Abstract: | Contrary to popular belief, folk architecture holds a lot of promise for architectural design in Nigeria today. Hitherto, however, its influence on Nigerian urban architecture has been marginal. For folk architecture to make a more meaningful contribution, its desirable latent functions must be identified and tapped. The author identifies national integration through crosscultural borrowing of architectural motifs as one such latent function, and traces this function through an analysis of folk architecture in terms of relevance and affordability. Notes, ref. |