Vernacular architecture of gujarat

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF GUJARAT- RURAL AND URBAN GUJARAT
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF THE WESTERN AND NORTHERN REGIONS OF INDIA
FORM, SPATIAL PLANNING, CULTURAL ASPECTS, SYMBOLISM, COLOUR, ART, MATERIALS OF CONSTRUCTION AND TECHNIQUES
Ar. S.Bala Hari Krishnan, Assistant Professor, PMIST

The study of traditional architecture in India has, so far, tended
to focus largely on temples and tombs, mosques and palaces,
virtually ignoring, in the process, the whole realm of domestic
architecture.
One reason for this is that definition of historical architecture,
till recently, was not a comprehensive one, but limited itself
mainly to monuments. And, while monuments were generally
built many centuries ago and formed part of an accepted historical
tradition, the domestic house was rarely old and seemed to be of
little significance.
For even monumental architecture can be understood in the
overall context of the social and cultural milieu of a civilization and
a vital part of this background is the domestic settlement
pattern and house. Without this, to merely study monuments is to
study fragments of a culture.
In recent years, vernacular or domestic architecture has received
increasing attention and appreciation, not merely because it is
native and romantic.
More importantly, it reflects a life style which was very
significant in human terms and it is precisely the intimacy of
the life style that is too often lost in contemporary architecture.
Why vernacular architecture?
Why domestic architecture?

a study of domestic architecture of the past serves
to restore to the field some of its lost, human
qualities which can provide valuable insights for
the creation of a better, modern architecture

A unique opportunity to study domestic, vernacular architecture
is provided in Gujarat, where some 80 percent of the urban
population still inhabits traditional houses which are over a
hundred years old.
Despite number of modernizing elements, the domestic life-
style of the people has remained largely unchanged.
It is unique in the scale and quantity of wood work.
What makes phenomenon particularly interesting is that it was
by no means natural for Gujarat to have an architecture in
wood. Whereas the Himalayan region and southern India are
both rich in structural timber. Gujarat is not. A large part of this
timber was imported over long distances by sea-carriage.
The timber employed was also a medium of display, as is
evident from the profusely and intricately carved doors and
windows, balconies, struts and columns, visible in the
thousands of houses in urban Gujarat.
Why vernacular architecture of Gujarat?

Gujarat forms a territorial unit delineated by natural
barriers which also function as cultural borders.
The name Gujarat was derived from the nomadic Gurjars
who are thought to have entered the region around the 10th
century A.D. The west to east migratory routes ultimately
converged in North Gujarat which became the nucleus
of what constituted Gujarati culture.
The region known today as Gujarat was once formed of
three sub-divisions namely North Gujarat, South Gujarat
and Saurashtra.
These sub-divisions do not denote different political
territories but cultural, particularly architectural areas.
Although they share a common culture, each sub-division
has its own distinctive geographic and cultural
characteristics, and even the domestic architecture in
each region is different, meriting separate attention.
Defining the Boundaries

Region of Gujarat Districts Geographical location Climate
Kutch Great Rann of Kutch
Little Raan of Kutch
Geographically largest
One of the least populated district
North-western most area of
Gujarat
Dry and Semi desertic
Saurashtra Amerli
Bhavnagar
Botad
Devbhoomi
Dwarka
Gir somnath
Jamnagar
Junagadh
Morbi
Porbandar
Rajkot
Botad
Surendranagar
Bounded on North by great
wetland of Rann of Kutch
Northwest by the Gulf of Kutch
West and south by Arabian sea
Southeast and east by Gulf of
cambay
Dry and soil is black with high moisture
North Gujarat Aravalli
Banaskantha
Gandhinagar
Mehsana
Patan
Sabarkantha
North part of Gujarat Air is dry but soil is fertile and moisture
is less
Central Gujarat Ahmedabad
Anand
Bharuch
Chhota Udaipur
Dahod
Kheda
Mahisagar
Narmada
Panchmahal
Vadodara
Centre part of Gujarat Similar to North Gujarat but farming
land is quite less though its fertile
wherever it is, More forests.
South Gujarat Dang
Navsari
Surat
Tapi
Valsad
South part of Gujarat Semi dry to low humid. Soil is quite
fertile due to riven and irrigation
projects.

