© JournalsPub 2022. All Rights Reserved 29 International Journal of Sustainable Building Technology Volume 5, Issue 2, 2022 DOI (Journal): 10.37628/IJSBT Research IJSBT ISSN: 2583-3278 Northern Contemporary Palaces: A Tool of Promoting Hausa Architectural Identity *Mohammed Aliyu¹, Haruna Hussain 2 , Isa Abdulkadir 3 Abstract The origins of buildings started with the origins of human tradition in a society and their peaceful coexistence. Therefore, culture and tradition as a starting point of every human settlement have a potential of architectural identity as well foster significant visual image that embodies physical and symbolic meanings. However, in a communal settlement, architecture usually signified the identity of a place that generate pleasant appearance which in all cases excite the dwellers. And, it is more exciting again when inspired grandeur and joyfully accepted when embraces culture and tradition. Consequently, some prominent architecture in some communities elegantly and respectfully signified cultural identity that intellectually reflecting the long-inherited established tradition. Meanwhile, in Hausa communities of Northern Nigeria, palace buildings are the prominent physical monumental structures organized to serve practical traditional activities and some religion functions, with schemata influencing cultural factors that had been explored by the communal from generations to generations. Those palace designs symbolized eminent characteristics of Hausa people that communicate about human shelter and their coherence identity. As such, the approach through various reconciliations in both social and cultural manner allowed Hausa people to further developed architecture that is rich in art and science. Therefore, this paper will theoretically discuss various contemporary Emir’s palaces in Northern Nigeria that promote architectural identity within the region. The discussion will be centered-on the impacts of the physical architectural features, mostly the façades compositional elements that symbolized Hausa traditional architecture with clear expressions of place identity. In this research, several selected palaces from different places within the northern region will be used for evaluations. The paper will significantly explored the contemporary Emir’s palaces as a tool of promoting architectural identity in Hausa communities of Northern Nigeria. As such, the paper finally concludes that the designs of Emir’s palaces played vital role in place identity with cultural and architectural relevance in the regional built context. Keywords: Architectural identity, northern region, contemporary palaces, hausa communities INTRODUCTION It is worldwide accepted that architecture is an operational material tool that is use to change the built context, as well can shape the environment by creating artifacts, buildings and monumental structures, by making deliberate selections within many different alternatives opened to the people (Aliyu, 2021b). As such, designers are influenced by the existing culture, the traditional practice, and sometimes stick firmly to the religious values in relation to the cultural milieu. However, in a settlement with same cultural background, traditional buildings represent the physical identity and the cultural heritage of the region as well reflects traditional patterns and religious values, fundamental to the collective arts of the people of that settlement (Demiri, 2013) [1]. It also possesses *Author for Correspondence Mohammed Aliyu E-mail: maliyuvwa@yahoo.com 1,2 Lecturer, Department of Architecture, Federal Polytechnic Mubi, Nigeria 3 Procurement Department, Moddibo Adama University, Yola, Nigeria Received Date: November 03, 2022 Accepted Date: November 11, 2022 Published Date: November 15, 2022 Citation: Mohammed Aliyu, Haruna Hussain, Isa Abdulkadir. Northern Contemporary Palaces: A Tool of Promoting Hausa Architectural Identity. International Journal of Sustainable Building Technology. 2022; 5(2): 29–45p.