NAGALAND

INTRODUCTION
o One of India's most colourful states is Nagaland, located on the eastern
margin of the Himalayan range in Northeast India.
o Nagaland is home to a range of colourful tribes, such as Sema,Angamies,
Tangsas, Chakesangs, and so on
o Nagas have a hoary past, which is reflected in the village patterns, locales
and house constructions.
o Nagas are hill dwellers and their settlements are highly inaccessible as
they are located on hill slopes or the highest possible points along a hill
slope due to the climatic factors
o Climate was yet another factor which
influenced Naga settlement pattern.
o Naga village patterns differ from
group to group, ranging from
disperse, terrace to linear
arrangement of houses.
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o Most Naga houses contain a central living space,
an entrance area.
o In the living space the family sleeps, eats and lives
and in the entrance area the guests are greeted
and entertained.
o Porches, anterooms and storage areas
supplement the living space.
o There are three basic types of houses found in
Nagaland are earth floor, earth and raised floor
and raised floor only.
o The interior of Naga house is 3-5 m from floor to
ridge.
o Naga houses having no windows or the openings
were kept to a minimum to retain as much heat
within the house as possible ,the only light in an
otherwise pitch dark interior come through the
cracks in the bamboo walls and from the fire.
o As a result the overall design of the house was
kept simple, yet completely functional.
o It’s function not just extending to it’s activity space
relation but it’s social and climatic context.
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BUILDING MATERIALS USED :
o The primary construction materials were:
TIMBER – for structural elements, like the posts
BAMBOO – for walls and other structural
elements
THATCH – as the roofing material.
ORNAMENTATION :
o The two bamboos forming the gable were
prolonged beyond the roof to form horns
called the tenhaku - ki (snail horns).
o These were sometimes decorated with bamboo
tassels and imitations of birds.
o The Semas did not decorate their houses
like other tribes - or at least not as much.
o They usually adorned their houses with the heads
of game or Mithan heads which the owner slaughtered.
o Sometimes, in the chief’s house, human heads were also hung as trophies.
SEMA NAGA TRADITIONAL DWELLING

o The interior of the Sema house was ordinarily divided into four parts –
• The Akishekhoh - or front room where
the rice pounding tables were kept.
• The Abidelabo - a narrow room between
the Akishekhoh and the Amiphokiboh
(hearth room) where the unmarried girls of
the household sleep.
• The Akuzu-Abo - where the head of the family (father) and his wife sleeps.
• The Azhi-Bo - the liquor room where rice beer is stored in bamboo jugs.
SEMA NAGA TRADITIONAL DWELLING

o At the back of the house is a

backdoor which usually leads to a
small kitchen garden.
FEATURES

The steep slope of the

roof ensured that no water
could seep in through the
gaps between the thatch
and enter the house.

The fireplace was situated in

the living quarters which
helped in raising comfort
levels within these spaces.

