A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF CHANGING ARCHITECTURE, IDENTITY AND DWELLING PATTERNS OF THE TOTO COMMUNITY IN WEST BENGAL
Abstract
The research is anthropological in the sense that it highlights the changes which crept into Toto architecture, society and culture studied on a case of study: Totos of Totopara as one among India’s smallest primitive vulnerable tribal groups. The study traces the changing landscape as traditional bamboo and thatch huts evolve into modern pucca structures, using anthropological fieldwork, interviews and spatial mapping. It examines the virtues and defects of vernacular architecture, explains the ecological and symbolic reasons for houses' shapes, sizes and floor details; describes their construction as well as what social, economic governmental or environmental factors are gonna change them. The study also refers to the evolving attitudes toward vernacular heritage among younger people. It’s also a story of cultural loss and a heightened consciousness of the need to conserve that culture. The study increases the understanding of how architecture works as a dynamic expression of identity, acculturation and tradition in small ethno-cultural groups.
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