Research on the form and formation mechanisms of Tujia traditional settlement in the Wuling Mountains, China
Abstract The conservation and sustainable development of traditional settlements have garnered global attention in the context of rapid urbanization and modernization. The traditional settlement of the Tujia ethnic minority in China carries profound historical culture and humanistic memories, servin...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05694-7 |
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| Summary: | Abstract The conservation and sustainable development of traditional settlements have garnered global attention in the context of rapid urbanization and modernization. The traditional settlement of the Tujia ethnic minority in China carries profound historical culture and humanistic memories, serving as living cultural treasures that embody distinctive regional characteristics. Taking the 110 Tujia traditional villages in the Wuling Mountains as an example, this study aligns closely with the rural construction objectives of the national rural revitalization strategy, and explores the quantification method of settlement form oriented to the continuation of folk culture, which can effectively guide the villages in carrying out rational positioning and protective planning. This study first constructed a traditional settlement form quantitative research framework based on field survey and previous research foundations. Then, the shape index, spatial dispersion, and fractal dimensions methods were used to explore the form characteristics of Tujia traditional villages in terms of boundary shape and spatial structure. While the Grey Relational Analysis method was employed to the influences of natural and humanistic environments on settlement forms, revealing the formation mechanisms of it. The results indicate that there are three boundary forms of Tujia traditional villages: band, clump and finger-like, with the finger-like being the preferred form of the Tujia people in the process of building settlements in different landscapes. The spatial structure has three types: moderate agglomeration, high agglomeration and loose type, and the first is the main type, that is, the level of structuring is mostly medium, medium building density. The Tujia traditional settlement form is mainly affected by the river system, topography and transportation, and the distance from the river has the greatest influence on it. In general, the village form is a pattern that is rationally chosen and adapted to the joint influence of natural, social and human factors. The implications of this study are significant for understanding traditional village dynamics, promoting sustainable development, and refining quantitative methods for rural studies. |
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| ISSN: | 2045-2322 |