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Neighbourhood in transition: Exploring the Ottoman heritage of Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina
Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal,
13
(1),
89-99
(2019)
Abstract
The presence of globalisation trends has resulted in an increasing demand for environments that pose unique cultural experiences. Consequently, resorting to preservation of traditional urban fabric and the rewriting of history, as forms of self-definition, is becoming a widespread practice. In this context, the study of traditional urban neighbourhoods is of particular significance since they could be read as historic artefacts — narratives grounded in once prevailing cultural, political and social discourses. The case study presented and evaluated in this paper aims to produce a comprehensive understanding of the urban neighbourhood — mahala — established by the Ottomans in the 15th century in the city of Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Contrary to the traditional mahala, as a well-established neighbourhood model, changes that occurred in the last decade have drastically altered the urban pattern of this residential settlement. It is from this perspective that the paper contributes to the debate on sustainable development of urban neighbourhoods. Through examination of the inner dynamics of mahalas, the paper calls for the establishment of novel understanding of the role of tradition and heritage in the creation of contemporary social and spatial relationships. Finally, it discusses the value of an inherited neighbourhood by offering future directions and measures, which could be launched in order to sustain the mahala’s transformation towards a sustainable residential neighbourhood model.
Keywords: traditional urban fabric; heritage; sustainable neighbourhood; neighbourhood planning
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Erna Husukić graduated from the Faculty of Architecture, University of Sarajevo in 2011. She obtained her PhD at the International Burch University, Sarajevo, in September 2015. Since 2011 Erna has been employed at the International Burch University where she currently holds the position of Associate Professor doctor in the Department of Architecture. Erna’s research interests revolve around contemporary urban milieu and urban studies with a particular interest in urban transformations, city regeneration and urban memory.
Dalila Salkanović-Delić obtained her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in architecture at International Burch University. After graduation in 2016, she joined the engineering company Coning d.o.o. in Sarajevo, where she still works as an architect. Her main field of work focuses on housing projects and energy efficiency improvement projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Dalia’s current research interests include sustainable urbanism and architecture, public spaces, quality of housing, urban identity and cultural-spatial aspects of housing environments.
Emina Zejnilović is a graduate of Eastern Mediterranean University, North Cyprus and has a PhD in theory of architectural design. Emina began her academic career in 2011, and is currently employed as an associate professor and head of the Department of Architecture at the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, International Burch University, Sarajevo. Emina researches architecture as a social product, exploring topics of cultural impact on architectural design, with particular focus on the Balkan region.
