The document provides information on the vernacular architecture of North-East India, focusing on the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Nagaland. It describes the traditional construction materials and styles used by tribes in each state. The Adi and Nyishi tribes of Arunachal Pradesh typically build wooden or bamboo houses raised on stilts, with thatched roofs. In Assam, bamboo is widely used and houses have higher plinth levels. The Sema tribe in Nagaland traditionally builds villages on hilltops, using timber, bamboo, and thatch in construction.

1. VERNACULAR
ARCHITECTURE OF
NORTH-EAST INDIA
BY-
Mithilesh Mandal
Sonakshi Bhattacharjee
Suchetana Chakravarty

3. HISTORY
• Earliest settlers were Austro-Asiatic speakers,
followed by Tibeto-Burmese and lastly by Indo-
Aryans
• 100 BC writings of Chinese explorer, Zhang
Qian indicate an early trade route via Northeast
India
• Early historical period (most of first
millennium), Kamarupa straddled most of
present-day Northeast India
• Xuanzang, a travelling Chinese Buddhist monk,
described the people as "short in stature and
black-looking", whose speech differed a little
from mid-India and who were of simple but
violent disposition
• The north eastern states were established during
the British Raj of the 19th and early 20th
centuries, when they became relatively isolated
from traditional trading partners such
as Bhutan and Myanmar

4. • The Northeast region can
be physiographically categorised into
the Eastern Himalaya, the Patkai and
the Brahmaputra and the Barak valley
plains.
• Predominantly humid sub-tropical climate with
hot, humid summers, severe monsoons, and
mild winters.
• Indian sub-continent's last remaining rain
forests, which support diverse flora and fauna
and several crop species.
• The region's high rainfall, averaging around
10,000 millimetres (390 in) and above, creates
problems of ecosystem, high seismic activity,
and floods.
GEOGRAPHY

5. WHAT IS VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE-
Vernacular architecture is an architectural style
that is designed based on local needs, availability
of construction materials and reflecting local traditions.
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6. ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• Arunachal Pradesh , bio-geographically is
situated in the Eastern Himalayan province, the
richest biogeographical province of the
Himalayan zone. The entire territory forms a
complex hill system with varying elevations
ranging from 50m in the foot-hills and
gradually ascending to about 7000m, traversed
throughout by a number of rivers and rivulets.
• There are places of worship and piligrimage
such as Parasuramkund and 400 years old
Tawang Monastery, or the sites of archeological
excavations like Malinithan and Itanagar,
• Area: 83,743 km²
• Founded: 20 February 1987
• Population: 1.255 million (2012)
• Capitals: Guwahati (Judiciary), Itanagar

7. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• The Adi tribe –
• Adi, meaning “hill man” or “man of hill”, is a large tribe
inhabiting the unspoiled valleys of the Brahmaputra River
during its course in South Tibet.
• The Adis show a remarkable sense of artistry and
proficiency in weaving.
• Kebang, meaning ‘village council’, is the important
political institution of the tribe, and works on a highly
developed system of democracy.
• The Adis too have dormitory systems for young males
and females.
• The religion of the Adi is centered on Donyi-Polo, the Sun-
Moon god, who is regarded as the eye of the world.
• The Adi are also noteworthy for their bridges, cane
suspension bridges are quite a showcase of native
ingenuity.
“The houses of the tribes of Arunachal Pradesh represent the traditional style of constructing the dwellings from the locally available materials and
the size of the houses depends on the family patterns of the tribes. Since the living conditions are very tough in this area, the houses of the tribes are
constructed to meet the challenge of nature.” - Posted on July 31, 2012 by Zephyretta

8. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• Houses of the Adi tribe –
• 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

9. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• House of the Adi tribe
space between the
floor and the ground
is used for keeping
domestic animals
like cows, the pigs
and collection of dry
fire-woods

10. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• Typical wooden house-These type of houses are
mostly rectangular in shapes with mostly three or four
rooms.The plans and sizes vary as per requirements
with linear planning, rooms opening into one another.
• Typical layout of a house consists of sora Ghar, Huwa
Ghar and Randhani Ghar. The Sora Ghar or the drawing
room is a public space for gathering, or meeting
relatives or visitors.This room also houses the 'Dhenki'
or the pounding machine.This room has a common
central fireplace called 'Jui Hali', over which hanging
platforms are kept for storing household items.The
Huwa Ghar or the bedroom is a partitioned space
depending on the number of married sons and family
members.The last room is the Randhoni Ghar or the
kitchen space, which serves as the dining area for the
family.

11. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• The Nyishi tribe-
• Nyishi is the single largest tribe of the state.
• Basically belong to Paleo-Mongoloid stock and speak
the Tibeto-Burmese group of language.
• Nyishis evolved a joint family system, generally no
individual owns properties – both movable and
immovable.
• Nyishis are expert in handicrafts i.e. weaving, cane &
bamboo works, pottery, blacksmith, wood carving and
carpentry etc.
• Nyishis maintain a high degree of self-sufficiency in so
far as food is concerned
• Additional requirements such as cloth, utensil, salt etc.
are obtained through barter trade-evolved since and
immemorial, among themselves and from their
neighbours.
• The Mithun is treated sacred because in almost all
ceremonial rituals, sacrifice of Mithun is compulsory.

12. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• Houses of Nyishi tribe-
• The indigenous house is constructed with Wooden &
Bamboo using (Thatch, Chinese Palm leaves, Cane
leaves and Jungle Banana Leaves) as roofing materials
whichever is locally available.
• The entire Joints are bind with cane ropes
• The Houses floor level is raised 2.50 Mtr from the
ground level and ceiling level is 2.50 Mtr from the floor
level.
• The plan consists of rear verandah, Common room with
fire place, bed room, Guest room, Front Verandah & side
verandah.
• The reinforcement nodes (diaphragms) prevent the
emerging longitudinal cracks from spreading over the
entire tube length.
• The kithcen cum fire place “emmi” -the base is
constructed with four bamboo support and on the
surface of the room 4 1 foot wooden blocks on a banana
leaf and then soil is applied upto the height of the
blocks,thus the stove can be laid for kitchen purpose.

13. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
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

14. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH
• Advantages
• The Nyishi typology is very flexible and
light structure thus resistant to earthquake
because of its light weight construction.
Also If damaged in case of devastating
earthquake rector scale there will be less
casualty or zero casualty because it will
not collapse like rigidly built brick
walling and heavy and rigid building.
• Disadvantages
• The longitivity of this type of house is 10
to 12Years by replacing roofing materials
after every 3 to 5 years.The wooden
foundation used gets rut due to bacterial
action and there is danger of structure
collapsing. During very heavy rainfall the
roof starts leaking because of which the
local people have sorted out the modified
type of house construction.

15. ASSAM
• Assam is a state in northeastern India
known for its wildlife, archeological sites
and tea plantations. Assam comprises the
Brahmaputra Valley and the Barak Valley
along with the Karbi Anglong and Dima
Hasao districts with an area of 30,285
sqmi.
• Assam is known for Assam tea and Assam
silk
• The first oil well in Asia was drilled here.
• The state has conserved the one-horned
Indian rhinoceros from near extinction
• Area: 78,438 km²
• Capital: Dispur
• Population: 30.94 million (2012)
• Official river: Brahmaputra River

16. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ASSAM
• The Vernacular style of Assam mainly
consists of three important
significances-
• Hip (or Gable) Roof
• Use of Bamboos as major building
materials
• Higher Plinth level

17. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ASSAM
Construction Process-
• Walls are of timber frame work, inside those panels ikra
(A weed, called Ikra, which grows wildly in river plains and
adjoining lakes across the state of Assam, is extensively used
in the walls and roof of the house) used to fill.
• These ikras are cut in size of the panel and laid
vertically.
• The horizontal members usually bamboo.
• After putting the ikra it is left to dry for few days.
• Then it is plastered in both side with mud mortar.
• 3 layers of plaster are done alternatively after dying of
each coat.
• Finished coat is of liquid mix of mud and cow dung.
• The building are maximum of two storeys.
• Building is symmetrical on both side.
• 1st floor is connected with a timber stair case.
• Open spaces in front (chotal) and back side (bari) of the
house

18. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ASSAM
STRUCTURAL DETAILS –
TECHNIQUES OF ASSAM

19. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ASSAM
• Other types of traditional houses –
• Mud house
Mud is a mixture of water and some combination of soil, silt and clay.The typical plan dimensions of these buildings are: lengths
between 5 and 10 meters, and widths between 3 and 5meters.The building has 1 to 2 storey(s).The typical span of the
roofing/flooring system is 3-4 meters. Roughly, the ratio of the length and width of the house can be expressed as 3:2 or 2:1 The
typical storey height in such buildings is 1.6-2.5 meters.
• Chang house
This house on raised stilts is an age old structure originating in the Himalayan ranges. In North Eastern India the tribes living on
houses on stilts mainly live in hills amongst thick vegetation, forest and by the banks of rivers.Traditionally people of the Mishing
community of Assam live in houses on stilts; these houses and the flight of 5-7 stairs leading to these houses have religious and
social beliefs and practices attached to it.The house on stilts is a big hall with a central kitchen for a large joint family.
• Bamboo house
In bamboo housing system, for main structural member bamboo is used.The brick wall is used for modelling. And itis rigidly
connected with plinth as well as with bamboo. In this system the wall is made of bamboo strips and it is plastered with mud.The
houses are detailed out to combat the heavy monsoons.The roof of the house is built local grass and can last up to 10 years before
it is replaced again. The stilted part of the house is for protection against gentle floods.

20. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF ASSAM
Advantages
(a) Architectural aspects: good
plan shape, small openings,
good location of openings, and
small projections and
overhangs.
(b) Structural features: light mass of
walls and roofs, good wall-to-
wall connection (in case of
formal construction), good
quality and
strength of materials used.
(c) Flexible connections (bolting,
nails, grooves, etc) between
various wooden elements at
different levels.
Disadvantages
(a) The choice of wood as the basic construction material and thatch as
roofing material of the house draws high maintenance and is vulnerable
to fire. To a large extent the fire hazard to the house is mitigated, when
the kitchen is separated from the main house, but placed within the
courtyard of the house. But use of electricity in such houses leaves
possibilities of fire due to short-circuit during earthquake shaking. In
urban areas, the roof has long been converted to metal roofing hence
this hazard is non-existent for this type of houses except when Ikra reed
thatch is used as roof cover, the fire safety of the house remains a main
concern
(b) The mud-dung plaster on walls requires a lot of maintenance and
frequent application. During summers, it becomes brittle and then
comes out easily during rainy season.
(c) When built on hill slopes, unequal length of the vertical posts leads to
unsymmetrical shaking.
(d) When built on hill slopes susceptible to landslides and run-off, the
house can be unsafe.
(e) The thatch on the roof is vulnerable to suction under strong winds.
(f) When the wooden vertical posts are directly plugged into the ground
without any foundation, houses have sunk up to 300 mm.

21. NAGALAND
• One of India's most colourful states is Nagaland, located
on the eastern margin of the Himalayan range in Northeast
India. Nagaland is home to a range of colourful tribes,
such as Angamies,Tangsas, Chakesangs, and so on.
• 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.
SETTLEMENT TYPE-
• Settlement pattern is largely a result of the custom of head
hunting, formerly prevalent throughout the Naga cultural realm.
• Climate was yet another factor which influenced Naga settlement
pattern.
• Abundant springs are infrequent above 1 500 m and water tends
to be scare.

22. NAGALAND
SEMA TRIBE –
• Almost all Sema villages existed in the hilly regions in Nagaland.
• The Sema village is usually built either on the summit of a hill or on
the shoulder of a spur
• Down, near the valley of the river Dayang, where the climate is hot, a
summit is usually chosen, but in the higher and colder regions, a
shoulder below the ridge of a range of hills is a common site for a
village.
• All the houses within the same village had the same style.
• This was to ensure that one would immediately be able to identify
which tribe a particular village belonged to from a safe distance.
• The Semas were head hunters. Captured enemy trespassers would
be beheaded and their heads hung up.
• LIFESTYLE -Life revolved around agriculture. The majority of each
day would be spent in the fields.

23. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF NAGALAND
.The primary construction materials were:
TIMBER – for structural elements, like the
posts
BAMBOO – for walls and other structural
elements
THATCH – as the roofing material.
• 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 AkuzuAbo where the head of the family (father) and his wife sleeps.
• The AzhiBo the liquor room where rice beer is stored in bamboo jugs.

24. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF NAGALAND
THE AKISHEKHOH
This is where they keep the rice pounding tables. The Akishekhoh is an
apse like addition to the front of the house, semicircular in plan with the
eaves brought down to within 3 or 4 feet from the ground. Animals
dogs, pigs, chicken are also kept here. The unmarried boys of the
household sleep in here.
THE ABIDELABO
This is where the unmarried girls of the household sleep.Firewood
for the fireplace (Amiphokiboh) is also stored in this room.
THE AKÜZÜ ABO –
The head of the family the father , in this case chief of the village and his
wife or wives sleep here. Inside the Aküzü abo is the Amiphokiboh
(hearth room). The father’s bed is nearest to the fireplace and the wife’s
bed has a separate,smaller fireplace near her bed.
THE AMIPHOKIBOH ‘Ami’ fire,‘Pho’ smoke,‘kiboh’ cover
At the four corners of the fireplace, are four bamboo posts which
support a bamboo shelf. This serves the double purpose of preventing
sparks to reach the roof and an excellent place to dry meat or keep
utensils. In common houses, guests may be entertained here as well.
Near the fireplace, a large window, almost the size of a door is made
the trash door.
THE AZHI BO Azhi’ liquor,‘Bo’ place or room
This room is located right at the back of the house. Rice beer is stored in
liquor vats in this room. At the back of the house is a backdoor which
usually leads to a small kitchen garden.

25. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF NAGALAND
INATO’S HUT

26. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF NAGALAND
• ORNAMENTATION
• The two bamboos forming the gable were
prolonged beyond the roof to form horns called the
tenhaku ki (snail
horns).
• These were sometimes decorated with bamboo
tassels and imitations of birds.
• The Semas did not decorate their houses like other
tribes or at least not as much.
• They usually adorned their houses with the heads of
game or Mithan heads which the owner slaughtered.
Sometimes, in the chief’s house, human heads were
also hung as trophies.

27. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF NAGALAND
• REQUIREMENT vs RESPONSE
• These dwellings, located mainly in the hilly regions came
under the Cold and cloudy climatic category.
• The people then, relied mainly on their physical ability to
resist the cold.
• The houses did protect them from the cold winds that blew but
did little to retain heat within the house.
• Openings were kept to a minimum to retain as much heat
within the house as possible.
• The fireplace was situated in the living quarters which helped
in raising comfort levels within these spaces.
• The scale of the private spaces was also smaller which meant
that a smaller heat source was required to heat the
room.
• The sloped roofs worked beautifully in keeping the interiors
dry
• The steep slope of the roof ensured that no water could seep in
through the gaps between the thatch and enter the
house.
• The openness of the people did not require such a high
degree of privacy.
• As a result the overall design of the house was kept simple, yet
completely functional.
• It’s function not just extending to it’s activity space relation but
it’s social and climatic context

28. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF NAGALAND
• EFFECT OF COLONIALIZATION-
• These houses existed during the 1915 to the 1920’s.British anthropologists first discovered these settlements.
• The exposure of tribal people to civilization subsequent to those initial visits resulted in the rapid disappearance of these traditional systems of
construction.
• After independence, such dwellings almost completely disappeared. The interest shown toward tradition extends only up to social and cultural
levels, leaving architecture in the back seat.
• The only “traditional” architecture considered important to retain, merely as objects of fascination, like those in museums, were the "Morungs".
• "Morungs" were essentially community built structures present in almost every village of different tribes in Nagaland.
• There used to be one such structure for boys and one for girls in each village.
• These buildings were used for community activities. The function of the Morung being the community centre of the village shifted to the Chief’s
hut.
• This in turn resulted in the Chief’s hut being the largest of structures in the whole village.
• The size of the chief’s hut emphasized his importance in the village society

29. MEGHALAYA
“Where bamboo exists – No
Worries!”. That’s what Garo people
say, and where traditional
architecture is
concerned, they take this saying
seriously.
Not only they built functional
structures from bamboo, mainly for
living and storage, but they also do
it beautifully. Garo traditional tribal
architecture is a magnicent example
of
vernacular architecture
• Garo village hosts a dance festival
where girls dance around boys
whom they wish to marry. All the
houses are ordered around a
courtyard where the dance is
performed, adjoining which is a
communal house (where the
villagers come to talk) and the
young boys’ dormitory that is
‘protected’ by a flowery enclosure.
• The occupation of this place is
mostly in livestock and poultry
management.