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF
Vernacular architecture in Gujarat may be divided into five categories depending upon the kind of load bearing construction employed.
Timber and Wattle houses - Mud houses - Stone houses - Brick houses - Half-timbered houses
Timber and Wattle houses
employ a framing of light
timber made from undressed
wood to which walls of wattle
coated with mud on one side
are attached.
The roofs are of rough
rafters, bamboo battens,
thatch or country tiles.
This kind of house is extremely
primitive in design and is
used by a great majority of
tribal who inhabit the forested
areas of the state.
Mud houses
were once widely used
throughout the major
populated areas of the state,
and even today form a
substantial portion of all rural
housing.
Seemingly primitive and sub-
standard, the mud houses
satisfies basic requirements, is
cheap to construct and is
more durable.
With minor repairs and
relatively dry climate, it can
last indefinitely.
It is only the impetus of status
that makes a villager turn to
brick construction.
Stone houses
are found in many parts of
saurashtra which has a poor
supply of structural timber,
where there is a scarcity of
fuel for brickmaking and
where the stony soil is
unsuitable for both constructing
a mud house and casting
bricks.
Brick houses
use load bearing parts made
solely of brick. These
buildings were first constructed
under Mughal influence and
later during the colonial era.
They are relatively scarce and
do not form an important part of
the vernacular architecture of
Gujarat.
Half-timbered houses
Make up an overwhelming
number of old buildings in the
urban centers of Gujarat.
The term ‘wooden
architecture’ refers, in fact, to
a system of construction in
which wooden framing or
wooden bonding was
employed along with brick
walls to form a composite
structure.
The dominating and
characteristic element in them
was the wood work, which is
why they have been called
‘wooden’ even though this may
not be true in the literal sense.

• Usage of large size bricks in the initial period.
• Mud mortar was the dominant cementing
material for both brick and stone.
• During the medieval period, towns in Gujarat had
begun to be fortified because of their increasing
prosperity due to commerce.
• This resulted in limiting urban growth within the
enclosed area. As population is increased, it could
not be met by a horizontal increase of
architectural space. The only alternative was to
expand vertically. For this the brickwork alone
found inadequate.
• In the late medieval period in Gujarat bricks were
made by an extremely primitive process where
wholly inadequate fuel such as cow dung was
used.
• Given the inferior kind of brick, unstable due to
its small size, it was not possible to construct a
strong wall using mud mortar.
• The problem was uniquely solved by adding
framing or bonding timbers to the brick work as a
kind of reinforcement.
• Loads resting on the brickwork were met by a
system of wooden framing which either took the
load directly upon itself or dispersed it in such a
way as to avoid any cracks.
MUD MORTAR –> BRICKS –> WOOD

• Firstly, timbers were horizontally inserted at
intervals within walls so that they
interlocked with each other and held the
brick as if in rings which prevented them
from being torn asunder. This is referred to
as timber-bonding. It appears in Saurashtra
and North Gujarat.
WOODEN BONDING OR WOODEN FRAMING
• Secondly, in addition to timber bonding, wherever a
ceiling or roof beam was located an attached column was
introduced in such a manner that the columns and beams
formed a linked frame and the load was thus transmitted
to the woodwork and not to the walls. Each such unit,
further linked by horizontal timbers at ceiling level,
produced a cage like frame in two directions.
• A completely different wooden tradition
prevails in South Gujarat. Here the timbers
are mainly vertical columns which are linked
by unidirectional beams, forming a frame
similar to partial framing but less efficient
since the ‘cage’ remains incomplete. This unit
is stable without the addition of masonry
walls.

