Overview

The architecture of Africa, like that of any vast region or continent, is exceptionally diverse. Many ethno-linguistic groups throughout the history of Africa have had their own architectural traditions. As with most architectural traditions elsewhere, African architecture has been subject to numerous external influences from the earliest periods for which evidence is available. The Islamic conquest of North Africa saw the development of Islamic architecture in the region; western architecture has had an impact on coastal areas since the late 15^th century, and is now an important source for many buildings, particularly in major cities.

Common Characteristics

One common theme in a great deal of traditional African architecture is the use of fractal scaling: small parts of the structure tend to look similar to larger parts, such as a circular village made of circular houses. Vernacular architecture uses a wide range of materials, such as thatch, stick/wood, mud, mudbrick, rammed earth, and stone, with a preference for materials varying by region. North Africa primarily used stone and rammed earth; West Africa tends toward mud and adobe; central Africa uses thatch, wood, and more perishable materials; southern Africa uses stone, thatch, and wood; and in East Africa the materials have varied.

Ten broad categories of traditional hut and house structures have been identified throughout Africa:

1. Domical (beehive)
2. Cone on cylinder
3. Cone on poles and mud cylinder
4. Gabled roofed
5. Pyramidal cone
6. Rectangle with roof rounded and sloping at ends
7. Square
8. Dome or flat roof on clay box
9. Quadrangular, surrounding an open courtyard
10. Cone on ground

Lunda Street and Houses

Lunda dwellings (from the Kingdom of Lunda, a pre-colonial African confederation of states in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo, north-eastern Angola, and northwestern Zambia from c. 1665–1887) display the square and the cone-on-ground types of African vernacular architecture.

History

Early Modern Period

During the early modern period, the absorption of new diverse influences such as Baroque, Arab, Turkish, and Gujarati Indian styles began with the arrival of Portuguese Jesuit missionaries in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Castles were built by arriving colonizers, at times as defensive fortresses during times of war. Early Europeans invaded and set up colonies around the West African coast, building large forts that can now be seen at Elmina Castle, Cape Coast Castle, Christiansborg, Fort Jesus, and elsewhere.

Under colonial rule, the tradition of building houses out of mud walls, thatched roofs, and other traditional materials decreased while the use of cement blocks and zinc roofs became more common. By the late 19^th century, most buildings reflected the European preference for eclectic and mixed styles, taking from Mediterranean and northern European influence. Examples of colonial towns from this era survive at Saint-Louis, Senegal, Grand-Bassam, and elsewhere. A few buildings were pre-fabricated in Europe and shipped over for erection. This European tradition continued well into the 20^th century with the construction of European-style manor houses, such as Shiwa Ng'andu in what is now Zambia and the Boer homesteads in South Africa.

Shiwa Ng'andu, Zambia

Main house on the estate at Shiwa Ng'andu in Zambia, built by Stewart Gore-Browne.

The revival of interest in traditional styles can be traced to Cairo in the early 19^th century. Afterward, it spread to Algiers and Morocco by the early 20^th century, and soon colonial buildings across the continent began to mix European and traditional African styles of architecture.

Modern Architecture

The impact of modern architecture began to be felt in the 1920s and 1930s. Le Corbusier (Algeria), Steffen Ahrens (South Africa), and Ernst May (Nairobi and Mombasa, Kenya) were influential architects at the time. Villages in Libya and Italian East Africa began to incorporate modern Italian designs.

A number of new cities were built following the end of colonialism, while others were greatly expanded. In the city of Abidjan, the majority of buildings were still designed by high-profile non-African architects. Experimental designs have also appeared, most notably the Eastgate Centre, Harare in Zimbabwe. With an advanced form of natural air conditioning, this building was designed to respond precisely to Harare's climate and needs, rather than import less suitable designs. Neo-vernacular architecture, or new forms of vernacular architecture, continues, for instance with the Great Mosques of Nioro or New Gourna.

Eastgate Centre, Harare, Zimbabwe

The pink-hued Eastgate Centre, with its distinctive chimneys