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ANALYSIS OF THE CULTURAL INFLUENCES
ON ARCHITECTURE IN LIJIANG DAYAN OLD
TOWN
NAME: James Wu
CHINA ALIVE TRIP: Lijiang
SPONSORS: Mr. Nordmeyer, Mr. Watkins, Ms. Watkins
ASIAN HISTORY TEACHER: Mr. Stelzer
[Word count: 1245]
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
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Analysis of the Cultural Influences on Architecture in Lijiang
Dayan Old Town
James D. Wu
SAS Pudong Campus: Shanghai Links Executive Community, 1600 Ling Bai
Road, San Jia Gang, Pudong, Shanghai, China 201201.
This research project was instructed by his Asian history teacher, Mr. Stelzer.
The 2013 Lijiang trip is sponsored by Mr. Nordmeyer, Mr. Watkins, and Ms. Watkins
*Author for correspondence (e-mail: james01pd2016@sasstudent.org)
Accepted 9 May 2013
SUMMARY
This process paper is as analysis discussing of the Chinese cultures that influenced
architecture of Dayan Old Town in Lijiang, Yunnan Province. It is based on
informative online resources and other works of research on Dayan Old Town
(Lijiang Old Town). The primary resources used in this process paper are Chinese
documents by Baike.baidu.com, xc196712 (2011), and English documents by Hays,
J. (2008), English.cri.cn (2009), En.wikipedia.org, Whc.unesco.org (1912),
Historyforkids (2012), and Education.yahoo.com (1949). This research paper also
contrasts the differences between Han, Naxi ethnic group, and Tibetan
architectures, and then provides evidence to explain how the cultures of these
Chinese ethnic groups affected the Dayan architecture. It concludes that Han
culture as the predominant influence on Dayan’s architectural and Naxi ethnic
group culture and Tibetan culture as minority influences.
Process journal online at http://jamesdatabase.saschina.wikispaces.net/
[Keywords]: Dayan, architecture, cultural influence, Han ethnic group, Naxi ethnic
group, Tibetan ethnic group.
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Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
Table of Contents
Goal and Focus Question
pg. 3
Answer to the Focus Question
pg. 4-5
Connection to Theme and Discussion of Processes
pg. 5
Product
pg. 5-6
Design For Product and Criteria For Evaluation
pg. 6
Annotated bibliography
pg. 7-8
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
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Goal and Focus Question
Goal:
The goal of this project is to explore how cultural diffusion takes place in Lijiang,
Yunnan Province. By using the Dayan Old Town as an important location of research,
we can analyze the cultures that influenced the architectures in Lijiang.
Focus Question:
My focus question is: what cultures influenced the architecture of Lijiang Old Town?
This research is based on informative online resources and other works of
researches on Dayan Old Town. I will investigate the characteristics of the buildings
in Dayan Old Town and compare them with the ethnic cultures related to Yunnan
Province. As a UNESCO world heritage site with Old styled architecture still
preserved despite suffering a devastating earthquake in 1996, the Dayan Old Town is
a significantly vital source to study on (English.cri.cn, 2009). The themes I have
chosen are culture and geography, because architecture is primarily affected by
culture of regional ethnic groups, and ethnic groups are divided distinctively
commonly because of geographical barriers. These themes are connected to my
focus question because they are elements of the GGREASES for analyzing specific
details of a countries history. My project is accomplishable because we will visit
Dayan Old Town that can provide me chances to indicate my research. My research
will be important for people who wish to understand more about Lijiang culture and
architecture and to pursue a better understanding of the differences between the
three ethnic groups as explained above.
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
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Answer to the Focus Question:
The Dayan Old Town is an ancient town in Lijiang with an outstanding history, its
cultures are affected by multi-ethnic cultures. Because of Lijiang’s geographic
location in North Western Yunnan Province of China, cultural traits of Han ethnic
group, the local Naxi minority group In Lijiang, and the Tibetan group can be found in
that region. Therefore, according to my investigation the main factors of influence
on the architecture of Dayan Old Town are the Han ethnic group, Naxi ethnic group,
and Tibetan ethnic group, because the Han ethnic group has always had a great
dominance in architectural style throughout China, and the Naxi and Tibetan
influences are due to geographic and historical reasons.
Firstly, the major influence on architecture of Dayan Old town is Han ethnic group,
the dominant ethnic group of China, which constitutes of 98% of China’s population
(En.wikipedia.org, n.d.). This causes most of China’s architecture and culture to be
affected by the Han ethnicity. Essentially, Han Chinese structures have many special
features, such as having sophisticated roofs supported by columns with spaced
intervals instead of walls. Additionally, the roofs are extended outwardly and
decorated with colorful tiles (Education.yahoo.com, 1949). The eaves of the roofs
are usually upturned, which gives the building a strong personality compared to
architecture from other nations (Education.yahoo.com, 1949).
