Urban Development in the Muslim World

1994 Urban Development in the Muslim World, first co-editor (with S. El-Shakhs) and contributor, New Brunswick, NJ: Center for Urban Policy Research, Rutgers University. 279 pages. ISBN: 0-88285-141-1

Preface

Urban Development in the Muslim World: Encounter with Modernity and Implications for Planning
-Hooshang Amirahmadi and Mohamad R. Razavi
The Islamic City: Historical Myth, Islamic Essence, and Contemporary Revelance
-Janet L. Abu-Lughod
Planning and Development in Makkah
-Nohad A. Toulan
The Walled City of Delhi: Retrospect and Prospect
-Samuel V. Noe
Urbanization and Development: The Role of the Medina in the Maghreb
-Jean-Francois Troin
The Transformation of Tehran from a Garrison Town to a Primate City: A Tale of Rapid Growth and Uneven Development
-Hooshang Amirahmadi
Planning Problems and Policies in Tehran
-Vincent F. Costello
Migration, Religion, and Economic Development in the Building Sector of Sanaa and Cairo
-Gunter Meyer
Impact of the Oil Industry on Urbanization in the Persian Gulf Region
-Richard I. Lawless and Ian J. Seccombe
Decentralized Urbanization in Syria
-Riad G. Mahayni
Population Dynamics, Urbanization, and the Planning of Large Cities in the Arab World
-Salah S. El-Shakhs and Hooshang Amirahmadi

Bibliography

Contributors

Index

Introduction
War and revolution have focused the world’s attention on the Middle East. But despite the headlines, as the editors of this book remind us, “the economic, political, and cultural aspects of urban life in the Muslim world are hardly known to us.” Drawing from first-hand knowledge and experience in the region, the contributors to this volume explore urban problems, urban development, and the practice of urban planning in the cities of the Muslim world.

In both comprehensive analyses and detailed case studies, the authors address the basic dilemma of development planning: how to integrate the force of tradition with the demands of modernity. Separate chapters examine the idea of a uniquely “Islamic” city (Abu-Lughod): the influence of Islam on the medinas of Tunisia and Morocco (Troin) and on the development of Mecca (Toulan) and Delhi (Noe); reconciling tradition and modernism in Tehran (Amirahmadi and Kiafar, Costello); the comparative development of Sana’a and Cairo (Meyer); the influence of oil on urbanization in the Persian Gulf (Lawless and Seccombe); urban growth in Syria (Mahyani); and an overview of urban planning in the Arab world (El-Shakhs and Amirahmadi).

This fascinating collection is essential for specialists and students of the region, for international planning and development practitioners, and for all those seeking insight into the complexities of this most important but possibly least understood region of the world.

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