The document discusses the reemergence of the courtyard design in modern Kuwaiti housing after disappearing for over 40 years. The courtyard was an important part of traditional Kuwaiti architecture but was replaced by modern villa designs during rapid development in the 20th century. However, prestigious villas and middle class houses are now being designed with courtyards again. The document explores why courtyards are reemerging through the theoretical framework of core/peripheral cultural elements and examines the functions and meanings of courtyards, both historically and in modern Kuwaiti architecture.

1. The Reemergence of the Courtyard in Kuwaiti Housing Design
By: Dr. Yasser Mahgoub
Date written: 2003
Introduction
After its disappearance for more than 40 years, the courtyard house design
reemerged in Kuwait. The reemergence of the courtyard is evident in the current
design of many new houses in Kuwait. Prestigious villas and middle class
houses are being designed using the traditional courtyard concept found in
Kuwait during the first half of the 20th century. This article discusses the
phenomenon of the reemergence of the courtyard in new houses design in
Kuwait and the factors influencing its reemergence as a viable design concept.
It also focuses on the meaning and functions of the courtyard as a traditional
and modern phenomenon. The study investigates the intentions of the architects
who produce and promote the use of the courtyard to their clients. It questions
whether the new courtyard similar or different than the old courtyard.
Theoretical Framework
The article explores the phenomenon of the reemergence of the courtyard house
design from the theoretical framework of “core/peripheral aspects of the built
environment” proposed by Rapoport. (Rapoport, 1989) In his paper “On the
Cultural Responsiveness of Architecture, JAE 41/1”, Rapoport distinguished
between the core of a culture and its periphery, particularly in conditions of
rapid cultural change. The theory states that "certain elements (peripheral) are
given up not only willingly but eagerly for new ones, but that others (core) are
retained until the latter end. What these are needed to be discovered."
(Rapoport, A. (1987)
Previous studies indicated that the theory has proved valid in the architecture of
the Gulf countries which witnessed rapid development and change during the
second half of the 20th century following the discovery of oil and economic
wealth generated by its sales. Many cultural and architectural elements were
replaced by modern elements and ways of life; for example; the traditional
courtyard houses were replaced by modern villas, the narrow alleys were
replaced by wide vehicular streets, and the traditional building materials were
replace by concrete and steel. On the other hand, other elements were retained
with their original form or with new form; for example the men’s gathering
room called Diwan was retained in many the design of new houses as symbol of
social status and cultural exchange setting, the high level of required privacy
was not reduced suddenly, and the costumes of men and women were not
completely abandoned.
In addition, a new phenomenon is currently taking place which is the
reemergence of several elements of traditional architecture in contemporary
architecture design. The hypothesis of this paper states that some elements of

2. the traditional built environment are now reappearing as practical solutions that
satisfy social needs in the modern environment. The paper attempts to trace the
development of one of these elements, namely the courtyard, and the reasons
behind its reemergence in the contemporary house design.
Background: The courtyard
According to Davis, The courtyard can be traced back to 2000 B.C. in
Mesopotamia and spread throughout what is modern day Syria. When the
Moslems conquered the Middle East in the third century, they carried the
courtyard concept throughout the Mediterranean region. That's how the
architectural style reached Spain, which then centuries later took the idea to
Mexico. The courtyard served three purposes. First, it allowed high density in
ancient cities which needed to be surrounded by walls to protect against enemy
attacks. In those cramped cities, the courtyard also offered privacy. In the desert
climates of the Middle East, the design provided solar protection by having
everything open toward a mostly shaded courtyard. For the Islamic culture, the
courtyard had another benefit: a sheltered place for plants and fountains,
fulfilling a religious purpose of creating paradise in the midst of arid country. In
addition, the plants and water helped cool the house. The flat roof of an ancient
courtyard house was more than a convenient means of construction. It was a
family living area, rather like the contemporary family room or patio. In
addition to serving as a sitting area on hot summer nights, it also was a sleeping
area in good weather. (Davis, 1996)
The courtyard house
The relatively static cooling system used in a courtyard house can provide the
basis for understanding modifications that can generate air movement by
convection. In hot dry zones, air temperature drops considerably after sunset
from re-radiation to the night sky. The air is relatively free of water vapor that
would reflect the heat or infrared radiation back toward the ground, as occurs in
warm humid regions. To enhance thermal comfort, this phenomenon has been
used in the architectural design of houses by employing the courtyard concept.
Nature is hostile at ground level in these zones, especially in the deserts. People
learned to close their houses to the outside and open them inwardly onto
internal courtyards called sahn, which are open to the sky. This arrangement
provides drops in air temperature of 10-20 C° (18-36 F°) at night. This might
explain why the lunar crescent as a symbol of the night sky is so meaningful to
Arab people and ultimately to all Muslims, to the point of appearing on the flags
of eight predominantly Muslim nations. As evening advances, the warm air of
the courtyard, which was heated directly by the sun and indirectly by the warm
buildings, rises and is gradually replaced by the already cooled night air from
above. This cool air accumulates in the courtyard in laminar layers and seeps
into the surrounding rooms, cooling them. In the morning, the air of the

