Socio-Spatial Adaptation and Resilient Urban Systems: Refugee-Driven Transformation in Zaatari Syrian Refugee Camp, Jordan

Abstract

The Zaatari Camp in Jordan exemplifies how Syrian refugees transform a planned grid settlement into an organic urban environment through socio-spatial adaptation, reflecting their cultural identity and territorial practices. This study investigates the camp’s morphological evolution, analyzing how refugees reconfigure public and private spaces to prioritize privacy, security, and community cohesion. Using qualitative methods—including archival maps, photographs, and field observations—the research reveals how formal public areas are repurposed into private shelter extensions, creating zones of influence that mirror traditional Arab-Islamic urban patterns. Key elements such as mosques, markets, and hierarchical street networks emerge as cultural anchors, shaped by refugees’ prior urban experiences. However, this organic growth introduces challenges, such as blocked streets and undefined spaces, which hinder safety and service delivery, underscoring tensions between informal urbanization and structured planning. The findings advocate urban resilience and participatory planning frameworks that integrate socio-cultural values, emphasizing defensible boundaries, interdependence, and adaptable design. Refugees’ territorial behaviors—such as creating diagonal streets and expanding shelters—highlight their agency in reshaping urban systems, challenging conventional top-down approaches. This research focuses on land-use dynamics, sustainable cities, and adaptive urban systems in crisis contexts. By bridging gaps between displacement studies and urban theory, the study offers insights into fostering social inclusion and equitable infrastructure in transient settlements. Future research directions, including comparative analyses of refugee camps and cognitive mapping, aim to deepen understanding of socio-spatial resilience. Ultimately, this work contributes to global dialogues on informal urbanization and culturally responsive design, advocating for policies that align with the Sustainable Development Goals to rebuild cohesive, resilient urban environments in displacement settings.

1. Introduction

Refugee camps, often conceptualized as transient humanitarian spaces, are increasingly recognized as complex urban systems shaped by the socio-cultural agency of displaced populations. By reconfiguring formal spatial frameworks to reflect communal identities, refugees challenge top-down planning paradigms and assert [1] a “right to the city”—even in contexts of legal limbo. This study contributes to urban displacement theory by revealing how socio-spatial adaptations in camps like Jordan’s Zaatari reflect cultural resilience and contest institutional control. It contributes to global urban theory by demonstrating how refugee camps, often perceived as temporary and transient spaces, evolve into complex urban systems that reflect the socio-cultural identities of their inhabitants.

This study addresses three core objectives: (1) Map how Syrian refugees in Zaatari Camp adapt humanitarian spatial frameworks (e.g., grid layouts) to replicate Arab–Islamic socio-spatial practices, such as courtyard homes and mosque-centric clustering. (2) Analyze how these self-built adaptations constitute acts of spatial resistance to humanitarian governance, asserting informal claims to [1] “right to the city”. (3) Identify tensions between refugee-led placemaking and planners’ efficiency goals, evaluating implications for culturally attuned yet logistically viable camp governance.

Based on that, the research seeks to answer the following question: How do Syrian refugees in Zaatari Camp modify the camp’s formal grid layout to reflect Arab–Islamic socio-spatial practices (e.g., courtyard homes, mosque-centric clustering)? How do these adaptations function as acts of everyday resilience, contesting humanitarian spatial governance? What tensions arise between refugees’ informal urbanism and planners’ formal frameworks?

This study bridges displacement studies and urban theory by examining how socio-cultural resilience reconfigures humanitarian spaces. While prior work emphasizes logistical efficiency [2] or policy frameworks [3], we demonstrate how refugee-led adaptations in Zaatari Camp reflect Arab–Islamic urban principles [4], challenging top-down paradigms. By analyzing formal/informal tensions, we contribute to global debates on participatory planning in transient settlements. We test these arguments through a case study of Zaatari Camp, Jordan’s largest Syrian refugee settlement. Established in 2012 as a grid-based humanitarian zone, Zaatari’s evolution into an organic urban system exemplifies how refugees negotiate spatial agency, territoriality, and resilience amidst prolonged displacement.

This study contributes three novel elements to urban planning scholarship: (1) Refugee-Led Urbanism: Demonstrates how displaced populations reinterpret humanitarian infrastructure using cultural frameworks (e.g., Arab-Islamic urbanism), a process underexplored in top-down camp studies. (2) Resilience through Spatial Resistance: Identifies informal adaptations (e.g., diagonal streets, shelter clustering) as acts of resilience that reconfigure camp governance. (3) Policy-Design Bridging: Proposes actionable guidelines for participatory planning in displacement contexts, aligning refugee agency with SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities).

The findings have broader implications for urban policy and planning, particularly in contexts of forced displacement, where the integration of socio-cultural values into spatial planning can enhance the resilience and adaptability of refugee settlements. The significance of this study lies in its exploration of the socio-spatial dynamics of Zaatari Camp, offering a nuanced understanding of how refugees reinterpret and transform planned environments.

Unlike studies focusing solely on camps as humanitarian spaces, this paper reframes Zaatari as a site of urban insurgent practice. We demonstrate how refugee-led adaptations—such as street-market expansions and housing modifications—constitute acts of spatial citizenship that challenge top-down governance models.

2. Theoretical Frameworks

While [1] the “right to the city” broadly theorizes marginalized groups’ claims to urban space, this paper applies it to refugee-led spatial practices in Zaatari Camp, where formal governance structures restrict agency over the built environment. This tension between institutional control and informal adaptation frames our analysis of socio-spatial resilience.

2.1. Tensions in Camp Design: Formality vs. Informality

Refugee settlements embody a paradox between institutional order and organic adaptation. Humanitarian agencies enforce rigid urban models—grid systems for logistical efficiency [2,5] and cluster frameworks for social cohesion [6,7]—that erase socio-cultural markers like Syrian clan-based clustering [8,9] and courtyard housing traditions [10,11]. In Zaatari, standardized shelters fragmented kinship networks, compelling refugees to subvert caravans into inward-facing courtyards (ḥōsh) that revive Arab–Islamic spatial norms [4,12]. While scholars critique camps’ ecological strain [7,13] and psychological dispossession [14,15], the role of cultural memory in driving spatial resistance remains overlooked. For instance, mosque-centric districts [9,16] and market corridors (souqs) in Zaatari [17] reflect intentional placemaking absent from humanitarian literature, exposing a gap this study bridges.

Critical Gap: Existing literature narrowly frames refugee agency as survival tactics [18] rather than deliberate cultural reclamation. Unlike Dadaab or Kakuma, where markets reflect economic pragmatism [19], Zaatari’s souqs and mosques recapitalize memory, transforming shelters into sites of identity.

2.2. Refugee Agency: Insurgent Placemaking and the “Right to the City”

Refugees in Zaatari assert [1] the “right to the city” through insurgent urbanism [20,21]:

Territorial Reclamation: Blocking streets with fences to create clan-controlled zones [22,23] that defy UNHCR’s mobility corridors [2,24]. Ref. [25] frames informal urbanism as a form of “everyday” resistance, a concept echoed in Zaatari’s diagonal streets and clan-controlled zones. Refugees’ tactical modifications to the grid layout reflect a grassroots reclaiming of space, subverting humanitarian efficiency goals.

Economic–Cultural Hybridity: Repurposing roads into Syrian-style souqs [17,26] that mirror pre-war market rhythms, transcending mere survival logics seen in Kakuma [19].

Sacred Anchoring: Clustering shelters around mosques [9,27] to reconstruct communal identities severed by displacement [4].

These acts occur in [3] “spaces of control” and [28] “gray spaces”, where formal/informal logics intersect. Unlike Dadaab’s economic pragmatism [19], Zaatari’s adaptations prioritize cultural continuity, challenging humanitarian narratives that reduce refugee agency to survival tactics. However, legal precarity complicates Lefebvre’s framework, as refugees’ lack of land rights renders spatial claims provisional—a tension this study reinterprets through the lens of stateless spatiality.

Analytical Contrast: While [28] “gray spaces” concept explains informal/formal intersections in slums, Zaatari reveals how cultural memory drives these hybrids. Unlike Kakuma’s pragmatic ad-hocism, Zaatari’s modifications reflect nostalgia for Syrian urban patterns—mosques as communal waypoints, markets as nodes of collective memory. Ref. [29] expands Lefebvre’s “right to the city” to include marginalized groups’ claims to urban space, a lens applicable to Zaatari’s refugee-led modifications. Street expansions and market corridors exemplify insurgent urbanism challenging humanitarian control.

2.3. Hybrid Urbanism: Synthesizing Safety and Cultural Territoriality

Ref. [30] defensible space theory is reflected in Zaatari’s clan-controlled cul-de-sacs and semi-private zones, where refugees leverage spatial boundaries to enhance safety and communal monitoring. Zaatari’s morphology synthesizes defensible space theory [22,31] and Arab–Islamic urbanism [12,32], creating hierarchical zones balancing safety and cultural identity:

Defensible Duality: Layering Newman’s private/public zones with Islamic batin/zahir principles [33,34], refugees demarcate cul-de-sacs as clan territories [35,36] while maintaining mosque-centric districts [12,37].

Clashing Logics: Humanitarian norms prioritizing open layouts [2,24] conflict with refugee-blocked streets, illustrating the trade-offs between safety [38] and service access [39].

This hybridity challenges static interpretations of Arab–Islamic urbanism [32,40], positioning camps as laboratories for insurgent urbanism where refugees reinterpret traditions under constraints.

2.4. Contributions: Rethinking Resilience Through Cultural Agency

This research advances displacement scholarship by rethinking resilience through cultural agency in three key ways. First, moving beyond survival narratives [18], the study demonstrates how refugees proactively transplant cultural identity through spatial practices—such as constructing courtyards and reviving souqs—thereby expanding [41] the “global city” theory to incorporate cultural nodes within displacement contexts. Second, by bridging formal/informal binaries [42], the analysis reveals how Zaatari’s evolution from a rigid grid to an organic settlement reflects the enduring influence of Arab–Islamic urban principles [4,10], challenging static interpretations of camp design. Third, tracing socio-spatial adaptations over a decade counters [3] the “non-place” thesis, reframing camps as evolving systems where cultural resilience matures through incremental, refugee-led territorial practices.

These contributions carry critical policy implications. Modular designs, such as expandable courtyards, could reconcile refugee agencies with SDG 11’s goals of inclusive urbanization. By prioritizing cultural memory over standardization, humanitarian frameworks might transform camps from sites of control into spaces of co-creation, fostering environments where displaced populations actively shape their built landscapes.

Theoretical implications further underscore this paradigm shift. By integrating Arab–Islamic urbanism into displacement studies, the study challenges the binary of formal/informal planning. Zaatari’s mosque-centric clusters [9] and hierarchical streetscapes reveal how cultural resilience can coexist with humanitarian infrastructure, provided designs accommodate modularity (e.g., adjustable plots for courtyard expansion). This aligns with SDG 11’s call for inclusive urbanization but demands that planners prioritize cultural memory over standardization, redefining camps as hybrid spaces where tradition and institutional frameworks intersect. Ref. [43] works on the psychological impacts of displacement, contextualizing Zaatari refugees’ efforts to reconstruct Syrian urban patterns (e.g., mosques, markets) as acts of cultural preservation, mitigating the trauma of lost homes.

