ABSTRACT
Urban morphology is a complex field whose primary concern is the structure and growth of urban form. An understanding of this structure, its elements and the patterns found at different levels such as at the street/block, plot and building level is essential to urban design. There are three main approaches to analysing urban morphology. The ‘Italian
school’ focuses on the typology of buildings and streets and everything that determines the form of the city. The ‘English school’ takes a geographical approach and works from the ground plan rather than on the building scale. It differentiates between three elements: streets, parcels and buildings which are related to each other and are represented by maps that explain the city form. The ‘French school’ considers the city and its physical form to be a result of socio-economic relations and takes a bottom-up approach to urban layout. The three morphological approaches relate architecture to urbanism but using the results in design is not as easy as one would think. This is because there is a tendency to see morphology as a series of typological templates rather than a means to develop a way of thinking.
