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Multi-Level Housing Governance in Rural Settlement Lin & Jia

(ii) Central hall the original layout. The panels on the
The transformation of indoor settings first floor have been removed except the
and spaces responds to the changes of last one that separates the kitchen and the
daily life. In the traditional living front space. Then, a big space is created
customs, the house can be divided into at the front that is used as a dining room,
gathering spaces and private family and to store sundries and farming
spaces according to their respective instruments. To avoid humidity and to
functions. The middle cell of the main allow more privacy, the bedrooms are
building is used as the central hall for big located on the second floor. In the SSCH,
families who are living in the house the private cells are turned into hostel as
[Figure 5]. The gathering space is where accommodations for travelers. The
family events are held, like weddings, indoor space is opened up to meet the
funerals, housewarming, birth of a baby, needs of urban lifestyle.
and many more. In common days, the
hall provides spaces for residents to chat
and communicate. But nowadays, the
gathering function of this space has been
greatly weakened, and even replaced.
With the original residents building new
houses outside and moving out, the
central hall has been out of use and
gradually lost their role as the spiritual
core in the house. Hence, it has
transformed from a core space to a
leftover space.
In the OTH, the central hall is
always empty, sometimes, some
residents leave their farm implements
there. Due to the transformation of
ideology, the center hall on the second
floor is no longer used to conduct daily
religious rituals.
The situation in SSCH is different.

Most of the spaces in this house have Figure 6. Living cell in traditional buildings. Source:
been turned into hostels and dining Drawings by the author
rooms, only four cells remain as
residential spaces for the villagers. Generally, the spatial hierarchy has
Besides, the central hall of the house has been changed. In traditional dwellings, a
also become a reception space for clearly dominant-subordinate relationship
customers. This space is now used to exists that the central hall takes the core
showcase the vernacular living style for role in the whole house that occupies a
outsiders. larger space compared to the other lius.
(iii) Private cell The rest of the living cells used to be
The function of private cells (lius) has paralleled, with similar sizes and spatial
undergone greater transformations arrangement. But now, the dominant-
[Figure 6]. Due to the loss of current subordinate relationship between the
residents, some private cells in the OTH central hall and private cells has been
are desolate and are stacked with old changed. Along with the collapse of
junks. The others that are still in use have traditional big family, the core role of the
been arranged differently compared to central hall has been eliminated.

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