Housing and Rural Environment
Year:2020 | Volume:39 | Issue:169|Papers Count:6

In Tourism industry, development of second homes in rural areas always has been one of the signs of tourists’ attention to the villages. In recent decades, with the development of these types of settlements, the need to pay attention to the differences between local community and the tourists is felt over and over. These settlements often lead to some inconsistencies and problems due to the social, cultural and economic inequalities between the two communities along with the differences in physical and spatial needs between the two groups. Due to the critical importance of the issue, it always requires special attention from professionals. The purpose of the present study is a comparative analysis of the impact of social, cultural, economic and environmental factors on the formation of the second tourism houses from the perspective of the local community and tourists and ultimately assessment of the similarities and differences between them. The present study is a combination research using a qualitative technique (semi-structured interview) and to some extent Likert questionnaire. Indicators and outputs making the researcher’ s questionnaires, were prepared by a panel of experts from the faculty members of the Architecture Department of Mohaghegh Ardabili University and Islamic Art University of Tabriz. Finally 15 physical indicators were determined and for each of them, 16 subsets in four social, cultural, economic and environmental groups were categorized and edited from the audiences’ point of view. By applying Simple Random Method, 64 local residents and 54 owners of second homes were selected to interview and responding the questionnaires. Statistical sample research on 15 physical variables independent t-test and multiple regressions analyses were applied to analyze the information obtained from completed questionnaires and ultimately identified the factors which influence the design of second homes. Independent t-test results indicate disagreement between the views of two groups of audiences about how physical variables affect them and the way of second homes formation. Moreover, the results of multiple regression test based on the audiences’ opinions, indicate the impacts of social, cultural, economic and environmental factors on the body of second homes. Regarding physical factors, significant differences were observed between their points of view like paying attention to greenery (green wall, green outdoor, … ), applying modern methods in building a second home, considering the importance of perspective, location and orientation of the building, considering half-open spaces overlooking the passageways, anticipating communal leisure spaces and using native architectural materials and forms. Also average number of community and second homeowners share the agreement to implement variables like using modern and urban forms and views, open houses on four sides (garden house), transparency of the enclosure, embedding livestock, use of cheerful and varied colors in the facade and roof covering, and locating second homes in a detached area of tissue and the proposed texture. Furthermore, regarding physical factors, the idea of restoration of the old building and dedicating it to the second tourist home with two floors or more was faced with average negative comments from tourists and the local community. Moreover, based on audience opinions, multiple regression results indicate the solidarity and direct communication between most of the physical variables and social, cultural, economic and environmental factors. It is essential to attract the attention of the designers and planners to the views of the audiences and increase their awareness about the importance of influential factors in designing and building the second homes.

Purpose In rural areas of developing countries, lack of facilities and geographical isolation can be considered as the major causes of poverty leading to limited opportunities in achieving sustainable economic and social improvement. Public transport system has a crucial role in the prevention of social and economic exclusion and marginalization of rural and remote areas. Access to public transport can have various effects on economic and social development of these areas. In this article we studied the role of the communication network and public transport system in economic and social development of the rural areas. Therefore it is intended to answer the following questions:-What are the different views of mountain village people and plain village people about rural road network and rural – urban public transport system?-Do the factors like improvement of network construction and expansion of rural roads and public transport systems lead to economic boom in the study area?-Do the factors like network construction, improvement of rural roads and expansion of public transport systems lead to improvement of social conditions in the study area? Methodology The research was done on the base of descriptive and exploratory method. The population of this research is the forest-mountain and plain villagers chosen in the eastern region of Bandpey in Babol County. Due to the purpose of the research, descriptive-analytical method was chosen. The data were collected by questionnaires. Validity of the questionnaires were confirmed by applying Cronbach formula with 78%. Residents of plain-forest and mountain-forest villages from Sajadroad and Fyrozjah rural districts are study population. The relative sampling method was used in the present study and for analysing the data, descriptive methods by SPSS software were applied. Finding It is shown that there are significant differences between the forest-mountain and plain villages in all fields of services like safety, infrastructure, quality of the communication network, and transport system and these factors influence the economic and social development except the quality of the asphalt. In the villages of the plains, two factors of safety road network and public transport system have influential role in the economic and social development. In the forest-foothill villages, social development is influenced by quality improvement of the infrastructure elements and economic development is affected by expanding safety road network and public transport system. Research Limitation Limited numbers of forest-mountain villages are selected as sample. Practical Implications In all societies, rural transport system has been considered as a prerequisite for progress and one of the important aspects of rural development. Furthermore, expanding road network and public transport are regarded as prerequisites and foundations of development in communities which have potential productivity. The aforesaid factors provide unbreakable bond between remote areas like rural ones with socio-economic development and ultimately prevent isolationism in closed economy of rural areas by strengthen the sense of belonging to a larger community. Original/Value Transportation is a prerequisite for the development of rural areas.

