Garden of the Saudi villa : its drawbacks and prospects

Abstract EN

Detached housing unit, called villa in Saudi Arabia, offers an open space around the house that can be utilized as a garden.

Literature emphasizes three negative aspects of this space: it is generally too small for any type of activity, the harsh climate of the region makes it unusable most of the times, and, socially, its use is not very suitable because it is visually exposed by neighbors.

In discussing these three aspects, the paper finds that in most studied cases the villa enjoys an acceptable size of open space sufficient for at least two activities: a sitting area and a small play area.

As for climate, it is argued that there are at least five months yearly during which weather is acceptable for outdoor use.

Moreover, the paper maintains that Saudis use the outdoors passively as a visual element while sitting indoors.

This passive use of the garden is now accompanied by some active uses that are newly introduced to the life style of Saudis.

These uses include swimming, barbequing, and playing.