Analysis of the Interaction between the Formal Types of Traditional Houses and Spatial Configurations using Space Syntax Case Study: Traditional Houses of Kashan

Kashan is a city in Iran with a host of traditional houses that date to the Qajar period. Sociocultural and climatic factors have had the greatest impact on their spatial configurations. In this study, focusing on entrances, the spatial configuration of houses in Kashan is analyzed.  Houses are first categorized in terms of physical form in four categories: single-courtyard houses with massing on two sides; single-courtyard houses with massing on three sides; single-courtyard houses with massing on four sides; and double-courtyard houses with massing on four sides. In the second step, the number of entrances and their positions were identified. Next, spatial configuration analysis is used to analyze entrances in each category. In this regard, two indices of integration and step depth (visual connection) are assessed. In the third step, the arrangement of summer and winter sections of houses in each group was investigated based on Justified Graphs and Visibility Graph Analysis.The main hypothesis of this study is that houses in each category have similar spatial connections and that the spatial organization of the summer and winter sections are different. In addition, the relationship between the entrance spaces and residential spaces in each category is discussed. The results show that in terms of spatial configuration, there are houses with different visual depths in each category, but similar sociocultural implications are evident in all configurations that are based on sociocultural characteristics of Iranian-Islamic architecture in Kashan. Also, the spatial organization of the summer and winter living sections is varied. With regard to entrances, it was observed that in all categories, an increase in the number of entrances does not necessarily reduce the visual layering of houses.