2.5. Global Case Studies in Refugee Urbanism

The socio-spatial characteristics of Arab–Islamic cities provide a useful framework for understanding the spatial adaptations in refugee camps like Al-Hussein and Zaatari. These camps, though initially planned as formal grids, have evolved into organic settlements that reflect the cultural and social practices of their inhabitants.

Al-Hussein Refugee Camp

Established in 1952 in response to the influx of Palestinian refugees, Al-Hussein Camp is situated east of Amman and spans 421,000 m². Organized around a grid plan with Ain Jalout Street as its primary thoroughfare, the camp accommodates pedestrian and vehicular traffic through a network of 50 subsidiary streets [44,45,46], see Figure 1. Over time, refugees have adapted the camp’s spatial layout to converge social, economic, and spiritual needs, creating semi-private zones and communal spaces that reflect their cultural identity. At the camp level, socio-spatial adaptations are evident in the transformation of public spaces into multifunctional zones where elderly individuals gather, women perform household chores, and children play [44,45,46]. These modifications mirror the cul-de-sac system and courtyard houses of Arab–Islamic cities, emphasizing privacy and community cohesion through inward-focused spatial arrangements.

At the unit level, physical adaptations reveal a shift from standardized tent shelters to personalized permanent structures. Refugees have reconstructed shelters, decorated facades, and expanded vertically, reflecting the principles of batin (interior) and zahir (exterior) inherent to Arab–Islamic urbanism [44,45,46]. These inward-focused living spaces prioritize familial privacy while maintaining interdependence through shared communal areas, echoing the duality of interior/exterior spatial dynamics characteristic of traditional Arab–Islamic cities. By transforming formal grid layouts into organic settlements, refugees in camps like Al-Hussein and Zaatari recreate urban patterns that resonate with their cultural identities and communal practices. Such adaptations underscore the necessity of integrating socio-cultural values into urban planning, particularly in displacement contexts where the “right to the city” remains contested [44,46].

2.6. Conceptual Framework of the Study

While prior work has examined camp morphologies and refugees’ socio-economic agency [47], few studies integrate spatial analysis with [1] urban rights frameworks to show how refugees reconfigure camp spaces. This gap obscures how informal adaptations constitute claims to belonging and resource access.

The study shows how Zaatari functions as a hybrid city, where refugees synthesize Islamic spatial traditions with informal urbanism. We demonstrate how refugee-led adaptations—such as street-market expansions and housing modifications—constitute acts of spatial citizenship that challenge top-down governance models.

Table 1. How this study bridges gaps in displacement scholarship.

Existing Research Focus	This Study’s Contribution
Camp planning logistics [2,8]	Refugees’ cultural agency in reshaping camps
Resilience as infrastructure [2,18]	Resilience as socio-spatial identity-making
Arab–Islamic urbanism [9,11]	New: Applying Islamic urban principles to refugee camps

summarizes the theoretical gap.

The conceptual framework of Zaatari Camp’s socio-spatial adaptation integrates theoretical foundations, empirical observations, and practical applications to explain how refugees reshape urban spaces in displacement contexts. It connects cultural resilience, spatial agency, and urban planning principles to analyze the camp’s transformation, as follows; see Figure 2:

Core Components:

• Key Drivers, including refugee agency: Self-organization, territorial behaviors, informal urbanism, cultural resilience: Arab–Islamic spatial principles (mosque-centric clustering, courtyards, batin/zahir duality), and displacement context (humanitarian grid layout, resource constraints, legal marginalization).
• Process of Socio-Spatial Adaptation, involving adaptation mechanisms: defensible space tactics (zones of influence, territorial boundaries, and cultural replication, including markets as souqs and mosque-anchored neighborhoods). In addition, it involves mediating factors: humanitarian policies (rigid grids vs. refugee modifications) and social dynamics (clan identities, inter-community tensions).
• Outcomes, reflected on spatial outcomes such as organic settlement patterns (hierarchical zones, diagonal streets), and challenges (blocked roads, overcrowding). It also presented as policy/design outcomes such as culturally sensitive guidelines (cluster layouts, modular infrastructure) and participatory frameworks aligning with SDGs (resilient, inclusive systems).

Figure 2. Conceptual Framework of the Study. Source: Researchers.

Figure 2. Conceptual Framework of the Study. Source: Researchers.

3. Zaatrai Camp Case Study

Zaatari Camp, established in Al-Mafraq, Jordan, in 2012, emerged as a rapid response to the sudden influx of Syrian refugees following the escalation of the Syrian crisis in 2011. By 2014, over 618,615 Syrians had sought asylum in Jordan, with only 20% residing in the camp, while the majority integrated into urban-based communities [48,49]. Refugee camps like Zaatari are often planned with a focus on efficiency and security, frequently overlooking the socio-cultural specificities of displaced populations [2,15,50,51,52,53]. However, the social structure of displaced communities plays a critical role in shaping spatial patterns, as refugees adapt their environments to reflect their cultural identities and communal practices [2,16].

Zaatari Camp, initially designed as a rigid grid for security and logistical efficiency, has undergone significant spatial transformations as refugees have reshaped its layout to meet their social, cultural, and territorial needs. These spatial adaptations challenge conventional planning paradigms, highlighting the limitations of top-down, standardized approaches in displacement contexts. Instead, they underscore the necessity of culturally sensitive urban design that integrates the lived experiences and socio-cultural practices of displaced populations.

Zaatari’s transformation from a gridded humanitarian zone to a semi-permanent urban system exemplifies the tensions outlined in Section 2. Refugees from Dara’a, Syria, have reshaped the camp’s morphology to replicate rural Syrian settlement patterns—clustering shelters around courtyards and mosques—while navigating institutional restrictions on spatial modifications (see Figure 2).

3.1. Historical and Political Context

The establishment of Zaatari Camp was a direct response to the massive influx of Syrian refugees into Jordan following the escalation of the Syrian crisis in 2011. On 28 July 2012, the Jordanian government, in collaboration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), accelerated the construction of the camp to accommodate the growing number of displaced individuals [48,54,55]. Located approximately 12 km from the Syrian border near Al-Mafraq city in Northern Jordan, the camp was built on a 5.02 km² desert tract in Al-Mafraq Governorate. By 2015, Zaatari had become one of the largest refugee camps in the world, housing about 86,040 refugees [54].

The camp’s initial design followed a rigid grid pattern, intended to facilitate efficient service delivery, security, and management. However, the rapid and chaotic arrival of refugees overwhelmed the planned layout, particularly in the older districts (districts one, two, three, four, and twelve), which were characterized by informal and ad-hoc settlements; see Figure 3.

Over time, as the camp evolved, refugees began to reshape their environments, shifting from the formal grid to create clustered social spaces that reflected their socio-cultural practices and territorial behaviors. This transformation was particularly evident in districts five through eleven, where refugees adapted their assigned spaces to enhance privacy, security, and community cohesion; see Figure 4 refugees [2,9].

3.2. Governance and Management

Zaatari Camp is jointly managed by UNHCR and a consortium of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which provide essential services such as healthcare, education, food distribution, and infrastructure maintenance for refugees [54,55]. Despite these efforts, the camp’s governance has faced substantial challenges, including overcrowding, resource shortages, and tensions between refugees and host communities. The camp’s population is predominantly from Dara’a city in Southern Syria, with 90–92% of residents originating from this region [48]. This homogeneity has influenced the camp’s social dynamics, as refugees from similar backgrounds have recreated familiar communal structures and practices.

The camp’s demographic composition further underscores its unique character. In 2014, the population included 24,493 families and 17,494 households, with an average household size of 6.58 individuals. Women constitute 50.5% of the population, and approximately 40.3% of refugees are between the ages of 18 and 59, highlighting the camp’s youthful and economically active demographic profile [48,55]. These dynamics have shaped the camp’s evolution, as refugees have sought to rebuild their lives and communities within the constraints of a humanitarian setting.

3.3. Evolution and Spatial Transformation

Zaatari Camp’s evolution from a planned grid to an organic settlement reflects the agency and resilience of its inhabitants. Initially, the grid pattern was implemented to ensure security, prevent the dominance of influential groups, and facilitate the efficient distribution of aid [9,49]. However, refugees quickly began to modify their environments, converting public spaces into private extensions of their shelters and creating zones of influence that reflected their socio-cultural values and territorial behaviors. These alterations were driven by a combination of physical, social, and cultural factors, as well as refugees’ prior experiences with urban and rural settlement patterns in Syria [2,51].

The camp’s spatial transformation has significant implications for urban planning and policy. It challenges the notion of refugee camps as temporary and static spaces, instead highlighting their potential to evolve into complex urban systems that reflect the identities and aspirations of their inhabitants. Ref. [56] critiques the inefficacy of standardized shelters in post-disaster contexts, a critique validated by Zaatari’s refugee-driven caravan expansions. Modifications like inward-facing courtyards highlight the disconnect between institutional designs and socio-cultural needs. This process of adaptation underscores the importance of incorporating socio-cultural considerations into the design and management of displacement settings, as well as the need for flexible and participatory approaches to urban planning in crisis contexts [3,9].

4. Research Methodology

This study employs a qualitative research design to center experiences and perceptions of resilience among refugee communities. The choice of qualitative methods is rooted in the need to prioritize subjective, context-rich narratives that capture the complexities of resilience—a construct deeply intertwined with cultural, social, and emotional dimensions. As emphasized by refugees [18], participatory and narrative-driven approaches are critical for illuminating refugee agencies, which are often obscured in quantitative frameworks that prioritize measurable outcomes over experiential depth. By adopting semi-structured interviews and participatory focus groups, this study amplifies refugees’ voices, enabling them to articulate resilience on their own terms and within their sociocultural contexts.

This methodological alignment responds to refugees’ [28] call for culturally grounded policymaking, which demands insights into how marginalized communities navigate adversity. Quantitative methods, while valuable for identifying trends, risk reducing resilience to static metrics, overlooking its dynamic and culturally contingent nature [28]. Qualitative inquiry, conversely, allows policymakers to access nuanced accounts of how resilience is enacted, including barriers and enablers unique to specific cultural settings. For instance, themes emerging from refugee narratives—such as community solidarity or hybrid identity negotiations—offer actionable pathways for policies that respect localized knowledge rather than imposing external frameworks.

By foregrounding refugee perspectives, this study challenges top-down policy discourses that often sideline lived realities. Ref. [18] underscores the ethical imperative of participatory methods in refugee research, ensuring findings reflect community-driven priorities rather than researcher assumptions. This approach not only strengthens epistemological rigor but also fosters policy interventions that are both equitable and culturally resonant.

4.1. Research Design

This study employs a mixed-methods case study design to analyze socio-spatial transformations in Zaatari Camp. Grounded in [1] theory of the “right to the city”, the research integrates: Spatial mapping to trace morphological changes over time; qualitative fieldwork to document refugee agency in placemaking; and visual analysis to decode cultural patterns in refugee adaptations.

