How Yoruba Vernacular Architecture Can Inform a Sustainable Future
With Nigeria confronting both increased urbanization and climate change, researchers from Ladoke Akintola University and the University of Ilorin are finding solutions in the past. The researchers' research demonstrates that traditional Yoruba architecture and its creative use of local materials alongside community-based design hold strong lessons for sustainable and culturally responsive building in current times.
Visualize a courtyard in Ibadan shaded by thatched eaves and lined by mud-brick walls cool even in the middle of the day. This is no revival from the past, but a master plan for the future, according to architects Dorcas Adeoye and her team. Their investigation looks into how indigenous Yoruba building methods once displaced by Western models are the key to building more sustainable, climate-sensitive, and socially responsible buildings today.
It charts Yoruba housing from its modest commoner compound origins through to its majestic "Afin" palaces. The commonality of these edifices is one of dependence on locally sourced, naturally available materials — adobe, thatch, and timber products — that not only minimize environmental impact but are in tune with what the climate requires. Mud walls thickly applied provide thermal protection, and courtyards are for air flow, security, and sociability. These principles are in marked contrast to most contemporary edifices based on imported non-biodegrading materials that add fuel to environmental devastation.
New materials and aesthetic values were introduced through colonial influence and globalization that eventually eroded traditional forms. The researchers believe that contemporary architecture does not have to abandon its heritage but can blend traditional know-how with available technologies in order to create hybrid buildings which are functional as well as culturally appropriate. The inclusion of courtyards in metropolitan apartment buildings can create community ties while ventilation is enhanced — no air conditioning required.
This revival is not about nostalgia but about necessity. With climate change compelling societies toward finding sustainable means of living, Yoruba vernacular design principles represent a tried-and-tested low-carbon solution. And they are also affordable for most families, making housing affordable while preserving cultural identity.
What if future African cities don't depend on blueprints from elsewhere but on reimagining what we know? This research is an invitation to architects, policymakers, and communities alike: go inward, build carefully, and design for climate and culture.
Share a thought about vernacular design — what can we take away from buildings of yesterday?
