VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH

Prepared By-
1. Aim
2. Saket
3. Siddheya
4. Sunanda
5. Miyon
 TRIBAL HISTORY OF ARUNACHAL
PRADESH
● Arunachal Pradesh has a rich tribal and ethnic
history, although conventional records for it have
been fairly limited.
● In the early historical period the present-day north
eastern region was known as Kamarupa. Xuanzang,
a travelling Chinese Buddhist monk, visited
Kamarupa in the 7th century and described the
people as "short in stature and black-looking", of a
simple but violent disposition.
● For many of the tribal people, their primary
identification is with subtribes and villages, which
have distinct dialects and cultures.
● The northeastern states were established during the
British Raj of the 19th and early 20th centuries, as
the regions trade contacts with Burma diminished
during this period.
 Building Practices in Arunachal Pradesh

Building Zones &

Materials used -

● High Altitude Zones:

Stone and Timber
construction is preferred
● Medium Altitude Zone:
Bamboo is a preferred
material
● Low Altitude Zone:
Bamboo, Timber
construction with use of
thatch grass for roofs
 Adi Tribal Culture
● The Adi tribe are one of the important tribal communities
living in six districts, namely East Siang, West Siang,
Upper Siang, Lower Dibang Valley, Lohit and Upper
Subansiri.
● Adi is divided into 14 sub-tribes such as Ashing, Bori,
Bokar, Karko, Komkar, Minyong, Millang, Pasi, Padam,
Panggi, Pailibo, Ramo, Shimong and Tangam.
● They speak Adi language which belongs to the
Tibeto-Burman language family. The unique music,
dance and songs form a part of the rich cultural heritage
of these people. Traditionally, Adi have lived in close
association with nature and made the best use of the
natural resources for their livelihood. They tend to rely on
self subsistent farming and craftsmanship as primary
sources of livelihood.
 ARCHITECTURE OF ADI TRIBE
● Adi Tribes are one of the oldest tribal communities in India with rich
culture and tradition, they always followed the vernacular architecture of
building their houses with the help of stilts and rectangular.
● Bamboo is the core material used as the body of the Adi house, as
bamboo is the long-lasting and fire safe.
● The amazing thing in the Adi architecture is both men and women unite
together in building the house, men usually collect all the raw material
from bamboos, timbers, and straws and also cut the woods and spin the
grass.
● More than just an architecture the Adi architecture teaches love and
unity in the process of building.

Structural properties of Bamboo- Fibres run parallel to the axis of the culm
(stem) not continuous along the length, they bend towards the inside of the
nodes no radial fibres exist the more the fibres , gets more difficult to fracture
the material.
 Houses of the Adi tribes
• Size of the house depends on the family.
• Traditional houses are constructed with bamboos, woods,
canes, leaves.
• House raised well above the grounds with the help of
stilts.
• On theses stilts are tied wooden beams and thus the level
floor is made.
• Roof is made by dry paddy straws, dry Tokow leaves or
thatch grass.
• No nail is used in their construction.
• Construct their houses either on the plain-level ground or
on the sloping ground.
• Adi house has no windows and there are two doors, one in
the front for male members and the other at the back for
women.
SPATIAL ARRANGEMENT IN ADI HOUSE
1. Every part of Adi house has a specific name and the utility of each
differs from that of the others. The entire inner space of the house is
without any partition. However the space is divided into several
units .
2. The central fire place is a significant space of the Adi House, around
which other spaces are organised. The place for the head of the
family is called Erang. The place for guests is called Sodungand and
the place for the male family member is known as Rising. Kodang is
the place where all the cooking activities take place.
3. In most of the Adi houses, there is a door near the Kodang that
leads to the place called Kokwhich which is mostly used by the
Adi for keeping the poultry.
4. The space between the ground and the house is used for
storing firewood which prevents the firewood from getting wet.
The place near the Balae(ladder) is known as Batum which is
used for feeding domestic animals such as cattle and pigs. It is
also a place for keeping plant species used in rituals that serves as
an indication to outsiders that a ritual is in progress.
PLAN OF AN ADI HOUSE
ELEVATION OF A TYPICAL ADI HOUSE
CONSTRUCTION OF ADI HOUSE
● The selection of plot for the construction of house is done
after performing some ritual. The ritual is performed with the
help of 4 unbroken rice grains and ginger wrapped in Yogir
Leaf. The suitability of the plot for construction is decided
based on the rice appearing broken or entire. If the rice is
entire the plot is considered suitable.
● The collection time of materials for building an Adi house is
dependent upon the waxing and waning of the moon
● The bamboos that are used for the construction of the
houses are collected one to three weeks before the
construction. These are then suitably processed for their
specific purpose
● The construction of the house is usually undertaken during
the months of January to April. This is mainly because the
harvest season ends in December and the community is able
to take part in its construction
• Bamboo plays a key role in the construction of tribal
houses in Arunachal Pradesh. Bamboos are long
lasting, highly stable and flexible also. The main stilts
that run from the ground to the side beam are called
as Giyang.The supporting small stilts are known as
Gillae.

