African Architecture: Evolution and Transformation

From Egypt to Ethiopia, Botswana to Burundi, and Zimbabwe to Cameroon, this landmark book presents the first complete and definitive study of African architecture from antiquity to the present. Featuring hundreds of museum-quality photographs and drawings from archival and modern sources, the book offers architects, architectural and art historians, social scientists, and all those interested in world architecture with an ordinary account of the evolution, transformation, and development of architecture across the African continent. Elleh defines the indigenous, Islamic, and Western roots of African architecture, and goes on to examine how these roots influence the architecture of each region in Africa. The author evaluates historical, traditional, and contemporary architecture by examing the various cultural groups of North, Central, East, South, and Western Africa from ethnic, climatic, political, regional, economic, religious, and historical perspectives. In addition, a final chapter takes a revealing look at modern architecture, urbanism, and urbanization throughout Africa. At once a work of convincing scholarship and a beautifully illustrated tour of African architecture past and present, this is a pioneering book that brings a heretofore rarely examined body of work dramatically to life.