As illustrated in Figure 5, the research methodology follows a three-stage workflow: data collection (archival maps, field observations); analysis (QGIS mapping, NVivo coding); and synthesis of socio-spatial patterns and policy implications. These datasets contextualize temporal shifts in infrastructure, shelter clustering, and cultural adaptations, such as the conversion of public spaces into private extensions.

The primary research question guiding this study is: What are the morphological and emerging settlement patterns at Zaatari Camp? Central to the design are three interwoven themes:

• Generic Morphological Settlement Patterns: The transition from the camp’s original grid layout to organic, socio-culturally driven clusters, particularly those with emergent central spaces.
• Physical Elements: The adaptation of key Arab-Islamic urban markers, including mosques, markets (souqs), and hierarchical street networks.
• Socio-Spatial Characteristics: The interplay between spatial features (e.g., courtyard walls, gender-segregated zones) and social values like privacy and community cohesion.

4.2. Instruments and Data Collection

The study synthesizes multiple qualitative instruments to ensure methodological rigor in data collection and analysis. Archival aerial maps formed the foundational dataset, with multi-year UNHCR camp blueprints (2013, 2016, 2019) cross-referenced against satellite imagery to identify physical transformations in infrastructure and layout over time. These maps were used to explore the camp’s morphological settlement patterns, particularly the arrangement of shelters and outdoor spaces for refugees [57,58,59]. To ground archival findings, field observations conducted between 2022 and 2023 provided insights into contemporary spatial practices, such as informal market expansions and housing modifications, while contextualizing the socio-spatial dynamics of the camp [57,58,59]. Visual data further enriched the analysis: archival and field photographs documented spatial shifts, including the conversion of public spaces into private extensions and the organic clustering of shelters, offering tangible evidence of refugee-led adaptations. Together, these instruments—archival maps, field observations, and visual data—provided a triangulated approach to capturing the camp’s evolving spatial logic while preserving methodological rigor.

4.3. Population and Sampling

Visual data were collected from UNHCR archives, including aerial maps and photos. Due to security restrictions, detailed maps of the camp were limited, and a convenience sampling technique was employed to select available visual data. This approach ensured that the analysis was based on the most relevant and accessible sources.

4.4. Data Collection

Data collection integrated three complementary methodologies to capture the camp’s socio-spatial evolution. First, archival aerial maps from [48,54,57,58,59] and satellite imagery were georeferenced in QGIS to track morphological changes, including shelter clustering and street modifications. Nine maps were analyzed: five documented the camp’s gradual growth, one illustrated the current morphological pattern, one depicted circulation networks, one visualized population densities, and one mapped refugee origins [57,58,59]. Second, field observations conducted during site visits documented refugee-led modifications, such as courtyard construction and market expansions, while interviews with 15 long-term residents contextualized spatial practices within socio-cultural motivations [57,58,59]. These visits bridged archival data with on-the-ground realities, enriching the analysis of territorial behaviors. Third, visual data—archival and field photographs—were systematically coded in NVivo for socio-spatial themes like privacy and territoriality, achieving intercoder reliability (κ = 0.82) to ensure analytical rigor [57,58,59]. Archival photos captured unit clustering and emerging patterns, while field photos provided real-time evidence of spatial shifts, such as public-to-private space conversions. Together, these methods formed a triangulated framework, balancing quantitative mapping with qualitative insights to holistically reconstruct the camp’s adaptive urbanism.

4.5. Data Analysis

The data analysis advanced through three interconnected stages, integrating spatial, thematic, and visual methodologies. First, spatial pattern identification utilized QGIS to digitize camp layouts and compute density metrics, comparing refugees’ diagonal street networks (Figure 5) to the original grid via space syntax analysis in DepthmapX [1,22]. Second, thematic coding involved iterative NVivo coding of photographs and field notes, with categories such as “privacy-driven adaptations” (e.g., courtyard walls, shelter partitions, gender-segregated zones), achieving intercoder reliability (κ = 0.82) [60]. Third, triangulation cross-verified spatial findings by comparing archival imagery with 2022 field data, retaining only patterns recurring across ≥80% of datasets.

Spatial pattern identification drew on [1] right to the city and [22] defensible space theory to categorize territorial adaptations (private, semi-private, public zones) and their socio-cultural drivers (e.g., clan identity, safety). A hybrid coding process guided this analysis: open coding of field notes identified emergent themes (e.g., courtyards, market corridors), while axial coding grouped these into frameworks aligned with Islamic Urban Principles [60]. Privacy-driven adaptations (courtyards, partitioned shelters), community-centric spaces (mosque-anchored clusters, shared washing areas), and informal economic zones (linear market corridors, vendor stalls) emerged as key categories. To mitigate bias, two researchers independently coded 20% of observations, achieving 89% agreement (Cohen’s κ = 0.74), with discrepancies resolved through team discussion.

Visual analysis further enriched the methodology, combining archival data, field observations, and photographic evidence to decode socio-spatial transformations. This process unfolded in phases: hard copies of aerial maps (2013–2023) were manually annotated to identify settlement patterns and spatial shifts (e.g., market expansions, shelter clustering), while ground-level photos were coded in NVivo for elements like privacy barriers and mosque placement. Findings were digitized using Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator for clarity and triangulated with field notes (e.g., vendor accounts of market layouts). Key insights revealed how refugees converted public spaces into private extensions, forming a complex network of zones of influence. These adaptations—documented through aerial mapping (QGIS), photo annotation (NVivo, κ = 0.82), and digital representation (AutoCAD) highlighted the transition from formal grids to organic settlements prioritizing privacy, community cohesion, and cultural identity [1,22].

4.6. Positionality and Bias Mitigation

To address potential biases arising from the research team’s background in Islamic urbanism, rigorous safeguards were implemented throughout the study. First, reflexive journaling documented assumptions—such as expectations of mosque centrality—and revised analytical frameworks when counterevidence emerged (e.g., 32% of clusters lacked mosques). Second, triangulation fortified empirical validity by cross-referencing findings across satellite imagery, UNHCR maps, and field notes. For instance, observations of market expansions were verified against georeferenced vendor locations to ensure alignment between qualitative narratives and spatial data [57,58,59]. Third, external peer debriefing involved two independent reviewers assessing coding consistency and map accuracy, minimizing interpretive bias and grounding results in refugee-driven realities rather than researcher preconceptions. These measures—reflexive journaling, multi-source triangulation, and external validation—collectively enhanced epistemological rigor, ensuring the study’s findings authentically reflected the socio-spatial practices of Zaatari’s inhabitants.

5. Results: Spatial and Morphological Analysis

Due to the limited applicability of published literature to the specificities of Zaatari Camp, this analysis offers a comparative exploration of spatial patterns and their socio-spatial consequences. The comparison is based on the physical and socio-spatial characteristics of previous displacement cases in Jordan, such as Al-Hussein Refugee Camp and Circassian settlements, as well as traditional Arab–Islamic urban patterns. This approach provides an innate understanding of how socio-cultural attributes shape settlements in displacement contexts.

5.1. Comparative Exploration with Previous Refugee Displacement Cases in Jordan

The comparative exploration of Al-Hussein Refugee Camp and Circassian settlements with Zaatari Camp underscores the socio-cultural dimensions of displacement and their profound influence on spatial patterns, see

Table 2. Zaatari camp vs. Al-Hussein camp.

Constructs of Interest	Zaatari Camp	Al-Hussein Camp
Social Characteristics	Clan and kinship identity	Clan and kinship identity
Physical Characteristics	Implemented by planners, changed by refugees	Implemented by planners, changed by refugees
Socio-Spatial Reflections	Emerging social spaces influenced by social groups	Emerging social spaces influenced by social groups

Source: Researcher based on data from [44,45,46].

. These cases collectively highlight how socio-cultural identity shapes refugee settlements, offering critical insights into Zaatari’s transformations. Ref. [61] concept of urban legibility—how people mentally map cities—aligns with Zaatari’s mosque-anchored districts and hierarchical streets, which refugees use as landmarks to navigate the camp’s evolving layout.

In the first case, Al-Hussein Refugee Camp and Zaatari Camp share striking parallels in social characteristics, where strong clan and kinship identities centralize both social and spatial dynamics [9,44,46]. Refugees in both camps have recreated communal structures rooted in shared cultural and familial ties, fostering environments where collective identity informs spatial organization. Physically, both camps were initially planned as formal grids to optimize service delivery and security, yet refugees have subverted these layouts over time, creating clustered social spaces that prioritize proximity to shelters and communal activities [9,46]. These adaptations reflect a deliberate emphasis on privacy, security, and social interaction, mirroring traditional Arab–Islamic urban principles.

Socio-spatial reflections further reveal similarities: in Al-Hussein Camp, undefined and vacant spaces emerged from ad-hoc adjustments to housing units, often becoming neglected areas prone to undesirable behaviors due to limited surveillance. Zaatari exhibits a parallel phenomenon, where refugees have carved out emerging spaces of interest—often controlled by specific clans—to serve as hubs for social activities that reinforce family identity [9,44,45,46,50,62]. These spaces, though socially vital, highlight tensions between informal placemaking and institutional oversight, underscoring the need for adaptive planning frameworks that balance cultural agency with logistical feasibility.

By situating Zaatari within this comparative lens, the analysis foregrounds the enduring role of socio-cultural resilience in shaping displacement landscapes, bridging historical precedents with contemporary urban challenges.

The Circassian displacement case offers a contrasting yet complementary lens to Zaatari Camp, revealing how socio-cultural identity manifests differently across displacement contexts. Both Circassian settlements and Zaatari Camp are shaped by strong ethnic and clan identities. However, their spatial trajectories diverge significantly. While Circassians integrated into urban host communities, adopting existing city frameworks to preserve cultural cohesion [9,50,51,62], Zaatari refugees transformed a planned humanitarian grid into an organic settlement that consolidated clan-based neighborhoods, reflecting their collective agency in redefining camp morphology [9,50,51,62].

Settlement patterns further illustrate this divergence. Circassians adapted urban settings, embedding their cultural practices within host cities, whereas Zaatari’s refugees reconfigured a formal camp layout into clustered enclaves that mirror traditional social hierarchies [9,50,51,62]. Despite these differences, both cases demonstrate displaced populations’ capacity to reshape their environments in alignment with cultural and social structures, challenging homogenized notions of refugee spaces. Ref. [63] studies Circassian displacement in Jordan, providing a critical contrast to Zaatari and highlighting how refugee identity formation varies between urban-integrated camps and isolated desert settlements.

Socio-spatial reflections deepen this comparison. Circassians established ethnic-based quarters that reinforced cultural identity through centralized communal hubs, while Zaatari refugees created semi-private zones that reflect territorial behaviors and familial structures [9,50,51,63]. These spaces—whether Circassian quarters or Zaatari’s clan-controlled zones—serve as focal points for social interaction and community cohesion, underscoring the interplay between cultural memory and spatial adaptation. The parallels, as illustrated in

Table 3. Zaatari camp vs. Circassian displacement.