Rural architecture reflects the integration of architecture with the environment and culture. This kind of relation has been considered as the main factor which brings about diversity in the form of residential architecture in different rural areas. In cold and mountainous climates of Iran, factors such as climate, land type, livelihoods have made differences in architectures. But this fact is forgottern that the quality of rural architecture is the most effective tool which create the image of a rural areas. It is evident that surrounding architectures have had direct impact on both investment decisions and inhabitants as it is clearly obvious that even best promotion will not be efficient if spatial reality discourages inhabitants. Rural architecture brings about the functions of identification and promotion and it is consideres as the appealing sign whose functions can be compared to a product brand. The article presents the results of the research survey of the rural constructions in the Dosiran village near Kazrun in Fars province of Iran in three parts. The first part of the paper deals with investigating Chohar-Sofeh houses. Construction form of the architecture along with environment and spaces are discussed in the second part and ultimately the third part deals with the impact of culture, history, climate and other factors on the building shapes and typology, both at settlement level and unit level. The research method in this article is based on a survey and case study. The data were collected through personal observations, field surveys, and review of documents and information on village history and architecture. Primitive studies were done to investigate the causal factors which have affacted Chohar-Sofeh houses. The authors attempt to answer the following questions by comparing the spatial arrangement of Chohar-Sofeh houses and their structural details: How Chohar-Sofeh houses have been constructed? What are the different types of residential architectures in Dosiran village? What kinds of characteristics of Chohar-Sofeh houses reflect a type of architecture of rural residential building? Initial research demonstrated this fact that due to climate and security issues, Chohar-Sofeh houses have no windows. The orientation of them is based on the prevailing winter wind direction. The entrances are built to a height of 140 cm, shorter than usual in the Iranian rural architecture based on safety, climatic and cultural components. The houses are double walled and ventilated in both direct and indirect ways. Direct ventilation through openings in the outer walls leading to the outdoor walls; and indirect ventilation through the openings in the inner walls leading to the centeral space of the covered roof which has an outdoor hole. Due to the snowy countryside and to avoid blocking the ventilation hole, an outlet was created instead of a roof in the faç ade. The prevailing wind of the Dosiran village blows from the west and the approximate-45 Degree of the four axes of the two axes towards their main axes and ultimately their north-west orientation to the southeast allows the entrance to be located on any front, without direct exposure to the prevailing wind. This will reduce the amount of cold winds entering the building during the cold season. The pattern of spatial organization in Dosiran houses has been achieved through the history of the village, the climate, the context of construction, and some forms of spatial constructions.

Nomadic life is a way of life with annual relocation in which a group of people moves with their cattle from winter tents to summer pastures and returns to their winter camps in the cold season. The most important characteristic of nomadic life is movement to meet the needs of their life style. This relocation requires certain conditions which overshadow all aspects of nomadic life such as architecture, culture, mood, and even physical characteristics. The nomadic way of life is based on the pattern of movement and settlement which means that the part of nomads’ lives, about two to three months, is being spent moving along the path and the rest, about four to five months, in the "summer" residence and ultimately about four to five months, in the "winter" residence. Thus, during this relocation, two different lifestyles are formed for the nomads, one along the migration route and the other during the settlement in the summer and winter camps. The settlement structure of the nomads in each of these two periods is subjected to different conditions. The study of the physical-spatial system of the nomadic settlement in these two periods and the challenges related to them are the subjects of the present study. Accordingly, the main research questions can be posed as follows:-What are the most important challenges regarding the shape of nomadic settlements along the migration route and what the conditions of accommodation in summer and winter resorts are?-What are the main principles which form the spatial organization of nomadic settlements, the migration route and summer and winter camps? The research method is as follows: Four Boyer-Ahmad tribes were selected as random samples and their places of residence were visited in two winter and summer areas as well as along the migration route and ultimately, the research information was extracted and analyzed. The research is of qualitative type and based on a case study of nomadic lifestyle. Data collection was done in the form of direct observation as well as in-depth and semi-structured interviews with the residents of these tribes. The present study examines residential patterns in two contexts by considering the length of the migration route and summer and winter accommodation and the analysis is based on these two axes in the form of two separate observations. In each follow-up, introducing the way of nomads’ life in that case is accompanied with analyzing the system governing the spatial establishment and the shape of their habitat. Finally, the results showed that finding a suitable place to live for a few days on the Ilarah route is the most important challenge for nomads on the Koch route. Therefore, in that situation, applying the natural elements to create suitable conditions for multi-day accommodation is inevitable as the nomads use rocks and natural barriers to create more enclosure to ensure animal safety, consider proximity of water sources for livestock and family members, the existence of a suitable pasture for a few days' accommodation and the use of sunlight and good wind to provide comfort in the tent. However, in the settlement of nomads in summer and winter camps, the emphasis on different levels of territory is considered as one of the main factors in shaping the physical-spatial system of nomadic settlements. The issue of different levels of territory can be considered in both objective and subjective dimensions. In the objective dimension, territory includes the area owned by nomadic families and in the subjective dimension, levels of private, semi-public and public domain due to the spatial arrangement of blacklists in the camp residence are considered.

