Improving Social Sustainability in a Minority Neighborhood: The Case Study of Jolfa, Armenian Quarter in Isfahan

Carlotta Fontana (DAStU - Politecnico di Milano)
Tannaz Sattar

Jolfa is the Armenian quarter of Isfahan, in Central Iran. Its population, settled in the early 17th Century, nowadays counts about 10,000 people, who maintain their distinctive cultural characters, including their Christian religion, protected by the Iranian authorities. Under all aspects, these people represent a minority group: in fact, they share ethnics, religion, and a culture that are quite different from the huge majority of the city inhabitants. Sociologic studies demonstrate that most minority groups suffer from discrimination leading to segregation, which heavily endangers their quality of life, while also posing a big threat to the whole society. On the other hand, the co-existence of diverse people, with different backgrounds and different points of view, provides a dynamic and vibrant urban space, which in many cases could be shared, thus reducing social tension and enhancing good quality of urban life. Jolfa represents an interesting case of enduring well-integrated “minority townscape”, where the urban space itself produces integration. The research focuses on the factors of social urban space providing opportunities for interaction, considering the effects of diversity in culture and social behavior of users, and the objective of a more socially sustainable neighborhood.