Sustainability & urban management in old muslim cities:the role of pious foundations

Abstract

Urban management in traditional Islamic cities relied largely on endowment foundations voluntarily financed by the people. Known as "Habūs" in North Africa and “Waqf” in the Middle East, Habūs covered most municipal services and public utilities through a sustainable and autonomous financial system that depended on incomes from the assets of these foundations. In addition, it performed a significant socio-economic role with regard to the needy. This paper examines the concept of Habūs in traditional Islamic cities and offers a historical analysis of the impact of these foundations on the quality of the traditional built environment in Algiers during the Ottoman period. The study is based largely on Ottoman court records and public registers, Sijillāt al bāylik, that are available in the Centre des Archives Nationales d’Alger, in Algiers.