The two themes of planning and sociology have been here
taken together because it is felt that one cannot be
understood without the other.
The plan of a house must reflect the life-style and this is in
turn made up of various components of which the two main
are: family life and community life.
Community life is reflected in the settlement pattern of
groups of dwellings. As far as Gujarat is concerned, it is the
overall-settlement pattern which is the more important
factor in domestic architecture and has taken precedence
over individual family needs.
It is the settlement pattern which has partially governed the
overall-form of the dwelling and its main outlines and the
individual family needs have been fitted into the larger
pattern.
SETTLEMENT PATTERN OF

NORTH GUJARAT or KHADKI
SOURASHTRA COMMUNITY
SOUTH GUJARAT
TRIBAL SETTLEMENT
SETTLEMENT PATTERN OF

Each dwelling is joined to the next with a
common party wall, many such units forming a
row, with two similar rows facing each other
separated by a long, open space resembling a
’street’.
All the dwellings of this group are almost
invariably of the same caste or community,
and very frequently they are blood relations of
each other.
The open ’street’ before the two rows of houses is
not in fact a street but a common yard. There
is no enclosing wall either individually for each
dwelling or for the group as a whole.
The function of ’enclosure' is achieved in the
following way. All the rear walls of all the
dwellings form a continuous wall all around
the group. There are rarely windows in these
rear walls and they are also made exceptionally
thick, so that the whole arrangement is like that
of a fort whose enclosing wall is simultaneously
the rear wall of a house.
Such an arrangement of dwellings is called a
Khadki and there is but one entrance to it
situated at one end of the common yard.
NORTH GUJARAT
SETTLEMENT
A number of Khadkis may all open onto a
street, and if this street itself has gateways at
both ends, or if it is a cul-de-sac street with a
single gateway, then the whole arrangement
is-called a Pol.
In a Pol many different communities may be
represented, each living within its own Khadki.
Within each Khadki there are no barriers
between individual dwellings, in fact the
families are all inter-related, and the social
link between families is very strong.
All community activities are performed in the
common yard and this common space serves
to intimately link up all the families.
This kind of settlement pattern is typical for
North Gujarat and those parts of South Gujarat
where migrants from the north have formed
groups in strength. We shall call this type the
Khadki or North Gujarat pattern.

POL HOUSES OF
Pols are distinct residential areas that are
unique only to Gujarat. "Pol" is derived from
Sanskrit word "Poli."
Typically, a pol has one entrance and
homogenous groups of people live in it.
Rectangular or square in shape, Pols are
residences aligned compactly in a row and
have several floors.
Earlier pols were preferred as the residential
accommodation by the people of Gujarat
because of the feeling of protection it offered
and identity they provoked.
One can find the specimen of pols in
Ahmedabad, Nadiad, Vadodara, Patna and
Khambat. There are nearly 360 pols in Gujarat,
each depicting finest lovely wooden windows,
brackets, magical balconies, chabutras, khasdkis
and chowks.
Time has bestowed beauty to pol architecture of
Gujarat, making them an ornament of world
architecture.

NORTH GUJARAT RURAL HOUSES – STAGE BY STAGE EVOLUTION
It has an open yard in front of the house.
Most of the time the women community will be
at the rear side performing her activities. The
storage jar acts as a partition.
The front of house is a common space mostly the
men community will be using and the second
space will be for women.
Cooking activities: the smoke from the cooking
escapes through the roof.
Introduction of storage space – Loft at
the rear side. Now to ventilate the
smoke they introduced two grilled
openings.
Also it is response to their occupation
they are agriculturist and hence storage
jars and lofts were introduced.
The rear side now got respected, and a door
added for privacy. When the family respected,
they add a hearth area at first floor.
Still when the family grows they add a new
house in khadki.
STAGE 01 STAGE 02 STAGE 03
OTLO – Verandah; PARSAL – Central space
ORDO – Hearth space

