From the ethnological and geographical perspective, the rural
house is an important key to settlement structure. Based on
typical characteristics of roof and house plans, farmstead types
show regional differentiation and reflect specific aspects of the local
way of life.
The rapidly-changing rural houses of Europe have been studied
from a wide range of perspectives including ethnology, geography
and related fields.
I. A Review : Studies of European Rural Houses
Numerous studies- have been made on European rural houses,
but many of earlier ones dealt only with a visual house landscape
or classification by shapes. But following the assertions and
interpretation of W. Muller-Wille and A. Demangeon a dynamic
trend emerged in rural house-type studies, focusing on such themes
as building materials, roofing and house plan, functional aspects,
the genesis of house types and modes of transmission of culture.
II. Open-Air Museums in Europe (Especially Rural Houses
"Folk Architecture" in Open-Air Museums)
This is a report of an ethnological and geographical survey
conducted in 1971, 1978, of 37 European Open-Air Museums.
III. Regional Variation in European Rural Houses (General
View)
(1) Roof types and building materials
wooden construction (log or sawn lumber), stone, traditional
half-timbering (fachwerk), brick, clay walls (including sundried
bricks)
(2) House plan and farmstead types
the unitary farmstead (single-story, multistory) the multiplestructure
farmstead (closed courtyard farmstead, open or
scattered farmstead)
European house types illustrate that for any one example there
are variations of roof types, house plans, farmstead types and
building materials.