A Pioneering LISP Framework for Diachronic Urban Analysis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63955/BuiltForm.11Keywords:
LISP programming, urban morphology, typological analysis, computational urban studies, diachronic analysisAbstract
This paper describes a pioneering methodological innovation bridging computational tools and traditional urban morphology by introducing a LISP-based scripting framework for morphological and typological analysis of historical city formation. Developed in 2020 as part of the author Elham K. Hassani’s Ph.D. dissertation at Sapienza University of Rome and grounded in the Italian school of urban morphology—particularly the work of Caniggia and Muratori—it provides a replicable method to read and classify urban transformations over time. This was the first application of LISP programming to automate identifying and categorizing urban elements—plot structure, route alignment, and building typology—across multiple historical phases. The methodology integrates qualitative morphological principles with quantitative computational processes, enabling a deeper understanding of urban form evolution and building type variation within a diachronic framework. Using Kashan, a traditional Iranian city, as a case study, the method reconstructs historical phases of urban growth, revealing their spatial logic, typological patterns, and morphological shifts. This dual-level analysis moves the field beyond static visual mapping toward rule-based interpretive systems, contributing to current efforts to apply AI to resilient city-making. Its significance is shown by its integration into Sapienza’s curriculum.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Elham K. Hassani
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