Coastal resilience architecture
Introduction
The Architecture of the Dominican Republic covers the set of construction traditions, typologies, styles and professional practices developed in the Dominican territory from pre-Hispanic times to the present. Its evolution combines indigenous Antillean heritages, the urban and building imprint of the Hispanic colonial period, the transformations of the centuries and linked to state and economic modernization, as well as contemporary languages associated with tourism, infrastructure and mass housing.[1][2][3].
The country has an outstanding heritage in the Hispanic Caribbean, the Colonial City of Santo Domingo (planned according to the Renaissance grid layout) concentrates landmarks such as the Primate Cathedral of America, hospitals, fortresses, cloisters and stately homes built in coral stone. Beyond the capital's core, the vernacular domestic architecture, the sugarcane farms, the sugar mills, the historic railway stations, the wooden houses with galleries and the works of the modern stage make up a broad and diverse cultural landscape.[4][5][6][7].
In the century, the architectural profession developed with schools, guilds and public policies, introducing rationalism, tropical art deco and modernism adapted to the climate, light, trade winds and local materials.[8][9][10] In the century, the challenges revolve around heritage conservation, metropolitan expansion, climate resilience and the quality of public space in tourist cities and hubs. regional.[11][12].
Historical periodization
The pre-Hispanic stage (Taíno) is associated with circular or oval houses (bohíos and caneyes) built with wood, vines and palm roofs, organized around ceremonial spaces (bateyes).[13] These solutions responded to cross ventilation, the rainfall regime and community maintenance systems. Although Taíno architecture was essentially ephemeral, its bioclimatic logic and material knowledge have influenced later rural vernacular forms.[14] With the founding of Santo Domingo at the end of the century and beginning of the 20th century, the Crown implemented European typological models: the cathedral, the hospital, the fortress, the convent and the patio house. The urban checkerboard, deep lots, and block organization facilitated efficient military and ecclesiastical administration. The use of coral stone ashlar, lime mortars and wooden covers defined the image of the first centuries.[15][16].