Jeddah is known as a home of traditional architecture. UNESCO listed the buildings and houses as a traditional heritage. As early as 1503, the Italian explorers traveled to Jeddah and remarked the beauty of the houses they found there. Soon after Italians, the British also described the same houses as impressive. Therefore, you can see how important Jeddah houses have been for centuries. However, people today want to mix modernity with tradition. When you want to move to Saudi Arabia with Four Winds Saudi Arabia, specifically in Jeddah, you will probably want to add some new features to your old traditional home. For this reason, here are a couple of modern features of a perfect Jeddah home.
The modern features of a perfect Jeddah home – traditional construction techniques
Before you see how you can change or add something new to the old house, first, find out what makes a Jeddah house so beautiful and impressive. Additionally, when you are moving internationally, it is always important to do research about the culture of your new country, so you can avoid cultural faux pas. As you might know, Saudi Arabia is mostly located in the desert. For this reason, locals had to work with the materials they found in their surroundings.
Four main materials include the following:
- Coral stones from the Red Sea shore
- Purified clay that you can find at the bottom of Al-Mangabi and Al-Arbaeen lakes
- Teak wood imported from their neighbors
- Gypsum
When you want to build a traditional Jeddah house, you need to stack the building stones and separate them by teak wood. This way, the house will not collapse even during the extreme weather.
Parts of the house
Every traditional house has its own special parts. Usually, you can find most of them, such as rooms, kitchen, etc., in every home. However, since the Jeddah houses are quite unique, they also have some features you will not find in an ordinary house. First, there is a Rowshanm, decorative wooden panels and screen that covers the upper floors. It also has a functional purpose as it helps the air to circulate and to reduce the heat. Next, there is a Mashrabia, the public room of the house. They put pots of water to cool the air. The Baab is the door that is massive and made of teak wood. In addition to this, the doors have symbols and patterns. Lastly, widows are large to let the light inside. Now you can plan accordingly what to send with container shipping from UK to Saudi Arabia.
How to incorporate modern features of a perfect Jeddah house?
Most people value their space the most. If you have a big family, all the family members would like to have their rooms. Privacy is important. Therefore, it can be challenging to add modern features to the traditional Jeddah home. The reasons are all the different materials used to make the house. However, you can use it to your advantage. Since it would a shame to change something from the exterior, you should change the interior of the house. You can add modern technologies, such as AC, Wi-Fi, etc. Most people change their bathrooms by adding modern showers and toilets. In addition to this, the biggest change can be seen in the courtyard. You can add a swimming pool, ponds, and flora that can survive in these conditions. Moving to Saudi Arabia might be your next goal.
How to preserve the culture?
Why are the Jeddah houses so important? The reason is simple. They preserve culture. Globalization is in the full swing. Because of mass immigration, the world is turning into one big globalized village. However, it is important to save the ancient culture. If you want to add modern features, try not to do it at the expense of erasing the culture and tradition. Create a beautiful courtyard that has all the features of the traditional Arab Islamic structure. You can also add more openings so you can blur the borders between the inside and the outside. On the other hand, the exterior of your house should have all the traditional features, such as made from the four main materials, etc. Your new courtyard with all the modern features can represent the liberal side while the exterior can take upon the role of the conservative side.
More suggestions for the modern features of a perfect Jeddah home
There are more ways to save the traditional look of your Jeddah home. You can keep diwaniya, a traditional guesthouse. Usually, the extended family and friends would stay in this guesthouse when visiting. Then, you have the traditional salon and dining rooms. Again, when you have the guests over, this is where you can entertain them. Now, onto the family rooms. This is where you can add modern features. Decorate the rooms the way you want it. The servant quarters are also an important part of the large Jeddah homes. If you plan to have the help, you should follow the social codes of Saudi Arabi. In addition to this, it is also important to be environmentally conscious. As you can see, the houses are built from the material founds in the vicinity and used for specific purposes.
Jeddah’s markets
Jeddah has always been a merchant town. Markets in Jeddah are very famous all around the globe, especially the fish market. However, markets are surrounded by Jeddah houses. What makes the whole area so appealing and impressive would the combination of the markets and the old traditional architecture. For this reason, do not change your Jeddah house so it would look like any other house you can find in the West. Keep the culture and tradition alive by combing modernity and tradition. These two can live in harmony and it is your responsibility to create this harmony.
