 1998, p. 127; Miraftab 1999). New, ernising progress to which people commonly non-traditional dwellings, also called ‘contempo- aspire’. However, this has not been the only rea- rary’ (Heidari 2000, p. 25) and ‘modern’ dwellings son in the case of Iranian houses. From the late (Roaf 1988, p. 144), became generally smaller and Qajar period (1900 AD) and the early Pahlavi a culture of living in ﬂats developed. period (1930 AD), new materials were increas- New or non-traditional houses consist of a liv- ingly adopted in Iranian house construction and ing room, one or more bedrooms, a kitchen and structural systems changed from the traditional a bathroom around a central-roofed hall. External methods (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 157). and internal walls and roofs are constructed of Timber joists were replaced with steel I-beams, baked brick, plastered internally with gypsum plas- again imported from outside Iran. Roofs were ter (Roaf 1988, p. 138; Heidari 2000, p. 25). constructed ﬂat covered with mosaic tiles. The These houses represent a complete stylistic break external walls of the building units were often from the traditional courtyard house, with the cen- made of bricks, which might on occasions be plas- tral living area now covered (Roaf 1988, p. 139). tered (Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 266). Small Furthermore, it became increasingly common for a wooden windows also gave way to large metal- house to include a bathroom and toilet, rather than framed windows, and some parts of the houses rely on communal facilities. Solid fuel ranges for were rendered with a cement mixture (Memarian space heating were gradually replaced with gas and 1998, p. 115). Availability of building materi- then electrical appliances (Lawrence 1987, p. 10). als inﬂuenced the external facades. The general The micro-climate of the non-traditional house external modesty of the buildings which had changed compared to a traditional one, as a result stemmed from social and religious norms and a of change in its orientation, size, location, posi- need for security were increasingly undermined tion of windows and thermal resistance and heat by the demand for spatial expression of indi- capacity of its envelope (Heidari 2000). In the vidualism in new buildings (Madanipour 1998, 1960s in Iran, a big change occurred: swamp cool- p. 125). Concrete and glass became the most ers (evaporative coolers) were introduced, which popular building materials, together with other have been used since then (Heidarinejad et al. imperishable surfacing such as marble or granite 2008). The swamp cooler is installed on the roof (Proudlove 1969, p. 20). Structural techniques per- of the house. It consists of an electric fan which mitted the construction of multi-storied, steel- or draws external air into the room across water- concrete-framed buildings (Proudlove 1969,p.20), soaked straw panels, thus introducing cooled air which replaced the traditional load-bearing wall with considerable water content. Such coolers are systems, and became the most popular style, and popular and widely used in all types of houses altered the horizontal skyline of the city (Noghsan- in Yazd (Roaf 1988, p. 199). The popularity of Mohammadi 2001, p. 327). evaporative coolers relates to several factors: effec- As mentioned before, the form of vernacular tiveness; simplicity of installation; low initial, oper- dwelling before the twentieth century was predom- ation and maintenance cost; elimination of dust, inantly single-storey courtyard housing (Abbott dirt and ﬂies (compared to traditional cooling sys- 1977, p. 82; Madanipour 1998, p. 141; Memarian tems) and the lower rate of energy consumption 1998, p. 101; Noghsan-Mohammadi 2001, p. 158; (compared to electro-mechanical air-conditioning Sultanzade 2005, p. 60). The continued pres- (Bahadori et al. 2008; Heidarinejad et al. systems) sure on urban space from the rising population 2008). Evaporative coolers seem to work well with and the introduction of western dwelling types of the climate but suffer from the disadvantage that in two-storey terraced houses and multi-storey ﬂats Yazd, as in many other cities of the Middle East, in International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 191 mid-afternoon in summer, when the maximum load modernisation. The assumption of the lower qual- is placed on electricity supply system, frequent ity of life in traditional neighbourhoods was the power failures occur in the city (Roaf 1988, p. 197). result of several things. These neighbourhoods did In addition to power failure risk, the high levels not have enough urban facilities (such as leisure of humidity which swamp-coolers provide (Givoni centres, ﬁre stations, parking and green space), 1984) are often remarked upon by Yazdis to be good public transport and good accessibility for harmful to health, causing colds and rheumatism cars. In addition, the existence of low-quality and (Roaf 1988, p. 197). Also, these swamp