Tracking local dwelling changes in the Chittagong Hills

What is it about?

Historically, geographers, anthropologists and colonial British administrators (1860–1947) frequently mentioned two ethno-geographical categories – khoungtha and toungtha – when referring to the tribal groups in the Chittagong Hills of Bangladesh. Some of these early works considered the livelihood patterns of these groups and the nature of their social and economic interactions. However, a discussion of the changes to their vernacular built environment has escaped any serious investigation. Using empirical findings, this article examines the changes to architectural practices of lowland and highland groups in the socially and ethnically complex region of the Chittagong Hills.

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Why is it important?

This article is very important to understand the dynamics of changes to the built setting of highland and lowland groups in the CHT. It examines changes outside standard disciplinary assumptions while drawing on various factors such as ethnic category, religious patterns, economic practice, building techniques and spatial changes. This is likely to be very useful for studying culturally prioritized built setting of ethnic groups where dwelling changes over time are subtle, difficult and challenging for researchers to understand.