The residence of urban settlement
called as “HAVELI” – Palatial
wooden house.
Evolution of HAVELIS
I - Stage
II - Stage
III - Final Stage
Based on certain activities they
added spaces. Sometime new
activities were added.
NORTH GUJARAT URBAN HOUSES- HAVELIS – STAGE BY STAGE EVOLUTION
I – STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT
In its final form the rural house had assumed a tripartite sub-division of
spaces – otlo, parsal and ordo and this basic unit was retained in the urban
house.
But certain additions and modifications were now made because of new
functions which arose as a consequence of trade, manufacture and
artisanship, clients who could be complete strangers, would visit the
residence to the business.
As a result, the basic tripartite unit was left undisturbed, in front of it a
small open yard was kept intact, and a new unit was introduced. This consist
of a single room
The new layout had six parts in all :
The three part basic unit at back – Ordo, Parsal, Raveshi
The central courtyard or chowk
The new two part front unit – Khadki room , Otlo
The Khadki functioned like the village gateway – as a barrier to halt
strangers.
Chowk acted as a spatial barrier which the stranger was not expected to
cross, even though he had visual contact with the rear spaces.
In Gujarati house the courtyard is not traditional; it appears only in the urban
house as a response to an architectural need arising from commercialisation.
The rear veranda was now called osari or raveshi to distinguish it from the
front otlo.
STAGE I - PLAN

II – STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT
It became necessary to connect the two parts by a
covered passage to pass through during varying
climatic conditions.
This resulted in introduction of a flat roofed
shaded passage way to pass through. On a further
development, two or three rooms were added to
the other side of the chowk and also covered with a
flat roof.
Two of these rooms were used as a kitchen (rasodu)
and for water storage (paniaru). By shifting the
kitchen to a room adjoining the open chowk, smoke
could escape via ventilators into the chowk. The
entrance to the kitchen remained from within the
parsal so that privacy was maintained.
The displacement of the kitchen naturally led to a
corresponding relocation of the water storage in a
room next to it.
The room had a narrow platform on which water
pots were placed and the floor was paved with
stone or plastered with lime because plain mud
would not have lasted.
On the first floor the spaces of the three and two
part ground plan were repeated except for the
verandas which were incorporated. The two sides
of the chowk had flat terraces which linked the
front and the back.
The ground floor ordo was now reduced to a
storeroom and partial women’s sleeping area.
The portion of the parsal adjacent to the newly
located kitchen now became more clearly
demarcated as a dining area and in some
brahmin houses it had a slightly raised floor
forming a platform, thus giving it a ritual
character. Often a niche adjoining wall would
enshrine the image of a house-deity.
The chowk was used by the women for a variety
of functions: cleaning vessels and clothes, bathing,
drying grain and as a play area for children. The
men used the chowk for sleeping during dry
weather.
The first floor was used as it had been before – to
accommodate the growing family and occasional
visitors. Increase in population made them to
expand normal to two to three stroeyed house.
STAGE II - PLAN

STAGE II - PLAN
II – STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT
On the first floor of the house, a few functional
changes now occurred as a consequence of a more
complex urban life.
The upper part of the house became a vantage
point from which to observe things and or this
larger windows were needed.
Thus the khadki room now having a row of long
windows stretching down to floor level – rather
like French windows.
The windows began at floor level so that those who
looked out from them could squat on the floor and a
small parapet or railing was provided to prevent
mishaps.
Some cases, a regular balcony was also built.
Located just above the otlo and partly
cantilevering beyond it, ran fully the width of the
house.
The balustrade of this balcony was of solid
wood, slightly inclined towards the outside,
richly carved externally but plain towards the
interior.
The design and inclination of this solid balustrade is
remarkably similar to the asan found in the classical
northern Hindu temple.
Firstly it made bending forward and looking down
easier; secondly and more likely it enabled a person
to sit with his or her back against it while conversing
with people in the room.

