Traditional housing

PAVITHRA N
LIJO LUKOSE
INTRODUCTION :
Traditional architecture is the style that were popular to the specific region or area.it is important
Because it maintains our link to the past.

Traditional style of architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental,
cultural and historical context in which it exists.

The main component of traditional architecture style is the way in which the past building styles and present are merged together,
creating a seamless transition

Vernacular architecture is a category of architecture based on local needs and construction

materials, and reflecting local traditions and considering cost effective and Ecologically sensible.

Climate is a predominant factor in determining the forms of vernacular architecture in India.

Factors affecting vernacular architecture

 Climate of the region

 Geography of the region
 Availability of material

Climatic regions of India

 Hot and dry

 Warm and humid
 Cold and cloudy
 Cold and sunny
 Composite
 DHAJJI HOUSE WOODEN CONSTRUCTION
built 2-3 storeys high where the vertical
wooden posts are meant to carry the load.
Horizontal members are placed at
different levels with an in-fill of wooden
battens

HAVELI

POL HOUSE BAMBOO CONSTRUCTION

The horizontal member is usually
bamboo.plastered on both sides with
mud mortar.3 layers of plaster are done
alternatively after dying of each coat.
Building ismaximum of 2 storeys.

BHUNGA HOUSE CHITTILLU HOUSE

Housing cluster found in coastal region
of andra Pradesh. They are round mud
houses. The house consists of an inner
circular room which is enveloped by
another circular space-kitchen on one
side &store /sleeping on other side.
WADA HOUSE
NALUKETTU HOUSE
CHETTINAD HOUSE
Chettinad House in Kanadikathan
The 110-year-old Chettinad Palace in Kanadikathan
village is the oldest surviving building of this style, built by
Dr Annamali Chettiyar, founder of the Indian Bank and the
Annamalai University in Chidambaram

single-storeyed buildings made of sundried brickof mud,

bamboo and thatch.

They evolved to become tile-roofed with a small two-

storeyed tower at both ends of the front elevation

The courtyards supply ample light and air but leave the
rest of the house in deep and cool shadow.

•The no cementing agent was used in the construction and the bricks are bound
together with a paste of egg white, the extract of an unripe medicinal fruit found in
the hills of Kadukkai and lime grind.
Construction techniques. Madras terrace roofing.

•Handmade floor tiles from Athangudi,

are inlaid on the madras terrace roof
pattern with the joists imported
from Burma as batterns are
melamine Burma teak.

Madras plastering technique.

ENTRANCE OF PALACE OUTSIDE VIEW ENTRANCE
• Lime egg plastering, another
traditional technique used to paint
walls white and keep the insides of
houses cool, that lasts virtually
the entire life of the building,

INNER ENTRANCE COURT PRIVATE ENTRANCE DINING HALL

 PLANNING OF CHETTINAD HOUSE
•outer thinnai - Large raised platforms on either side of
the central corridor, where the host would entertain male
guests. The platforms lead off on one side into store
SECOND COURTYARD
VERANDAH FIRST COURTYARD rooms and massive granaries and on the other, into the (
Kanakupillai ) or Accountant's room.

OPEN GARDEN
SPACE

THINNAI POOJA ROOM & STORE VERANDAH KITCHEN VERANDAH

ROOM FOR DOWRI ITEMS
 The door leads into the first open air courtyard,
with pillared corridors running on each side that lead
into individual rooms

Then comes the second counrtyard

with large dining spaces with the kitchens,
leading out to the backyard with its
women's well and grinding stones.
•Dining hall where at least 250 people can
dine in the traditional style, that is, by
squatting on the floor.

•Near the kitchen provision has been

made in the roof to hold the traditional tools
of the kitchen activities
NALUKETTU HOUSES,KERALA:
The houses of Brahmins, landlords and the royalty are usually courtyard mansions called
nalukettu (nalu-four; kettu-hall-Malayalam; Catusala-Sanskrit). The courtyard house has been a
fashionable and well-known typical house in India.
The Nalukettu has been a popular representation of Kerala’s traditional domestic architecture
The traditional architecture is typically a rectangular structure where four halls are joined together
with a central courtyard open to the sky.

