Resident perceptions toward tourism impacts in historic center of Yazd, Iran

ABSTRACT

Although demographic changes as a result of the departure of former residents have caused the historical center of Yazd to lose its residential character, the area has recently taken on another role with the significant increase in the number of foreign tourists and the emergence of traditional hotels, restaurants, and café shops in its historical center. This newly emerging phenomenon has modified the nature of this part of the city, converting it into a rather touristic area, particularly in the Fahadan neighborhood. An examination of the perceptions of residents reveals that those in the Fahadan neighborhood in Yazd have a generally positive attitude toward tourism development. In addition, the interviewees pointed out three major impacts from the increase in tourism: (1) improvement in the physical and environmental quality of the old urban area due to the initiatives taken by the government and the private sector; (2) positive social and cultural changes in residents because of communication with foreign tourists; and (3) increasing community awareness and pride toward its cultural and national heritage. Nowadays, the people of Yazd increasingly welcome the arrival of foreign tourists, have laid the foundations for their arrival, and even received them warmly in their religious rituals. However, our observations indicate that the increase in touristic activities in the historical areas of Yazd (especially in the Fahadan neighborhood), as well as weakening the residential role, pose the risk of the museumification of this area. Furthermore, the restoration of old spaces and monuments for the sole purpose of attracting tourists causes the commodification of heritage, resulting in a potential loss of authenticity.

摘要

尽管亚兹德历史中心街区由于居民搬离了该城区, 人口的变化使其失去了住宅区的功能, 但是最近由于外国旅游者数量剧增以及传统宾馆、餐馆和咖啡馆的出现又使该地区承担了新的功能。这一新近现象改变了该城区的特点, 使其转变为一个相当旅游化的街区, 尤其是法赫德附近。对居民的旅游感知研究表明, 亚兹德法赫德周边居民总体上对旅游发展表现出积极的态度。而且, 受访者指出, 由于旅游的增加带来了三项主要影响: (1) 由于政府和私人部门投资改善了旧城区的实体环境质量: (2) 居民由于与外国旅游者交流带来了正面的社会文化变化: (3) 居民提高了对文化与国家遗产的社区意识与自豪感。现在亚兹德居民逐渐欢迎外国旅游者的到来, 为大规模接待旅游者奠定了基础, 他们甚至在宗教仪式上热情地接待旅游者。但是我们的观察表明, 亚兹德历史城区 (尤其是法赫德附近) 旅游活动的增加与居住功能的弱化, 有造成该地区博物馆化的危险。而且, 保留专门吸引旅游者的旧城区空间和纪念碑造成了该地区遗产的商业化, 损害了其原真性。

KEYWORDS:

• Yazd
• Fahadan neighborhood
• urban heritage
• tourism
• residents’ perception
• social impact
• urban revitalization

关键词:

• 亚兹德
• 法赫德街区
• 城市遗产
• 旅游
• 居民感知
• 社会影响
• 城市更新

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Interview with Mohammad Hassan Talebian, Deputy of the National Cultural Heritage Organization, 24 August 2016.

2. A religious ceremony which is held to mark the days of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the third Imam of Shiite.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Naimeh Rezaei

Naimeh Rezaei is an assistant professor at the University of Tehran. She received the PhD degree in urbanism from the University of Sorbonne-Paris1 in 2014. Her research interests include urban heritage, city center transformations, and urban sociology. She can be contacted at the Faculty of Urbanism, College of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, Iran.