Influences of the natural environment on traditional settlement patterns: A case study of Hakka traditional settlements in Eastern Guangdong Province

Abstract

This study surveyed 89 traditional Hakka settlements in Dabu County, eastern Guangdong Province, China. The influences of the natural environment on settlement patterns were investigated via spatial and statistical analysis. Natural factors such as terrain, rivers and sunlight influence the construction of settlements at both regional and local levels. This gives settlements certain characteristics of distribution, scale, hierarchy and morphology. Although natural factors do affect settlement patterns, they do so indirectly through their influences on nearby agricultural resources. Restricted by the scarcity of farmland, the Hakka people have often had to settle in marginal landscapes prone to floods or with sub-optimal sunlight. Subsistence is sometimes only achieved by the labour-intensive farming of terraced hillsides. As such, the Hakka have struck a delicate balance with nature. In summary, this closed agrarian society is fundamentally dependent on the availability of farmland, indicating that the Hakka people suffered great survival pressures after migrating to the region.