معمار

People have been planning and building for a long time. But was it architecture? Until fairly recently, it was common to distinguish between architecture and 'mere buildings', but this is becoming more difficult. Certainly the origins of architecture predate the firs architect, who is traditionally taken to have been the designer of a stepped pyramid in Egypt. Even if one includes the specialist builders of certain chiefs' houses and ritual buildings, most of what was built was not designed by professionals but was rather an expression of the same architectural impulse that prompts high-style design. Thus, in dealing with the origins of architecture or an understanding of what architecture is, we must be concerned with the folk or popular tradition-the buildings called 'primitive' or 'vernacular' that have always comprised the bulk of the built environment and that are essential for any valid generalization, and certainly critical for a discussion of origins.

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