coolers are unsafe structures in buildings and replacement of sometimes considered to be ‘noisy and unsightly the original residents with migrants from lower protuberance’ on buildings (Ghiabaklou 2001). income/cultural classes who had less attachment to the neighbourhood accounted for the lower qual- ity of life in these neighbourhoods (Habibi et al. 4.3. Changes in households 2007). As a result, many traditional houses and In the second half of the nineteenth century in Iran, neighbourhoods lost their wealthier residents. the economic necessity of large, extended families Since then, some large traditional central- declined. The patriarchal economic structure of the courtyard houses have been used for multi- extended family was undermined by the weaken- occupancy renting which could be a source of ing of the traditional sources of income on which income for the family or accommodation for the it was based. Money in the community shifted into household’s offspring (Madanipour 1998, p. 141). the hands of young workers, juniors in the old fam- Sometimes, if the owner died, the house would ily hierarchy. These younger members often chose be passed on to a number of beneﬁciaries who to live independently. They left the older genera- would never come back to the house. In such cases, tion behind in their neighbourhoods, villages and the house might be rented out to immigrants, per- towns. haps several families. Examples of this can still The pattern of household structure and cen- be seen in cities such as Shiraz and Yazd, which tral family unit in Iran changed rapidly from the accommodate large numbers of refugees from the large extended families to the small nuclear fam- Iranian border with Iraq and from neighbouring ilies in the twentieth century (Vaziritabar 1990, countries such as Afghanistan. Immigrants were p. 21). This dictated the smaller sizes of houses drawn particularly to the historic centres because (Roaf 1988, p. 139), and therefore meant a demand of the abundance of large houses and the number of for more dwellings for the same number of people empty properties (Memarian 1998, p. 103). In this (Madanipour 1998, p. 140). This demand was also case, generally little or no repair was carried out, triggered by increasing living standards and rising and the houses suffered a great deal of deteriora- expectations, as well as the population growth tion (Memarian 1998, p. 105). In addition, some- (Madanipour 1998, p. 140). The high land prices times the house was sold to state organisations, also led to the development of smaller and smaller and the function of dwelling units was altered to dwellings (Madanipour 1998, p. 91). governmental ofﬁces, museums or even higher edu- cational buildings like the School of Architecture in Yazd. 4.4. Traditional courtyard houses and new occupation patterns 4.5. Vernacular dwelling in the present day In the process of modernisation, traditional multi- courtyard (and also large single-courtyard) houses In spite of the changes which have occurred in Iran, also underwent extensive changes. They usually examples of traditional courtyard houses still exist belonged to afﬂuent people who moved to newer in traditional neighbourhoods of many cities in sections of the city in search of a better quality central Iran. Nevertheless, considering the impact of life (Schoenauer 2000, p. 177) and to adopt that all of these and other changes might have 192 A. Foruzanmehr introduced to individuals, families and society at questionnaire respondents and 12 local experts large, the likelihood of a continuing close match (i.e. architects, academics, professional builders between design and user requirements in the tradi- and local authorities). In addition, spatial patterns, tional house is rather dubious, and requires further architectural design and elements, and levels of use exploration and explanation, and systematic empir- and maintenance were observed, recorded and doc- ical work. In spite of the existence of a situation umented throughout the ﬁeldwork period in the where vernacular houses are seen in a state of form of photographs, plans, drawings and writ- decline or being replaced by modern counterparts ten notes. All data were analysed and triangulated or used for new purposes, these buildings are still using a combination of qualitative and quantita- cited in academic literature as models of socially tive methods including coding and content analy- acceptable and sustainable practice. In order to ﬁnd sis. For more detail, see Foruzanmehr (2010) and out more about this paradoxical situation, we need Foruzanmehr and Vellinga (2011). to know not only about the buildings themselves, but also about the attitudes and opinions of the 6. Findings: traditional houses and people’s actual users of these buildings. perceptions In this regard, drawing upon the ﬁndings of research on vernacular cooling systems in Iran Research participants were asked to list the two (Foruzanmehr 2010), this article explores the main aspects they most liked (i.e. positive points) users’ perceptions regarding earth central court- and the two they most disliked (i.e. negative points) yard dwellings in central Iran in the following about central-courtyard earth houses. sections. 