IN-PERSON ISTANBUL HERITAGE(S)

Abstract

Critical scholarship has laid emphasis on the significant role residents play in the making of many cities around the world. In this article, I use the concept of socio-spatial practices to position dwelling heritage as a critical yet overlooked dimension of housing discourse in urban futures. I argue that domestic spaces act as microcosms of living heritage; they carry place-based narratives of history, traditions and community identity. The study findings are based on recent ethnographic work in Lamu, Kenya _ a UNESCO World Heritage town, which in turn, is rapidly transforming. Everyday patterns of movement, hospitality and craft within these homes reveal how intangible heritage is embedded in socio-spatial practices, creating a lived sense of place. Drawing on architectural ethnography, the research maps socio-spatial practices, documents material practices, and analyzes narratives emerging from interviews and observations. The analysis shows that living patterns —from ancestral craftsmanship and social relationships, to building practices —shape spatial arrangements and everyday life. Lamu’s socio-spatial practices endure, even as the houses adapt under pressures of new building materials and external influences. These findings underscore the importance of dwelling heritage in architecture and design theory. Heritage, housing and spatial practices are intertwined, situating Lamu’s living heritage within broader debates where cultural pasts and urban futures are intrinsically linked.