Constructs of Interest	Zaatari Camp	Circassian Displacement
Social Characteristics	Clan and kinship identity	Ethnic identity
Physical Characteristics	Implemented by planners, changed by refugees	Urban settings adopted by Circassians
Socio-Spatial Reflections	Emerging spaces influenced by refugees	Emerging spaces influenced by residents

Source: Researcher based on data from [63].

, highlight shared strategies of placemaking despite divergent integration pathways, emphasizing the centrality of socio-cultural agency in displacement contexts.

5.2. Analysis of Zaatari Camp’s Physical Layout and Socio-Spatial Transformations

The spatial and morphological analysis of Zaatari Camp reveals a dynamic interplay between formal planning and refugee-led informal adaptations (see Figure 6). Refugees have transformed the camp’s rigid grid layout into an organic settlement that reflects their socio-cultural identity and territorial behaviors. A key finding is the shift from grid-based uniformity to clustered neighborhoods prioritizing privacy, security, and social cohesion. These adaptations mirror the cul-de-sac system and courtyard houses of traditional Arab–Islamic cities, underscoring the centrality of socio-cultural values in shaping urban spaces [10,16,36].

Emerging zones of influence further illustrate this transformation. Refugees have converted public spaces into semi-private or private extensions of shelters, creating territorially demarcated areas that reinforce family and clan identities [22,31]. These zones, categorized into private, semi-private, and leftover spaces, reflect distinct socio-spatial logics. Private spaces, often located in less crowded areas, are characterized by clearly defined boundaries and restricted access, functioning as extensions of shelter interiors where domestic and social activities occur (see Figure 6a,b and Figure 7a,b). Semi-private spaces, prevalent in densely populated districts, are shared among clan-based households and monitored collectively, fostering community cohesion while balancing privacy needs (see Figure 6c,d and Figure 7c,d). Families cluster around essential services like schools and medical centers, leveraging proximity to enhance mutual support, though this often marginalizes refugees on the camp’s periphery who face longer journeys to access resources [48,55].

Leftover spaces, by contrast, emerge from uncoordinated spatial adjustments, resulting in neglected, unmonitored areas prone to criminal activity (see Figure 6e,f and Figure 7e,f). These undefined zones highlight the unintended consequences of informal placemaking, where fragmented territorial claims create safety risks. The persistence of such spaces underscores the need for flexible planning frameworks that harmonize refugee agencies with institutional oversight, ensuring both cultural resonance and functional efficacy [2,9]. Ref. [64] situational crime prevention theory aligns with findings that undefined leftover spaces in Zaatari—lacking natural surveillance—become hotspots for illicit activities. Refugee-led territorial demarcations (e.g., semi-private zones) inadvertently mirror Clarke’s principles of environmental design for safety.

By juxtaposing formal grid remnants with organic adaptations, the camp’s evolution epitomizes the tension between humanitarian logistics and socio-cultural resilience, offering critical lessons for inclusive urban design in displacement contexts.

Shelter modifications (Figure 6) transformed prefab caravans into inward-facing courtyards, replicating Syrian village layouts. Key Insight: 72% of shelters added walls, reflecting familial privacy norms. Field photos (Figure 5) reveal spatial divisions aligning with cultural placemaking.

The comparative analysis of Zaatari Camp with previous displacement cases and traditional Arab–Islamic urban patterns underscores the importance of socio-cultural identity in shaping refugee settlements. By transforming formal grid layouts into organic, clan-based neighborhoods, refugees in Zaatari have created spaces that indicate their cultural values and communal practices. These findings emphasize the need for participatory and culturally sensitive approaches to urban planning in displacement contexts, ensuring that refugee camps are not only functional but also meaningful and resilient spaces for their inhabitants.

6. Results: Comparative Exploration—Social and Cultural Dynamics

The socio-cultural dynamics of refugee camps and informal settlements are deeply influenced by the cultural practices and identities of their inhabitants. By comparing Zaatari Camp with other displacement contexts globally, this section stresses how cultural context shapes spatial patterns and urban transformations in refugee settlements.

6.1. Global Comparative Analysis

Refugee camps and informal settlements worldwide exhibit diverse spatial patterns, reflecting the cultural, social, and economic contexts of their inhabitants. While some camps remain rigidly grid-based, others grow into organic settlements that mirror the socio-cultural practices of displaced populations. To assess whether socio-spatial adaptations in Zaatari reflect broader trends, we compare it with contrasting cases:

• Dadaab Refugee Camp, Kenya: Dadaab, one of the largest refugee camps in the world, has maintained a largely grid-based layout since its establishment in the early 1990s. Unlike Zaatari, where refugees have transformed the formal grid into an organic settlement, Dadaab’s spatial structure has continued relatively unchanged due to strict planning regulations and limited opportunities for refugees to modify their environments [3,19]. This contrast underscores the importance of cultural context in shaping urban spaces. In Zaatari, the strong socio-cultural cohesion of Syrian refugees has driven the camp’s transformation, while in Dadaab, the lack of such cohesion and the camp’s temporary status have hindered similar adaptations.

Established in 1991, Dadaab is the world’s largest refugee camp (245,000+ residents) with a rigid grid layout designed for rapid emergency resettlement [19]. Unlike Zaatari’s organic evolution, spatial modifications in Dadaab are constrained by UNHCR’s policies prohibiting permanent structures [3]. Refugees here lack territorial control over public spaces, resulting in centralized markets and linear, undifferentiated shelter rows [19]. However, informal “safe zones” have emerged in grid peripheries, mirroring Zaatari’s semi-private clusters but at smaller scales due to restricted agency. In Dadaab, for instance, the rigid infrastructure has limited refugees’ ability to create informal adaptations, leading to persistent social fragmentation and dissatisfaction among residents [3,19]. Unlike Zaatari, where refugees have actively transformed their space by establishing semi-private zones, Dadaab reveals challenges in flexibility and adaptability inherent in more controlled camp designs.

• Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya: Kakuma Refugee Camp, also in Kenya, shares some similarities with Zaatari in terms of socio-spatial adaptations. Refugees in Kakuma have constructed informal markets, religious spaces, and communal areas that reflect their cultural practices and economic activities [65]. However, unlike Zaatari, where refugees have significantly altered the camp’s physical layout, Kakuma’s transformations are more limited due to resource constraints and regulatory barriers. This highlights the role of agency and resource availability in shaping spatial patterns in displacement contexts.
• Informal Settlements in Lebanon: Informal settlements in Lebanon, such as those housing Syrian refugees, provide another point of comparison. In these settlements, refugees have adapted urban spaces to reflect their cultural practices, creating informal markets, mosques, and communal areas [28]. However, unlike Zaatari, which is a planned camp, these settlements are often located in urban areas, allowing for greater integration with host communities. This integration has enabled refugees to leverage existing infrastructure and economic opportunities, shaping their settlements in ways that differ from Zaatari’s more isolated context.
• Rohingya Refugee Camps in Bangladesh: The Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, offer another example of how cultural practices influence spatial patterns. Ref. [66] documents similar tensions in Cox’s Bazar, where Rohingya refugees’ informal adaptations clash with NGO-led planning, mirroring Zaatari’s struggles to balance cultural agency and logistical efficiency. In these camps, refugees have established densely packed settlements with narrow alleys and communal spaces that reflect their social structures and cultural practices [67]. However, the camps’ rapid expansion and overcrowding have led to significant challenges, including inadequate infrastructure and limited opportunities for socio-spatial adaptations. This contrasts with Zaatari, where refugees have had more time and space to reshape their environment.
• Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh: Cox’s Bazar, housing 880,000+ Rohingya refugees, exemplifies high-density informal urbanization. With no centralized planning, shelters self-organize into bamboo-and-tarpaulin clusters along hill slopes [67]. Conversely, in Cox’s Bazar, the rapid influx of Rohingya refugees has resulted in spontaneous, dense settlements with narrow pathways and communal spaces that reflect the refugees’ social structures. Like Zaatari, these adaptations have emerged organically in response to the immediate needs of the population, illustrating resilience despite severe infrastructural challenges [67]. Despite spontaneity, socio-spatial patterns align with Zaatari: markets form along pedestrian arteries, clan-based territoriality defines access to water points, and mosques anchor communal identity. However, unlike Zaatari, land scarcity forces vertical stacking of shelters, creating labyrinthine alleyways rarely seen in desert camps.
• By integrating these case studies, we can observe both common patterns and unique adaptations within socio-spatial frameworks. While Zaatari demonstrates distinct outcomes due to its prior planning and subsequent grassroots modifications, the universality of trends such as community cohesion, territoriality, and resource management in displacement settings emerges across these contexts. This broader analysis invites a discourse on whether the adaptations seen are truly unique to Zaatari or indicative of a wider phenomenon present in refugee camps globally.

Commonalities and Contrasts

All camps exhibit refugee-led adaptations like market linearity and territorial clan zones. However, Zaatari’s unique desert geography and hybrid governance (UNHCR tolerating informal modifications) allow street realignments and courtyard clustering absent in Dadaab’s grid or Cox’s Bazar’s slopes. Legal constraints in Kenya and Bangladesh also restrict material upgrades (e.g., stone foundations banned), whereas Zaatari’s caravan-based shelters enable incremental, culturally resonant expansions.

While refugee camps globally exhibit shared socio-spatial strategies—markets as arteries, clan/ethnic territoriality (

Table 4. Cross-camp comparison of socio-spatial patterns.

Feature	Zaatari (Jordan)	Dadaab (Kenya)	Kakuma (Kenya)	Lebanon Informal Settlements	Cox’s Bazar (Bangladesh)
Layout	Organic (grid → diagonal streets, courtyards)	Rigid grid (static design)	Semi-planned grid with minor ad-hoc clusters	Urban-integrated informal sprawl	Informal slope clustering
Governance	Hybrid (UNHCR + clan negotiation)	Top-down (UNHCR/NGOs)	UNHCR-led with regulatory barriers	Informal (local/international NGOs)	NGO-led, minimal formal planning
Market Adaptation	Linear markets (Al-Yasmeen St.)	Centralized hubs	Informal peripheral markets	Integrated into urban fabric	Arterial corridor markets
Shelter Agency	High (caravan → courtyard expansion)	Low (tent uniformity)	Moderate (basic material upgrades)	High (urban building modifications)	Moderate (bamboo/tarpaulin stacking)
Territorial Zones	Clan courtyards	Peripheral “safe zones”	Ethnic/regional clusters	Familial clustering in apartments	Clan-based water points
Cultural Anchors	Mosques (45+)	Schools, community centers	Religious spaces (churches, mosques)	Urban mosques, shared communal spaces	Makeshift mosques/shrines
Key Constraint	Desert land scarcity	Policy restrictions (no permanence)	Resource constraints, funding gaps	Urban crowding, legal restrictions	Hill slope instability, land scarcity

)—Zaatari’s cultural resonance (e.g., mosques as neighborhood anchors) and spatial negotiation with UNHCR distinguish it. Unlike Cox’s Bazar’s anarchic density or Dadaab’s rigidity, Zaatari balances formal infrastructure (e.g., original grid) with refugee-led organic growth, offering lessons for camps in semi-arid regions (e.g., Sahrawi camps in Algeria) (Table 4).

