Exploring Local Wisdom for Contemporary Housing and Settlement Design: Empirical Study of Sundanese Vernacular Settlements in West Java, Indonesia

International Journal of Civil Engineering

© 2025 by SSRG - IJCE Journal

Volume 12 Issue 12

Year of Publication : 2025

Authors : Purnama Salura, Bambang Sugiharto, Reginaldo Christophori Lake, Stephanie Clarissa

10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I12P112

How to Cite?

Purnama Salura, Bambang Sugiharto, Reginaldo Christophori Lake, Stephanie Clarissa, "Exploring Local Wisdom for Contemporary Housing and Settlement Design: Empirical Study of Sundanese Vernacular Settlements in West Java, Indonesia," SSRG International Journal of Civil Engineering, vol. 12,  no. 12, pp. 130-142, 2025. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I12P112

Abstract:

The motivation of this study is due to the Sundanese vernacular settlements’ growing needs in terms of reconstruction and relocation in West Java, Indonesia, as affected by architectural design failures and natural disasters. The approaches implemented recently are not thoroughly supportive, as they either involve the conventional methods that are vulnerable or the foreign approach, which is less culturally acceptable. This study concerns the initial stages in generating an architectural design for the Sundanese houses as a manifestation of local identity. Kampung Dukuh Luar is the focus of the case study. This research conducts an architectural ethnosemantic approach incorporated with empirical observation on the architects’ and cultural experts’ focused group discussion. The design foundation of the contemporary Sundanese architecture is observed in this study, particularly in maintaining the mythical values for rational aims. Moreover, the innovations in construction materials and techniques are additionally discussed. The research finding contributes to the improvement of the community life for resilient and traditionally suitable housing-related issues, and at the same time, enriches the vernacular architecture insights. Thus, the study contributes to the realization of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on sustainable cities and communities.

Keywords:

Architecture, Contemporary, Settlement, Sundanese, Vernacular.

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