The sloped roofs worked beautifully in keeping

the interiors dry.
MIZORAM
ARCHITECTURE
MIZO HOUSE
o The houses built predominantly uses bamboo and
wood in their construction.
o Most of the houses are built on the slopes and are
invariably supported by wooden posts of varied lengths,
so that the house is balanced horizontally with the level
of the road.
o Cross beams are fastened against these posts and over the
beams long solid bamboos are laid.
o Bamboo matting is then laid over the bamboo frame,
which forms the floor of the house.
o The walls of the house are also made up of bamboo
matting fastened to the outer posts.
o The roof consists of solid as well as split bamboo frames
covered with thick thatch and some other kind of leaves.
o Cane is generally used for keeping the joints together and
in some cases, iron nails are also used.
o In case where the floor of the house is much above the ground, a ladder made entirely of a
piece of log is placed across the intervening space between the floor of the house and the
ground.
o The doors and windows are usually of bamboo matting and these are fastened against the wall.
o It may be noted that in some cases the floor, doors and windows are made of wooden planks,
while in others split bamboos are used instead.
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o The interior of the house is a single rectangular
structure.
o It is partitioned into a number of rooms
according to the convenience by screens made of
bamboo matting or with a cloth fixed to bamboo
or wooden frame.
o In houses where both married and unmarried
persons live together, separate sleeping
apartments are made by partition as described
above.
o The hearth is always at one corner of the house
usually near the front floor.
o It is made of clay and stones and is raised about
2-3 ft above the floor supported by raised poles.
o Above the fire place is hung a bamboo frame
which is kept suspended to keep various things
used in cooking as dried chillies, dry fish, salt,
etc.
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MEGHALAYA
INTRODUCTION
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o Garo houses called nokachik are long
bamboo structures built on wooden posts
varying from 10 to 45 metres in length and 3
to 7 metres in width.
o Built in the dry season, locally grown
bamboo and cane, timber of rubber trees
and dried palm leaves are used in their
construction.
o The house has several rooms, arranged in a
long row between the open porch at the
valley end and the balim, verandah, at
ground level where sometimes a cow is tied
on one side.
o The living room called dongrama has an
ongare, fireplace, in the centre that has a
mud plinth and a smoking shelf above to
preserve baskets and food items.
o A toilet is attached to the living room.
o Besides these, it has a bedroom, kitchen,
and aleng, porch, used for
o pounding rice.
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o Each man builds his own house, assisted
by the villagers and women, the main
construction work done by youngsters
under the supervision of the elders to
ensure that the valuable traditional
knowledge is passed on to them.
o The main feature of the houses is in the
extensive use of bamboo in the structure
and building of the internal dividers, a
shelf and the framework of matrix of
bamboo poles for the walls.
o The walls and floor of the house are
made of wide mats woven from flattened
bamboo boards, structurally stabilised to
support the mats.
o The chief’s house, bachelor’s dormitory,
granary and a tree-top watchtower are
other structures built by the Garo.
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ASSAM
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ASSAM TYPE HOUSE
BRITISH COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE
o Before the British the building
constructed by kings were very
uneconomical and the construction
system were very difficult.
o It is not possible for common
peoples.
o The house of the common people
were of thatch roof with bamboo
walls plastered with a mixture of
mud and cow dung.
o The British were studied the local environment and local building
materials and accordingly designed comfortable and beautiful buildings.
o They had started a special type of construction, which finally become the
typical building type and called ”assam type house”
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o The building is of two storied house.
o Building is symetrical on both side.
o 1st floor is connected with a timber stair case.
o Open spaces in front (chotal) and back side
(bari) of the house.
WALLS
o Walls are of timber frame work, inside those
panels ikara used to fill.
o These ikaras are cut in size of the panel and
laid vertically.
o The horizontal members usually bamboo.
o After putting the ikara it is left to dry for few
days.
o Then it is plastered in both side with mud
mortar.
o 3 layers of plaster are done alternatively after
dying of each coat.
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ROOF
o Roof layout is very critical.
o It is in various level and multi-cornered.
o But the angle of inclination is same.
o Roof is of corrugated iron sheet.
o Sheets are fixed in timber purlin by nail.
o Rubber washer is used to protect the rain
drop penetration through the side of the nail.
FLOORING
o Flooring is of cement flooring.
o Accommodation of dust coming from the
street in all rooms in the front side
CEILING
o Made of wooden beams.
o Wooden members are stick very close to
each other.
o Supported by vertical wooden /steel
column. Section of the plinth
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SPECIAL FEATURES
Front facade
o Contains large no of openings.
o Sheds are provided, restrict rain fall.
o Better ventilation in front rooms.
o Sill level of the window is about 60 cm only
o Roof is of sloping from to provide shed durng
rain
o Plinth level of about 60-70 cm. Fixing of steel pillars with nuts and
bolts
o 10 mts of open space infront of the house.

From finished floor level the walls are of half The plinth is made of one brick thick
brick thick brick walls up to a ht. 60 cm. brick wall
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A TYPICAL PLAN
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A TYPICAL ELEVATION
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MISSING HOUSE
o The Brahmaputra is the largest river system in northeastern India
and its valley is home to the Mising tribe of Assam.
o They have always settled on the banks of rivers.
o The name of the tribe itself suggests that they are riverine people,
Mi means the people & shing stands for water.
o The Mising people build long, rectangular houses i.e Saang Ghar
mainly with bamboo - detailed out to combat the heavy monsoons.
o The floor of the house is a bamboo weave that allows the water of a
flood to flow in, rather than keep it out.
o This is an important principle of sustainable development.
o It has a thatched top and is patterned simply like the letter ‘ I ’.
o It is built usually with wooden posts, beams, trusses and supporting
forks, but bamboo is used extensively for flooring and roofing. etc.
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
INTRODUCTION
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