Abstract
Jatio Sangsad Bhaban, the National Assembly Building of Bangladesh, is an iconic building and architectural landmark designed by American architect Louis I. Kahn. Jatio Sangsad Bhaban was constructed between 1962 and 1983 and is located in the heart of Dhaka, the nation’s capital. The extant literature on Louis I. Kahn’s work suggests that Jatio Sangsad Bhaban is a significant architectural masterpiece. One of its most notable features is its architectonic quality, providing it with the grandeur of a modern monumental building. In this context, this paper aims to examine the underlying multiple meanings, that is, socio-political, cultural, historic and philosophical meanings of the Jatio Sangsad Bhaban building By constructing and summarising meanings, rather than exploring the physical building itself, this paper supports the notion of multidimensional perspectives of monumental architecture. The multiple meanings of iconic architecture through the lens of societal issues have been endorsed by many architectural critics. Accordingly, this paper considers the cultural, political, ethical and historical meanings of Jatio Sangsad Bhaban. Revealing and summarising other aspects apart from its architectonic dimensions is a new approach to understanding a widely acclaimed iconic building like Jatio Sangsad Bhaban.
Keywords
- Jatio Sangsad Bhaban Search this journal for Jatio Sangsad Bhaban (opens in a new tab)
- National Assembly Building Search this journal for National Assembly Building (opens in a new tab)
- Louis. I Kahn Search this journal for Louis. I Kahn (opens in a new tab)
- Responsive Meaning Search this journal for Responsive Meaning (opens in a new tab)
- Dhaka Search this journal for Dhaka (opens in a new tab)
References
- Alexander, C. & Ishikawa, S. et al. (1977). A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction. New York, Oxford University Press.
- Ashraf, K. K. (2007). Taking Place: Landscape in the Architecture of Louis Kahn. Journal of Architectural Education , 61(2), 48-58.
- Ashraf, K. K. (1994). Louis I. Kahn: National Capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh, Global Architecture , 72(1994)1-47.
- Blendell Jones, D. P. & Till, J. (Eds) (2005). Architecture and Participation. New York, Spon Press.
- Choudhury, B. I. & Bell, G. (2011). The Engagement of Khan and Kahn in Jatio Sangsad Bhaban, Architecture Plus Design , 28(4), 104-111.
- Choudhury, B. I. & Armstrong, P. (2012). Monuments and Architecture Shaping Bangladeshi Identity. Global Built Environmental Review , 8(3), 45-67.
- Choudhury, B. I. & Armstrong, P. (2013). Jatio Sangsad Bhaban: A Legacy of British Colonial Urban Development or American Cultural Imperialism? Global Built Environmental Review , 8(3), 22-55.
- Choudhury, B. I. & Armstrong, P. (2013). The Geopolitics of Jatio Sangsad Bhaban in the Cold War Era, GSTF International Journal of Engineering and Technology , 2(1), 22-28.
- Choudhury, B. I. & Armstrong, P. (2013). JSB and Notions of American Cultural Imperialism in the Cold War Era. Proceedings of ACE (Architecture and Civil Engineering Conference), 49-156, Singapore.
- Davis, H. (1999). The Culture of Building. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
- Donougho, M. (1987). The Language of Architecture. Journal of Aesthetic Education , 21(3), 53-67.
- Findley, L. (2005). Architecture, Politics and Cultural Agency. New York, Routledge.
- Gieryn, T. F. (2002). What Buildings do? Theory and Society , 31(1), 35-74.
- Goodman, N. (1985). How Buildings Mean. Critical Inquiry , 11(4), 642-653.
- Goldberger, P. (2009). Why Architecture Matters. New Haven, Yale University Press.
- Gordon, D. L. A. & Osborne, B. S. (2004). Constructing National Identity in Canada's Capital, 1900–2000: Confederation Square and the National War Memorial. Journal of Historical Geography, 30(4), 618642.
- Hershberger, R. G. (1970). Architecture and Meaning. Journal of Aesthetic Education , 4(4), 37-55.
- Hurst, P. (2005). Space and Power: Politics, War and Architecture. Cambridge, Polity Press.
- King, A. D. (1976). Colonial Urban Development: Culture, Social Power, and Environment. London; Boston: Routledge & Paul.
- Ksiazek, S. (1993). Architectural Culture in the Fifties: Louis Kahn and the National Assembly. Society of Architectural Historians , 52(4), 416-435.
- Ksiazek, S. W. (1995). Changing Symbol in Public Life: Louis Kahn's Religious and Civic Projects 1944–1966 and Architectural Culture at the End of the Modern Movement. Unpublished PhD, Department of Architecture and Planning, Colombia University, New York.
- Lang, J. T. & Desai, M. et al. (1997). Architecture and Independence: The Search for Identity — India 1880 to 1980. Delhi; New York: Oxford University Press.
- Martin, C., Vaught, W. & Solomon, R. C. (Eds) (2010). Ethics across the Professions: A Reader for Professional Ethics. New York, Oxford University Press.
- Pakistan Public Works Department Report. (1964). Dhaka, Associated Printers Limited.
- Rhodes, R. F. (1995). Architecture and Meaning on the Athenian Acropolis. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
- Shawcroft, B. (1960). Architecture and the Layman. Journal of Architectural Education, 15(2), 10-14.
- Stea, D. (1993). Placemaking. Sydney, Avebury.
- Schendel, W. V. (2009). A History of Bangladesh. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press
- Upton, D. (2002). Architecture in Everyday Life. New Literary History, 33(4), 707-723.
- Vale, L. J. (2008). Architecture, Power, and National Identity. London; New York: Routledge.
- Whyte, W. (2006). How Do Buildings Mean? Some Issues of Interpretation in the History of Architecture. History and Theory, 45(2), 153-177.
Downloads
No downloads have been recorded for this article yet. Figures appear here once readers begin downloading the full text.
How to Cite
Share this article
License
Copyright (c) 2020 Bayezid Ismail Choudhury, Peter Armstrong (Author)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Author (s) should affirm that the material has not been published previously. It has not been submitted and it is not under consideration by any other journal. At the same time author (s) need to execute a publication permission agreement to assume the responsibility of the submitted content and any omissions and errors therein. After submission of revised paper in the light of suggestions of the reviewers, the editorial team edits and formats manuscripts to bring uniformity and standardization in published material.
This work will be licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) and under condition of the license, users are free to read, copy, remix, transform, redistribute, download, print, search or link to the full texts of articles and even build upon their work as long as they credit the author for the original work. Moreover, as per journal policy author (s) hold and retain copyrights without any restrictions.
Keywords
- Jatio Sangsad Bhaban Search this journal for Jatio Sangsad Bhaban (opens in a new tab)
- National Assembly Building Search this journal for National Assembly Building (opens in a new tab)
- Louis. I Kahn Search this journal for Louis. I Kahn (opens in a new tab)
- Responsive Meaning Search this journal for Responsive Meaning (opens in a new tab)
- Dhaka Search this journal for Dhaka (opens in a new tab)
Section
Published
Submissions
Have research to publish? Journal of Social and Development Sciences welcomes submissions.
Make a Submission