Dai Bamboo House

　　The bamboo house is the traditional dwelling of the Dai people in Xishuangbanna. This "stilt" style architecture was originally built primarily using bamboo—bamboo pillars, bamboo beams, bamboo rafters, bamboo rafters, bamboo doors, bamboo walls, and in some places even split bamboo used as roof tiles. Because it is mainly constructed from bamboo and features high stilts with two levels, it is called a bamboo house. The upper floor is for living, while the lower level is used to store items and house livestock and poultry.

　　The Dai people in Xishuangbanna call their bamboo houses "Hen." "Hen" is short for "Huang Hen"; the term "Huang Hen" is said to be a homophone of "Hong Heng." "Hong Heng" refers to the posture of a phoenix spreading its wings as if about to take flight. Folklore says that the ancestor of bamboo house construction was Pa Ya Sang Mu Di. Pa Ya Sang Mu Di had built both a flat-roofed leaf house and a dog-head shack known in the Dai language as "Du Ma Xie," but neither could effectively shelter against wind and rain. While pondering the design of a proper dwelling, a celestial being transformed into a phoenix and flew through thunder and rain to appear before him, lowering its head and tail, slightly spreading its wings, and standing firmly on the ground in a pose of readiness to fly but not yet taking off. Inspired by the phoenix, Pa Ya Sang Mu Di constructed a high-stilted bamboo house with a four-sloped roof and named it "Hong Heng," which later gradually evolved into "Huang Hen" and then "Hen."

　　Traditional bamboo houses are divided into three types: the Pa Ya Sang Tu Di style, the Ma Ha Sa Ti style, and the Hen Men style.

　　The Dai people have a fine tradition of "the whole village coming to help when a family builds a new house." When someone is building a new home, all they need to do is blow a buffalo horn, and villagers will voluntarily come to assist. After the new house is completed, a housewarming ceremony is held to thank the helpers and also to ward off evil spirits.

　　The housewarming ceremony is usually held at noon. Once the time is set, the elder presiding over the ceremony first recites

　　blessings, celebrating the joy of moving into the new home, and then announces the ascent to the new house. On the day of the housewarming, the homeowner invites male and female singers (Za Ha) to perform the "Housewarming Song" during the feast.

　　Dai bamboo houses are all standalone courtyards, enclosed by neat and attractive bamboo fences (short walls are also common). Inside the courtyard, flowers and fruit trees are planted, creating a shaded, lush environment with banana leaves acting like "fans," green bamboo swaying, fruit trees providing shade, and blooming flowers adding decoration—making each bamboo house feel like a small garden. Over the centuries, bamboo houses have undergone major changes from bamboo structures to wooden and brick-concrete structures. The ancient houses with bamboo pillars, bamboo beams, and bamboo tiles have become "historical relics," but the name "bamboo house" remains as vibrant as ever.