• The Gillae are usually made from any of the following

woods such as Bellang, Belam, Belukang, Shingkeng,
Nahor etc. The side rafters which are known as
Darenog are made of Dibang. The main beam to
which all the rafters are attached is known as
Lodang. The roof frame is constructed using the
top slender portion of roof. The ladder that leads to
the house is known as Balae and, is made of timber
from plants such as Bellang, Belam or bamboo
such as Dibang, Hurung and Belukang.

• The walls of the house are made from timbers and

bamboos. The various timber used for walls are
Hillock, Keji , Sileng, Sirih and Shinge. Bambusa
pallidais usually used for making Tarja (plaited wall)
Material & Construction
CLIMATIC CONDITIONS
● The climate of Arunachal Pradesh varies with topography
and elevation.The region has a subtropical climate that is
influenced by its relief and influences from the southwest
and northeast monsoons. In the lower valleys, summer
temperatures in June, July, and August typically range
between mid-30 degrees C), in winter months
temperatures can drop to about 13 °C ,while that during
the monsoon season remains between 22° and 30 °C.
Average temperatures decrease as elevations increase in
the mountains.
● The region receives heavy rainfall during May to
September, during which flooding and landslides might
occur.
● The influence of climate on the architecture of the Adi tribe
is evident in the choice of materials and techniques used.
EFFECT OF CLIMATE ON DESIGN OF AN ADI HOUSE
● Adi houses are built on stilts, as a response to heavy
rainfall in the area. The use of stilts also creates a
space for storage, or as a shelter for domesticated
animals.
● The tokow leaves used for thatching roofs are treated to
protect them from damage caused by termites, and
create a more durable roofing.
● The sloping profile of the roof has evolved as a
response to heavy rainfall in the region
● Bamboo is a preferred material, as traditionally it was
locally available and easy to use for skilled Adi
craftsman. However, there has been a gradual change
towards contemporary materials and the use of tin
roofing and concrete for other structural elements.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
● House of Adi tribe of Arunachal Pradesh: Construction materials and the use of space
● Culture/ Major Architectural styles :- www.builtarchi.com
● Study of Adi Tribe Architecture:- www.wikipedia.com
● Plan of Adi House:- www.slideshare.com
● Study of Nyishi Tribe Architecture:- www.wikipedia.com
● Plan of Nyishi House:- www.slideshare.com
● Advantage and Disadvantage :- www.quora.com
VERNACULAR
ARCHITECTURE
OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR

ANURA AYUSH DIVYA HIMANSHU MUHAMMED FAIZ

Kashmir flourished on the composite
values of humanism and tolerance,
which is known as Kashmiriyat and is
rich for its cultural heritage which
amalgamates the values and beliefs of
Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians.
But after the independence of India, the
state of Jammu & Kashmir has always
been a disputed land and is the reason
for conflict between India, Pakistan, and
China. Although the state has now
become a Union Territory, it is still
violently disputed between India and
Pakistan, and with the advancement of
technology and the long negligence by
the government the heritage sites and
the monuments some of which dating
back to the 14th century have been
defaced and damaged.
 Dhajji Dewari Walls
Dhajji is a persian word for patchwork quilt
used by ancient carpet weavers and is a
traditional building type found in the western
Himalayas.

It ia a straightforward construction technology

that can be easily built using local materials;
timber and masonry infill with mud mortar.

