Systems of settings and activities: A framework to study vernacular settlements and cultural landscapes in China

When conceptualizing residential space, Amos Rapoport identified the importance of understanding ‘systems of settings’, which include systems of activities that take place within and beyond the boundary of a dwelling. Drawing upon two case studies from rural China, this chapter demonstrates the importance of using the concept of ‘systems of settings’ in studying the built environments of different scales. The first one, focusing on the meaning of home as understood by residents living in vernacular settlements in rural China, demonstrates that certain aspects of the meanings of home for these residents extended beyond the physical boundary of a house and the homestead and were attached to cultural traditions, including rural lifestyle, social relations, cultural performances, ancestral histories, and individual and collective identities, which are all rooted in the vernacular place where the systems of activities occur. The second example scrutinizes the heritage management approach to the cultural landscape of Longji Rice Terraces. Applying the concept of systems of settings to a larger scale, the analysis argues that the cultural landscape of Longji should be viewed as an integrated system conjoined by a network of historical trails, instead of being packaged as numerous isolated and independent destinations.