Villages on the Plain: Vernacular Settlements in the Loess Tableland of the Guanzhong Region, Northwest China

These words by the writer Chen Zhongshi (1942–2016) describe the scenery of the loess tableland in early spring, a geomorphology unique to the Guanzhong region in northwest China. Because of their location in the transition zone between the river valley terraces and the Loess Plateau, numerous strata-shaped loess tablelands with broad and flat ground surfaces were formed, cut by gullies and valleys. The residents conventionally call them yuan (plains), the most prominent of which is the White Dear Plain, vividly captured by Chen Zhongshi. Erya, the oldest surviving Chinese dictionary, notes, ‘an expansive and open field is called ping (flat land), and a broad and flat field is called yuan (level plain)’. The Tang-dynasty poet Wang Wei (699–759 CE), in his poem Dwelling in Idleness by the Wheel-Rim River, records, ‘Often I lean on a tree brushing my house, and gaze at the villages on the distant plain.’ The character yuan clearly embraces the scope of landscape, as well as the geomorphological concept, represented by the homophone yuan denoting the meaning of tableland. The sites chosen for vernacular settlements are mostly close to the plain and by the water, where villagers can live on the plain and gaze into the distance when climbing atop. This geographical location gives rise to suitable patterns for building practice and inhabitation experiences. After being transformed by human construction activities, the landscape of the natural loess tableland becomes a part of local life. This interdependent world is a perfect combination of the works of humanity and nature, providing a habitat for the harmonious coexistence of people and nature.