Bridge and box: a typological study on the construction systems of Malay houses in the Malay Peninsula

Abstract

Malay houses have a great variation in construction systems despite their consistencies. With the coding method shown in this study, construction elements and their relations are presented in both words and symbols. In this study there are 95 house cases that have been coded and studied according to their construction processes. The study shows that the construction systems of Malay houses are composed of the house and its encroachment, and each house is composed of supports and a roof. The two major systems of support are the “bridge” and “box”. Their roof variation generates five sub-systems of house construction. Encroachments can be divided into encroached semi-house (Es), encroached house (Eh), and encroached selang (Esg). There are 15 Es, 3 Eh, and 2 Esg in the 95 cases studied. The completion of house construction coding facilitates the description of the house construction, comprehension of uniqueness and limitation of house forms, along with the establishment of Malay house construction systems. The evolution and adaptability of the Malay house construction system can thus be understood more precisely.