Exploring an Islamic identity in North America through landscape architecture

While possessing a common theological core, the Muslim population of North America consists of people from various countries each with their own unique cultures and traditions. This study explored their unique Islamic identity and how it relates to the design of Muslim landscapes in North America. Through matrix analyses, Haider's design principles for Islamic environments were verified with principles derived from professional interviews and critiques of landscapes designed for North American Muslim communities. This process resulted in a proposed set of Islamic landscape architecture design principles. To understand Islamic identity in terms of community actualization, a hierarchy of community identity development was proposed. The application of this hierarchy suggested that Islamic identity development is still in its infancy and must progress in order to achieve identity actualization. The research also indicated a relationship between Islamic design principles and community identity development, thereby suggesting the application of these design principles can be a useful tool in achieving a higher level of identity actualization through landscape architecture.