MODULE

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE-4TH SEMESTER, B.Arch.

INTRODUCTION TO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

 MODULE -1

INTRODUCTION TO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

•Definitions and theories,

•Categories,
•Contextual responsiveness
• Climatic,
•Geographical,
•Anthropological and Cultural influences
 INTRODUCTION
Latin word – VERNACULUS ("domestic, native and indigenous"; VERNACULAR
VERNA, meaning "native slave"
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Vernacular architecture is a category of architecture based on localized
needs and construction materials, and reflecting local traditions.

Vernacular architecture is influenced by:

Localized needs
Local construction material
Local traditions
Hence, varies from area to area.

It is an epitome of place to which it belongs. Can not be imported from

elsewhere.
DEFINITION
•Vernacular architecture is a category of architecture, based
on localized needs and construction material, and reflecting
local traditions.

•All forms of vernacular architecture are built to meet specific

needs, accommodating the values, economies and ways of life
of the cultures that produce them.
The vernacular…… is it sustainable ………?
Vernacular architecture-what it is?
•The “vernacular architecture” could be understood as the building traditions which have
been developed by people over generations and often built by themselves.
•These are tried and tested practices which have actually sustained the ravages of time;
they have been handed down through generations. They rely on passive measures, by
and large and respond to the context.

Basically, it is “architecture without architects”.

The basis of vernacular is that it responds to several contextual aspects :
•Climate, Place, Culture, Materials, Local skills and also
•Maintenance, Durability and Metaphysical aspects
•The premise is that the vernacular tradition was extremely sustainable in every sense of
the word… let us see how through some examples
CHARACTERISTICS OF SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE
Resource Equity - Green National Product

Embodied Energy - Of materials and resources

Global community - Think global but act local
Economics - Larger socio- economic awareness
Renewability - New way of looking at materials
Traditional Wisdom - Changed view towards traditional architecture
Institutional change - Beyond design of buildings
Technology - Appropriate technology
 Traditional Thai House

Traditional Thai house of Yisan Village

Because of the tides, the Thai people construct their

houses with living spaces on the first floor and use the
ground floor spaces for storage and day time activities.

House in Yisan Village and concrete jars for storing water

 Traditional Thai House
Traditional Thai lord’s houses
Thai lifestyle and houses along waterways

Columns are tapered and canted inward for rain and wind resistance, allowing to be transferred loads from the walls to columns
 Traditional Thai House
• Thai houses usually feature a bamboo or Thai houses along waterways
wooden structure, raised on stilts and
topped with a steep gabled roof.
•The area beneath the house is used
forstorage, crafts, lounging in the
daytime,and sometimes for livestock.
THEORIES RELATED TO VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

According to R.W. Brunskill …...

•...a building designed by an amateur, without any training in design; the individual will have been
guided by a series of conventions built up in his locality, paying little attention to what may be
fashionable. The function of the building would be the dominant factor, aesthetic considerations,
though present to some small degree, being quite minimal. Local materials would be predominantly
used and other materials being chosen and imported quite exceptionally.”
DIFFERENT FORMS OF VERNACULAR STYLE
Hassan Fathy in the design of the town of New Gourna near Luxor incorporated the traditional mud brick vaults of the
Nubian settlements.
ADOBE WALLS & WIND CATCHERS)
DESIGN ELEMENTS (THICK WALLS)
In contrast to planned architecture by architects, the building knowledge in vernacular architecture is
often transported by local traditions and is thus more - based on knowledge achieved by trial and error
and often handed down through the generations rather than calculated on knowledge of geometry and
physics.

An early work in the defense of vernacular was Bernard Rudofsky's 1964 book “Architecture without
Architects: a short introduction to non-pedigreed architecture”.
The book was a reminder of the legitimacy and "hard-won knowledge" inherent in vernacular buildings,
from Polish salt-caves to gigantic Syrian water wheels to Moroccan desert fortresses, and was considered
iconoclastic at the time.

Hama - The City of Water Wheels:

Seventeen large water wheels continues to operate on the River Orontes
• Noria is a “device for raising water”
• In Syria the water Wheels are also known as “the wailer” for wailing sound
generated during the operation of the wooden wheels.
• Water wheel was the sole technology enabling humanity to harness large amounts
of energy
Morrocon - Desert Fortresses

• Fortified village – commonly called as Kasbahs with small

windows, built high and close to each other.
• Kasbahs are a skillful adaptation to the harsh climate in the
hot-arid region.
• Layout of the Kasbahs, height, orientation, the use of
materials plays a major role in the temperature regulation
inside.

