Name : Nabila Hanim Binti Salleh @ Man Id : 0321368 Module : English 1 [Session] August, 2014 Question Number : 2

Unique Traditional House

Cameron Kimber, an interior designer describes a house as “ It doesn’t matter if

your taste is modern or traditional, classic or retro. If a house has a good feel to it, it will

always be a home”. Every ethnic community has their own traditional house. Every

single thing in the house like decoration, how it is constructed and the function of its

spaces reflects the cultures and values of an ethnic’s community. Like Minangkabau

ethnics, they have a traditional house called Rumah Gadang which means big house.

The traditional house for Chinese communities in Beijing is Siheyuan house. There are

three elements that differ between a Minangkabau house and Siheyuan house which

are types of materials used, the usage of interior spaces and the structures and layout

of the two houses.

Different houses have different type of materials that they used in order to build

it. Rumah Gadang was located in Indonesia while Siheyuan house is located in China.

Rumah Gadang, a rectangular house was largely constructed using woods. For Rumah

Gadang’s roof, it is made from thatch or palm fiber. While its wall and floor is made from

bamboo. Pillar of a Rumah Gadang is made from palms or coconut trees. Different from

Rumah Gadang, a Siheyuan house has four building that are northern building,

southern building, eastern building and western building that formed a quadrangle

house was largely constructed using sun-dried bricks and woods only.

Second element that differs between these two houses is the usage of its interior

spaces. The amount of rooms in Rumah Gadang is depending on the amount of the

women in the family members as we know that Minangkabau ethnic community’s

priority is woman. Every woman who has got married will get one room while old women

and kids will get a room near to the kitchen and teen girls will get a shared room on the

other end. The interior of a Rumah Gadang is dominated by open room except for the

bedrooms. On the both wing of the main house, we would found that there is an Anjung,

a special rooms or place as a place where marriage or coronation of a customary chief

takes place. In a Siheyuan house, the northern building will received the most sunlight is

served as the living room and bedroom of the owner or the head of the family. The

eastern and western buildings which are received the less sunlight are served as the

rooms for children or less important family members. The least sunlight was received in

the southern building is used as a reception room and the servants dwelling or as a

place where the family would gather for relaxing, eating or studying. Lastly is the

backside building where it is specially served for unmarried daughter and female

servants.

Last but not least is the structures and layout of these two houses. At the end of

Rumah Gadang, there is an annex which is slightly elevated from the floor level of the

house. It is as a symbolic significance for pinnacle of the house. Their sleeping quarter

or Minangkabau communities called it as biliak are adjacent and are in the rear. Then,

the curtained doorways of the biliak are open out onto the hall. The tempting element

about Rumah Gadang is its curved roof which is designed likely buffaloes horns. For a

Siheyuan house, there are four building that are positioned along the north-south and

east-west axis influenced by Confucian ideology formed a quadrangle house. While the

entrance gate was painted with vermilion and it has a copper door knockers on it. We

also would found a pair of stone lions outside of the gate of a Siheyuan house.

In conclusion, there are three elements that differ between Rumah Gadang and

Siheyuan house which are the types of materials used, the usage of interior spaces of

the house and the structures and layout of the two houses. Different traditional houses

have different elements that distinguish it from the other house. These various elements

reflect everything about the cultures and traditions of an ethnic community. Therefore,

every ethnic’s traditional house should be preserved so that our future generation can

appreciate the uniqueness of every ethnic’s cultures from the world.

References :

Elda Franzia., Yasraf Amir Piliang., & Acep Iwan Saidi. (2015). International Journal of

Social Science and Humanity. Rumah Gadang as a Symbolic Representation of

Minangkabau Ethnic Identity, 5. Retrieved 28 September 2014, from

http://www.ijssh.org/papers/419-H00026.pdf

Yu-Ngok Lo. Siheyuan and Hutongs: The Mass Destruction and Preservation of

Beijing’s Courtyard Houses. Retrieved 28 September 2014, from

http://www.aia.org/practicing/AIAB086563

Dipa Sandiwara. (2009). Rumah Gadang in Minangkabau. Retrieved 28 September

2014, from http://culture-of-indonesiaku.blogspot.com/2009/08/rumah-gadang-in-

minangkabau.html

David. (2014). Siheyuan Culture. Retrieved 28 September 2014, from

http://www.chinatravel.com/facts/siheyuan-culture.htm