Living characteristics of Hakkas

Hakka Tulou is located in Yongding County, Longyan City, Fujian Province.

China has a vast territory and a long history. The colorful houses such as quadrangles, dragon houses, Shikumen, yurts, caves and bamboo houses have long been known to the world, but the Hakka earth building hidden in the mountains in Yongding, Fujian is little known. Among the traditional houses in China, the Hakka earth buildings in Yongding are unique, with more than 8,000 square, round, octagonal and oval earth buildings. They are large in scale, beautiful in shape, scientific and practical, and have their own characteristics, which constitute a wonderful world.

The caste social characteristics and architectural characteristics of Tulou folk houses are closely related to the history of Hakka people. Hakkas, originally Han Chinese in the Central Plains, were forced to move south due to war, famine and other reasons. By the Southern Song Dynasty, they had traveled to Wan Li for nearly a thousand years and formed a Hakka clan in the border area of Fujian, Guangdong and Jiangxi. In the process of being forced to leave their homes and migrate, they have experienced many hardships, and they all have a deep understanding. Whether they are displaced after a long journey, or they are new to a strange place, many difficulties must be solved by their own solidarity and Qi Xin's concerted efforts. Therefore, wherever they go, their surnames always live together. In this way, the unique architectural form of Hakka dwellings-tulou was formed.

Because most Hakkas live in remote mountainous areas or Mishan, at that time, not only building materials were scarce, wolves, tigers and leopards were noisy, but also they were afraid of local people's harassment, so Hakkas created a "defensive" castle-style building house-Tulou.

There are more than 8,000 large square and round earth buildings in Yongding County, while there are only 360 round ones. The largest circular building is 82m in diameter, and the smallest is Rusheng Building in Hongkeng Village, with a diameter of17m. The oldest is the "Chengqi Building" in Gaoding Village, which was built in A.D. 1790. At most, there were more than 80 families and more than 600 people living in the building. The most magnificent and representative building is the Sincere Building in Hongkeng Village.

Tulou was square at first, with palace style, mansion style and different postures. It is not only strange, but also full of mystery, solid and firm. Accumulate food and raise livestock in the building; If there is a well and you need to guard against the enemy, you just need to close the gate and keep a few young people guarding it. Tulou is like a solid fortress, and women, children, old and young can sit back and relax. Because the square earth building is directional, the corner is dark, and the ventilation and lighting are different, Hakka people have designed a round earth building with good ventilation and lighting, which has no beginning and no end.

Tulou is made of local materials and rammed with local clay sand. Every layer 10cm thick in the wall is covered with bamboo strips as wallboard, which plays a mutually reinforcing role. It is convenient to build and low in cost.

The miracle of Tulou Group fully embodies the collective strength and superb wisdom of Hakkas, and also shines with the brilliance of Chinese excellent culture. Since the reform and opening up, Yongding tulou has attracted more and more attention from the world. The Sincere Building, located in Hongkeng Village, Hukeng Town, Yongding County, is world-famous and known as a pearl in the history of human civilization.

Visiting all kinds of buildings is often the highlight of tourism, from imperial palaces to ordinary houses, from the Great Wall of Wan Li to pavilions, every building has its inexhaustible exquisiteness and beauty. But in western Fujian, I saw the most shocking residential building-Hakka earth building, whose appearance can be compared with the grand arena of ancient Rome, which makes people wonder whether the design of many modern gymnasiums has been influenced by it. Tulou is known as the unique mythical residential building in the world because of its unique shape, great momentum, moisture-proof and earthquake-resistant advantages.