30. MEGHALAYA
• The buildings are mainly made up of
cane,bamboo,reed ,wood and mud.
• Mostly houses are build on stilts and the
lower space is used as storage and for
poultry.
• Sometimes separate poutry units are also
made.
• The roofs are sloped for the extreme
rainfall in this region.

31. • Tripura is a landlocked state in North East India, where the seven contiguous states –
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura –
are collectively known as the Seven Sister States.
Architectural characteristics
• Architectural typologies have developed in the North East as factors of tradition , climate and
functionality .
• The materials used are locally available materials like bamboo, cane , cane leaves, mud, and
lime. Of late, bricks. stone chips, rock slabs, surkhi etc. are also being used. Sloping roofs are
a common architectural feature in all the architectural typologies because of high rainfall in
the North East .
• Construction of this type of house generally takes place in the dry season / winters. The
whole community participates in the construction of this type of house.

32. • These houses are generally rectangular in shape and are similar to bamboo Kutchha houses with linear planning and r
ooms opening into each other.
• The structure above is formed by horizontal members tied across the bamboo posts with jute ropes and using dowel a
nd tenon joints.
• The stilt height is typically 1.50 to 2.00 meters from the ground level.
• The space below the stilt is often used to store a canoe for emergency usage during floods .
• The stilted houses are typically designed to keep out the effects of heavy monsoon.
• The floor and walls inlays are mostly bamboo weaves, which allows the water of floods and heavy rains to pass rather t
han getting stored.
• The roofs of the houses are made by fixing bamboo trusses over the posts, over which local grass is laid.
• The roof height from the weaved floor is approximately 3.50 meters.
• A bamboo loft is fixed below the roof inside for secure storage of goods in case of floods.
• Bamboo being a bad conductor of heat keeps the interiors cool and adequate ventilation through the permeable floor
s and wall keeps the moisture content inside the houses low.

33. • Simple open-type field fences are made of longitudinal splits of
bamboo with interlacing horizontal and vertical members spaced well
apart.
• Combinations of whole bamboo, longitudinal halves, quarters and
splits of smaller dimensions are used.
• The interweaving of members eliminates the need for binding, thus
saving on labour and avoiding the use of any special binding material.
• After the binding, cane splits, lengths of wire or some locally available
fibre rope is utilized
House fences
• The fences are of the closed type, with the boards woven closely
packed together without any gaps. The plain weave, the twill weave
and occasionally a decorative variation of the twill pattern are used.
These fences are usually extended above human height. The fence is
supported by whole bamboo posts
FIELD FENCES OF TRIPURA

34. Three types of house constructed in Tripura
1.The riang house
2.The mud house
3.Combination of mud and bamboo
materials
TYPOLOGIES OF HOUSES

35. • Riang tribals of Tripura build their houses with bamboo used
as the primary material for construction. In some cases, even
the thatched roof is made of bamboo leaves.
• These houses are typical hill dwellings, constructed on
bamboo slits to create a large horizontal platform, the floor of
the house.
• Bamboo posts are arranged on a square grid and inclined
whole bamboo members strengthen these.
• The plan of the Riang house is normally a long rectangle, with
a covered verandah in front and an open verandah at the
back. A large enclosed room is located between these
verandahs. A single roof covers the front verandah and the
• A single log, which is notched, forms the short ladder at the
front of the house.
THE RIANG HOUSE

36. DETAILS
OF
RIANG
HOUSE

37. SECTION SHOWING CONSTRUCTION OF RIANG HOUSE

38. MUD HOUSE

39. MUD
HOUSE
Mud and bamboo
used in house

40. CONCLUSION
• The architecture of Tripura relates to the socio-economic setup, the cultural identities and a
good climatic responsiveness.
• A good number of climate responsive design features are revealed during the study of the
housing forms including temperature control, enhancing natural ventilation, protection from
natural calamities such as flood , earthquakes etc.
• Certain features that lack in the traditional housing are mostly: fire proneness and termite
infestation due to usage of non treated bamboo and wood
• Lack of damp proofing and use of non stabilized soil for construction.

