Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

• Sayed Mahdi Khatami ¹
• Somayyeh Haghroosta ²

¹ Department of Urban Planning and Design, Faculty of Art and Architecture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.

² Faculty of Art and Architecture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The Umayyad period is one of the most important historical periods in the early Islamic era because of its vast geographical area. The Umayyad conquered Eastern Roman influenced by ancient Greek and Roman art, before the advent of Islam. Therefore, Umayyad urban planning was affected by architectural and urban styles of Eastern Rome. At the same time, Islam had its influence on its architecture. This article aims to analyze urban structures of this period and examines two cities of Ramla (a new city built by Muslims) and Damascus (a city transformed by Muslims) as two major cases. The research method of this article is based on documentary examination and descriptive-interpretive analysis of various texts that have been analyzed by using qualitative strategies. The results of the study indicate that Muslims in the Levant created a kind of adaptive urbanization. It means that they often did not make major changes in conquered cities, and only adapted the urban elements to their needs.

Keywords

• Islamic city
• Urban Planning
• Ramla
• Damascus
• Umayyad history