Spatial Organization and Way of Life in Ilam’sCourtyardHouses (1350-1390 SH)

In the field of environment and behavior, the spatial organization of houses and the way of life have always had a mutual relationship, i.e., changes in the spatial organization of houses impact the way of life of residents. The way of lifeis directly related to cultural practices, daily activities, and norms of the residents, whose changes can be observed and explored.It is possible to get a correct understanding of the reasons behind the formation of different residential interior spaces and changes in their organizationby studying the ways of life. In order to achieve this goal, examples of contemporary houses with courtyards in Ilamwere selected dating from 1350 to 1390 ASwhich were grouped according to their construction decades.They allhad two important features:they were not distinctive but common buildings in the city, and they allowedfor studying resident behavior inside houses. The samples were coded from A1 to E4 according to theirconstruction decade and to the location of the courtyardrelative to the building. This case study uses a mixed methodinterpretive and comparative approach using library research, observation, and classification of data obtained from interviews with residents regarding behavior and way of life analyzed with MAXQDA software. The results show changes in the spatial organization of courtyardhouses in Ilam. These changes are not only related to the location of the courtyard relative to the building mass but also related to the construction decade of the house,which can be explained according to the changes in cultural practices and way of life. According to this research, these changes regard the number of spaces, their names, their position in the plan, as well as the type and number of activities in each space during different decades (50s to the 90s). Due to the rich cultural hospitality of the native Kurdish people, the assignment of the best part of the house to the reception area is still observed in the way of life of the residents. The courtyard is one of the spaces that has undergone reduced usage and furniture change, as explained in the discussions.