Essay On Territoriality

2.3 TERRITORIALITY

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2.3.1 The Definition of Territoriality

Julian Denney defined territoriality as a concept which "involved physical space, possession, defences, exclusiveness of use, markers, personalization, and identity", (Edney, 1974).

 Territoriality in Housing Context

"By its very nature, the single-family house is its own statement of territorial claim. It has defined ownership by the very act of its positioning on an integral piece of land buffered from neighbors and public street by intervening ground", (Newman, 1972). Commonly, shrubs or fences are used to define the buffer, some using high walls and gates. Sometime to reinforce this claim, residents may locate lighting and windows towards the buffer ground.

According to Newman in his book Defensible Space, it's getting harder for the residents to define

The boundary definer will interrupt the sequence of movement along a path. It creates a transition from public to private spaces. There are two types of barriers / boundary definer: real or symbolic.

Examples of real barriers are a U-shaped apartment, high walls, fence, gates and doors; whereas symbolic barriers can be shrubs, open gateways, steps (short-run) or changing in walking surface's texture and materials. Both real and symbolic barriers serve the same purpose. It means to inform and indicate the individuals that they are approaching a private property. They are passing from a public space to a private space, where their presence will be questioned and need to be justified. A very common example is when a stranger drives into an apartment, he or she will need to justify his identity to the security guard before he is permitted to enter the apartment's