Mapping Living Heritage: Integrating Pattern Language and Urban MorphoMetrics for Socio-Cultural Resilience

Abstract

Urban heritage conservation amidst rapid city transformation frequently prioritises the preservation of tangible structures over the continuity of daily life. In Chengdu, a southwestern Chinese city, which is experiencing intense redevelopment of its historic districts, the built environment has been meticulously preserved, while numerous collective socio-cultural practices have diminished. This research advocates for a synthesised approach to heritage assessment, bridging form-based and life-based evaluations through a dual analytical framework. This framework integrates qualitative pattern-based interpretation with quantitative Urban MorphoMetric modelling—a Python-based geospatial analytical approach. We examine six historic neighbourhoods—Shaocheng, Caoshijie, Ma’an, Jianshe Rd., Zhiminlu, and Fuqin—to investigate how varied urban morphologies either facilitate or impede the persistence of quotidian cultural practices. Ethnographic fieldwork identified recurrent spatial patterns, such as open-air markets, communal dancing, gardening, and teahouses. These patterns were subsequently correlated with 296 MorphoMetric descriptors that capture aspects of enclosure, density, and connectivity. MorphoMetric clustering delineated thirty-two distinct urban typologies, each associated with varying intensities of social interaction and place attachment. Our findings elucidate how concrete spatial configurations underpin intangible cultural resilience and how computational metrics can augment qualitative insights in identifying the living dimensions of heritage. By integrating behavioural observation with spatial measurement, this paper introduces a reproducible framework for assessing living heritage as a hybrid material and social system, thereby charting new pathways for sustainable heritage planning in rapidly urbanising Chinese metropolises and potential extensions to the international sphere.