The Morphological Spatial Composition of the Architectural Fabric of Traditional Centres in Palestine

Abstract

Old Palestinian cities are comprised of autonomous units-parts, and grow with multiplication of their parts. The old neighborhoods in Palestinian cities in terms of urban morphology are characterized by irregular geometry of the streets, blocks and yards, much like the organic matrix of the Balkan city. This urbanism has the character of organic (spontaneous) urbanism. The durability of the city is provided by the open spaces, as an element of connecting streets and extensions.
Public buildings are the initial objects of the city fabric. Housing is an anonymous mass, which provides the physical structure of the city. The houses do not act on an individual level, but always as elements in a group - urban block, urban island. Therefore, the urban block is the basic element of the urban space. The blocks are the result of the street pattern. This spontaneity and specificity emerges from the location conditions and its specific topographical characteristics. The urban block is a spacious whole confined in streets. The block's physiognomy is the result of the parcelization of land and the typology of the house.
This paper is divided into four chapters: Morphological traditional fabric, Types of spatial composition of traditional fabric, Current morphological structure of traditional architectural areas and Types of spatial composition for the current fabric
Old neighborhoods in Palestinian cities in terms of urban morphology are characterized by the following: In terms of the built physical structure, an accentuated density can be noted in which, due to spontaneity and unplanned construction of houses, diversity expressed in disposition, shape and volume is dominant. The thickness and irregularity of these structures are in fact a characteristic of this region. Finding opportunities for providing natural lighting and ventilation of the residential premises is dependent on the period of the year. Due to the high density of the developed land with residential structures, the housing conditions in the common open spaces (pedestrian streets) are not provided and they are fully used for crossing. The urban development of residential units in Arab countries has human characteristics, because it is primarily based on respect for human values and human needs.
Key words: autonomous units, urban morphology, physical structure, urban block, urban development.