Chinese architecture facts for kids

The Forbidden City

Chinese architecture is all about the amazing buildings found in China. Sometimes, it also means buildings outside China that look just like those in China. This style of building has been super important in East Asia. Many other countries and cultures, like Korea, Vietnam, and Japan, have copied Chinese building ideas. Two famous examples are the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City.

The basic ways Chinese buildings are put together haven't changed much over time. Only the small decorative details have changed. Since the Tang Dynasty (which was a long, long time ago!), Chinese architecture has really shaped how buildings look in many nearby countries.

Types of Chinese Buildings
- Homes for Everyday People
- Buildings for the Emperor
City Planning and Design
Images for kids
See also

Types of Chinese Buildings

Homes for Everyday People

The houses of regular people, like government workers, shopkeepers, or farmers, usually followed a simple plan. The middle of the house often had a special place for gods and ancestors. This area was also used for celebrations. Bedrooms for older family members were on either side of this central space. The two "wings" of the building (which Chinese people sometimes called "guardian dragons") were for younger family members. This is also where the living room, dining room, and kitchen were located.

Sometimes, families grew very large, so they would add one or two more "wings." This made the building U-shaped, with a courtyard in the middle. This courtyard was great for farm work. However, merchants and government workers often built a big, impressive gate at the front to close off their courtyard. There were even laws about how buildings could be built! The number of floors, the length of the building, and the colors used depended on how important the owner was. Some commoners in dangerous areas built strong, shared fortresses called Tulou to stay safe.

Buildings for the Emperor

Certain building features were only allowed for the Emperor of China. For example, only imperial buildings could have yellow roof tiles. Yellow was the Emperor's special color! You can still see yellow roof tiles on most buildings inside the Forbidden City. But the Temple of Heaven is different; it has blue roof tiles to represent the sky.

Roofs on imperial buildings almost always have special wooden supports called "dougong" (bracket sets). Only the biggest religious buildings also used these. The wooden columns and walls of imperial buildings were often painted red. Black was also a popular color, especially for pagodas. People believed that black helped gods come down to Earth.

The Chinese 5-clawed dragon was a special symbol for the first Ming emperor. It was used as decoration on beams, pillars, and doors of imperial buildings. But strangely, you would never find dragons on the roofs of these buildings.

Only buildings used by the imperial family could have nine jian (間), which means nine spaces between columns. Also, only the gates used by the Emperor could have five arches. The middle arch was always just for the Emperor! Ancient Chinese people really liked the color red. Buildings usually faced south to avoid the cold winds from the north.

Numbers were very important in Imperial Architecture. The number nine was often used because it's the biggest single digit. This is why the Forbidden City in Beijing is said to have 9,999.9 rooms. This is just a tiny bit less than the mythical 10,000 rooms in heaven!

City Planning and Design

Chinese cities were planned using ideas from fengshui and the well-field system. Fengshui is about arranging things to be in harmony with nature. The well-field system was a way of dividing land that has been used since ancient times. These ideas helped decide how cities were laid out, often using a special "magic square" called the luoshu.

Images for kids

A model of Jiangzhai, an ancient Yangshao village.
A colorful ceramic model of a mansion from the Tang Dynasty.
The Wonderland of Fanghu in the Old Summer Palace, destroyed in 1860.
The Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City.
A tomb mural from the Northern Qi period showing a hall with a tiled roof.
A model of a Chinese Siheyuan courtyard house in Beijing.
Han yuan tu by Li Rongjin, Yuan dynasty.
Jianzhang Palace, Yuan dynasty.
Que towers along the walls of Tang-era Chang'an, from an 8th-century mural.
Nanchan Temple (Wutai), built in the late 8th century during the Tang Dynasty.
A timber hall built in 857 during the Tang Dynasty, at the Buddhist Foguang Temple.
Models of watchtowers and other buildings from the Han dynasty.
A stone-carved pillar-gate, or que, from the Han dynasty.
Ruins of a granary built during the Han dynasty.
Remnants of the Great Wall of Qi from the Warring States Period.
The Great Wall of China at Mutianyu, built during the Ming dynasty.
A pavilion inside the Zhuozheng Garden in Suzhou.
The Zhaozhou Bridge, built from 595 to 605 during the Sui dynasty.
The Gate detail at the Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan, Mongolia, showing Chinese influences.
Temples at the top of Mount Taishan, with structures built since the 3rd century BC.
Nanshan Temple in Longkou, Shandong.
Lianhuashan Temple in Dalian.
Songjiang Square Pagoda, built in the 11th century.
The Nine Pinnacle Pagoda, built in the 8th century during the Tang Dynasty.
A Chinese pavilion instead of a minaret at the Great Mosque of Xi'an.
The Fogong Temple Pagoda, built in 1056, the oldest fully wooden pagoda in China.
The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi'an, rebuilt in 704 during the Tang Dynasty.
The Songyue Pagoda, built in 523 AD.
The Liuhe Pagoda of Hangzhou, built in 1165 AD during the Song Dynasty.
Hua Si Gongbei (mausoleum of Ma Laichi) in Linxia City.
A timber hall built in 857 during the Tang Dynasty, at the Buddhist Foguang Temple.
The Liaodi Pagoda, the tallest pre-modern Chinese pagoda, built in 1055.
Yungang Grottoes（云冈石窟）, Datong（大同）, China.
Temples in Mount Wutai（五台山）.
The Grand East Hall of the Foguang Temple（佛光寺东大殿）, in Mount Wutai.
Birdview of the Zunsheng Temple（尊胜寺） in Mount Wutai.
Goddess Temple of Jinci（晋祠圣母殿）, Taiyuan.
Pingyao（平遥） City Wall.
A market street in Pingyao ancient city.
Wang Family Compound（王家大院）, in Lingshi.
Qiao Family Compound（乔家大院）, Jingyi Court in Qi County.
Chang Family Studies, Yuci.
Yaodong（窑洞） in Lingshi（灵石） County, Shanxi.
The Ho Ancestral Hall in Panyu, Guangzhou; built in 14th century.
Chan Clan Academy in Gwongzau, an example of Lingnan architecture.
A cold alley in Chan Clan Academy.
A monument in honor of the Cantonese folk hero Wong Fei-hung, in Foshan.
A Mazu temple in Shek Pai Wan, Hong Kong.
Nanfeng Ancestral Temple at Chiàu-an, Changchow, Hokkien.
Cut porcelain carving decorations above the main door of Nanfeng Ancestral Temple.
A Mazu temple in Chiayi City, Taiwan.
A shrine for Tudigong, a Taoist earth deity, in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Front entrance of Thian Hock Keng Temple, Singapore.
Confucian academy in Fuzhou.
Jiangxi's indigenous architecture – Liukeng village.
A "Pai tau uk" (牌頭屋) in Nanchang, Jiangxi.
A residence in Jinxi county, Fuzhou.
Entrance to a residence in a hutong.
Shikumen in Xintiandi lanes in Shanghai.
Great Wall of Qi in Shandong.
Du Fu Thatched Cottage in Sichuan.
Jinci in the Jin Chinese-speaking province of Shanxi.
An enclosing courtyard from the Astor Court in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, USA.
The yellow roof tiles and red wall in the Forbidden City (Palace Museum) grounds in Beijing.
A pottery model of a well from the Han dynasty.