Rammed-earth buildings are large residential houses popular among the Hakkas in Fujian Province, Guangdong Province, south Jiangxi Province and east Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Their long history, special style, magnificent shape and delicate structure make them unparalleled among folk residential houses.

In Chinese history, there were two large-scale migrations of the Han people from the Central Plains to the southern part of China in the Jin Dynasty (265-420) and the Song Dynasty (618-907), respectively, due to the chaos caused by wars in the north, which forced distinguished families to move southwards. They continuously advanced forward, and settled down in Lingnan (south of the Five Ridges, and covering Guangdong and Guangxi), where it was quite backward at that time. They lived in compact communities and formed Hakkas. Rammed-earth building is the most representative of their traditional residential houses.

There are two kinds of rammed-earth buildings: square or rectangular and circular ones. Both have a large space in the center and come in various sizes. The average structure has three or more stories, with all but the first floor lined with windows. Some of the windows are framed in white. The low-angled roof (except in the central space, which is open to the sky) is covered with tiles and supported by wooden beams.

The building's characteristic feature is the height of the first round of constructions, which can stand as tall as a five-storied house. A central courtyard is located inside. The ancestral hall is generally situated on the ground floor along the axis facing the main courtyard door; alternately, a single-storied house can be built within the courtyard to form the second, third, forth and even fifth circle. The ancestral hall is located at the center of the central inner circle, which is the place for ancestor worship and holding grand clan ceremonies. The mud wall of the outer circle is exceptionally thick -- often more than two meters. The first and second floors serve as the kitchen and granary. No window opens to the outside, and only a very small perforation is allowed. From the third floor and above are living rooms with windows that can also be used for shooting, with a strong defensive characteristic.

Yijing Rammed-earth Building

Square rammed-earth buildings are best represented by the Yijing Building, and round rammed-earth buildings by the Chengqi Building in Yongding. Built in 1851 -- the first year of Xianfeng's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) -- the Yijing Building lies in Shangyang Village of Gaobo Town in Yongding of Fujian Province. Its outside wall is 136 meters wide from east to west and 76 meters long from north to south, with an area of 10,336 square meters. The 5.5-stories main tower located at the back of the building is 17 meters high -- the highest among present rammed-earth buildings in Yongding County. There are two four-storied buildings to the left and right of the main building joined to another four-storied building, the Zhongting Tower, forming a large, square, rammed-earth building. There are also two small schools in the building children can study. Between the two schools lies a stone ground with a large arch built in front of it at six meters high and four meters wide. Behind the main tower lies a garden, fishpond, cattle pen, etc. Altogether, there are 280 rooms and 51 halls of different sizes in the building that are distributed in a regular and orderly fashion.

Chengqi Rammed-earth Building

Built in 1709 -- the 48th reigning year of Kangxi during the Qing Dynasty -- the Chengqi Building lies in Gaotou Village in Guzhu Town. The structure, which is listed in the Dictionary of Scenic Spots in China, has a diameter of 73 meters and a corridor perimeter of 229.34 meters. The building consists of three circles and a center. The four-storied outside circle is 11.4 meters high with 72 rooms. The second circle has two stories with 40 rooms on each floor. The inside circle only has one story with 32 rooms. The ancestral hall lies in the center of the building. Altogether there are 400 rooms, three gates and two wells in the castle, covering an area of 5,376.17 square meters with more than 400 inhabitants from over 60 households. Due to the building's large scale and unique design, there is a model of it displayed at the Small-Man-Nation Park in Taiwan and the Beautiful-China Park in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. In 1986, a set of China dwelling house stamps was issued by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. Among them, the stamp of Fujian dwelling house adopts its design from the Chengqi Building. The stamp was chosen as the best one in Japan that same year.

The rammed-earth buildings boast very good ventilation. The defensive buildings are also quake-proof, fireproof, and can guard against theft. Due to the thick walls, they are also very cool in the summer and warm in the winter.