Development of the Divankhanu
On the first floor of the house, particularly the front room has
been developed to traditional place for the business as a
consequence of Urbanisation and commercialisation.
As it opens out to gaze of every passerby was not suitable for
certain kinds of business like jewelry, expensive textiles and
wholesale trade where negotiations need more privacy.
The stairs were re-arranged so that they were directly accessible
from the otlo through a door. The khadki room became an
entrance lobby and was used for miscellaneous storage.
Further the first floor room was transformed into superior
business premises which were furnished in a luxurious
manner.
Besides the mattress on the floor and cushions against the walls,
the windows were now made even more decorative with carved
balconies and coloured glass panes above the wooden shutters
and the walls were given painted patterns. The floor was made of
polished lime plaster tinted a light red or yellow, the ceiling was
covered with a layer of paneling carved with intricate geometrical
designs and glass chandeliers imported from Europe were hung.
Wall niches were multiplied and given the sweeping arched
shape typical of Islamic architecture. The upper khadki room
now called divankhanu, had become aristocratic and symbolized
the high status and wealth of the merchant.

STAGE III - PLAN
III – STAGE – DEVELOPMENT OF HAVELI
The final development of the urban house
resulted in the Haveli- a word of Persian origin
which denotes a great mansion associated with
wealth, status and size.
The increase in size was achieved by duplicating
parts. Instead of the single ordo, two or more
were placed adjacent to each other. The
standard was two.
The row of ordos was followed by the parsal, a
single space running the full width of the house,
which was the same depth but twice the width of
the usual parsal.
Before it came the veranda-cum-passage or
raveshi which continued all around the chowk.
The chowk also extended the full width of the
house and where there were more than two
ordos it became a very large open space.
The Kitchen and water storage room were on one
side and an additional room, the pooja room
now appeared.
The khadki block either had a single space
extending the full width of the house, or was
divided into two.
In that case one room became the entrance
lobby and the other a miscellaneous storage
room or office. The front veranda or otlo also
extended the full width.
The difference between the Haveli and the
common urban house was quantitative, not
qualitative.
The changes which did eventually occur, and
they came about with a rush, were those
derived from European architecture on Indian
soil – from the colonial architecture of places
such as Goa and Bombay, which had
substantial Gujarati settlers.
The attention was directed towards perfecting
detail rather than rethinking fundamentals.
Indigenous capacity to innovate was missing.

III – STAGE – DEVELOPMENT OF HAVELI
The multiple ordos of the haveli permitted a new
functional space to arise – a special lying-in
room – the gajar. The presence of gajar in the
haveli is also a symbol of status, for it enabled
women to completely withdraw into this room.
Other times used as a general storage room.
The long parsal in front of these multiple ordos
had now become a very large space and it
permitted the introduction of yet another status
symbol: the swing or hinchko – a flat wooden
board above five feet by two, suspended by
metal chains from a crossbeam above.
Besides the swing, another interesting feature of
the parsal was the use of wall-pegs (turaga)
shaped like prancing horses. An animal which
is not common in Indian mythology seemed to
have served quite a different purpose. In all
dwellings horse-pegs should be fixed to the left
and to the right, in walls which have the
doors and rear walls .
In some havelis there was a fourth area of
display. This was a chamber located on the
terrace of the topmost floor. Designed as an
airy-pavilion, surrounded by columns, it was
intended as a place where the host could invite
his male friends to retire into at night to enjoy
the pleasures of wine, women and music.
The haveli had various concealed chambers
to store valuables. The rural house had such
chambers in walls and under floors, and
similar locations were used in the haveli.
Another favorite place was inside wall
cupboards, where the secret chamber was
located beneath a false bottom which could
slide out.
Other locations were behind the strips of
planking which closed the gaps between
ceiling joists and behind door jambs. In
another haveli the chest was underground
and sufficiently large for a man to stand in.
It was reached by steps which lead off from
behind the false back of a wall cupboard.

