Ethnic Minority Architecture

Settled predominantly in outlying rural and mountainous districts of the country, Việt Nam's 53 ethnic minority groups live mainly in villages comprising groups of houses constructed traditionally from natural materials.

As elsewhere in South East Asia, ethnic minority architecture generally reflects prevailing topographical and meteorological conditions, indicating the extent to which Việt Nam's ethnic groups have successfully adapted themselves to their natural environment. In lowland districts, for example, houses are often built on stilts; on hillsides half on the ground and half on stilts; and in mountainous flat areas directly onto the ground.

As a very general guideline it may be said that members of the Austro-Asian language family - including the Việt-Mường and various branches of the Môn-Khmer language group (Eastern Mon-Khmer, Bahnar, Katu, Khmu and Mang) - along with the Austronesian (Malay-Polynesian) and Tai-Kadai (Kadai and Tày-Thái) branches of the Austro-Thai linguistic family live in river valleys and on hillsides in stilted or part-stilted houses, whilst mountain-dwellers such as the Hmong-Mien sub-groups of the Austro-Asiatic language family and certain ethnicities of the Sino-Tibetan language family show a preference for houses constructed directly onto the ground in the high plateaux. However, this is no more than a generalisation and many ethnic and regional variations exist.

In some cases members of the same ethnicity living in markedly different surroundings from each other have adopted different architectural styles. For instance, the large stilted houses of the valley-dwelling White-trousered Dao (Dao quần trắng) of Tuyên Quang Province contrast sharply with the small houses built directly onto the ground by upland branches of the Dao family.

Furthermore the architecture of some minority groups reflects the cultural influence of dominant regional ethnicity. In this way, the houses of minor ethnicities living in the immediate vicinity of the Black and White Thái of north west Việt Nam have over the centuries come to resemble Thái-style stilted houses. In the far north too, many ethnicities living in close proximity to the White H'mông of Hà Giang and western Cao Bằng Provinces have copied the design of their unique two-storey houses, whilst in the Việt Bắc (north east) the design of the large Tày and Nùng stilted houses has become popular amongst numerous other ethnic groups.

In recent years the map of ethnic minority architecture has been further complicated by the government's relocation of mountain-dwelling ethnic groups such as the H'mông and Dao to lowland areas with a view to eradicating opium cultivation and encouraging settled agriculture.

The size of an ethnic house is always dependent on the number of its inhabitants; in times gone by long houses built by the Gia-rai and Ê-đê of the central highlands measured hundreds of metres, providing living quarters for several extended families. Today the largest houses measure some 30-40 metres and there is an increasing tendency for families to live in smaller, individual dwellings.

Like the Việt, many central highland ethnicities have a communal house which serves as a place where ritual ceremonies are performed, guests are welcomed and important issues of the village are discussed by elders. The largest of these stilted nhà rông, built by ethnic groups of Môn-Khmer and Malay-Polynesian origin such as the Ba-na, Gia-rai and Xơ-đăng, are characterised by their high ground clearance and tall roofs.

Central highlands ethnicities such as the Ba-na, Mnông, Xtiêng, Cơ-tu, Brâu, Gia-rai, Ê-đê, Ra-glai and Chu-ru are also known for their elaborately decorated funeral houses. Surrounded by wooden statues or totems, these play an important role in facilitating the passage of the dead to the spirit world.

Typical Houses of the Miao People

The houses of the people of the Miao ethnic group, who live in compact communities in the mountainous southeast of Guizhou province, are all built on wooden or bamboo stilts according to the rise and fall of the landform.

Mountain Villages of the Dong Ethnic Group

In the mountainous areas in southeast Guizhou there are many villages where people of the Dong ethnic group live in compact communities. It is unique characteristic of these villages that a drum towers stands in the central square. The drum tower resembles a Buddhist pagoda of the dense-eaved design, and servers as a meeting place for the villagers, who gather there at the beating of the drum.

Typical Residences of the Bai Ethnic Group in Dali

People of the Bai ethnic group form the majorty of the population in the city of Dali, Yunnan Provincein. Their residences are mostly builting the form of courtyard houses, with a screen wall just inside the gateway of the entrance. The walls are usually decorated with whitewash an gray bricks.

Dai Village in Xishuangbanna

Xishuangbanna in Jinghong County, Yunnan Province, is where people of the Dai ethnic group live in compact communities. In this mountainous and humid tropical area, the Dai peple build houses on stilts using local timber and bambooo. These houses are very airy and comfortable.

Yurts at the Foot of the Tianshan Mountains

On the plains at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang, live scattered groups of nomadic Uygur and people of other ethnic groups. Their houses are in the form of tents called yurts, which consist of a wooden frame structure covered with felt. When the group moves on, the yurts are dismantled, folded up and carried on horseback, to be erected anew. The dark-colored yurts contrast strikingly with the green grassland around them.

(Parts of text sourced from "Ancient Chinese Architecture",
By Lou Qingxi, Foreign Languages Press Beijing)