6.1. Statements on positive points 5. Methodology Table 2 summarises the main positive comments In the summer of 2008, 360 self-completion stated by each sample where (F) is the frequency questionnaires were administered to three sam- of the comments and (%) is the percentage. Items ple groups in the city of Yazd, Iran. The ﬁrst on the list are ranked according to the frequency of sample was composed of the inhabitants of a mention. traditional neighbourhood (Fahadan), who were As can be seen, among the total 350 com- living in vernacular houses and were thus the actual ments made across the three samples, the most users (inhabitants) of vernacular earth dwellings. frequently stated positive point about earth houses The second and third samples consisted of inhabi- in Yazd was the perception of being ‘well-matched tants of a non-traditional neighbourhood (Safaiyeh) to the climate’. This attribute was also the most who were living in non-traditional houses and frequently stated positive point in each individ- blocks of ﬂats, respectively. Living in the same city, ual sample and can be suggested to be the main the inhabitants of non-traditional dwellings were positive feature of earth houses which was per- very likely to know about traditional earth houses. ceived by the population under scrutiny. This is in They could have either lived in traditional build- line with the widespread assumption (e.g. Fardeheb ings themselves, or had some relatives, friends 1987 and Shoenauer 2000) that vernacular central- or acquaintances living in them. Therefore, their courtyard houses are exemplary models of envi- views on the positive and negative aspects of earth ronmental practice. The second highest number houses could be interestingly different from or of positive comment was that central courtyard similar to the ﬁrst group. earth houses are ‘beautiful and pleasantly spacious In order to explore the ﬁndings in further (commodious)’. As was said by Vaziritabar (1990); detail the questionnaires were followed by in- Noghsan Mohammadi (2001) and Memarian and depth, semi-structured interviews with 12 of the Brown (2006), the ‘high level of privacy and safety’ International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 193 Table 2. Positive comments about traditional central-courtyard earth houses. Traditional Non-traditional Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3 Central New Whole courtyard courtyard sample houses houses Flats Comments F % F % F % F % Well-matched to the climate 114 32.6 54 42.2 40 29.4 20 23.3 Beautiful and pleasantly spacious (commodious) 84 24 38 29.7 27 19.9 19 22.1 High level of privacy and safety 36 10.3 14 10.9 15 11 7 8.1 Possessing cultural, traditional and spiritual value 22 6.3 4 3.1 9 6.6 9 10.5 Spacious 21 6 4 3.1 9 6.6 8 9.3 In accordance with nature 14 4 0 0 6 4.4 8 9.3 Lower energy use/bills 14 4 0 0 12 8.8 2 2.3 High level of natural light 10 2.9 4 3.1 2 1.5 4 4.7 Fresh air and good ventilation 10 2.9 4 3.1 4 2.9 2 2.3 Separate rooms for various functions 7 2 2 1.6 4 2.9 1 1.2 Low level of noise from outside 5 1.4 0 0 3 2.2 2 2.3 Durability and robustness 4 1.1 2 1.6 1 0.7 1 1.2 Other 9 2.6 2 1.6 4 2.9 3 3.5 Total 350 100 128 100 136 100 86 100 was the third most frequently stated remark about • Beautiful and pleasant traditional earth houses in Yazd. Having large courtyards and gardens, traditional 6.2. Description of the statements on positive houses are pleasant, relaxing and beautiful. They aspects give the feeling of being free in the space. Their traditional Iranian design is up-lifting, giv- The following is the grouping of major positive ing freshness. They are pleasantly spacious and comments on traditional houses made by the have interesting architecture. Rooms have high respondents in all three samples and the intervie- ceilings and hence are not depressing. They wees: are eye catching, silent and safe. The existence of open spaces, large courtyard and water fea- • Well-matched to climate tures is cheerful and relieving for inhabitants. Greenery and courtyards full of trees energises the These buildings are climatically designed, using spirit. natural and renewable resources consuming less energy in summer and winter. They use climatic • High level of privacy and safety modiﬁers such as thick walls, domed roofs, base- ments, wind-catchers and small windows. These buildings are well matched to desert conditions and These buildings are inward looking with no com- usable in all four seasons. They provide good light manding view from outside. Being away from and ventilation. They are cool in summer and warm direct view of neighbours because of their high in winter. Thick walls in these buildings act as and lofty walls and surrounding rooms, the central thermal insulation and provide thermal mass and courtyard provides a sense of privacy. Public and moderate internal temperatures. private spaces are separate. 