A look at today’ s construction models in rural architectures shows that rural houses are being built based on urban housing models and many aspects including climatic issues and natural ventilation are being ignored. Implementation of urban standards for rural housing is not considered suitable and housing models in villages must be revised according to the the current needs of each region. Designers need to learn and derive from the experiences of traditional housing and select design models which are appropriate for the local climatic conditions of the concerned regions. The vernacular architecture of Sistan Region provides a number of valuable methods for improving quality of life in the area. The harsh climatic conditions of this region have motivated the local architects to search and devise the best and the most suitable ways of adaptation with the climate and use climatic conditions in favor of the residents by means of innovative principles and models. Through proper integration with advanced technologies, these principles and models can be used in modern architecture as well. Kharkhona (a pad made by interlacing desert bushes and moistened with water) is one of the elements of the vernacular architecture of Sistan Region which has proven effective for ventilation and cooling of the living spaces in the area. The vernacular architects of this region have installed Kharkhona in houses and buildings to create cooling facilities and reduce the indoor temperature by means of evaporation of the water drops entangled in the desert bushes. The aim of this research was to identify and study the function of Kharkhona, analyze the relative humidity of indoor air in the vernacular abodes of Sistan Region and specify appropriate Kharkhona for applying in contemporary rural houses. For achieving this end, field measurements were performed in two structurally identical rooms, one equipped with Kharkhona as the experimental group (or rather room) and one without this architectural element as the control room. The humidity figures in the experimental room, the control room and an outdoor point were measured and the results were compared. Descriptive statistics, Microsoft Excel and Minitab software were used for integrated understanding and interpretation of the collected data. The results of data analysis indicated that, overall and based on the mean daily relative humidity in the three measurement stations, the relative humidity of the room without Kharkhona was almost the same as that of the outdoor open space while the relative humidity of the indoor air of the room equipped with Kharkhona was significantly different from that of the other two measurement stations, namely the room without Kharkhona and the outdoor point. While the relative humidity of the space without Kharkhona was only 12%, the figure exceeded 30% in the Kharkhona-equipped room, a number that easily falls in the range of thermal comfort according to the studies carried out by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and Victor Olgyay (the range is 20-80% according to ASHRAE and 30-65% according to Olgyay). The reason of this difference was the humidity created by evaporation of the water sprinkled over the desert bushes which reduced the indoor temperature, moderated the microclimate and improved the overall climatic conditions. This study indicated that Kharkhona has a very favorable impact on the hot and dry climate of Sistan Region and the effect would be favorable in dry areas with low relative humidity. Therefore, use of this Iranian architectural element is strongly recommended as a passive technique for achieving thermal comfort in environments with high sensible heat.

Ecological materials are one of the characteristics of traditional Iranian architecture; this means according to the geography of each region, the specific materials of the same climate have been used. The village of Ashtbin, located on the banks of the Aras River, is a perfect example of this traditional Iranian architecture where wood and stone are its main indigenous materials. In some old houses in Ashtbin Village, there have been wooden abacuses, some of which have inscriptions and history. In addition to their functionality, they seem to have indigenous artistic features as they have been carved out of wood along with the designs. Some of them are located in spaces called "Boonehghi" and the rest in other spaces of buildings. At present, Boonehghis are the only wooden structures in the village where the use of wooden abacus has been necessary and common. By considering these facts, applying the wooden abacuses in the constructions and decorations has been assumed as the local and indigenous tradition of Ashtbin Village’ s "Booneh Ghai" spaces, with its pyramidal and relatively high architecture which was made of wood beams. These wooden abacuses are cut with special environmental shapes on which the patterns are engraved. In this paper, all the surviving wooden abacuses are structurally introduced and analyzed based on features like technique, general form and patterns. For this purpose, after field survey, all the surviving wooden abacuses in the buildings of Ashtbin village have been identified, photographed and analyzed. According to the research has been done in this field, it seems that "Boonehghiha" has been the subject of unfamiliarity for researchers and specialists in the field of Iranian art and architecture for various reasons, so far only one article, one dissertation and one registration plan in this regard has been compiled, although it seems that there was an indigenous and local tradition in the construction and decoration of these wooden abacuses in the village of Ashtbin. Based on this, the research question is what kind of unique local features for the wooden abacuses of Ashtbin village can be proposed? Thus, the aim of this study is to structurally investigate the indigenous visual features and index of the wooden abacuses of Ashtbin village. The research method is descriptive and analytical comparison. The findings show that 48 wooden abacuses were found in field surveys of the village's historic buildings. Despite the large number of wooden abacuses and the variety of locations used, we see the use of indigenous woods in their construction. Also, the motifs are engraved on most of them geometrically based on the shape of a circle, in a certain way. A special environmental shear patterns also were drawn on them. Finally, it seems that the tradition of making wooden abacuses in certain historical periods existed in the region of Azerbaijan, but with some differences in decoration and execution, in other words, in the past historical periods, in accordance with the climatic conditions of the region, it has been slightly associated with the change and taste of art masters in decorating them, which unfortunately in Iran has been less considered and introduced as a native architectural tradition. .