3. courtyard, which is shaded by its four walls, and the surrounding rooms heat
slowly and remain cool until late in the day when the sun shines directly into the
courtyard. The warm wind passing above the house during the day does not
enter the courtyard but merely creates eddies inside, unless baffles have been
installed to deflect the airflow. In this way, the courtyard serves as a reservoir of
coolness. The courtyard concept is universally applied in the traditional
architecture of countries in hot arid regions stretching from Iran in the East to
the shores of the Atlantic Ocean in the West, and in both rural and urban
housing design.
The courtyard in Kuwaiti architecture
The courtyard in Kuwaiti traditional architecture
The courtyard was an important feature of traditional architecture in Kuwait. It
was recognized by Saleh Al Mutawa as the first element of the “Elements of
Old Kuwaiti Architecture”, as he called them. (Al-Mutawa, 1994) He described
it as:
The (internal) courtyard, surrounded by rooms from all sides. The
courtyard, in that manner, secured full ventilation to all rooms, to
reduce the intense heat during the summer nights. As parts of the
courtyard were in shade, its temperature was cool, because the sun
did not fill it. Those created places to sit in. During the night,
temperature reduced due to thermal exchange with outer space.
Evaporative cooling took place when the courtyard was sprayed with
water.
The courtyard was used a place where activities such as family sitting children
playing take place. It was not an open are to “look at” but rather a place “to be
in.” The design of the house started by the courtyard and then surrounded by the
rooms.

4. The courtyard satisfied many functional, environmental, social, and cultural
requirements including:
- Provided space for family to conduct their daily activities
- Satisfied privacy requirement away from visual contact with the street
- Provided a protected space from harsh natural environment
- Secured an safe place for children to play

5. The courtyard in Kuwaiti modern architecture
The disappearance of the courtyard house design was the result of modern
planning of Kuwait during the second half of the 20th century. After the
discovery of oil in the 1940’s and the economic wealth associated with it, the
government of Kuwait decided to modernize the country. The ruler of
Kuwait invited the British firm Monoprio, Spencely and Macfarlane in 1952
to develop a new plan for Kuwait using the state of the art theories of
planning at that time.
In their Report on the Plan for the Town of Kuwait, Minoprio et al called
attention to the need to develop “a simple set of rules to govern the way in
which buildings shall be erected, their height, the amount of land which each
can occupy, and the distance between buildings, will be
necessary.”(Minoprio, 1951) The establishment of modern zoning and
building regulations, the introduction of new building materials and
construction methods, and the desire to modernize and upgrade the living
conditions of the citizens during the fifties gave way to the modern villa to
replace the traditional courtyard house.
The individual villa on a lot of land with setbacks from all sides became the
ideal image for family living. It became the icon of modernization and
modern life in Kuwait. Building regulations of the design of private houses
in Kuwait encouraged the establishment of the individual villa as the only
form of acceptable house design. (Mahgoub, 2002)
The absence of native Kuwaiti architects during the fifties and sixties
allowed for the construction of many villas by foreign architects from
neighboring Arab or foreign countries. Ignorant about local culture and
traditional practices, and following only the newly established building
regulations, the expatriate architects were produced repetitive images of
modern villas enforcing the image of villa replace the traditional courtyard
house. Even public housing projects were designed according to the same
standards that introduced the villa as the ideal image for a house.

6. The courtyard in Kuwaiti contemporary architecture
The reemergence of the courtyard in modern house designs in Kuwait could be
attributed to the following reasons:
1. The return of many young Kuwaiti architects from education abroad with
consciousness of the value of traditional architecture as heritage of
architectural solutions.
2. The development of building regulations and the reduction of setbacks
reducing privacy between neighboring houses to levels intolerable to
residents.
3. The increased level of education and intellectualism of house owners to
the level of accepting traditional architecture as wealth of architecture
solutions and not mere relics of the past.
4. A post-modern trend to return to traditional architecture as a source of
solutions and expression of identity especially after the crisis of the
invasion by Iraq which generated a strong need for a sense of cultural
identity in architecture and the built environment.
5. The slow paste of change in family and social relationships that
facilitated the constant need for high levels of privacy in the house. For
example, the large terrace of the villa are seldom used for sitting by
family members and large windows are always closed.
The following are examples of contemporary courtyard houses:

7. Conclusions
In many traditional-turned-modern environments we found elements of
traditional environment reemerging to satisfy modern needs. According to
Nawangwe “Modernism could be combined with local “reworked” vernacular
elements in order to achieve local or national identity. … Another major
shortcoming of modernism, which also needs to be addressed is the failure to
produce living environments that are psychologically and socially fulfilling.
Studies of vernacular architecture in Uganda have revealed that certain design
aspects that were ignored by modernism actually have a lot to offer. The
threshold, recurring theme in Ugandan vernacular architecture, can add a useful
psychological dimension to the experience of moving from one place to the
next.” (Nawangwe ,2002, p. 11)
The reemergence of the courtyard in current Kuwait houses supports Rapoport’s
theory and adds to it that certain elements might reemerge in the future as
traditional solutions reworked to satisfy new needs. It is important to understand
the change in meaning of the reemerged element when compared to its
traditional use. While other traditional elements are still absent from the modern
design they can reemerge, as the courtyard did, when circumstances and socio-
cultural needs exist.
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