The four halls on the sides are named Vadakkini (northern block), Padinjattini (western
block), Kizhakkini (eastern block) and Thekkini (southern block

The architecture was especially catered to large families

of the traditional tharavadu, to live under one roof

Nalukettu, a courtyard house, belongs to landlords;

(4) the great mansion Ettuketu and Patinjarukettu
(double ettukettu) or much bigger structures, belong to
very rich landlords
The South Kerala nalukettu has a more extensive single hall with a courtyard-like
inner opening,
the North Kerala nalukettu has a concentric multiplied sala encircling the
courtyard.
In North and Central Kerala, the courtyard can be very wide and is used for
various activities,
but in South Kerala the courtyard is usually very much smaller and works better
as a water cistern
The layout of these homes is simple, and catered to the
dwelling of the large number of people usually part of a
tharavaadu.
. Ettukettu (eight halled with two central courtyards)
or Pathinarukettu (sixteen halled with four central
courtyards) are the more elaborate forms of the same
architecture.
Every structure faces the sunlight, and in some well
designed naalukettu, there is excellent ventilation.
Temperatures, even in the heat of summer, are markedly
lower within the naalukettu.
Case Study:
nalukettu
Nalukettus constructed entirely of
wood are sporadically distributed all
over the southern region of Kerala.

Structurally they resemble

mandapam buildings (Pavillion) and
perhaps represent the earliest form
of Nalukettus.

Structurally they resemble

mandapam buildings (Pavillion) and
perhaps represent the earliest form
of Nalukettus.
Case Study:
nalukettu
The Nalukettus constructed entirely
of timber clearly resemble the
Chaturmukha type of chatussala
described in the classical texts,
Manasara and Mayamata. These
houses have openings
in all cardinal directions. They have
two annular Utharams, one internal
and the other
external as principal roof supports.
Case Study: IYENGARKULAM is the rustic village sets in the outskirts of
kanchipuram District. Iyengarkulam still retains its rural character
IYENGARKULAM housing
with a long winding stretch of road from the highway towards the
village.The village is around 8 kilometres away from the main
kanchipuram town .
Interior showing
loom

Arial view of
typical street &
outdoor weaving
activity
Settlement pattern of the weaver’s village ,Iyengarkulam.
The Approach road to the house used as space for outdoor activity and vehicular
and pedestrian movement. Brick walls and Timber Truss supporting wooden
Rafters. Country tiles are used as Roofing Material. Steel Rod meshes used for
security of the open courtyard. Activities performed in one space vary with day and
night.

The entire outdoor activity of degumming and

threading takes place on the street fronts
although the street is used by vehicular and
pedestrian traffic as well as parking of vehicles .
3 to 4 houses share a space in front and jointly
do this activity.This is an activity of work it also
becomes a social activity as it involves a
collection of people from various house.Toilets
are usually located on the backyards away from
the main houses where as one can find some
additional toilets attached with the houses in the Section through courtyard
new structures.Thinnai in the front of house is
used for twisting of silk and brocade (zari).This FOUNDATION – STONE WORK IN MUD MORTAR
area is also used for informal evening chats by WALLS – BRICK WORK IN CEMENT MORTAR
old people. DOOR,WINDOW,TRUSS – WOOD
ROFING – MANGALORE TILE
Case Study:
MANAPAD housing It is close to Tiruchendur, and Kayalpatnam or
Korkai, a Muslim town and an ancient silk route
Manapad is about 58kms south of Tuticorin, a famous port town
port. It has a very unique culture, because of the
in South India.
Portuguese invasion during the 14th century and
trade links with Ceylon (present Sri Lanka). The
village remained intact until 1540’s and later on
Indo-Portuguese style of Architecture came into
existence. This unique culture is revealed in their
architecture. Their dwellings reflect occupant’s
activities in their lives while adapting to the warm
and humid climate.
Coastal stretch – 3145 m
Area – 260 acres  Fishermen Cluster:
Christian populated area Fishing is the primary occupation and people who depended on fishing, formed the first
Inhabitants - 6000 cluster. The settlement grew in an organic way along the coastline in clusters.
 Nadar Cluster
The next settlement was a community settlement and also grew in an organic way, towards the western part of the
village, and were occupied by the Nadar community people and followed supporting activities for fishing like boat
building, basket weaving etc.
 Paravas Cluster
The third settlement was also another community settlement and was planned in a proper grid iron pattern, with the
churches on one side and with the backwaters on the other side. This settlement was inhabited by the upper class
people, whose main occupation is trading with Ceylon (Srilanka).