Dhajji dewari walls are earthquake resistance

and also thermal insulation.
Dhajji most commonly consists of a braced timber frame in different patterns. The spaces left
between the bracing and/or frames is filled with a thin wall of stone or brick masonry traditionally
laid into mud mortar, so as to create a patchwork of small size masonry panels. Completed walls
are plastered in mud mortar. Dhajji buildings are typically 1-4 storeys tall and the roof may be a
flat timber and mud roof, or a pitched roof with timber/metal sheeting.
 STEPS OF CONSTRUCTION
❏ At first the base plate (made of wood) is introduced over
the plinth.
❏ For the frame use only the best timber available. e.g.
cedar
❏ Then the post is added to the base plate.
❏ And over it a wall plate is introduced to complete the
basic frame.
❏ Then the vertical member studs is added between the
posts (thinner than post).
❏ Horizontal boards is introduced between the studs and
bracing boards is installed in between them.
❏ Then the basic frame is ready to be filled.
❏ Frame is filled with stones, brick using mud mortar in
between them.
❏ For the infills, use flat stones or bricks. Never use round
stones as they will fall out quickly.
❏ Excessive amounts of mortar should be avoided.
❏ Don’t cut the stones in the shape of the gaps. Regular
layers of flat stones are better.
For increased strength and to secure the stones against falling out, a galvanized wire
mesh can be nailed to both sides of the wall
The traditional buildings are of two types based
on plan- square plan and linear plan having
windows on all sides and the arrangement of
function inside the house distributed in
symmetry, as symmetry is the basic principle for
earthquake resistance structures. Each house
has the Zoon Dub or a cantilevered balcony
designed for the viewing of the moon (zoon).
The balconies and the eaves have beautiful
PinjeraKari work and wooden wind chimes
shaped like jhumkas. The interior roofs have
wooden false ceilings of khatamband panels of
interlocking geometric shapes derived from the
Persian arts and are made up of walnuts or
deodar with visible joinery.
BENEFITS OF DHAJJI WALL

•EARTHQUAKE RESISTANCE.
•ENVIRONMENTAL FRIENDLY.
•DO NOT HAVE ANY INCORPORATED ANY
TOXIC PRODUCTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION.
•TIMBER HAVE NATURAL FUNGAL AND
INSECT RESISTANCE CHEMICALS.
 The earthquake resistance of a dhajji building is developed
in the following ways:
❖The mortar, masonry infill panels quickly crack in-plane thereby
absorbing seismic energy through friction against the timber
framing, and between the cracks in the fill material. Thus,
distributing the earthquake energy evenly.
❖The timber frame and closely spaced bracing, which essentially
remains elastic, prevents large cracks from propagating through the
infill walls. Thus, the possibility of out-of-plane collapse of masonry
panels is reduced considerably.
❖The masonry walls are kept relatively thin. This helps to reduce the
mass of the building and therefore the inertial forces that must be
resisted during an earthquake.
 HOW DHAJJI WALLS GOOD FOR EARTHQUAKE

In usual house an earthquake first makes:

● one big crack,
● another big crack,
● then the wall fallout.
A dhajji wall is strong because:
● the small panels distributes energy evenly.
● the fiction between all the small elements and their infill
breakdown the energy.
● there are many small cracks, and only small parts fall out but
the walls remains.
 SMALL PART FELL OUT

DHAJJI WALL
USUAL WALL
 Economics And Availability Of Resources

❖Brick is most economical in the plains of the Kashmir

valley, and stone, which is most economical in the hills.

❖CGI sheets have replaced timber for roofing since they

are cheap in some areas and it protects timber from the
natural elements and timber no longer gets exposed.

❖In other areas, timber is gaining acceptability due to

cheaper prices.
 MAINTENANCE
❖Maintenance requires materials and skill.

❖Since these are no different from what is required in

construction, the maintenance of rural structures is
easy and within the reach of ordinary people.

❖If materials from outside the locality are used. Hence,

maintenance of the structure becomes expensive .
 IMPORTANCE

Balconies and eaves with beautiful fret worked details known as pinjarakari, pendants of wooden
chimes shaped like jhumkas are still visible, but the violence of nearly three decades combined with
the terrible onslaught of modern building methods, have not boded well for the heritage.
The houses are now built with modern technologies with the cement replacing the mud and iron
replacing the timber. The traditional building techniques are diminishing and are replaced by
non-indigenous cement structures.

