Kajian Tipologi Rumah Kedai Awal Era Belanda Di Bandar Melaka: Sumbangan Kepada Bidang Pemuliharaan Di Malaysia.

Rumah Kedai Awal di bandar Melaka telah dibina sejak dari zaman penjajahan Belanda iaitu lebih dari 200 tahun yang lampau. Early Shop Houses in Malacca was built during the Dutch Colonization, since 200 years ago

The Influence of Perpatih Custom on the Design of Traditional Malay Houses in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia

The migration of the community of Minangkabau to Tanah Melayu had brought with them several influences into the local community such as culture and architecture. A significant cultural essence that had influenced the community in Negeri Sembilan is Pepatih Custom which is still practiced by the community nowadays. It plays various roles in the people’s lives including unity, family units according to the “suku”, marriages, deaths and how to inherit land and houses. In designing the traditional Malay houses in Negeri Sembilan, the family activities, as well as the community as a whole are thoroughly considered. A house is not perceived only as a place to stay but also a gathering place for other occasions such as weddings, funerals and deaths. The private and public areas are separated harmoniously from the aspects of architecture and religion. The strength of the design of the traditional Malay houses is also frequently depicted in verses and proverbs in the system of Pepatih Custom that relates to “kuat rumah kerana sendi rosak sendi rumah binasa” which means the community has to stand together in whatever situation and if they do not they will be weak and chaotic. Just like the role of “sendi” or joints of a house, they have to be designed perfectly because if the joints are loosely built the whole structure of the house would collapse. Keywords: Minangkabau, Perpatih Custom, traditional malay house, Negeri Sembila

The formation of Kangkar as the frontier Chinese settlement in Johor, Malaysia

In the 19th century, Chinese immigrants were drawn to Johor via the entirely unique Kangchu system that was only adapted in the state, later contributed significantly to its economic progress. The Chinese came for pepper and gambier plantation and settled at riverside which formed the frontier Chinese settlement called “Kangkar”. It is also believed that kangkar is the earliest established Chinese settlement in Johor, then many of them substituted by New Village in 1950s, and today’s modern housing in the 20th century. Irony the kangkar settlements are declining while some already abandoned. Furthermore, study of Chinese settled at Johor in kangkar settlement is still lacking, which severely constrain the preservation of such historical settlement. To help fill this gap, this paper aims to delineate the kangkar settlement which represents strong historical significance to Chinese architectural paradigm in Johor. It is crucial to start paying attention on this Chinese heritage to avoid irreversible loss of humanity’s heritage as well as diversity. As the formation of kangkar settlement was mainly ranged from 1844 to 1917, historical data was collected through content analysis of archival documents, literature reviews, and interviews of scholars. The special terms used were revealed such as Kangchu, kangkar, and “surat sungai”. Kangkar as a unique Chinese living settlement which existed due to Kangchu system, plays important and positive roles in Johor development in terms of economy, co-existence, and identity. It is hence crucial to preserve the kangkar settlements by providing insight of guideline to sustain and avoid further decline

Heritage identity conservation of the woodcarving placement and design composition typologies on Johor Malay houses

Woodcarving is a distinct heritage that can promote the identity of a region. However, current practices of using the design composition and woodcarving placement which do not belong to the local region pose a threat to the identity and authenticity of the original heritage. If such practices continue and the identity of the local heritage is not preserved and recorded, the traditional designs and local identity will eventually be lost. The objective of this paper is to identify the placements of woodcarving and the typology of design compositions of woodcarving which form the identity of the Johor Malay houses. Site visits were conducted to Limas Johor in which the wood carvings of 50 houses were examined, photographed and documented. Interviews were also conducted with the house owners or occupants, and the wood carvers. The samples were analyzed and the results were verified by experts. A total of 10 woodcarving placements and 23 typologies were discovered, drawn and coded. The findings of this research suggest that the typology combination of JT2-P5+KT7 of woodcarving represents the identity of Limas Johor houses. It is hoped that this study can bring recognition to Johor woodcarvings, contribute valuable guides for woodcarvers to apply these typologies into their future works to sustain and cherish the Johor local identity

Motifs, placements and influences of woodcarving in Muar traditional Malay houses

