Beijing is always referred to as Old Beijing, and Si He Yuan 四合院, otherwise known as Quadrangle, a type of housing unique to the capital, can best display the city’s age-old history and unique culture.

Si He Yuan is a classical architecture style of residential housing of Beijing citizens dated from the Ming Dynasty. The narrow streets between the Si He Yuan are called “Hutong”s. A single implementation of Si He Yuan comprises of garden surrounded by four houses and protected by high walls. Si He Yuan with Hutong which have been very familiar for people, having a history of more than 700 years now suffer from the urban renovation and economic development of China, and they are slowly disappearing from Beijing.

For those who want to experience the local customs as well as the history and culture of Beijing, the hutong and Si He Yuan (quadrangle) are indispensible parts of a visit as unique Beijing architectural structures.

Hutong (Alley) —

A hutong 胡同 is an ancient city alley or lane typical in Beijing, where hutongs run into the several thousand. Surrounding the Forbidden City, many were built during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. In these dynasties the emperors planned the city and arranged the residential areas according to the etiquette systems. The center of the city of Beijing was the royal palace — the Forbidden City.

The word “hutong” came from the Mongolian language about 700 years ago. It originates from the word “hottog” in Mongolian meaning “water well.” Where there was a spring or well, there were residents. The word “hottog” became “hutong” after it was introduced into Beijing.

Hutong means street, lane and alley, and is in fact the passage formed by lines of siheyuan (quadrangle) where most Beijing residents live. One hutong connects with another, and siheyuan connects with siheyuan, to form a block, and blocks join with blocks to form the whole city.

In old China, there was a clear definition for a street or a lane. A 36-meter-wide road was called a big street. An 18-meter-wide one was called a small street. A 9-meter-wide lane was called a hutong. The shortest one is just 10 meters long, and the narrowest hutong is only about 40 centimeters wide. Some hutong have more than 20 turns. Most of the hutongs in Beijing are in east-west or south-north directions. That has resulted from the need for houses to face south so as to take in more sunshine.

In the rich and historical culture of Beijing, the hutong has a very special and important position. It is not only a kind of architecture, but also serves as a window into Beijing folk life and the “encyclopedia of the history and culture of Beijing.”

A Standard Quadrangle —-

A standard Si He Yuan usually consists of houses on its four sides, and the house which stands at the north end and faces the south is called the “main house” or “north house,” the ones on both sides are called “side houses,” and the one which stands at the south end and faces north is called “opposite house” or “south house.”

The Si He Yuan’s gate is usually at the southeastern corner according to the traditional concepts of the five elements that were believed to compose the universe, and the eight diagrams of divination. Normally there is a screen-wall inside the gate so that outsiders cannot see directly into the courtyard and it is also believed to protect the houses from evil spirits. Outside the gate of some large siheyuan, there is a pair of stone lions on each side. Such a residence offers space, comfort and quiet privacy. It is also good for security as well as protection against dust and storms.

The gates are usually painted vermilion and have large copper door rings. Usually a whole family lives in compound. The elder generation lives in the main house, the younger generation live in the side houses, and the south house is usually their sitting room or study. All the Si He Yuans, from their size and style one could tell whether they belonged to private individuals or the powerful and rich. The simple house of an ordinary person has only one courtyard with the main building on the north facing, across the court, the southern building with rooms of northern exposure and flanked on the sides by the buildings of eastern and western chambers. The mansion of a titled or very rich family would have two or more courtyards, one behind another, with the main building separated from the view of the southern building by a wall with a fancy gate or by a guoting (walk-through pavilion). Behind the main building there would be a lesser house in the rear and, connected with the main quadrangle, small “corner courtyards”.Not only residences but also ancient palaces, government offices, temples and monasteries were built basically on the pattern of the siheyuan, a common feature of traditional Chinese architecture.

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