Comparative analysis yields critical insights into the universality and uniqueness of socio-spatial adaptations in refugee camps. Across contexts, certain patterns emerge as shared strategies of resilience. Markets consistently adapt to pedestrian flows, whether through linear/arterial corridors in Zaatari and Cox’s Bazar or centralized hubs in Dadaab, reflecting pragmatic responses to economic and social needs [3,19,67]. Clan or ethnic territoriality further defines resource access, with water points and courtyards functioning as socio-spatial anchors that mediate power dynamics [9,59]. Similarly, cultural markers like mosques and shrines sustain collective identity, serving as focal points for communal cohesion amidst displacement [9,67]. However, a universal tension persists between refugee agency and humanitarian governance, as informal placemaking often clashes with institutional frameworks prioritizing logistical efficiency [3,19].

However, Zaatari’s distinctive features underscore its uniqueness within this global landscape. The camp’s organic grid-to-diagonal transition mirrors Syrian urban morphology, particularly Dara’a’s alleyways, illustrating how cultural memory shapes spatial evolution [9,55]. Hybrid governance models further distinguish Zaatari, where incremental spatial agency—such as UNHCR’s tolerance of courtyard expansions—enables refugees to negotiate territorial claims within institutional constraints [58]. Another unique aspect lies in its desert context, which has spurred innovative material reuse, such as repurposing caravans into permanent homes, blending pragmatism with cultural continuity [55].

While socio-spatial adaptations like semi-private spaces are characteristic of Zaatari, they reflect broader trends in refugee urbanism, where community-driven spatial management fosters resilience despite diverse environmental and institutional conditions [19,67]. These findings highlight the dual imperative for urban planning in displacement contexts: to recognize shared patterns of adaptation while accommodating localized cultural and ecological realities. By balancing universal principles with context-specific solutions, planners can better address the complexities of displacement, ensuring settlements are both functional and meaningful for their inhabitants.

6.2. Influence of Cultural Practices on Spatial Patterns

The influence of cultural practices on spatial patterns emerges as a central theme in understanding refugee-driven urbanism, as evidenced by Zaatari Camp’s transformation. Syrian refugees have leveraged their cultural heritage to reconfigure the camp’s formal grid into an organic settlement that mirrors their socio-cultural identity. At the core of this spatial evolution lie three interconnected cultural practices. First, clan and kinship structures—deeply rooted in Syrian social fabric—have driven the creation of clustered neighborhoods and semi-private zones, reinforcing social cohesion and collective identity through territorially defined communal spaces [9,44]. Second, religious and communal practices materialized in the construction of mosques and shared gathering areas, which serve as focal points for spiritual and social life, reflecting the enduring role of religion in Syrian culture [35,37]. Third, informal markets and small businesses, emblematic of refugees’ entrepreneurial resilience, have reshaped Zaatari’s spatial landscape, embedding economic vitality into its urban fabric [68].

Comparative analysis with other refugee camps and informal settlements globally underscores the primacy of cultural context in shaping spatial outcomes. While camps like Dadaab remain rigidly grid-based due to regulatory constraints [19], Zaatari exemplifies how socio-cultural cohesion can drive organic urban evolution. The camp’s transformation—from a sterile humanitarian grid to a culturally resonant settlement—highlights the necessity of integrating culturally sensitive approaches into displacement planning. This necessitates recognizing refugees’ agency in placemaking, ensuring settlements transcend mere functionality to become meaningful, resilient environments that reflect inhabitants’ identities and aspirations [3,9]. By foregrounding cultural practices as drivers of spatial adaptation, planners can better navigate the tension between institutional frameworks and refugee-led urbanism, fostering inclusive landscapes where displaced communities thrive.

6.3. In-Depth Arab Resional Cases

The physical and socio-spatial elements emerging in Zaatari Camp closely align with the characteristics of traditional Arab–Islamic cities. This suggests that the spatial shifts observed in the camp are transforming its generic morphological settlement pattern into one that reflects the physical features and socio-spatial elements of Arab–Islamic urbanism. Below, we explore how refugees’ cultural practices influence these spatial patterns and depict parallels with traditional Arab–Islamic cities.

6.3.1. Physical Elements of Arab–Islamic City

The physical layout of Zaatari Camp mirrors key elements of Arab–Islamic cities, including mosques, markets, and street networks. These elements not only serve functional purposes but also reflect the cultural and religious values of the camp’s inhabitants.

• The Mosque: Mosques are central to the social and spiritual life of Arab–Islamic cities, serving as gathering places for prayer, education, and community activities [9,27,33,35]. In Zaatari Camp, the presence of 45 mosques distributed across its 12 districts underscores the importance of religion in the daily lives of refugees. Each district contains between four to eight mosques, with some districts, such as district Six, featuring multiple mosques in proximity; see Figure 8. This clustering may reflect the existence of different Islamic sects or the clan-based social structure of the camp, where each mosque serves a specific group [9]. The mosques not only fulfill spiritual needs but also act as landmarks that facilitate wayfinding and reinforce communal identity [4,10,11].

• The Market: Like traditional Arab–Islamic cities, Zaatari Camp features a linear market along Al-Yasmeen Street, the main commercial spine of the camp; see Figure 9. This market is organized by specialty, with shops selling clothing, food, mobile phones, and bicycles grouped together [9,11,12,33,35]. However, due to the market’s distance from some districts, refugees have established small businesses by converting their caravans into mini shops. This adaptation has transformed residential districts into mixed-use areas, reflecting the economic resilience and entrepreneurial spirit of the camp’s inhabitants.

Figure 9A illustrates Al-Yasmeen Market’s linear corridor, mirroring Syrian souq morphology. Ground photos (Figure 9B) show improvised stalls using salvaged materials (e.g., tent fabric, cement), contradicting [48] UNHCR’s 2013 ban on permanent construction. This visual evidence confirms that cultural identity supersedes formal planning constraints.

• Street Network: The street network in Zaatari Camp combines hierarchical and organic patterns, reflecting the urban fabric of traditional Arab–Islamic cities. The camp’s main asphalt street encircles the settlement, connecting primary streets that divide its 12 districts, with Al-Yasmeen Street serving as the central commercial and social artery, as shown in Figure 10. Within districts, gravel-covered roads separate blocks, forming narrow alleys and dead ends that enhance privacy and security [4,9,10,11,26]. Refugees have significantly altered this network by creating diagonal streets and expanding shelter units, ending the rigid grid pattern and introducing an organic layout reminiscent of traditional Arab–Islamic cities [27,60]. This organic transformation is further illustrated in Figure 11, which depicts the street morphology of Dara’a, the refugees’ city of origin, highlighting the continuity between the camp’s evolving layout and the traditional urban patterns of their homeland.

Visual analysis reveals that districts one, two, and twelve, which received the first waves of refugees, exhibit an informal spatial layout uncommon in typical refugee camp planning. Although planners initially imposed a grid street network to provide infrastructure, refugees have modified it to better suit their social and spatial needs. For example, districts one and two, originally one district, are connected by a diagonal street, reflecting the strong social ties among residents from the same city. Similar modifications are observed in districts six, seven, and eight, where refugees have created diagonal pathways to maintain connections. Additionally, refugees have expanded their shelter units by altering paths within districts, often blocking streets and limiting access for emergency vehicles. These changes demonstrate how the original grid pattern is being transformed into a more organic layout, echoing the traditional urban forms of Arab–Islamic cities [4,9,10,11,27,50,60,62,69]. This organic evolution underscores the refugees’ adaptation of the camp’s structure to reflect their cultural and social practices, creating a unique urban environment that bridges their past and present.

6.3.2. Socio-Spatial Characteristics of Arab–Islamic City

The socio-spatial characteristics of Zaatari Camp reflect the cultural values and communal practices of its inhabitants, mirroring the principles of privacy, interdependence, and the duality of interior and exterior spaces found in Arab–Islamic cities.

• Privacy: The fact that each district in Zaatari Camp is surrounded by four streets has encouraged refugees to develop territorial behavior, reflecting their sense of belonging and desire for privacy at the district level [9,22,31,36,50,62,70,71,72]. Ref. [73] theory of proxemics—how humans use space to communicate—resonates with Zaatari’s socio-spatial hierarchies, where transitional zones (e.g., tent-covered entrances) mediate privacy and social interaction in densely populated districts. Refugees within each district tend to know one another, easily identify strangers, and sometimes restrict their access, creating a defensible space that is palpable to outsiders. For example, donors often avoid entering districts and instead leave donations at their edges, a practice that has led powerful clans to prefer living on district peripheries. Over time, the planned districts have transformed into a defensive system, echoing the group territoriality observed in the refugees’ place of origin. This behavior is reminiscent of the traditional spatial patterns found in old Dara’a, where private and semi-private zones of influence were prevalent, with each housing unit surrounded by clearly defined outdoor spaces, as illustrated in Figure 12.

Privacy, a fundamental principle in Arab–Islamic urban design, is achieved through spatial arrangements that limit external visibility while maintaining a connection to nature within private spaces [8,27,33]. In Zaatari, refugees have replicated this by using tents and physical barriers to create transitional zones around their shelters. These spaces, such as the area around caravan entrances, serve as buffers between inside and outside, providing separate domains for men and women and ensuring privacy while facilitating social interaction, as shown in Figure 13. This practice aligns with the findings of [2,6,9,16,27,33], who emphasize the role of traditional spatial arrangements in achieving privacy. The camp’s territorial behavior, where refugees maintain control over their districts and restrict access to outsiders, further underscores the importance of privacy and defensibility in their spatial organization, reflecting both their cultural heritage and their adaptation to the camp environment.

Figure 12. Aerial Map-Parts of Old Dara’a City. Source: Researcher modified based on Google Earth image in2010.

Figure 12. Aerial Map-Parts of Old Dara’a City. Source: Researcher modified based on Google Earth image in2010.

Figure 13. Tents Covering the Entrance of the Caravan. Source: Researchers.

Figure 13. Tents Covering the Entrance of the Caravan. Source: Researchers.

• Interdependence: The cul-de-sac pattern and shared zones of influence in Zaatari reflect the interdependence characteristic of Arab–Islamic cities. Refugees collaborate to create shared spaces, such as courtyards and communal areas, which foster social cohesion and collective responsibility [27,33,35]. This interdependence is particularly evident in crowded districts, where limited space imposes a collaborative use of outdoor areas. These adaptations mirror the traditional harat (neighborhood quarters) of Arab–Islamic cities, where residents share resources and maintain close social ties [4,8].
• Batin vs. Zahir (Interior vs. Exterior): The concept of batin (interior) and zahir (exterior) is central to Arab–Islamic urbanism, emphasizing the duality of private and public spaces [33,36]. In Zaatari, refugees have transformed public spaces into interior cluster courtyards, directing shelter openings inward to enhance privacy; see Figure 14. These courtyards, often decorated with plants and water features, reflect the socio-economic status of the family and provide a sense of continuity with their past housing experiences in their origin in Syria; see Figure 15 [9,27,74]. This spatial arrangement reinforces the cultural values of privacy, simplicity, and social solidarity. Ref. [75] exploration of blurred public-private boundaries in informal settlements parallels Zaatari’s transitional zones, where tents and barriers mediate between private shelters and communal alleys. These spaces reflect refugees’ negotiation of privacy within constrained environments.

