Architecture can be an important source of cultural and social identity, with traditional styles of architecture serving as a form of cultural repository, as well as social spaces reflecting the way in which family divisions are managed by a culture. The architecture of southern Algeria is distinctive, both in the materials it uses and the way in which homes are organised. Traditionally a form of earthen home called a Ksar (plural Ksour) were built alongside palm groves at oases in the desert, making them a key part of how people adapted to living in this harsh environment.
In a paper published in the journal Open Archaeology on 9 October 2023, Haroune Ben Charif of the Department of Architecture and Industrial Design at the University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Azeddine Belakehal of the Department of Architecture at the Université de Biskra, and Sami Zerari, also of the Department of Architecture and Industrial Design at the University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, examine social attitudes to earthen houses in the Gourara Region of southern Algeria, and in particular the capital of the region, Timimoun, where traditional local building styles have started to be replaced by more 'modern' structures, as the area has become an urbanised administrative centre with more people employed in non-traditional roles.
The Gourara Region is bounded by the Grand Erg Occidental to the north, the Touat and Saoura regions to the west, and the Tademaït Plateau to the south and east, and comprises about 100 oases. The area has been continuously inhabited since at least the Neolithic, and is thought to have been settled by several waves of migrants, prior to the arrival of Islam and then, several centuries later, the colonial French.
Timimoun, has long been a cultural and economic hub, and officially became the administrative centre of the region in 2019. Its population has risen sharply in recent decades, from 3000 in 1954 to 20 607 in 2008. The promotion to an official administrative centre was accompanied by significant government investment in infrastructure projects, including housing programs, school facilities, healthcare, and other services, prompting more people to move to the city.
Left: the position of the province of Timimoun; right: the situation of the city of Timimoun in the Gourara region. Ben Charif et al. (2023).
The city of Timimoun began as a group of fortresses, each controlled by a different family or clan. In the fifteenth century these were united by Wali Sidi Moussa, leading to the formation of a market and ksour between the forts. In the twentieth century a colonial village was added to the urban area. Since independence from France urban growth in the eastern part of the city has changed the fabric of the urban area, with modern houses displacing traditional areas of Palm cultivation.
Development of the city of Timimoun. Ben Charif et al. (2023).
The traditional town of Timimoun is known for its distinctive traditional architecture, with a distinctive Gourari house made from earthen blocks, stone, and Palm wood, with an angled entrance and narrow inner courtyard. These houses provide excellent thermal insulation, and are resilient to the desert climate. The distinctiveness of these structures is further enhanced by their distinctive ornamentation, with geometric patterns carved into the clay in places, and a form of plastering on some outer walls involving balls of clay, which increases shading and reduces sun exposure.
Architectural plans of typical configuration of the Gourarian house situated on the path towards the Moulay Ahmed cemetery in the Ksar of Timimoun. Boufeldja Arif in Ben Charif et al. (2023).
This style of architecture remained the predominant one in Timimoun, even being adopted during the colonial period for structures such as the hotels Oasis Rouge and Gourara. However, recent urbanization projects by the Algerian government have introduced more 'modern' manufactured building materials to the region.
Earthen decorative technique adopted in various edifices in the city of Timimoun. (1) Ex-hotel Oasis Rouge built between 1912 and 1917. (2) Hotel Gourara built in the 1970s by the French architect Fernand Pouillon. (3) Recent renovation on the Central post office of Timimoun. Ben Charif et al. (2023).
In the Gourara Region, architecture is not just utilitarian, it is also an expression of local heritage tied to cultural practices such as annual festivals and artforms. This cultural distinctiveness has been recognised by UNESCO, with the Pilgrimage to Sbuâ, and the Ahellil musical genre recognised as being of international cultural importance.
Exterior wall plaster type in Timimoun. Ben Charif et al. (2023).
Homes are more than just buildings, they have deep emotional ties for their inhabitants, reflecting their association with family and culture. The architectural style of the home is tied to this, and people will often have strong emotional feelings, positive of negative, about building styles and or materials. Archaeologist Louise Cook investigated earthen architecture in Turkmenistan and found that it a number of both positive and negatuve perceptions were frequently expressed. On the positive side earthen architecture was seen as an ancient local practice, aesthetically pleasing and easily adaptable, something available to the entire local population without reliance on outside resources, durable, able to cope with the local environment, resilient to natural disasters, recyclable, and symbolic of local culture. On the negative side, it was seen as poor people's housing, weaker than buildings made of more modern materials, easily damaged, unhealthy, and often the housing choice of last resort.
Transformation of the architectural heritage in the Ksar of Timimoun, demonstrating the impact of industrial construction methods on traditional earthen urban fabric. Ben Charif et al. (2023).
Charif et al. set out to assess attitudes to earthen architecture and 'modern' buildings in Timimoun, Algeria, using questionnaires aimed at inhabitants of both the traditional and modern buildings.
It was found that dwellers in both types of houses found that their homes were healthy and comfortable, with both groups expressing that this was important to them. Both groups also thought that their homes were aesthetically pleasing, although this appeared to be far more important to the inhabitants of earthen houses. Conversely, while both groups thought it was important that homes were resilant to natural disasters, the inhabitants of modern homes placed more importance on the ability of homes to physically resist damage, rather than being easily repaired.
Renovation of a mausoleum during the Sbuâ annual pilgrimage. Charif et al. (2023).
Dwellers in both types of houses reported believing that cheap, low quality building materials were a bad thing, although neither group reported feeing particularly unhappy with the level of comfort provided by their homes. Dwellers in more modern buildings tended to report that autonomy of building design was more important to them. Similarly, all the participants reported that the ability to recycle building materials was important to them; notably dwellers in traditional houses felt that their homes were easily modified, allowing a degree of flexibility to the users which the dwellers in modern houses lacked, while the dwellers in modern houses were concerned by the difficulty in modifying their homes, and the lack of recyclability of the materials involved.
Dwellers in modern houses tended to report that the modernity of their homes was a desirable feature. However, dwellers in traditional earthen houses did not see a lack of modernity as a drawback. This may be connected to the differing occupations of the dwellers in the two types of home, with dwellers in the more modern buildings tending to be employed in professional and administrative roles, which leave less time for regular building maintenance.
All the inhabitants of Timimoun reported positive feelings about the types of houses they lived in, although this was more pronounced in the dwellers in more traditional homes. This may reflect a recent perceptual shift towards the desirability of modern housing, driven by social and economic factors, as well as exposure to media in which such homes are portrayed as more desirable. Contrary to Cook's findings, the only 'negative' perception reported about earthen houses was their lack of modernity, which does not seem to be perceived as a great problem.
The distinctive architecture of the Gourara Region appeared to be valued by all of the respondants, although it was clearly more important to the people dwelling in these traditional homes. Despite this perception, the traditional architectural style is under threat, with modern houses slowly coming to replace traditional earthen ones. Although the traditional houses are perceived as more aesthetically pleasing, the lower maintenance needs of modern houses is apparently becoming more attractive.
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