194 A. Foruzanmehr • Possessing cultural, traditional and spiritual • Separate rooms for various functions, low value levels of noise, and durability Traditional buildings are loyal to national and reli- In traditional houses, different spaces are allocated gious values. They show the history and culture of to different uses and for different times. There is people. They are traditionally designed, bring fam- not any disturbing noise from mechanical devices ilies closer together and create more family attach- in these buildings. Thick high walls also act as ments. Traditional spaces are matched to family sound insulators, bringing down the level of noise activities. They are well matched to local culture. coming from outside to these buildings is low. They and act like identiﬁcation cards for the city. They have genuineness; are memorable, part of 6.3. Statements on negative aspects cultural heritage; and preserve the national identity. Table 3 shows the main negative points about tra- ditional earth houses stated by respondents in all • Spacious three samples. It shows that among a total 304 neg- ative comments made across the three samples, the Traditional houses are large and spacious, suitable most frequently stated negative point about tradi- for a big family to live together and for a person tional earth houses was the ‘low structural stability to move freely around. There are large numbers of and non-standardised materials‘ (with 25.3% of independent rooms and diversity of spaces in this the comments). This is in agreement with Bonine type of houses. (2000) who claims that traditional earth structures are prone to collapse with seismic waves. This • In accordance with nature also justiﬁes why Konya (1980) and Afshat et al. (1975) stated that earth buildings require peri- These buildings are well adapted and matched to odic maintenance. Low space efﬁciency, unsuit- nature. Natural ventilation, light and resources are able internal access and difﬁcult maintenance and used in these buildings. cleaning are the next most frequently stated nega- tive comments about traditional central-courtyard • Lower energy use/bills houses. Traditional buildings are energy efﬁcient. Less energy is used to provide and maintain the com- 6.4. Description of the statements on negative fort. In these houses, electricity is less (or even not) aspects needed for cooling. The following is the grouping of major negative comments made about traditional houses by the • High level of natural light respondents in all three samples and the intervie- wees: Rooms in the house are bright with large windows, and therefore, are not gloomy. They have better nat- ural light compared to the rooms in non-traditional • Low structural stability and non-stand- buildings. ardised materials • Fresh air and good ventilation Traditional buildings are made of mud and adobe. They are not durable and robust. They have weak There is more fresh and pleasant air and better ven- structure, and are worn out, excessively used and tilation in traditional buildings as a result of direct in a state of disrepair. They are of low resistance to connection to outside air. (and not safe at the time of) an earthquake. They International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 195 Table 3. Negative comments about traditional central-courtyard houses. Traditional Non-traditional Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3 Central New Whole courtyard courtyard sample houses houses Flats Comments F % F % F % F % Low structural stability and non-standardised 77 25.3 24 21.8 36 30 17 23 materials Low space efﬁciency: costly and land intensive 44 14.5 12 10.9 21 17.5 11 14.9 Unsuitable internal access 42 13.8 12 10.9 22 18.3 8 10.8 Difﬁcult to clean up, maintain and repair 40 13.2 18 16.4 11 9.2 11 14.9 Difﬁcult to alter and upgrade with new 35 11.5 10 9.1 15 12.5 10 13.5 technologies/not applicable to modern requirements Problems of neighbourhood 23 7.6 16 14.5 4 3.3 3 4.1 Difﬁcult to cool and heat 18 5.9 6 5.5 8 6.7 4 5.4 Safety and privacy 8 2.6 2 1.8 1 0.8 5 6.8 Aesthetically unbeautiful 7 2.3 6 5.5 0 0 1 1.4 Existence of vermin 5 1.6 2 1.8 2 1.7 1 1.4 Others 5 1.6 2 1.8 0 0 3 4.1 Total 304 100 110 100 120 100 74 100 are old and have reached the end of their natural They just worked in the past in the situation where lifespan. Their materials might have lost their population were less and land price was low. These strength after all these years. They are vulnerable to buildings are too large and lavish and full of non- damp, heavy rain and snow. They do not conform habitable and storage spaces. to solidness and ﬁrmness standards such as the 2800 byelaw (regulation). Collapse is possible in • Unsuitable internal access these buildings. Building materials are easily worn away from the building’s surface by the action of All rooms, kitchens and bathrooms are