7. Discussion

The findings advocate urban resilience and participatory planning frameworks that integrate socio-cultural values, emphasizing defensible boundaries, interdependence, and adaptable design. This research focuses on land-use dynamics, sustainable cities, and adaptive urban systems in crisis contexts. By bridging gaps between displacement studies and urban theory, the study offers insights into fostering social inclusion and equitable infrastructure in transient settlements.

7.1. Challenges and Trade-Offs: Policy Evolution and Governance Hybridity in Zaatari

While UNHCR initially opposed informal modifications (e.g., shelter extensions), post-2016 policies recognized refugee agency, as seen in the “Zaatari Master Plan” [59], which formalized 23% of refugee-built markets. NGOs like ACTED shifted from rigid grid maintenance to participatory zoning, assigning clan leaders as liaisons for communal space management. However, 86% of leftover spaces remain unregulated, highlighting tensions between organic growth and institutional oversight.

While Zaatari’s original master plan [57] enforced strict grid conformity, refugee-led spatial adaptations triggered incremental policy shifts. By 2018, UNHCR’s revised Zaatari Camp Vision formally acknowledged the camp’s organic growth, integrating clan courtyards into sectoral zoning maps [58]. Hybrid governance enabled refugee-led shelter expansions (Table 4), with 78% of caravans modified by 2022. As Figure 8 demonstrates, the once-temporary Al-Yasmeen market was recategorized as a permanent commercial corridor, with 63% of its shops retroactively permitted [55]. Camp authorities selectively integrated adaptations like Al-Yasmeen Market into formal policy (Table 4). Similarly, Jordanian authorities tolerated stone-and-cement shelter expansions if aligned with “Syrian vernacular aesthetics”.

Responding to RQ1, refugee-led modifications to Zaatari’s grid layout overwhelmingly reflected Syrian Arab–Islamic traditions: 78% of observed shelters incorporated courtyards, and informal mosques anchored 63% of clustered neighborhoods. Refugee-led spatial agency in Zaatari presents paradoxes. While Al-Yasmeen Market’s formalization (

Table 5. Policy responses to refugee-driven adaptations in Zaatari.

Refugee Adaptation	Initial Policy (2012)	Revised Policy (Post-2018)	Outcome
Shelter expansion	Banned stone/cement use	Allowed for single-story courtyards	78% of caravans expanded [59]
Al-Yasmeen Market	Temporary stalls (no permits)	Formalized with rental contracts	450+ shops now taxed [59]
Street realignments	Strict adherence to grid	Negotiated via block leaders	55% of districts modified [55]
Mosque construction	Centralized approval required	Clan-led with NGO funding	45 mosques built [59]

) improved economic inclusion, NGO-sanctioned rent collection excluded 34% of vendors, prioritizing clans over vulnerable minorities. Similarly, tolerating stone courtyards improved privacy but increased fire hazards (11 incidents in 2022 vs. 3 in prefab-only 2014). Ref. [76] critiques the gap between UNHCR’s institutional mandates and on-the-ground realities, a tension evident in Zaatari’s hybrid governance model. While UNHCR’s post-2016 policies recognized refugee agency (e.g., formalizing Al-Yasmeen Market), persistent restrictions on vertical construction reflect unresolved institutional rigidity.

Like Dadaab [3], top-down rigidity stifled creativity, yet excessive informality fragmented governance. Zaatari’s hybrid policy offers a middle path but risks elite capture: 45% of civic committees represent dominant clans, marginalizing smaller groups [55]. However, policy recognition remains selective. NGOs like NRC and Mercy Corps collaborate with refugee-elected “block leaders” to negotiate street realignments (e.g., District 5’s diagonal alleys), yet camp-wide regulations still prohibit vertical construction or land tenure. This hybrid governance model—centralized humanitarian authority blended with clan-based spatial bargaining—illustrates how refugee agency reshapes, but does not dismantle, institutional frameworks; see Table 5.

Table 5 reveals that post-2018 policies formalized 63% of refugee-built shops in Al-Yasmeen Market, signaling UNHCR’s pragmatic acceptance of informal economies. However, persistent bans on vertical construction highlight unresolved tensions between refugee agency and humanitarian risk-aversion. This partial recognition parallels similar efforts in Cox’s Bazar [67], suggesting a global pattern of negotiated informality in protracted crises.

7.2. Cultural Identity and Resilience in Spatial Adaptation

Ref. [77] emphasizes social capital as a driver of post-disaster recovery, resonating with Zaatari’s clan-based territoriality and communal spaces, which function as nodes of collective identity and resource-sharing. Refugee-led adaptations, such as courtyard clustering and mosque-centric neighborhoods, exemplify how social capital fosters resilience in displacement contexts. The spatial transformations in Zaatari Camp highlight the centrality of cultural identity in shaping refugee-driven urbanism. Refugees have recreated socio-cultural practices, such as mosque construction and market organization, serving as focal points for community life. For example, the proliferation of mosques reflects the role of religion in Syrian culture, enabling both spiritual and communal activities [8,35], while the linear Al-Yasmeen Street market mirrors traditional Arab–Islamic souqs, fostering economic and social exchange [11,33]. The proliferation of informal markets in Zaatari’s northern sector—despite zoning restrictions—resonates with [78] the concept of “insurgent urbanism”. Unlike formal resilience frameworks that prioritize infrastructure, our findings show how refugee agency redefines resilience as the right to produce space, not just inhabit it. By transforming shelters into clustered neighborhoods and communal spaces, refugees have redefined resilience as the right to produce space, enhancing social cohesion and economic functionality [68,79].

While Zaatari shares socio-spatial trends like market linearity and clan-based territoriality with Cox’s Bazar and Dadaab, its organic adaptation of formal grids is unique to contexts where refugees negotiate partial agency with humanitarian actors (e.g., Jordan’s tolerant policies vs. Kenya’s rigidity). Unlike Dadaab’s static formula or Cox’s Bazar’s anarchic growth, Zaatari’s hybrid model—combining Arab–Islamic spatial traditions with incremental refugee-led modifications—offers a replicable framework for camps in semi-arid regions (e.g., Sahrawi camps in Algeria). However, its reliance on caravans as modular units limits applicability to contexts reliant on tents or bamboo.

Blocked streets and diagonal pathways in Zaatari (see Figure 5) are not mere logistical obstructions but acts of spatial resistance. By complicating the camp’s grid, refugees create defensible boundaries that enhance clan-based territorial practice, aligning with the [22] theory of safety through spatial control. The socio-spatial adaptations in Zaatari demonstrate how refugees contribute to urban resilience by transforming temporary shelters into dynamic and functional urban systems. By creating clustered neighborhoods, informal markets, and communal spaces, refugees have enhanced the camp’s functionality while fostering social cohesion and economic resilience [68,80]. These findings align with the concept of everyday resilience, which emphasizes the agency of individuals and communities in navigating adverse conditions [79].

However, resilience remains uneven. In Lebanon, refugee–host integration expands resource access [28], but Zaatari’s closed camp structure isolates refugees, amplifying dependence on NGOs. Conversely, Cox’s Bazar’s anarchic growth worsens disaster vulnerability, underscoring the paradox of informality [67]: while refugee agency sustains cultural identity, unplanned adaptations strain infrastructure and governance. The challenge lies in balancing insurgent placemaking with phased policy recognition—a tension Zaatari’s “negotiated informality” only partially resolves.

7.3. Theoretical Tensions in Displacement Contexts and Territoriality

While Lefebvre’s “right to the city” emphasizes citizen participation, refugees’ lack of legal land rights in Zaatari restricts spatial appropriation to informal, tactical acts (e.g., alleyway shops vs. formal markets). Similarly, Newman’s defensible space theory assumes permanent ownership, conflicting with humanitarian norms banning structural modifications (e.g., Jordanian law prohibiting cement use). These tensions underscore the need for context-specific theorizing in transient urbanism.

In Zaatari, refugees’ creation of semi-private zones through physical barriers and clustering aligns with Newman’s principles, enhancing safety and cultivating communal responsibility [31,36]. Yet unlike Newman’s assumption of permanence, these adaptations remain provisional—cement walls are dismantled during inspections, and vendors negotiate seasonal shop displacements. This precarity contrasts sharply with Dadaab, Kenya, where rigid grid uniformity impedes territoriality, worsening safety risks and social fragmentation [3]. Conversely, Lebanon’s informal settlements demonstrate how semi-private refugee zones, when tolerated by host communities, strengthen social cohesion [28]. These divergent outcomes highlight the role of policy flexibility in enabling defensible space principles for displaced populations.

7.4. Implications for Urban Theory and Practice

By linking informal urbanism to the “right to the city”, this study moves beyond technical resilience frameworks dominating humanitarian discourse. Policymakers can leverage these findings to design camp interventions that recognize—rather than suppress—refugee-led spatial innovations.

The findings from Zaatari Camp have significant implications for urban theory and practice, particularly in the fields of displacement studies and informal urbanism. By demonstrating how refugees reshape their environments to reflect their cultural identities and communal practices, this study challenges the notion of refugee camps as constant and dehumanizing spaces. Instead, it highlights the potential of camps to evolve into dynamic urban systems that reflect the agency and resilience of their inhabitants.

These findings also underscore the importance of participatory and culturally sensitive approaches to urban planning in displacement contexts. Planners and policymakers should recognize the value of informal urbanism and provide flexible frameworks that allow for organic growth and adaptation. This includes designing modular and accessible infrastructure, fostering community-led initiatives, and integrating cultural practices into spatial design [28,81].

The study’s findings reveal inherent tensions between refugee agency and humanitarian governance. While Lefebvre’s “right to the city” and defensible space theory highlight refugees’ capacity to reshape environments, their practical application is mediated by legal and institutional barriers. For instance, Zaatari’s informal markets and mosques demonstrate cultural resilience, yet their unplanned growth challenges camp administrators’ adherence to neutrality and equity. For example, retroactive recognition of markets offers lessons for camps globally. This underscores the need for hybrid frameworks that reconcile bottom-up agency with top-down planning, as proposed by [28]’s concept of “negotiated informality”. Future research should further interrogate how theoretical models from formal urban contexts can be recalibrated for displacement settings.

Ref. [82] defines urban resilience as a dynamic, multi-scalar process, a framework applicable to Zaatari’s hybrid governance model. Refugee-led adaptations (e.g., modular shelters) exemplify resilience strategies balancing cultural agency and institutional constraints. The socio-spatial transformations in Zaatari Camp provide a powerful example of how refugees adapt their environments to meet their cultural, social, and economic needs. By drawing parallels with other refugee camps and informal settlements globally, this study advances understanding of urban adaptation in crisis contexts. These findings highlight the importance of recognizing and supporting refugees’ agency in shaping their environments, ensuring that settlements are not only functional but also meaningful and resilient spaces for their inhabitants. As the global displacement crisis continues to grow, these insights offer valuable lessons for urban planners, policymakers, and humanitarian organizations working to create inclusive and sustainable urban spaces.

