A Holistic Categorisation of Heritage Values as a Tool for Decision-Making

ABSTRACT Architectural heritage possesses a wide variety of values. A comprehensive understanding of these values can help decision-makers make holistic decisions regarding conservation. Although heritage buildings have significance, prioritising them is essential in conservation. Lack of comprehensive value understanding of heritage, may have a negative effect in decision-making the main aim of this study is to explore the emergent terminology of heritage values for categorising them into different typologies. In this regard, this paper contends the identification of values from literature and seeks to engage in discourse and assessment of built heritage over values that are essential for decision-makers. As a qualitative methodology, content analysis is applied to broad-based literature about heritage values. The value definitions are reviewed and the ones with similar meanings are categorised for a common reference point. Quantitatively, the weight of each value category has been calculated according to the frequency of being stated by various authors.