The only examples of vernacular architecture of

Kashmir are seen in the traditional shrines like the
Naqshband Saheb, Dastgir Sahib, etc. which are
beyond outstanding.
Most of the heritage buildings have been converted into
offices for government authorities and some structures
have been completely demolished, like the 150 – year
old Maharaj Gunj dispensary which, the Department of
Archives, Archaeology, and Museum declared as a
heritage building.
Sources:

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Details-of-member-sizes-and-types-of-connections-used-in-
dhajji-wall-specimens_fig2_224771434

https://issuu.com/anushkasaxena/docs/vernacular_architecture_ppt.pptx

http://www.spaenvis.nic.in/index2.aspx?slid=2338&sublinkid=1408&langid=1&mid=6

https://www.iitk.ac.in/nicee/wcee/article/WCEE2012_2691.pdf

http://www.world-housing.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Dhajji_English.pdf

http://traditional-is-modern.net/LIBRARY/SCHACHER-lessons/Schacher-DhajjiLesson(8.3.07)(s).p
df
https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/fresh-perspectives/a1593-architecture-of-kashmir-beauty
-amidst-chaos/
 CULTURE
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
● A place brimming with tremendous anthropological
richness, Arunachal Pradesh is home to several
groups of indigenous people.
JAMMU & KASHMIR
● Culture of kashmir is diverse blend and highly
influenced by Northern south asian as well as
central asian culture.
 CULTURE
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
● The Adi tribe are one of the important tribal
communities living in six districts, namely East
Siang, West Siang, Upper Siang, Lower Dibang
Valley, Lohit and Upper Subansiri.
● Adi is divided into 14 sub-tribes such as Ashing,
Bori, Bokar, Karko, Komkar, Minyong, Millang,
Pasi, Padam, Panggi, Pailibo, Ramo, Shimong and
Tangam.
● They speak Adi language which belongs to the
Tibeto-Burman language family. The unique
music, dance and songs form a part of the rich
cultural heritage of these people. Traditionally,
Adi have lived in close association with nature
and made the best use of the natural resources
for their livelihood. They tend to rely on self
subsistent farming and craftsmanship as primary
sources of livelihood.
JAMMU & KASHMIR
● The dogra culture is instead much similar to that of
neighboring Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.
● Traditional punjabi festival such as lohri and
baisakhi are celebrated with great zeal and
enthusiasm throughout the region.
● After dogras,Gujjars form the second largest ethnic
group in jammu, known for their semi nomadic
lifestyle. Gaddis are primarily herdsmen who hail
from from the chamba region in himachal .they are
generally associated with emotive music played on
the flute.
● Kashmir flourished on the composite values of
humanism and tolerance, which is known as
Kashmiriyat and is rich for its cultural heritage
which amalgamates the values and beliefs of
Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians.
 CLIMATE
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
● Adi houses are built on stilts, as a response to
heavy rainfall in the area. The use of stilts
also creates a space for storage, or as a
shelter for domesticated animals.
● The tokow leaves used for thatching roofs are
treated to protect them from damage caused
by termites, and create a more durable
roofing.
● The sloping profile of the roof has evolved as
a response to heavy rainfall in the region
● Bamboo is a preferred material, as
traditionally it was locally available and easy
to use for skilled Adi craftsman. However,
there has been a gradual change towards
contemporary materials and the use of tin
roofing and concrete for other structural
elements.
JAMMU & KASHMIR
● A number of building systems have been
developed in various parts of kashmir over
time to accommodate its climate and cultural
factors including the effect of earthquakes
● Dhajji dewari can safely resist earthquakes in
high seismic regions of the world when built
properly and maintained adequately. This
makes dhajji dewari a valid form of
construction in seismic areas. The timber
framing provides stable confinement to the
infill masonry as long as it remains together.
● Winter is cold so thick walls of bricks and
stones with mud plaster provide excellent
protection against this.
● The steep pitch of the light roof permits little
accumulation of snow and prevents any water
leakage.
 HOUSES
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
● Size of the house depends on the
family.
● Traditional houses are constructed
with bamboos, woods, canes, leaves.
● House raised well above the grounds
with the help of stilts.
● On theses stilts are tied wooden beams
and thus the level floor is made.
JAMMU & KASHMIR
● The houses were made of wood and mud/sand. This helped
them to retain heat and save them from destruction in case
of earthquakes.
● You could observe that roof height was pretty low, so much
so that if you raised your hands you could touch the ceiling.
● Many of the times you could see symmetrical houses i.e. if
you ran a knife in between, you get two same looking houses.
This was due to brothers and extended family living together.
 HOUSES
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
● Roof is made by dry paddy straws, dry
Tokow leaves or thatch grass.
● No nail is used in their construction.
● Construct their houses either on the
plain-level ground or on the sloping
ground.
● Adi house has no windows and there
are two doors, one in the front for male
members and the other at the back for
women.
JAMMU & KASHMIR
● The houses used to have thatched roofs to avoid the snow from
getting stuck.
● Every house had a tandoor kind of thing in their houses mostly
called bukhari.
● Every house mostly used to have a hanging room in the air
called "Kaieni" normally at the topmost floor. This was kept as
a playroom for children.
● Another interesting thing was the height of the stair riser. It
used to be very high in most of the houses and hence made it
incredibly difficult to climb
 Spatial arrangement of spaces
ARUNACHAL PRADESH JAMMU & KASHMIR