GROUND FLOOR PLAN
TERRACE FLOOR PLAN
SECOND FLOOR PLAN
FIRST FLOOR PLAN
This Haveli belongs to the time period of 1872-76.
The greater size achieved by multiplying spaces. The
core of it is formed by the four ordos accessible from
the long parsal running in front.
The central courtyard is surrounded by passages. It
has well in one corner and in other head of
underground cistern below. To the left is large storage
room with grains storage chambers made of brick. To
either side of it are two Kitchens.
Opposite these rooms are small chambers for bathing
and washing. The original entrance and front Khadki
room is to the north. Later the entrance changed to
west along with additions.
It is noteworthy how the wooden columns- including
the corner and twin columns – appear in great
profusion far in excess of structural needs.
The first floor has a large dhivankhanu to the west
with the most magnificient carved ceiling in Gujarat.
The remaining rooms duplicate Ground floor.
The second floor has a large terrace from which
rainwater is collected and channeled down to the
underground cistern. There is a penthouse for
menials. Also a pavilion at thrid floor.
AMIN HAVELI, VASO

DETAIL-A
DETAIL-B
B
A
SECTIONA AT AA SECTIONAL ELEVATION

It is remarkable that despite all
decorative refinements and
changes of function, even in the
most sophisticated residences,
certain features in the urban
Haveli retained their rural
character.

Each dwelling forms a self-contained unit with an individual
front yard enclosed within a wall, entered through a single
gateway. The gateway is locally called a delo and this kind of
settlement will be referred to as the delo type.
A number of such identical dwellings forms rows along a
street onto which each gateway opens.
Duet to the enclosing wall of each dwelling, each family is
relatively isolated from its neighbors and forms a semi-
independent unit with its own inner privacy.
Since the neighboring families are often of different castes, this
reinforces the lack of interaction.
This kind of pattern is typical for the saurashtra sub-division
and hence may be called the Saurashtra pattern.
Due to the poor soil and scanty rainfall, cattle-herding was a
major occupation traditionally. Large herds were maintained
by nomadic families which moved from one grazing ground to
the next. Because of the dry climate, cattle could be kept out
in the open all the year around. At night each family stabled
its herd within an adjoining enclosed yard which formed one
unit with the dwelling.
Saurasthran settlement pattern
Vinchiya, rajkot district
Schematic plan of Saurasthran settlement

• The houses were mainly of stone and woodwork plays a subordinate role.
The settlement characterized by a powerful feudalism
• A row of Delos would form a linear arrangement since that was convenient
for the daily movement of the herd.
• The women of Saurashtra were far freer and were apparently able to take
care of themselves better. They would have to deal with petty intruders and
had no alternative but to become self-reliant.
• The typical Delo house consisted of two adjacent ordos with an open
veranda, called an osari, in front. The delo house had a greater width and a
narrow depth. The greater widht corresponded to a wide yard which was
useful for stabling animals.
• The Kitchen was not hidden, but located in a corner of a front veranda visible
form the yard and the front entrance. The womenfolk were thus exposed to
weather and to the visitors.
• The reason was the front veranda provided a vantage point from which they
could both work and keep an eye on animals on the yard. This becomes a
tradition and remained in the urban house.
• One ordo could be permanently used for lying in. This tended to make it a
‘womens area’. The second ordo was used more often by men and by visitors.
• Developed house – Introduction of Loft accessible by removable ladder –
Later full extension of Ordos accessible by permanent ladder – separation of
Kitchen – Vent towards Open yard – Tripartite division.
Plan and Section
Basic Saurashtra house
Plan and Section
Developed Saurashtra house