scattered water and weather. Their foundation is weak. There and dispersed in the house. Rooms are remote from are no steel or other new materials used in their kitchens and toilets and from each other. There structure. They are fragile. are too many steps in the house which make it difﬁcult to move around especially for older peo- • Low space efﬁciency: costly and land inten- ple. Courtyards act as a transitional space through sive which kitchens and toilets are accessed. Passing through the courtyard is unavoidable if one needs Although the buildings are oversized the rooms to go from one room to another. Bathroom, kitchen are small and cramped (2 by 3 m or 3 by 4 m). and lavatories are secluded, cut off and far apart Walls are thick and take up much land and useful from living spaces and are difﬁcult to access. spaces. In these buildings land is used inefﬁciently. Moving between summer and winter rooms causes Distinct summer and winter rooms are unused in difﬁculties. the wrong season. Land prices no longer allow for large courtyards with water features and greenery areas. These buildings are too large and expensive. • Difﬁcult to clean up, maintain and repair 196 A. Foruzanmehr Traditional buildings are oversized and difﬁcult cool down or warm up. Traditional cooling systems to keep clean and tidy. They are made of earth, only provide coverage for their immediate areas. with open windows and talars encouraging dust. Cooling systems are not usable in winter because A large amount of dust penetrates inside the build- they cannot be turned into/adapted as heating sys- ing. The increasing air pollution in cities does not tems. In the winter, it is difﬁcult to warm up the allow the courtyard to work as it did in the past. rooms because of the existence of massive walls Maintenance is relatively expensive and associ- and high ceilings. ated with some problems, for instance, the use of modern damp-proofs is not easily allowed. • Safety and privacy • Difﬁcult to alter and upgrade with new Security is an issue in traditional neighbourhoods technologies/not applicable to modern and buildings. The traditional building is large and requirements open, and therefore less safe than the apartments. If several families live in them, there is less privacy It is difﬁcult to incorporate new technologies into available. traditional buildings. They are not ﬂexible enough for major alterations. This way of construction is not well suited for high rise and vertical devel- 6.5. Have traditional buildings become opment. The units of traditional buildings are too out-of-date? large and not in accordance with the scale of house- The research respondents were asked whether they holds. They are not suitable for new furniture and perceived traditional earth houses to be out-of- not matched to new technologies. They are out of date. In the whole sample, 40% of the respondents date and not compatible with fashionable equip- thought that traditional buildings were out-of-date. ment and lack modern facilities such as heating and This percentage was 53% in sample one; 39% and cooling systems. 23% among the residents of new courtyard houses and ﬂats, respectively. This shows that the residents • Problems of neighbourhood of traditional houses have a lower opinion of tradi- tional houses in relation to people who do not live Traditional buildings are located in the old urban in them. It also shows that people who are not res- neighbourhoods that have the problem of transport. idents of traditional houses ﬁnd vernacular build- Public transport does not come to the neighbour- ings to be more desirable than the inhabitants of hood which are also not easily accessible by car. traditional houses. The reason behind this may be There are not enough public amenities/utilities. that the non-inhabitants of traditional houses do not Traditional neighbourhood are not well managed in regularly encounter the difﬁculties of inhabitants. terms of cleanliness; there is a lack of greenery and car park areas in them. The level of safety in the 7. Conclusion and discussion neighbourhood is low. This article has presented the data from the ques- • Difﬁcult to cool and heat tionnaire survey and interviews regarding the per- ceptions of users about their vernacular dwellings Traditional buildings are oversized and consume in Yazd. more electricity for heating, cooling and lighting, The ﬁndings show that traditional buildings are and more water for plants and for cleaning. The not considered to be out-of-date, and the relatively doors open directly to the courtyard which causes plain/modest external appearance of traditional the loss of both cooled and heated air. There are buildings has not detracted from the acceptability a large number of rooms which are difﬁcult to of these buildings compared to their non-traditional International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development 197 counterparts. Also, the residents of traditional of the past, it does not necessarily do so for the dwellings