Residention Changes And Cultural Adaptation Investigation Into The Old City District In Kashgar,Xinjiang

Buildings are objects that cut across time and history. They also constitute themost important part of the material folk culture. Civilization and developments of aparticular era and of a particular ethnic group are all engraved in their bodies. Becausehouses are inhabited by people, over time they begin to reflect the inner worlds oftheir inhabitants; the houses become imprinted with their life. Specific ways of lifeand specific folk customs are also produced through the interaction between the houseand its masters. It becomes gradually imbued with the spirit of its inhabitants.The present study focuses spatially on the Xinfuyuan compound (no.1compound) which provided houses for voluntary resettlements from the area of theold town in Kashgar. Through this particular case study I analyze the process ofrelocation, transition of residence and the issue of accommodation and adaptation tothe new living environment. The analysis reveals the change that occurs in the life oflocal Uyghur residents following the resettlement away from the traditional old towncourtyard-style houses into new, urban multi-storey buildings. The analysis exploresthe influence that the shift in residence has on the life of the resettled people andhighlights the process of accommodation and re-adjustment. My focus is on theexploration of change the occurred during the transition period in terms of dwellingstyle, house layout, way of living, relationship with neighbors, professional and kinrelations, life-cycle rituals and others.My study reveals that the change of residential environment resulted in a seriesof adjustments that affected, among others, residential living patterns, family structureand elderly care. Following the change in the material environment, the local residentshave actively re-adjusted their lives, habits and ways to the change. For instance, theyneeded to renegotiate and newly structure the question of authority in the house orrelations among neighbors.The objective of the thesis is to demonstrate the changes and adaptations in thelives of resettled residents based on the case study conducted in Kashgar. It shows theimpact that the change in the residential environment has on various aspects of life ofthe local population. It discusses how people in the situation of the objective changein their residential environment due to urbanization (in terms of house form, layout of the houses, neighborhood relations and others) and facing the challenge of departingfrom the familiar surrounding, adjust to these changes and renegotiate their life in thenew setting. It also investigates the change that occurs in folk customs upon movingto new residential compounds characterized by a different organization of space. In abroader perspective, the present study offers an insight into some common challengesfaced by city residents worldwide during a change that transforms traditionalresidential neighborhoods into modern living compounds.