SOUTH GUJARAT SETTLEMENT
South Gujarat represents a sub-division which has a
cultural identity quite distinct from both North
Gujarat and Saurashtra, and this derives from its
different ethnic composition.
The ethnic group included in the term ‘tribal’ are
the Dublas, Chodharas, Dhodias, Naiks and Dheds.
The largest ethnic group of the Kolis is not
included because they are agriculturists who have
been absorbed into the regular Hindu castes and no
longer count as tribals. They are a prosperous
landowning group in South Gujarat who represent
the major ethnic component here and despite
acculturation, provide the prototype for the region.
The simplest Koli house is an extremely primitive
structure made of upright poles, wattle and palm
fronds. The plot is a long rectangle of narrow width
and great depth.
The dwelling can stand by itself or more
commonly it joins others to form a long row
where all the units are identical in height, width
and proportions. Thus from the distance they
appear as a single building of extraordinary length.
Since each individual dwelling is potentially part of
a row, it always forms a deep rectangle as that is
the most convenient form for row-housing.
This row developed according to individual
circumstances and convenience. The fundamental
reason behind this was the absence of the joint
family system among the Kolis, as also among
the other tribals of the region.
The whole row belonged to the descendants of
common parents and normally the oldest unit of
the row- that of the parents – was the first one on
the right as seen from the inside.
In this system obviously the end of a row could
never be predetermined.
SOUTH GUJARAT RURAL HOUSE
A new row was either placed parallel to an existing row
though at some distance from it or at an angle which
bore no spatial relationship to the previous one.
The settlement pattern reveals no enclosures and no
defined pattern. Obviously the inhabitants were not
insecure and thought nothing of setting up an isolated
dwelling. Comparing North Gujarat the women here
enjoyed freedom.
Umarsadi, Surat
SETTLEMENT PATTERN

The individual house was a single large space
running from front to back without interruption.
It was covered by an enormous single pitched
roof.
The large size of the dwelling was necessary due
to two reasons, both related to the heavy rainfall
of the region.
Firstly, cattle could not be stabled in the open or
in light sheds but had to be kept indoors.
Secondly, most domestic work and socializing
also had to be done indoors – unlike North Gujarat
and Saurashtra.
Courtyards and Verandas being completely absent
in this primitive house, the interior had to be much
larger.
SOUTH GUJARAT RURAL HOUSE
The structural system plays an important part in
the sub-divisions of dwelling space.
The house had a system of wooden columns
placed along the longer sides of the rectangle.
A pair of columns opposite each other supported
the purlins overhead spanning the shorter
direction.
There could be three to eight pairs of columns
which gave the dwelling two to seven bays – a bay
is the distance between the two columns along the
depth.
The only precaution needed was to build higher
eaves and ridges from the beginning.
The external wall of the dwelling was made of
wattle and palm fronds which were fixed to the
columns and the roof was also made with palm
fronds. In some cases the wattle was coated with
mud to make it waterproof.
When a second dwelling was added to the first in a
row, instead of making a fresh series of paired
columns, the adjacent columns of the first house
could be used by both houses and only an
additional set was required.
STRUCTURAL GRID
The ‘wall’ which seperated two adjacent dwellings
was not sound-proof. It was just like an indication
of Psychological attitude to privacy. Also the close
proximity of immediate kin in the row houses gave
it the character of a quasi-joint family extended
across several dwellings.
The most practical method of storage was in a
loft which was ideally placed beneath the ridge
where the roof was highest. Thus the loft occupies
the center of the house and below which the
cattle were stabled. To support the loft, two
additional pairs of columns were required. Thus in
the center of the house there were twin columns
next to each other.

Keeping the cattle in the center of the
dwelling the house plan was divided into
three parts: The front, back and center
portions.
Once the three parts were spatially
established they tended to setup new
functions and these became traditional.
The front (semi-public area) began to be
used by the men for their occupational
activities and for receiving visitors, while
the back (private area) began to be used
for cooking and for the more private
activities of the family.
In Koli dwelling, however with its nuclear
family there was no need for ‘avoidance’,
the entire family could use any part of
the house.
Only during the formal visits by strangers
would the women and children withdraw
to the back.
No need of permanent sub-divisions, but
due to acculturation such spatial divisions
and restrictions were introduced.
SOUTH GUJARAT
RURAL HOUSE
SPATIAL EVOLUTION