note highly the cultural and historic val- problems of the present or future. Broadly speak- ues of their homes but have some concerns about ing, if it fails to stand the pace of the present-day their structural soundness. life, its success and sustainability is thrown into The research has shown that a variety of pos- question. itive comments has been attributed to traditional The research reveals that inhabitants try to earth houses in Yazd. These positive attributes make a compromise and keep a balance between range from decent climatic performance, high aes- the positive and negative factors of their living thetic and cultural importance to spaciousness and area. If, for any reason, the negative factors out- high levels of safety and privacy. The multiplicity weigh the positive ones, the balance is removed, of positive factors – which altogether form a more and the change will become inevitable to main- general concept of sustainability – shows why ver- tain the balance. This is almost always applicable nacular earth houses are considered valuable and to many architectural traditions in the world and should be preserved at the present day. The eco- shows that the sustainability of vernacular architec- nomic, social, cultural, environmental and physical ture or broadly speaking, any traditional context in signiﬁcance of traditional buildings necessitates the present-day environment continues unless the their protection, and calls for understanding the balance between the design and user requirements methods by which they are conserved, rehabilitated, is removed. Social, cultural, ﬁnancial changes and regenerated and kept for future generations. behavioural adjustments to adapt to the new envi- The ﬁndings suggest that although the vernacu- ronment are the ways forwards to get the balance lar built environment may have become associated right and achieve the sustainability. with the past, it is still perceived as the work that Furthermore, the article has proved that there is well adapted to some of the present-day local are lessons to be learnt from the past to enable cultures and environments. Vernacular spaces, developments to be more appropriate, acceptable buildings, places and urban areas retain certain and sustainable for the present-day users. In order valuable aspects which are still relevant to the to slow the fast disappearance of vernacular build- current challenges for building sustainable envi- ing and urban areas, they would have to be prop- ronments. This is why these buildings are still cited erly assessed in the context of present lifestyles. in academic literature as models of sustainable In the case of vernacular dwellings, if they are practice. to sustain and be put into use again, all their However, a diversity of negative factors has attributes including socio-cultural, economic, aes- also been assigned to vernacular earth houses, thetic, health, convenience and comfort, should be including low structural stability, low space efﬁ- holistically taken into consideration and adjusted ciency, difﬁcult internal access and inconvenient accordingly. Importantly, user perception should be clean up and maintenance. All these indicate systematically examined, evaluated and put into the lack of a close match between design and practice. In that case, the knowledge and awareness user requirements in the traditional house. The of vernacular design can contribute positively to existence of negative factors may account for the sustainable urban and architectural improvements failure of some of these buildings as a sustainable in both developing and developed countries by and suitable place for their residents, and justify providing practical solutions that are socially and why vernacular houses are in the state of decline, culturally acceptable. being replaced by modern counterparts or used for new purposes. Notes on contributor In a wider picture, the results of this study Ahmadreza Foruzanmehr: School of the Built suggest that although the vernacular built environ- Environment, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK; ment represents successful solutions to the problem Oxford Designers Ltd., Oxford, UK 198 A. Foruzanmehr References 15–16; New Castle (UK): University of Newcastle upon Tyne. p. 41–49. Abbott J. 1977. The Iranians: how they live and work. Foruzanmehr A. 2006. 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International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development – Taylor & Francis

Published: Nov 1, 2013

Keywords: traditional; central courtyard houses; vernacular dwellings; Iran; earth buildings; sustainable; change

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Residents’ perception of earthen dwellings in Iran

Residents’ perception of earthen dwellings in Iran

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Residents’ perception of earthen dwellings in Iran

Residents’ perception of earthen dwellings in Iran

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