Secondly, one of the subordinate factors of influence on architecture is the Naxi
minority group mainly in Sichuan and Yunnan Province (En.wikipedia.org, 2009), due
to historic reasons. In order to analyze the significance of Naxi ethnicity to the Old
Town architecture, it is crucial to understand the background of the Naxi minority
group in Lijiang. In the 13th century AD of ancient China (Southern Song dynasty), the
Naxi were nomadic tribes led by the ancestors of the ruling Mu family and gradually
settled in Dayan. Naxi people began to construct buildings and to build walls and
moats to fortify the city (Whc.unesco.org, 1912). Until 1724, Dayan had already
developed into a prefectural having offices and other facilities in the town
(Whc.unesco.org, 1912). Nowadays, according to the 2000 census population
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
distribution of China, the Naxi minority group’s population in Yunnan is
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approximately 275000, (Hays, J. 2008), and the total population of Yunnan is 42.3
million, which shows that 0.65% of Yunnan Province’s population is Naxi. Even
though this number doesn't strongly persuade us that the Naxi would dominate the
architecture of Lijiang, looking back at the long history of Dayan Old Town controlled
under the ancestors of the Mu family, many characteristics of the architectures in
Dayan are likely to be shaped by the Naxi group. Furthermore, many Naxi buildings
have Naxi inscriptions on them, which they are picture-like characters. Depicted
below is an image of traditional Naxi pictographs on the wall of a building in Dayan
Old Town.
Source: //http:www.image.baidu.com/
Lastly, a minor reason of the architectural influence is Tibetan influence.
Geographically, Lijiang is very close to Tibet. Tibetan architectures are known to be
constructed of natural materials, such as stone, clay, or wood. (En.wikipedia.org,
1949)
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
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(En.wikipedia.org, 1949)
In conclusion, the dominant influence on architecture in Lijiang Dayan Old Town is
the Han ethnicity because of its great popularity in China; and the secondary factors
of influence are the Naxi because of the its occupation in of Dayan during ancient
China, and the other secondary factor is the Tibetan minority group due to
geographical location. Therefore, the Dayan Old Town’s long history and cultural
diffusion has caused the architecture in Lijiang to be influenced multi-ethnically.
Connection to Theme and Discussion of Processes
Having investigated, I now understand that the Han ethnic group was the major
influence on architecture in the Lijiang Old Town. From this information, I can
predict that in ancient China, the Han culture was dominant to the designs of all
structures in the Lijiang region. This is because as explained above, Dayan Old town
is the only few surviving ancient architectures in Lijiang. I did find what I had
expected, because I anticipated that Han architecture was the most commonly
found buildings in ancient China,
Product
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Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
The product of my China Alive project will be electronic photo album from iMovie of
the architectures in Dayan Old Town. The photo album will compare and contrast
the details of different buildings in Dayan and conclude that Han Chinese culture has
the dominant impact on architecture in Dayan Old Town. In the product, the photos
will consist of different designs of the buildings in Dayan to show how the
architectural characteristics of Han, Naxi, or Tibetan have blended together. For
example, I will have photos of the roofs, colors, and windows of the buildings. The
information I researched on helped me to come up with my idea for my product
because I thought that photos are the most efficient method to compare and
contrast different cultures affected the styles of buildings in Lijiang Old Town, and it
is also easy for audience to view my work through a visual way. My objective from
the series of photos that will be displayed in iMovie is to allow the audience to
understand how cultural diffusion took place in Lijiang, and how it influenced
architecture of Lijiang.
Design For Product and Criteria For Evaluation
The Plan:
I have chosen to create an electronic photo album on iMovie because it is visual and
easy for people to understand the main theme of my research.
Materials For Product:
1. High quality photos: This is the most important material for my product, I will
need to take photos of architectures in Dayan Old Town, such as buildings in
tourist attracts in Sifangjie (the center of the town), where Han Chinese
buildings have dominant impact on architecture.
2. Notebook and pen: In case my camera is unavailable, I can still sketch the
details of architectures in the Old Town;
Process of Product Designing:
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
My iMovie will have photographs of roofs, pillars (columns, or supports of the
buildings), windows, calligraphy written on buildings, and general designs of
buildings in Dayan Old Town, etc.
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Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
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Annotated Bibliography
Baike.baidu.com (n.d.). 汉族建筑_百度百科. [online] Retrieved from:
http://baike.baidu.com/view/2195559.htm [Accessed: 9 May 2013].
Education.yahoo.com (1949). Chinese architecture - Facts from the Encyclopedia Yahoo! Education. [online] Retrieved from:
http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/entry/Chines-arc [Accessed:
16 May 2013].
English.cri.cn (2009). Lijiang's Old Town. [online] Retrieved from:
http://english.cri.cn/6566/2009/02/10/1881s452227.htm [Accessed: 8 May 2013].
En.wikipedia.org (2004). File:White Palace of the Potala.jpg - Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia. [online] Retrieved from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:White_Palace_of_the_Potala.jpg [Accessed: 17
May 2013].
En.wikipedia.org (1949). Architecture in Tibet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
[online] Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architecture_in_Tibet
[Accessed: 17 May 2013].
En.wikipedia.org (n.d.). Han Chinese - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online]
Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese [Accessed: 8 May 2013].
En.wikipedia.org (2009). Nakhi people - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online]
Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naxi_people [Accessed: 16 May 2013].
Hays, J. (2008). Naxi Ethnic Group - Facts and Details. [online] Retrieved from:
http://factsanddetails.com/china.php?itemid=172&catid=5&subcatid=87 [Accessed:
8 May 2013].
Cultural influences on architecture of Lijiang Dayan Old Town
Asian history
China alive process paper 2013
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Historyforkids (2012). Han Dynasty Architecture - Ancient China for Kids!. [online]
Retrieved from:
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/china/architecture/hanarchitecture.htm
[Accessed: 17 May 2013].
Whc.unesco.org (1912). Old Town of Lijiang - UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
[online] Retrieved from: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/811 [Accessed: 16 May
2013].
Xc196712 (2011).百度知道－全球最大中文互动问答平台：《西藏民居与汉族民
居有什么不同之处》. [online] Retrieved from:
http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/234903511.html [Accessed: 24 Apr 2013].