Abstract:
The establishment of Gondar in the 17th century marked a very promising chapter in the history of the
Ethiopian urbanization. This research aimed at exploring the meaning of urban space, the change of
meaning through time and effects of displacement on the social bonds. In doing so, qualitative method
(document analysis, interview, observation) were used for thematic analysis. Various social institutions
such as religion, market, monarchy, and long-distance trade promoted the Gondarian urban development.
All
the
three
Abrahamic
religions, namely,
Christian,
Islam,
and
Judaism
were
developed
in
urban Gondar. Although
these religions meant
to divide the communities, the
Gondarian Markets
served
to unite and
glue the believers of
these
religions together.
However,
the
residential places
were
segregated
on the basis of religions,
leading to sprawling. The sprawling was ensued by
unplanned
urban
expansion, triggering developmental
imbalances across the city. The
corrective remedy
of redevelopment
injected
by
the
municipality
also
caused
slums of
despair.
Despite
these
shortcomings,
urbanization
marshalled with holistic goals of making Gondar one of the icons of the Ethiopian centers
of
religion and culture that glued national unity.