Initially the area around the hearth at the back
had no fixtures of any kind; articles were
stored in various receptacles lying on the
ground; grain was kept in bins of either wattle
or clay; there was no storage for valuables.
The hearth was adjacent to the central cattle
stable so that the family lived next to the
animals, who were fenced by an enclosure of a
few bards of wood. The front part for visitors
sometimes had a low, raised mud platform to
sit on.
Right through the dwelling, a continuous linear
circulation pattern was setup. This passage to
the right of the cattle served all the usable
spaces.
And this primitive plan became the
characteristic for the South Gujarat house. It
was repeated even in the urban house when
more complex functions had been added.
The off centre entrance door was its hallmark
and is diagnostic for the houses of this region.
STAGE 01
STAGE 02
In next stage the cattle was removed and shifted to outside sheds
and the gradual erection of internal partitions to sub-divide the
spaces happened. Between the hearth and the unused central
part was introduced at first. It was made of wattle and it reached
up to 250 cm. i.e. up to Loft. Second partition was between the
cattle and the front area.
Despite the partitions the spatial quality of the interior remained
largely intact. The roof was visible from any part of the dwelling.
STAGE 03 – FINAL DEVELOPMENT
The final stage saw three modifications: the
appearance of veranda; the transformation of
the loft into a regular low but first floor and a
change of building materials.
Since all the walls were of light materials, they
could be easily shifted along the column lines or
grid lines.
The sole motivation for developing a first floor was
obviously prestige, for by extending the ceiling to
cover all the internal sub-divisions. The first floor
was used for storage purposes.
The mud-coated wattle of the walls was thickened
to form a substantial mud wall. Only up to the loft
it was covered and the remaining were left
untouched.
In the final stage the whole mud wall was
extended in height and replaced with brickwork.
The original columns were left intact and encased in
brickwork and this produced a kind of half timbered
wall.

In the development of urban house, the typical rows
of South Gujarat were placed often at some distance
apart without any relationship to each other.
The frontage of one row frequently faced the back
of the next. When regular roads were made through
these open spaces, usually close to the front of a
row, a large open space was left at the back of the
opposite row.
In due course, this was absorbed by the latter and
enclosed with a wall and a back entrance.
Since from the beginning, the width of the
individual plot was narrow, the extra area thus
incorporated was also narrow but had greater depth.
Sometimes the ratio was 1:9.
The presence of private backyard facilitated two
additional facilities: a well and a latrine, to be
located there.
The interior of the urban dwelling basically
retained the sub-divisions of the rural house with
additional partitions in the central area, which
produced a greater number of rooms. These were
completely closed in with partitions and resembled
small cells.
SOUTH GUJARAT – URBAN HOUSES
The great distance between the front and back gave
the hearth area a great degree of privacy. This area
also had the water-storage and combined all the
functions of the Northern-parsal – of cooking,
eating, intimate socializing and where small children
kept.
Like the Khadki room of North Gujarat the front
room could be used for visitors, clients, business
and shop-keeping.
The back entrance opened into the backyard where
related activities like washing, bathing and
cleaning of vessels were carried out – it was a kind
of substitute for the Northern Chowk.
The later development was marked by pushing the
hearth out into a shed-like structure which was
built as an extension of the dwelling and projected
into the yard.
The central part of the dwelling had small cubicles,
which were used for storage of valuables, sleeping
and lying-in like the Northern-ordo.
The front room had two doors leading inside
separating the circulation to upper and lower levels.
Also maintaining the degree of privacy.
The first floor of the dwelling was virtually a
duplication of the ground floor except that the
front room was larger as it extended over the
veranda. The Kitchen shed was not repeated.

Each dwelling stands completely isolated by
itself within its own small agricultural field, yet
a number of such scattered dwellings form a
collective village.
They all belong to members of an extended
family having a common ancestor and their
sense of belonging together is strong, but this is
not expressed in the settlement pattern.
This kind of pattern is typical for the Bhils and
will therefore be called the Bhil pattern. (The
Dangs pattern is a more regular variant of the
Bhil).
TRIBAL HOUSES OF GUJARAT

Vernacular architecture of gujarat

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