Frontiers of Architectural Research >

2022 , Vol. 11 >Issue 6: 1121 - 1133

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foar.2022.05.008

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Promoting conservation or change? The UNESCO label of world heritage (re)shaping urban morphology in the Old Town of Lijiang, China

  • Ji Li 1 ,
  • Tianchen Dai 2 ,
  • Shengchen Yin 3 ,
  • Yiqing Zhao , 4 ,
  • Deniz Ikiz Kaya 3 ,
  • Linchuan Yang 1
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  • 1. School of Architecture, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China
  • 2. School of Design, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
  • 3. Department of the Built Environment, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands
  • 4. School of Humanities and Social Science, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China

Received date: 14 Mar 2022

Revised date: 09 May 2022

Accepted date: 23 May 2022

Published date: 29 Dec 2022

Copyright

2022 2022 Higher Education Press Limited Company. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co. Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
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Abstract

The UNESCO label of World Heritage can attract a high number of tourists to heritage properties for their Outstanding Universal Values (OUV). Although international studies have demonstrated the World Heritage system can contribute to stimulating cultural tourism and boosting the local economy, how this heritage-led development process promotes urban conservation and morphological changes in cities is yet to be explored adequately. This paper aims to explore the urban morphology of a historic Chinese city after its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List, taking the Old Town of Lijiang as case. The methods of spatial plan analysis and discourse analysis are used to analyse the data. The research findings have demonstrated that, theoretically, the Conzenian approach of urban morphology can be an effective framework for World Heritage OUV-monitoring. Methodologically, the analysis of spatial plans and multi-stakeholder interviews can reveal local urban morphology from macro to micro levels. Case-specifically in Lijiang, urban physical characteristics and building structures have been well maintained while traditional social fabric and neighbourhood networks have almost vanished. This research has incorporated the urban morphology approach into (world) heritage management in China, as well as worldwide, in order to maintain the balance between urban conservation and economic growth.

Key words： Urban morphology; Heritage management; Conservation; Tourism; UNESCO World Heritage; The Old Town of Lijiang

Cite this article

Ji Li , Tianchen Dai , Shengchen Yin , Yiqing Zhao , Deniz Ikiz Kaya , Linchuan Yang . Promoting conservation or change? The UNESCO label of world heritage (re)shaping urban morphology in the Old Town of Lijiang, China[J]. Frontiers of Architectural Research, 2022 , 11(6) : 1121 -1133 . DOI: 10.1016/j.foar.2022.05.008

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