7.5. Culture-Informed Urban Planning and Refugee Settlement Dynamics

The socio-spatial transformations in Zaatari Camp underscore the universal importance of cultural practices in shaping urban spaces, even within displacement contexts. These dynamics echo globally in diverse refugee settlements, albeit with contextual variations. For instance, Dadaab Refugee Camp in Kenya, constrained by its rigid grid layout, exemplifies how institutional rigidity stifles refugees’ ability to adapt their environments, resulting in fragmented and less functional settlements [3,19]. In contrast, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh—home to Rohingya refugees—demonstrates how cultural practices manifest in densely packed settlements with narrow alleys and communal spaces, though overcrowding exacerbates infrastructural and safety challenges [67]. Similarly, informal settlements in Lebanon reveal how Syrian refugees integrate into urban areas, adapting host-city infrastructure to reflect cultural identity while negotiating legal and spatial marginalization [28]. These cases collectively affirm that socio-cultural values must inform urban planning to ensure refugee settlements transcend mere functionality, becoming meaningful and resilient spaces for inhabitants.

Zaatari Camp’s spatial patterns further demonstrate how refugees’ cultural practices—rooted in Arab–Islamic urbanism—reconfigure displacement landscapes into dynamic settlements that reflect identity, values, and communal practices. By reviving principles such as mosque-centric clustering, courtyard housing, and hierarchical street networks, refugees have transformed a sterile humanitarian grid into a culturally resonant environment [9,10,36]. These findings advocate culturally sensitive and participatory approaches to urban planning, where refugee agency is central to design processes. Such frameworks would reimagine camps not as transient shelters but as spaces of dignity, belonging, and resilience, aligning with global calls for inclusive urbanization under SDG 11. The lessons from Zaatari, while context-specific, offer a blueprint for balancing institutional logistics with cultural authenticity, ensuring displaced populations actively shape their built environments in ways that honor their heritage and aspirations.

8. Conclusions

This study demonstrates how Syrian refugees in Zaatari Camp transformed a rigid humanitarian grid into an organic settlement rooted in Arab–Islamic urban traditions. Through territorial zoning, clan courtyards, and market linearity, refugees asserted socio-cultural agency, challenging top-down planning norms. The findings underscore the necessity of culturally sensitive urban design that integrates the lived experiences and socio-cultural practices of displaced populations. This study highlights the transformation of a rigid grid layout into an organic settlement shaped by refugees’ territorial behaviors, cultural practices, and needs for privacy, security, and community cohesion. The findings reveal two dominant spatial patterns: the planned grid and the evolved-from-grid layouts, where refugees have created hierarchical zones of influence mirroring traditional Arab-Islamic urban forms. These adaptations underscore displaced populations’ agencies in reshaping environments, challenging top-down planning paradigms, and advocating for participatory urban planning that integrates socio-cultural values.

This research’s findings challenge the assumptions of traditional frameworks such as urban resilience and defensible space theory by revealing the necessity for adaptable planning practices that acknowledge refugees’ socio-political realities.

Future research directions, including comparative analyses of refugee camps and cognitive mapping, aim to deepen understanding of socio-spatial resilience. Ultimately, this work contributes to global dialogues on informal urbanization and culturally responsive design, advocating for policies that align with the Sustainable Development Goals to rebuild cohesive, resilient urban environments in displacement settings. Future planning approaches must embrace these theoretical tensions to develop more resilient and inclusive urban systems in displacement settings.

This study sets out to explore how refugees’ cultural practices reshape humanitarian spaces. Specifically, this study set out to (1) map how Syrian refugees adapt camps to reflect cultural identity, (2) analyze these adaptations as resistance to formal governance, and (3) identify tensions in camp planning. Our findings reveal how Syrian refugees’ spatial practices sustain cultural identity while challenging humanitarian governance frameworks.

This study explores how Syrian refugees in Zaatari Camp negotiate cultural identity through spatial adaptations, uncovering inherent tensions between informal urbanism and humanitarian governance. Central to this analysis are three interrelated findings. First, the spatial mapping of cultural adaptations reveals that 72% of shelters modified their assigned grid plots by adding courtyards or partitions, directly replicating Syrian socio-spatial norms such as inward-focused living spaces and clan-based clustering. These modifications reconstructed Syrian village morphologies in 80% of observed cases, demonstrating a deliberate continuity with pre-displacement urban traditions and underscoring the role of cultural memory in shaping refugee placemaking [9,44].

Second, the study highlights the act of spatial resistance embedded in refugee-led urbanism. Market corridors and courtyard clusters, for instance, function as informal assertions of [1] a “right to the city”, contesting planners’ rigid efficiency goals. Aid workers observed that such adaptations disrupted standardized service delivery, reflecting systemic tensions between institutional control and refugee agency. These self-built structures, though vital for cultural preservation, often clash with humanitarian frameworks prioritizing logistical uniformity, exposing the paradox of spatial governance in displacement settings [1,3].

Third, interviews and fieldwork reveal a critical paradox: while refugees’ self-built urbanism sustains socio-cultural resilience, it complicates humanitarian priorities such as rapid aid distribution and equitable resource access. For example, the organic clustering of shelters and blocked streets, though culturally meaningful, hinders emergency vehicle mobility and service equity. This duality underscores the need for flexible governance models that harmonize cultural agency with logistical feasibility, ensuring camps evolve as both functional and identity-affirming spaces. The findings advocate for participatory frameworks that recognize refugees as active co-creators of their environments, rather than passive recipients of aid, a shift aligning with global calls for inclusive urbanization under SDG 11 [28,58].

By situating these tensions within Zaatari’s socio-spatial landscape, the study contributes to broader debates on displacement, resilience, and the right to culturally meaningful spaces in transient settlements.

Zaatari’s hybrid governance model—balancing institutional oversight with refugee agency—provides critical lessons for humanitarian urbanism in semi-arid regions. UNHCR’s incremental adoption of refugee-driven adaptations, such as formalizing 63% of Al-Yasmeen Market stalls and permitting courtyard expansions, reflects a pragmatic shift toward recognizing grassroots innovations. However, persistent bans on vertical growth and restrictive land tenure policies reveal enduring systemic barriers to equitable spatial rights. These findings advocate for policies that codify refugee-led solutions while preserving autonomy, offering a replicable framework for camps like Azraq (Jordan) or Mbera (Mauritania) that face similar socio-environmental constraints.

8.1. Key Components of the Conclusive Model

The conclusive model synthesizes three interconnected components to guide the design and governance of refugee settlements, emphasizing socio-cultural resilience and adaptive urbanism. Central to this framework is the socio-spatial adaptation model, which prioritizes hierarchical zones of influence to balance privacy, community, and functionality. Private spaces, such as courtyards, serve as high-defensibility areas for family activities and social events, embodying the Arab–Islamic emphasis on familial privacy and territorial control [22,31]. Semi-private spaces, including communal courtyards, foster inter-family cohesion by creating shared domains for collective interaction, while leftover spaces—undefined areas like green spaces or small-scale markets—cater to flexible community needs, albeit with risks of neglect [2,9]. Complementing these zones, refugees’ creation of organic street networks—diagonal paths and dead ends—mirrors traditional Arab–Islamic urban layouts, enhancing privacy and territoriality while subverting rigid humanitarian grids [10,36].

Cultural resilience integration anchors the model in identity-preserving practices. Mosques, linear markets (e.g., Al-Yasmeen Street), and communal hubs act as cultural anchors, sustaining collective memory and social cohesion [35,37]. This integration also reflects the batin (interior) and zahir (exterior) duality, balancing private domains—such as inward-focused shelters—with public interactions in shared spaces, a principle deeply rooted in Arab–Islamic urban traditions [12,37].

Adaptive planning principles operationalize these insights through actionable strategies. Participatory design engages refugees in co-creating culturally sensitive layouts, such as cluster arrangements and transitional spaces, ensuring their agency shapes settlement morphology [28,58]. Modular infrastructure, including scalable shelter units and strategically placed water points, accommodates population growth while maintaining cultural and functional coherence. Defensible boundaries—achieved through walls, hedges, or natural surveillance—demarcate private/public zones, enhancing safety without compromising communal connectivity [22,31]. Together, these principles reconcile cultural authenticity with logistical pragmatism, offering a replicable blueprint for displacement contexts globally.

Key Outcomes

The conclusive model yields three pivotal outcomes that collectively redefine resilience, sustainability, and safety in displacement contexts. First, Zaatari Camp’s evolution from a rigid grid to an organic settlement exemplifies how informal urbanization fosters resilient urban systems, enabling communities to navigate crises through self-organized spatial practices [2,9]. This transformation underscores the capacity of refugee-led adaptations to cultivate social cohesion and resourcefulness, even amid institutional constraints. Second, sustainability linkages emerge through the repurposing of leftover space, such as converting neglected areas into green zones or small-scale agricultural plots—which align with SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities) and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) by promoting environmental stewardship and equitable resource access [68]. These interventions not only mitigate ecological strain but also empower refugees to reclaim agency over their environments. Third, safety and well-being are enhanced through clear zoning practices that reduce risks like blocked streets and improve access to essential services. By demarcating private, semi-private, and communal zones, the model addresses urban health challenges while preserving cultural norms of privacy and territoriality [22]. Together, these outcomes illustrate how integrating socio-cultural values into planning can transform transient settlements into dignified, adaptive spaces that balance humanitarian logistics with refugee agency.

8.2. Significance as a City Profile

Zaatari Camp serves as a critical case study in urban adaptation during crises. By converting a formal grid into an organic settlement, refugees have created a resilient urban system prioritizing privacy, security, and community cohesion. This process underscores the importance of integrating refugee agencies into planning to ensure functional, meaningful, and sustainable environments.

Comparative Insights: Zaatari vs. Arab-Islamic Cities

The socio-spatial parallels between Zaatari and traditional Arab-Islamic cities (

Table 6. Zaatari camp vs. Arab–Islamic city.

Constructs of Interest	Arab–Islamic City	Indicators at Zaatari Camp
Physical Characteristics
Mosques	Focal points	Proliferation of mosques
Market	Linear commercial spine	Al-Yasmeen Street as main market
Street Networks	Hierarchical with dead ends	Grid transformed into organic layout
Socio-spatial Elements
Privacy needs	Internal/external domains	Zones of influence (private/semi-private)
Social control	Governor-led governance	Street leaders as social gatekeepers
Interdependence	Territorial zoning	Emerging semi-private zones

) reveal shared principles of privacy, territorial interdependence, and hierarchical organization, demonstrating how cultural practices shape urban morphology in displacement settings.

8.3. Policy and Planning Implications

This study equips key stakeholders—urban planners, humanitarian agencies, and local governments—to reimagine refugee camp design through culturally informed, participatory, and resilient frameworks. For urban planners, the findings provide robust evidence for adopting culturally responsive layouts, such as cluster zoning and modular infrastructure, which integrate refugee agency into spatial design while accommodating evolving needs [9,44]. By prioritizing flexible, identity-affirming configurations—like courtyard clusters and mosque-anchored districts—planners can foster environments where displaced populations reclaim territorial ownership and social cohesion.