Almost every country, race or culture has its own traditional heritage including Malaysia and every state in it. Woodcarving is one of the Malaysian traditional heritage that has been passed through generations and should be preserved and maintained. Unfortunately, it is being forgotten due to the rapid urbanization and led to it getting destroyed and extinct. Nevertheless, there are still many traditional houses in some places which own very interesting woodcarvings that must be studied and analyzed before this heritage is permanently vanished such as in Muar, Johor where it owns an interesting history, thus making it among the earliest inhabited district and rich in woodcarvings. This study aimed to identify motifs and placements of the woodcarvings in traditional Malay houses in the districts of Muar including the influence on it. The research methodologies taken were case studies of existing traditional Malay houses in Muar. Site visits to the chosen houses are carried out where the process of taking data, photography and interviewing the resident as well as additional information from Center of Built Environment in the Malay World (KALAM) at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) was then triangulated with the analytic interpretation of local woodcarvers. The results showed the existence of significant motif, placement and very strong influence on the woodcarvings found in these Malay traditional houses in Muar

Evolution Architectural Heritage Through Typology Of Negeri Sembilan Traditional Houses

The architecture of traditional house is a regional architectural heritage assets which are valuable, inherited and built in various customs and cultures of each country. It has the characteristics of the different designs and concepts that shape its own identity. The uniqueness design of the Negeri Sembilan traditional house is influenced by the Minangkabau, West Sumatra, Indonesia, which is the symbol of the community. Minangkabau house is a house occupied by the customary rules of practice matrilineal kinship system and the tendency of the people to go abroad for the purpose of exploration. The study was made on the basis of these factors, the occurrence of evolution, the changes that occurred since the 14th century AD, which started from Minangkabau to Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Additionally, the study proves that the customs, culture and regionalism have established the typology of Negeri Sembilan traditional houses. The study involves several locations starting from West Sumatra, Indonesia such as Padang, Bukit Tinggi and Kampar to Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia such as Rembau, Tampin and Kuala Pilah. The data were obtained through a process of observation, sketches, interviews, questionnaires and related photos. The identity and uniqueness of Negeri Sembilan traditional house is the architectural heritage that will bring awareness and references to future generations which are increasingly difficult to sustain and lost in their own countr

Place attachment and determinants of living arrangement in the family house in Ibadan, Nigeria

Context/Background: There is a dearth of study in identifying the determinants of choice of living arrangement in sub-Saharan Africa and what influences individual’s decision about this. Therefore, this study examined the physical aspects and demographic characteristics that may be significant predictors of attachment to a particularly form of living arrangement in the form of “family house” otherwise called agbo’le.Data source and Methods: The analysis was based on quantitative data from 413 household heads in a traditional neighborhood characterized mainly by agbo’les in Ibadan, Nigeria. Descriptive statistics, chi-square, regression analysis and correlation were used to analyse the data.  Results: The results showed that demographic factors including education attained, occupation and nature of work were significant predictors of place attachment rather than the physical structure.Conclusion: The study concluded that the relevance of agbo’le to the lives of the residents and hence its future potentials are more influenced by characteristics of individual residents.

Preserving the Characteristics of Urban Heritage: An insight into the concept of Malaysian Royal Towns

Royal towns in Malaysia are the finest examples of traditional Malay towns, which are strongly associated with the long history of Malay Sultanates in Malaysia. This study aims to identify the significant characteristics that perhaps homogenously shared by the Malaysian Royal Towns to be inferred as the symbol and identity of the place. The study begins with thorough literature reviews of historical Malay manuscripts for some insights into how the traditional Malay towns were during the early 14th to the 19th century. From this, the study managed to identify three prominent characteristics that shaped the whole physical images of Malaysian Royal Towns. These characteristics are known as the king’s palace, traditional Malay settlements known as kampongs and lastly, traditional Malay fortification system. Nevertheless, these characteristics are being threatened due to improper planning and modernisation of the Royal Towns. A conventional conservation approach, however, seems insufficient to address the whole idea of a Malaysian Royal Town. These identified characteristics, in this case, are interrelated and thus required in-depth study of each Royal Town to investigate the traditional knowledge lies within the culture and a new comprehensive in-depth method of conservation and preservation in order to sustain the image of the place as a cradle of the Malay civilisation.

Implementation of Traditional Malay Design Values in Contemporary Malay Houses

Traditional houses are the most essential architectural experience that is in harmony with the people's culture, beliefs, environment and lifestyles. The development of design values in contemporary architecture by tracking traditional design values in architecture paves the way for arguments concerning the implementation of authentic Malay traditional house design values in contemporary Malay houses. In addition, it is hypothesized that the Malay traditional houses theoretically provide a constructive innovative framework for the design performance of the contemporary Malay house. In this research, data was compiled through field observation and documentary review. The evidence revealed that Malay traditional houses convey a concrete message of richness encompassing architectural design values and theoretical propositions. The credibility of the results was improved and confirmed by a confluence of evidence via a confirmation process. The findings suggested that there is a rich source of subjective support, lending proof to the premise of the research investigation. The research has highlighted the significance of traditional architectural design values towards innovative design in the architecture of contemporary Malay houses as a workable pattern for use in the design of contemporary architecture