The more recent book Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World published in 1997 by Paul
Oliver of the Oxford Institute for Sustainable Development, argued that “Vernacular architecture,
given the insights it gives into issue of environmental adaptation, will be necessary in the future to
ensure sustainability in both cultural and economic terms beyond the short term." Oliver also offers the
following simple definition of vernacular architecture: "the architecture of the people, and by the
people, but not for the people. “
The Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World defines vernacular architecture as:
“...comprising the dwellings and all other buildings of the people. Related to their environmental
contexts and available resources they are customarily owned- or community built, utilizing traditional
technologies. All forms of vernacular architecture are built to meet specific needs, accommodating
the values, economies and ways of life of the cultures that produce them…….” Christopher
Alexander, in his book a Pattern Language, attempted to identify adaptive features of traditional
architecture that apply across cultures
Howard Davis's book The Culture of Building details the culture that enabled several vernacular
traditions.
Frank Lloyd Wright described vernacular architecture as "Folk building growing in response to actual
needs, fitted into environment by people who knew no better than to fit them with native feeling”.
Hassan Fathy in the design of the town of New Gourna near Luxor incorporated the traditional mud
brick vaults of the Nubian settlements.
Bernard Rudofsky first used the term vernacular in an architectural context, labeled it “vernacular,
anonymous, spontaneous, indigenous, rural, as the case may be”.
Geoffrey Bawa is considered the pioneer of regional modernism in South Asia.

Along with him, modern proponents of the use of the vernacular in architectural design include Charles
Correa, Balkrishna Doshi, Sheila Sri Prakash, Indian architects and Muzharul Islam and Bashirul Haq,
internationally known Bangladeshi architects.
These architects have used vernacular architecture as an inspiration for innovations in environmental
and socioeconomically sustainable design and planning.
 FACTORS INFLUENCING VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
1. Climatic & geological
2. Local materials used
3. Technology adopted

1. CLIMATE & GEOLOGICAL

•One of the most significant influences on vernacular
architecture is the macro Climate of the area in which the
building is constructed.
•Climatic influences on vernacular architecture are
substantial and can be extremely complex.
•The man-made elements interact with the natural
microclimate to determine the factors affecting comfort in
the built environment: light, heat, wind, and humidity.
• Vernacular architecture provides shelter and comfort with
the evolution of craft passed down through generations.
• All forms of vernacular architecture are built to meet
specific needs,
accommodating the values, economies and ways of life of
the cultures that produce them.
2. MATERIAL:
•The type of structure and materials used for a dwelling vary depending on how
permanent it is.
• Permanent dwellings often offer a greater degree of protection and shelter
from the elements.
• Over time, dwellings , architecture may come to reflect a very specific
geographical locale.
• To this must be added the building materials, surface textures and colors of
exposed surfaces of the buildings, and the design of open spaces, such as
streets, courtyards, gardens, and squares
3. .ENVIRONMENT & MATERIAL:
• The local environment and the construction materials it can provide govern many aspect of
vernacular architecture.
• Areas rich in trees will develop a wooden vernacular, while areas without much wood may use mud
or stone.
• Vernacular, almost by definition, is sustainable, and will not exhaust the local resources.
•From igloos to bamboo houses, from stone cottages with thatched roofs to terraced, white concrete
roof decks, people create shelter and comfort in unique structures in response to their location on the
globe.

Vernacular architecture as comprising buildings related to their environmental contexts and available
resources, utilizing traditional technologies
CULTURE:
• The way of life of building occupants, and the way they use their shelters, is of great influence on
building forms.
•The size of family units, who shares which spaces, how food is prepared and eaten, how people
interact and many other cultural considerations will affect the layout and size of dwellings.
• Culture also has a great influence on appearance of the vernacular buildings, as occupants often
design their buildings in accordance to local customs and belief.
REGIONAL VARIATION :

• Building material depends on location.

•In hilly areas rocky rubble, ashlar, mud
mortar to form walls.
•Houses on hills usually have two stories,
with the livestock living on the ground
floor.
•The roof is pitched to deal with the
monsoon season and the house may sit
on raised plinths or bamboo poles to
cope with floods
TYPES OF VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE:-
1. DOMESTIC
2. AGRICULTURAL
3. INDUSTRIAL
4. RELIGIOUS

1. DOMESTIC VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE:

Comprises of the buildings designed for living (activity participated by the entire family such as
eating, sitting, sleeping, storage etc,) and the ancillary buildings such as wash area, kitchens, stores
etc.
It also includes private houses used for domestic accommodation, rest houses and shops where
domestic activities predominated over the commercial.
A distinction is also made between the domestic vernacular of the countryside
(mainly farming) and that of the urban (mainly commerce).
2. AGRICULTURAL VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE:

Comprises of all the buildings of the farmstead apart from the farm house and its domestic ancillaries,
stables, poultry shed, cart shed etc
3. INDUSTRIAL VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Comprises of all the buildings which houses industrial related activities such as wind and watermill and
lime kilns, potteries etc.

4. RELIGIOUS VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

Comprises of all religious buildings such as temples, churches, mosques etc
 IMPORTANCE OF VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

• Vernacular architecture originated when mankind

was forced to make use of the natural resources
around him, and provide himself shelter and comfort
• These structures present a climate-responsive
approach to dwelling and are natural and resource
conscious solutions to a regional housing need.
• It keeps people culturally connected to ones
surroundings and reflects a harmonious architecture,
a typology which can be identified with a specific
region.
• Vernacular architecture adheres to basic green
architectural principles of energy efficiency and
utilizing materials and resources in close proximity to
the site.