Humanitarian agencies are urged to balance logistical efficiency with participatory approaches, such as co-developing shelters and services alongside refugees. This shift from top-down delivery to collaborative design not only enhances camp functionality but also empowers residents, as seen in Zaatari’s Al-Yasmeen Market, where refugee-led modifications improved economic vitality without compromising aid distribution [55,58]. Such models demonstrate how institutional frameworks can evolve to recognize informal placemaking as a catalyst for sustainable outcomes.

For local governments, the study offers strategies to align camp planning with long-term urban resilience frameworks, particularly SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities). By embedding adaptive land-use policies, green infrastructure, and equitable service allocation into camp governance, governments can transform transient settlements into integrated urban systems that bridge humanitarian and developmental goals [58]. This alignment ensures camps contribute to broader national resilience agendas while upholding refugees’ socio-cultural and spatial rights.

Collectively, these implications advocate for a paradigm shift in displacement planning—one that harmonizes institutional mandates with grassroots agency, ensuring camps evolve as dignified, adaptive, and inclusive spaces.

8.3.1. Policy Recommendations

Policymakers must adopt participatory frameworks that channel refugee agency into structured planning rather than suppress it, as evidenced by Zaatari’s empirical successes. For instance, districts 5 and 8 saw a 40% reduction in aid disputes following the introduction of block-level zoning, illustrating how integrating refugee input enhances cultural sustainability while reducing operational costs [9,58]. Such reforms are critical in protracted displacement scenarios, where reconciling humanitarian logistics with refugees’ “right to the city” becomes imperative [1].

Drawing on Zaatari’s lessons, three actionable policies emerge. First, community zoning councils—comprising refugee-elected representatives—should co-design sectoral plans, informed by the success of block-level negotiations in district 5, where 55% of streets were modified to reflect socio-cultural needs [55]. These councils must prioritize gender-balanced representation to address marginalized groups’ spatial inequities, ensuring inclusive decision-making. Second, phased informalization aligns aid timelines with refugee placemaking cycles. For example, issuing 3-year permits for markets—renewable contingent on safety audits—could formalize informal economies while preserving their adaptive logic, as demonstrated by Al-Yasmeen Market, where 78% of shops required minimal retrofitting post-formalization [55]. Third, modular design specifications should replace rigid caravan layouts with culturally adaptable units. The prevalence of courtyard shelters (72%) underscores the necessity for open-plan structures that accommodate Syrian privacy norms [44]. Standardized designs, which often violate cultural expectations, incur hidden costs: 23% of post-2018 retrofits funded NGO repairs for original caravans damaged during refugee-led modifications.

These recommendations, grounded in Zaatari’s hybrid governance model, advocate for planning frameworks that harmonize institutional mandates with refugee ingenuity, fostering resilient settlements where dignity and functionality coexist.

8.3.2. Planning Implications

This research offers actionable guidelines for aligning refugee camp planning with SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), proposing a model that harmonizes cultural sensitivity with logistical viability. Culturally sensitive design principles—such as mosque-anchored districts and modular shelters—foster refugee ownership by embedding identity-preserving elements into the built environment while ensuring adaptability to humanitarian operational needs. These principles are scalable to diverse displacement contexts, balancing resilience with institutional mandates, and providing a blueprint for camp design that prioritizes both structural coherence and organic growth.

Central to this approach is the integration of planned infrastructure, such as grid networks for service delivery, with refugee-driven adaptations like diagonal pathways and courtyard clusters. This balance between structure and flexibility allows settlements to evolve dynamically, accommodating population shifts while preserving cultural identity through traditional urban patterns—hierarchical streets, inward-focused courtyards—that foster belonging and communal cohesion. Sustainability is further enhanced through green practices, including rainwater harvesting and solar energy systems, which ensure long-term ecological and operational resilience.

The model’s global applicability lies in its adaptability to varied displacement settings. By tailoring cultural anchors—such as markets, communal spaces, or sacred sites—to refugees’ heritage, and incorporating locally sourced, climate-responsive materials, the framework aligns with both cultural traditions and environmental realities. This flexibility ensures compatibility with global frameworks like the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 11’s emphasis on inclusive, safe, and resilient urban spaces.

Actionable recommendations for policymakers and planners include prioritizing socio-cultural values in camp design, such as integrating mosques and markets as identity anchors, and repurposing leftover spaces into green areas or community hubs to enhance urban resilience. Adaptive land-use strategies, such as modular infrastructure for evolving needs, and gender-sensitive design ensuring safe, accessible spaces for women and girls, address both immediate and long-term challenges. Strengthening digital connectivity through expanded Wi-Fi and mobile networks further empowers refugees by improving access to education and economic opportunities, aligning with SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 8 (Decent Work).

By challenging top-down humanitarian planning, the conclusive model demonstrates how refugee agency and cultural practices can drive urban resilience, bridging the gap between formal institutional frameworks and informal urbanization. It offers a pathway to transform transient settlements into dignified, sustainable environments, where displaced populations actively shape their habitats in ways that honor their heritage and aspirations, ultimately redefining humanitarian practice in alignment with global equity and inclusion goals.

8.3.3. Schematic Representation

The study advocates flexible, culturally attuned urban planning in displacement contexts, as visually summarized in Figure 16 (Schematic Sketch for Cluster Layout). This schematic representation illustrates a model where shelter units are grouped around shared semi-private spaces, fostering community interaction while respecting privacy needs. U-shaped clusters define spatial boundaries, enhancing clarity and territorial coherence, while transitional zones—such as tents or covered areas at entrances—buffer private and public domains, mediating accessibility and social exchange. Sustainable infrastructure is prioritized through rainwater harvesting, solar energy systems, and waste recycling, aligning with ecological resilience goals. Essential services, including water and sanitation facilities, are strategically positioned at cluster edges to ensure equitable access across the settlement. Centralized cultural anchors, such as mosques and markets, serve as focal points for communal life, reinforcing socio-cultural identity and cohesion. Integral to the model is participatory design, which engages refugees in planning processes to ensure layouts reflect their lived experiences and aspirations (Figure 6). Together, these elements create a holistic framework that balances humanitarian logistics with cultural authenticity, offering a scalable blueprint for dignified, adaptive settlements in displacement settings.

8.4. Study Limitations and Future Research

While this study provides critical insights into refugee-led socio-spatial adaptations in Zaatari Camp, several limitations warrant acknowledgment. One limitation lies in the reliance on qualitative methods, which, while essential for capturing nuanced refugee agency and cultural practices, constrained the quantification of resilience metrics such as shelter density shifts or market expansion rates. Future spatial analyses could benefit from granular GIS data or UNHCR census records to enhance empirical precision [9,58]. A second constraint is the temporal scope, which focused on post-2012 adaptations in Zaatari, precluding longitudinal comparisons with earlier Syrian refugee settlements like Al-Hussein Camp (established in 1952). Extending the temporal lens could reveal how spatial resilience strategies evolve in protracted displacement contexts. Third, findings are contextualized within desert camp environments characterized by hybrid governance models (e.g., UNHCR-Jordanian coordination), necessitating caution when extrapolating insights to urban-integrated camps, such as those in Lebanon, where refugees navigate informal settlements embedded within host cities [28]. Finally, security protocols restricted access to high-security districts, potentially overlooking unique spatial practices in these zones. Partnering with refugee-led organizations to conduct participatory mapping in inaccessible areas could address this gap.

Future research should build on these findings through interdisciplinary collaborations and innovative methodologies. Partnerships with Jordanian authorities could unlock archival GIS data, enabling spatial statistical modeling of camp growth trajectories, while comparative studies of Al-Hussein (Amman) and Zaatari could disentangle desert versus urban camp resilience dynamics [9,54]. The study’s reliance on archival maps and observational snapshots, though effective for identifying physical transformations, underscores the need for longitudinal remote sensing (e.g., annual satellite imagery) paired with participatory mapping to document the interplay between formal planning and informal adaptations over time. Further investigations could explore urban energy solutions, such as renewable energy adoption in camps, and sustainable waste management systems tailored to transient populations. Comparative urbanization studies examining Zaatari alongside other Jordanian refugee settlements could deepen understanding of context-specific resilience strategies.

Despite these limitations, the study advances urban resilience theorizations by centering refugee voices in humanitarian planning. Scholars are urged to adopt mixed-method frameworks, comparative case studies, and community partnerships to further this agenda. Aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities), this research underscores the potential of refugee settlements to evolve into spaces of dignity and opportunity when cultural identity, participatory planning, and adaptive urban resilience are prioritized. Zaatari’s transformation exemplifies how displacement contexts can transcend humanitarian logistics to become incubators of inclusive, culturally grounded urban futures.

Future Hypotheses

The study proposes five hypotheses to advance research on urban resilience, participatory planning, and sustainable urbanization in displacement contexts. First, the Organic vs. Grid Hypothesis posits that refugee settlements with organic, refugee-driven spatial modification, such as diagonal streets and clustered shelters, will demonstrate higher levels of perceived safety, territorial ownership, and social resilience compared to rigid grid layouts. Directly addressing urban morphology, adaptive planning, and land-use dynamics, this hypothesis can be tested through spatial analysis of safety metrics, service accessibility, and social surveys in grid versus organically adapted zones [22,31].

Second, the Participatory Planning Hypothesis suggests that camps co-designed with refugees through participatory processes will achieve greater long-term adaptability, social cohesion, and sustainability than those planned without community input. Aligning with community-driven urban systems, this hypothesis can be evaluated through comparative case studies measuring outcomes like resident satisfaction and infrastructural flexibility in participatory versus non-participatory designs [28,58].

Third, the Urban Resilience Hypothesis argues that refugee settlements mirroring traditional urban morphologies—such as hierarchical street networks and courtyards—will exhibit greater resilience to social fragmentation and environmental stressors than standardized camp designs. Grounded in cultural adaptation and sustainable cities discourse, this hypothesis can be tested via resilience assessments (social, economic, environmental) in camps with culturally adapted versus non-contextual layouts [10,16].

Fourth, the Cultural Influence Hypothesis contends that spatial designs reflecting refugees’ socio-cultural practices—such as privacy-oriented zoning and mosque-centric layouts—will enhance community cohesion and psychological well-being. This hypothesis ties to socio-spatial dynamics and cultural identity and could be examined through surveys comparing mental health outcomes and social cohesion in culturally sensitive versus generic camp layouts [8,9].

Finally, the Defensible Space Hypothesis proposes that camps incorporating defensible space principles—such as semi-private zones and natural surveillance—will experience fewer security incidents and higher resident satisfaction. Linked to urban safety and human-centered design, this hypothesis can be tested through GIS mapping of security incidents correlated with spatial zones (private, semi-private, public) alongside resident feedback [22,31].

By testing these hypotheses, researchers can bridge the study’s findings on Zaatari with broader debates in urban theory, addressing both practical challenges in displacement contexts and interdisciplinary interests in resilient, equitable urbanization. These hypotheses offer a roadmap for advancing displacement scholarship while resonating with urban science’s focus on adaptive, inclusive cities.