The impact of generative principles on the traditional Islamic built environment: The context of the Saudi Arabian built environment

The purpose of this paper is to explore and examine Saudi Arabian traditional architecture through the lens of broader Islamic principles, which through history have encouraged the establishment of several types of cities and towns, where each type is known by its functionality and by the way inhabitants planned each settlement. Local Saudi architecture exists in a range of styles, and it is well-known in var-ious Saudi regions. Although there are differences in style, the study contends and discusses that similar generative principles influenced the built space of most Saudi regions. This study made use of the ethno-graphic approach and comparative case studies method to explore, elaborate, and synthesize the gener-ative principles to analyze the architectural similarities across Saudi regions, even though the architecture appears, at first glance, different. The article suggests that contemporary architects should implement some of these ideas in modernization efforts to balance originality while also informing and enhancing local identity.(c) 2022 THE AUTHORS. Published by Elsevier BV on behalf of Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams Uni-versity. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc-nd/4.0/).