Public Bath Landscapes and Urban Water Practices: From Central Spa Settlements to Embedded Hammam Structures

European spa towns and Ottoman hammams differ fundamentally in their spatial organization, architectural typology, social accessibility, and cultural meaning, challenging the settlement-based model of bathing heritage. While European spa settlements are planned around health-oriented leisure practices with centralized structures, hammams in Ottoman cities are distributed and embedded within neighborhoods, külliye complexes, and waqf systems, reflecting a more integrated approach to urban life. This comparative study, using morphological analysis, historical mapping, and critical reading of UNESCO nomination frameworks, highlights the need for plural, context-sensitive interpretative frameworks in heritage studies that move beyond settlement-based approaches. It underscores how bathing traditions shape environmental relationships between built form, resource use, and everyday health routines.

Şentürk, A. (2026). Public Bath Landscapes and Urban Water Practices: From Central Spa Settlements to Embedded Hammam Structures. JENAS Journal of Environmental and Natural Studies, 8(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.53472/jenas.1897906