41. MANIPUR
CULTURE
The Meitis are the dominant tribe in Manipur but the State is also home to Nagas, Kukis and Rongmeis.
Hill tribes and tribes living in the plains usually follow the general pattern of house architecture prevalent in
the North East.Tribes that have settled, such as the Rongmeis, build houses according to their status.
Architectural characteristic
A common man’s house is made using bamboo, cane, wood and thatch. A house may have a verandah as a
gathering place, sleeping quarters, a kitchen fireplace and outhouses for livestock.
Houses are usually rectangular in shape with the front part of the house comprising of the living room being
larger than the other sections.
Wooden planks are used as beds in the sleeping room which incorporates their vastu.
The bed in the bedroom is usually on the northern side. The fireplace is in the south-east corner. The
kitchen, however, has a fireplace right in the center of the room above which are racks to hang meat and fish
that dry over the fire. Sometimes the kitchen also doubles as a sleeping quarter. A storehouse outside the
house is used to store grains, usually built on a platform above the ground level.

42. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF MANIPUR
MEITEIYUMJAO
• This is a perfect dwelling unit of an ideal Meitei family,
few generations back. Few people of our generation
had the opportunity to live in it and enjoy the essence of
it and cherish the life style.
• The complete straw reinforced mud thick wall up to the
roof height, embedding the main load bearing post
bamboos with Pungjei in different heights as
reinforcement steel grass rod.
• The distribution of entire house into different kas –
Phamel ka, lukhumka, ,leimarelka, piba Ka, ningolka,
chakhumka, sanamahi laipham, Grain storage space
and Mangolka .
• It shows specific separate space for specific functions.
This reflects the respect, privacy and identity given to
each member of the family and their personal spaces.
This is the origin of our sincerity, honesty, character and
culture.

43. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF MANIPUR
MEITEIYUMJAO

44. MIZORAM
• CLIMATE
Mizoram has a mild climate, being relatively cool in summer 20 to 29 °with winter temperatures ranging from 7 to
22 °C .The region is influenced by monsoon. The climate pattern is moist tropical to moist sub-tropical, with average
state rainfall 254 centimetres (100 in) per annum.
Culture
• The Mizos are usually settled which means they have a well organized community and houses that reflect this
lifestyle.
• Hill tribes usually build houses on top of hills with the house of the tribal chief at the center.
• The bachelor’s quarter known as Zawlbuk is located close the chief’s house and serves as the center of
activity since the youth work, learn and are trained at these centers.

45. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE OF MIZORAM
Architectural characteristic of Zawlbuk house
• They use wood and bamboo to build tribal houses on sloping land.
• The houses have wooden supports and bamboo matting is affixed to the frames and to the floor.
• The rood may be made of split bamboo covered by thick thatch, leaves or straw. Some houses may
be built on stilts with a small ladder for access. Houses are rectangular in shape and the interior is
partitioned into rooms using bamboo screens or mats, with separate sections for married and
unmarried members of the family. A raised fireplace is at one corner next to the front door.
Interior of
Zawlbuk
house

46. CONCLUSION
• The architecture of North East India relates to the socio-economic setup, the cultural identities and a
good climatic responsiveness.
• A good number of climate responsive design features are revealed during the study of the housing
forms including temperature control, enhancing natural ventilation, protection from natural
calamities such as flood, earthquakes etc.
• However certain features that lack in the traditional housing are mostly: fire proneness and termite
infestation due to usage of non treated bamboo and wood; lack of damp proofing and use of non
stabilized soil for construction too pose problems like dampness of walls and washouts during
rainfall.
References –
Archinomy. (2013, September 10). Retrieved September 10, 2013, from http://www.archinomy.com/casestudies/675/the-sema-naga-traditional-dwelling
Hemant Kaushik, K. R. (2009). Housing Report: Assam type House. World Housing encyclopedia .
Khan, A. A. (2009). Housing Report: Traditional Naga type House. World Housing encyclopedia .
Manoj Kumar Singh, S. M. (2011). Bioclimatism and Vernacular Architecture of North-East India.
(2013, September 10). Retrieved September 10, 2013, from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast_India
Robinson, William. (1841), 2011. A Descriptive Account of Assam. Guwahati : Bhabani print & Publication.
http://guyshachar.com/en/2016/garohillstraditionaltribalarchitecturemeghalayaindia/

47. THANK YOU. 