Urban open space uses and perceptions of turkish immigrants and migrants: A comparative study on germany and turkey

Urban immigration raises questions about immigrants and city identities. Urban immigration (or migration) brings about a mutual interaction between the host city and incoming people. This study intends to help to understand this relationship between the city and immigrants by asking how their everyday practices reshape the appreciation for the city’s open spaces. The aim of this study is to gain a multi-layered understanding of the urban landscape preferences of Turkish migrants moving to big cities in Turkey and of immigrants moving to German cities. A two-phased approach is developed. The first phase method enables researchers to compare past and present urban open space uses. The second phase method aims to help to understand current perceptions of immigrants and migrants. Two cities, Istanbul in Turkey and Kassel in Germany, are selected for this second phase study. Results reveal that “educational level”, “home region” and “number of generations” appear among the most important parameters that influence current open space perception and preference. Rural or urban attributes of the home region are also relevant.Results also appear to support the assumption that historic spatial circumstances influence perception and preference. perception and preference. This study highlights the importance of understanding urban open space preferences of immigrants by conducting comparative studies andl discussing results for the benefit of further multi-cultural spatial studies.