El eterno desafío de potenciar lo propio… Gentrificación y turismo de masas en la ciudad histórica: A propósito de Córdoba (Andalucía, España)

Historical cities are living archaeological sites in a continual process of development. They are palimpsests that ultimately become unique units marked by eclectic albeit unique personalities stemming from centuries of syncretism of processes of abstraction and syntheses that end up yielding individual signs of identity, exclusive cultural profiles and extraordinary collections of heritage. This is the case of Córdoba, one of the most complex and extensive archaeological sites (in both space and time) of the world with an occupation spanning 5,000 years. It was a reference as the capital of Baetica, the main Roman province of the West, and later, between the 8th and 12th centuries, as the capital of Al-Andalus. It even served during the 10th century as the seat of the great Western Umayyad Caliphate. It was a melting pot fusing its own traditions with foreign influences yielding a unique blend with a particular architectural feature, the domestic patio, playing a predominant role.The current study offers a brief review of Córdoba’s inner patios, from their simple beginnings to the stately patios that today make up an urban landscape recognised universally by its annual patio festival, a celebration classified as an Intangible Heritage of Humanity. However, like many other historic cities, Córdoba of late has fallen into the pitfalls of mass tourism, seriously questioning and threatening its carrying capacity. Always at the service of an overflow of tourism, its historic centre, also classified as a World Heritage Site, has initiated a wild process of gentrification that could lead to a significant breakdown of its natural evolution. Every urban complex has to evolve. Yet the historical centre, so admired by masses of tourists, has been shaped day by day by its original residents. Is their continued expulsion, as is occurring in many of its areas, not a sign that the city centre is being remodelled into a sort of fake decor?