Derbal R., Zeghlache H.

Whether the urban space is physically materialized or abstracted it is often delimited by perceptive and socio cultural relations. Its physical and morphological limits overlap those of its perceptive social, cultural and symbolic aspects. In the present methodological approach, urban space is supposed to be modulated in its delimitation by qualitative and quantitative criteria of its noise environments. This introduces clearly the concept of sound delimitation and of noise environment territoriality. One can notice that sound phenomena are very present and are strongly marking the daily social practice and behaviour in urban spaces and give them a very specific sonority. Just like the visual or sociocultural aspects, the sonority of the public place or the urban noise environment mark well their territoriality and spatiality by creating a whole sound environment characteristic of dimensions and forms of the space. The urban noise can thus be an element of marking, connecting, breaking or structuring spaces which are morphologically and visually irreconcilable. One can speak about sound delimitation of urban space beyond its morphological limits. That delimitation can well articulates the social practice of urban space to its dimensional aspect. The study put out le concept of acoustic space in opposition to morphological space which it is inevitably necessary to reconcile in order to better design or to practise the urban space. KEYWORDS: Sound delimitation – territoriality – urban space – multi-field – spatiality – acoustic spaces – social practises –