Architectural Styles Explained by Insiders

Updated on November 6, 2025 by Meg Pier

Architectural Styles | Alhambra Palace Architecture Granada

The art and science of creating structures with both functional and aesthetic standards is known as architecture.

Through its design, materials, and construction methods, architecture physically embodies a community's values, customs, beliefs, and history, and so expresses cultural identity. Buildings create and preserve a sense of collective memory and belonging by acting as a visual narrative of a society's history, reflecting everything from political and religious beliefs to daily life and practical requirements.

It's likely that when you think of any city in the globe, you instantly think of a famous skyline or structure, such as the pyramids in Egypt, Gaudí's Sagrada Família in Barcelona, the Taj Mahal in India, or the Inca fortress of Machu Picchu in Peru. The term "genius loci," which translates to "spirit of a place," refers to this cultural distinctiveness.

Some aspects of culture are purely decorative, but architectural forms are frequently both functional and artistic, providing not only beauty but also longevity and purpose.

Many cultural manifestations are stand-alone products. However, architecture is nearly always viewed in relation to its surroundings. The Golden Temple of Kyoto, the Sydney Opera House, and the Parthenon in Athens are a few examples of buildings that are influenced and enhanced by their environments.
Whether communal, nomadic, agrarian, or island, vernacular architecture—such as a southern African rondavel, an Inuit igloo, or a Mongolian yurt—is unique to a particular period and location, uses local materials, and reflects the climate and way of life of the local population.

It should come as no surprise that our cultural identity is reflected in the places where we live, work, and consider "home".

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Architectural Styles | Glasgow Architecture Influenced by Charles Rennie Mackintosh

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Monreale Cathedral in Sicily Melds Fatimid and Byzantine Cultures

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