Ground Floor Plan

PLAN OF AN ADI HOUSE

First Floor Plan

 Spatial arrangement of spaces
● The central fire place is a significant space of
the Adi House, around which other spaces are
organised.
● In most of the Adi houses, there is a door
near the Kitchen that leads to the place
called Kokwhich which is mostly used by
the Adi for keeping the poultry.
● The space between the ground and the
house is used for storing firewood which
prevents the firewood from getting wet. The
place near the ladder is known as Batum
which is used for feeding domestic animals
such as cattle and pigs. It is also a place
for keeping plant species used in rituals that
serves as an indication to outsiders that a
ritual is in progress.
● Internal divisions consist of thinner partition walls
often of wattle and Daub, made from timber framing,
in-filled with reeds and plastered with a mix of mud
and animal dung. In reality the verticals of the timber
frames are the columns that support the upper wood
floor structure. Such internal walls have little
structural importance, however in cases where the
columns are in-filled with brick/masonry they may
have some damping effect
● The Kashmir house consists of an extremely simple
square plan.. The distribution of function is
symmetrical, normally resulting into a quadripartite
division of the overall square. The staircase is
usually placed at the centre. ‘Symmetry is a basic
principle for earthquake resistance, as symmetrical
buildings respond with regular displacements along
height and almost negligible floor rotations due to
insignificant torsional effects’.
 Materials
● Bamboos are processed for their specific
purpose and are brought before three to four
weeks.
● The main stilts that run from the ground to
the side beam are called as Giyang.The
supporting small stilts are known as Gillae.
● The side rafters which are known as
Darenog, and are made of Dibang. The main
beam to which all the rafters are attached is
known as Lodang. The roof frame is
constructed using the top slender portion of
roof. The ladder that leads to the house is known
as Balaeand.
● The walls of the house are made from timbers
and bamboos. The various timber used for
walls are Hillock, Keji , Sileng, Sirih and Shinge.
● Dhajji most commonly consists of a braced
timber frame in different patterns.
● The spaces left between the bracing and/or
frames is filled with a thin wall of stone or
brick masonry traditionally laid into mud
mortar, so as to create a patchwork of small
size masonry panels.
● Completed walls are plastered in mud
mortar. Dhajji buildings are typically 1-4
storeys tall and the roof may be a flat
timber and mud roof, or a pitched roof with
timber/metal sheeting.
 CONCLUSION

● The comparative study of vernacular architecture of The Adi tribe of Arunachal Pradesh and
traditional housing in Jammu and Kashmir helped us realise how local conditions shape the
techniques and designs used in indigenious houses.

● The influence of climatic conditions is an important factor which has governed how locally available
materials can be effectively used in vernacular designs.

● The distribution of spaces is often determined by social factors of the society, as seen in the case of
Adi tribal settlements and traditional dwellings of Kashmir.

● There are several things which can be learnt from vernacular dwellings, such as use of locally
available material and techniques, which can be applied to today’s scenario.

● Vernacular architecture should not be thought of as something primitive, instead we must explore
its implications and try to find its relevance in today’s designs.