EXAMINING THE COASTAL AREAS IN TERMS OF GENIUS LOCI AND URBAN IDENTITY-ISTANBUL AND LISBON

Abstract

The social, economic, political and technological developments experienced in the historical process appear as the main factors that shape the relationship of human with the environment. Cities are the places where these developments lead to their formation and continue to take place afterwards. And it is possible to say the cities are kind of stage which are perceived and formed by the semantic world of human. At this point, it is important to examine the physical and social dimensions of urban space, for understanding the relationship between the dynamics that reveal the city and analyzing the effects of the elements that shape the identity of cities. Understanding the factors that reveal the identity of the city and the interaction process between these factors becomes important in order to examine the contributions of memory and the sense of belonging phenomens which are important factors in defining the space as place which is very necessary in defining the concept of spirit of the place (genius loci). In order to carry out such research on urban space, analyzing public spaces has contributed to the inclusion. Due to the diversity of both physical and social dynamics, coastal areas have been identified as the most suitable base for this study under the title of public spaces. The two coastal cities of Istanbul and Lisbon were selected as study areas.