Climate Responsive
The single storied houses are placed near the coastal stretch where the land is slightly at a low level and the
houses that are more than one floor are placed on the elevated land. Thus good air movement can be achieved
throughout the settlement.
The settlement is designed in clusters in the Fishermen community area and Nadar community area and in a proper
grid iron pattern in the upper class Paravar community. The places which are designed in clusters, have lots of open
spaces in between. These open spaces provide air flow movement, within the settlement in all.
directions. In areas where the houses are designed
in a grid iron pattern, the houses have an extroverted
planning with lots of open spaces around each
dwelling unit, even though they are compounded
individually.
The traditional houses are mostly dated between 1930’s -1940’s. Mostly the orientation of the traditional building is towards North.
The typical settlement of the two villages is based upon the occupation, wherein, the Fisheries Settlement forms the lower class and
is located 200m away from sea. The merchants, who form the higher class, are located 200 – 1500m away from the sea.

The order of the spaces lies as public, semi private, private space and
most private. It is a typical single storied traditional house of floor area 1245
sq.ft. The public space and the semi- private, private spaces are connected
directly without any transition space. The façade depicts the simplicity of the
tradition. The Veranda forms the semi- private space and leads to the
accountant’s room on either side. The verandah leads to the living room
which also partially acts as a dining room followed by the bedrooms and
finally to the backyard which comprises of kitchen, toilet and open space

Plan of house at manapad - Tuticorin

section of house at manapad
 The living room has two tiered roofing to support stack effect.There is an
open ventilator at the central roof which helps the hot air to escape. The
ventilators are about 2’ height and are on all the four sides supported by
wooden frames and fines to protect the building from rain. The roof hangs
out to about 6” with decorated eaves which acts functionally incorporating
traditional characteristics – and add to the carpentry art, which is one of the
major characteristics of this place. The rooms are located at the either side
of the living room. Each room within the building is well lit with the provision
of window. The Backyard consists of kitchen, store room and toilet with an
open space used for drying and other purposes such as cooking, etc.

Front view
Three distinct stones are excavated in this region -pallkkal, arulakkal and
kuruvikkal
pallkkal is regular rectangle shape -dimension is 1’-1/4” X 6”- excavated
from ground near sea shore at 10’ depth- used at the corners and in the
construction of Pillars at the sides of window and door frames.
Usage of stone varieties Flooring materials
Arulakal - irregular in shape - variable in dimension- excavated from ground near sea shore at 10’ depth- used in the construction of
walls. The soil excavated from site itself It is in regular rectangle shape and dimension is 6”x3”- used in the construction of pillars,
walls, arches, roofs. In addition the lime used here is named as ‘Chippi Sunaambu’ and ‘Kal Sunaambu’. The walls are normally 1’-6”
to 1’ -9” thick. The wood used are Kongu and Teak. The Kongu is used for hard frame, and the Teak is used for doors, window
shutters and for intricate carvings the water which are added for the construction purposes are the special water prepared with ½ kg
of Kadukka and Karupatti each is soaked into the water for two days and the water is used for the construction. The wall finish -egg
plastering.
 Orientation of building

The orientation of the building is along East - West axis. As the

longer side of the building faces the North - South direction and the
shorter side of the building faces the East – West direction, the walls are
less exposed to the direct sun due to the presence of the eaves
projection. As North and North-east winds are prominent, it provides lot
of air movement into the building.

The extreme high and low humidity conditions affect comfortable living conditions in the coastal
regions. The provision of openings on opposite walls facing each other supports the cross
ventilation highly and enhances the free flow of air movement. Windows play a major role in the
natural ventilation. Cross ventilation is maintained so that the humidity at the indoor is
controlled so as to avoid damp as well as dry conditions. Windows are of 4’-8” high and at 2’6”
sill level. Doors are 3’-9” wide and 7’ in height with ventilators above. Usually ventilators are 3’
X 1’6” above lintel level. Hot Air escapes through
the vent provided on the roof

Roof vent
Culture Of Manapad
Manapad has a distinct culture as it
has gone through many changes in
its religion, occupation etc. It has a
cultural mix of India, Portugal and
that of Ceylon. They adopted
European outlook but did not cut
themselves completely from the
cultural roots of India.

This resulted in a cultural mix which can be seen even through their external appearances like dressing style, food,
their language (Tamil accent) etc. Privacy is one of the main character that can be seen in traditional houses but
their houses had an extroverted plan, with lots of semi-open and open spaces facing the streets and sea to provide
good views.
REFERENCE

IRJET - https://www.irjet.net/archives/V4/i5/IRJET-V4I5694.pdf
The indian vernacular architecture