A Qualitative Study of Implications of Meaning in Hawraman-Takht Architecture from Semiotics Perspective

Meaning is the fundamental requirement of the human and the architecture as a signifying process in the cultural context tries to realize this aspect of human requirement by emphasizing on the intellectual specification of human mind and the exterior form and structure of the environment. The semiotics is an approach that looks beyond the meanings and seeks for the implicit significations and the layers of meaning in the phenomena. Hawraman is a valuable settlement with multiple residential areas that have a significant role in defining the cultural values of this country especially in the field of architecture. Ignoring the meaning implications in the physical improvement of settlements can lead to negative outcomes in tourism attraction. Thus, it is necessary to answer the following question: "what are the special meanings and semantic implications in the formation of the Hawraman-Takht architecture in Kurdistan of Iran in terms of textual and semiotic points of view?" This research aims to discover and formulate the meanings of Hawraman architecture and the meaning system that can be derived from signs/representations to be used in future improvement and renovation programs of the region. The semiotics is used as an interpretive system and the approach of this research while qualitative methodology was employed for system analysis, and grounded theory was used for data analysis and presentation of the final theory. In this regard, Hawraman architecture, as a text, was studied in the following five systems: establishment, structure, space and performance, movement and access, and landscape. Representative elements and components of these systems were identified and were open-coded under 43 initial concepts. In the next step, each of the signs/representations was interpreted and its subject was determined in some levels of meaning under the codes of social, scientific and aesthetic by using axial and selective coding. Finally, 11 major categories which represent sociability of this architecture were identified and formulated. Ultimately, through integrating, comparing, and contemplating in these categories, a core category entitled "Hawraman architecture as a social phenomenon to promote collective life" was selected as a symbolic meaning for Hawraman-Takht architecture in Kurdistan of Iran.