The Shape and Growth of
Town & Village in China
-----A historical view of urban phenomenon
in East Asian
Unknown Asian
Unit 1
The Origin of World Cities and
East Asian Civilization
Cities under the Curtain of Night
Chang’an
Shanghai
Differences between the East and the
West Cities in Early Times
 The early city patterns in E & W
 Concept of city and legal system
 Continuity or discontinuity of cities
 Development ideology and policies
 Social structure and citizen’s consciousness
City Forms in Early Western Countries
(natural adjustment or biological rhythms)
Mycenaeus
Roma
Paris
City Forms in Early Eastern Countries
(Grid pattern: orthogonal & symmetrical network )
Chang’an
Nara
Hue
Ancient Civilization in the World
 Mesopotamia
2800 BC: Sumerian culture and the early dynasties,
Babylon, Eridu
 Egypt
2850 BC: the 1st Dynasty and unification, Thebes, Memphis
 India
2500 BC: early Indus civilization, Menhenjo-daro, Harappa
 Roma
753 BC: Establishment of Roma city, under Greek culture’s
influences, Roma, Trier
Egypt
Roma
India
Ancient Civilization in
the World
Mesopotamia
AswanAncient
Civilization in the World
Babylon Ruins
Grid Pattern in Urban Layout
Thamugadi
Harappa
Special Meaning in Urban Form of E.A
 Political structure and urban form
All the network was oriented toward the cardinal directions (N-S);
Administrative center is located near the crossing point of the + or T grid;
 Product of an agricultural society
Well-field system: Chinese character for “well” (井); roads and
channels crisscrossed urban land and divided it into squares
 Li-fang system
Effective administration: dominance over the city both in spatial and
time divisions: residential streets and market areas segregated by a
square-grid network of roads---- a million-population capital was
safeguarded by 150 officers and soldiers.
Ancient Chinese Cities in Evolution
Centralism dominance over cities
About East Asian
 East Asia or Eastern Asia (the latter form
preferred by the United Nations) is a sub-region
of Asia that can be defined in either geographical
or cultural terms.
 Land and Population
East Asia covers about 12,000,000 km2 (4,600,000
sq mi), or about 28 percent of the Asian continent,
more than 1.5 billion people, about 38% of the
population of Asia or 22% of all the people in the
world, live in geographic East Asia.
Where is East Asia?
Prairie
Plateau
Mountain
Ocean
A Survey of East Asian Culture
 Geographic situation
Ocean + Plateau + Prairie: an enclosed civilization
 Development of East Asian Cultural Ring
Successive urban development: from the core to the rim;
from the highly civilized to the benighted; cultural exchanges
inside the traditional scope and anti-foreign policies
 Common features of East Asian cities
Reverence for astronomic phenomenon (City location);
Cultural dissemination & exchanges (Confucianism);
Chinese-barbarian value and the ceremonial orders (Hierarchy)
City Forms in Early East Asian Countries
(schematic orthogonal planning)
Osaka
Hue
China and East Asian Countries
 Chinese cultural sphere
East Asian vocabulary and scripts are often derived from Classical
Chinese and Chinese script (Korea, Japan, Vietnam).
 Chinese Philosophy
The Book of Changes, Confucianism: emphasizing personal and
governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice,
traditionalism, and sincerity. (related to Urban Society)
 Chinese Calendar
The root from which many other East Asian calendars are derived.
(related to Urban Spatial Form)
Chronological Table of China’s History
Ancient philosophy
Ancient Periods
Early urbanization
Basic urban form
Great prosperity
Middle Ages
Cultural export
External influence
Pre-modern Times
Stagnant decline
Qin and Han Civilization
Apogee of Ancient Chinese Civilization
Cities in Mid/Later Chinese Empires
Kaifeng Old City
Chang’an Royal Garden
Anhui Prov.
Beijing
Traditional Chinese Architecture
----Dragon & Phoenix Worship and the Traditional Big-roof Struchitecture
1. Wudian Style
Nara, Japan
Beijing, China
Traditional Chinese Architecture
2. Xieshan Style
Traditional Chinese Architecture
3. Xuanshan Style
Beijing
Japan
Traditional Chinese Architecture
4. Yingshan Style
Shenyang Palace
Traditional Chinese
Spinal
Animal
Fairy riding a crane
Traditional Value of Chinese Family
 More children, more blessing
 Natural relationship is the happy of families
 Symbolic means of fruits and plants:
pomegranate, grapes, bamboo, pagoda tree, plum blossom,
crab apple tree