This document discusses different types of vernacular buildings and structures found in Ireland and Zambia. It describes hearth lobby houses and direct-entry houses that are distinguished by the placement of the door and hearth. Outshots, which housed beds, and insakas, structures used for gathering and cooking, are also summarized. The construction and uses of granaries, pit latrines, and variations in homestead layouts are briefly outlined.

1. Types of Vernacular Buildings

2. INTRODUCTION
House Types: Some have tried to distinguish vernacular houses on the basis
of the position of their hearth. The hearth can be on a gable or in a central
position. However this apparently straightforward classification is made difficult
when additional rooms are added beyond a gable, making a gable hearth into a
central hearth. A more useful method of classifying vernacular houses lies in the
relationship between the door and the hearth.
Hearth Lobby houses:
In this type of house a wall, called the jamb wall, of brick
or wood is positioned between the front door and the
fireplace. It was usual to have a small hole or window in
the jamb wall to allow light into the hearth and to allow
those inside to see the door. Often there was also a small
window in the rear wall providing further light to the
hearth area. Work by the geographers Des McCourt and
Estyn Evans suggests that this house type is not
indigenous to Ireland but was introduced from England in
the early seventeenth century. Hearth lobby houses are
not found, except for occasional outliers, in North
Antrim, County Derry, West Tyrone or East Down.

3. Direct-entry Houses
Some houses in Ireland were constructed with a front door opening into the room
with the fireplace. The earliest houses of this type that remain are byre-dwellings
where people and animals were housed together. Milking cows needed to be kept
indoors in Winter and during the night in other seasons other than Summer. Byre-dwellings
had doors opposite to each linked by a flagstone floor. The animals were
tethered to the wall opposite the fireplace and a drain led downhill from that area
to the outside. Evidence for these byre-dwellings in recent times in Ireland shows
them to have been distributed
A number of alternative forms seems to have derived from byre-dwellings. In some
cases the byre was separated from the main living area with a solid wall with
separate access for the animals. Often this allowed the room where the byre would
have been to become a bedroom. If a bedroom already existed beyond the
fireplace, the 'new' room may have become a formal parlour. These would have been
three unit houses, and occasionally four unit houses would also have been
constructed. By the mid-nineteenth Century it became more common to have
fireplaces in other units to heat them. In two unit houses this led to a chimney
being built in each gable. Three units meant that a chimney would be built between
the two gable chimneys, in a asymmetric position.

5. Outshots
In many areas in the north and west of Ireland, the bed outshot is a feature of
vernacular architecture, as here in a modernised cottage close to Malin Head.
This extension, usually to the rear of the dwelling, housed a bed next to the
kitchen hearth. Traditionally this bed was used by the oldest inhabitants of the
house. A shallow bed outshot meant that much of the bed protruded into the
kitchen floor area but many outshots were deep enough to accommodate the bed
entirely. The bed was screened by curtains or, more commonly in Donegal, by
wooden doors.Since the bed outshot is found in direct entry houses which have
derived from byre dwellings, it is unclear why they are not generally found in of
County Antrim and Down, for example. Perhaps they existed in the past but there
is little evidence to support this. They date back at least to the early 19th Century
and are a traditional element of vernacular buildings. Since they co-existed with
houses without outshots, and in many areas were in the minority, they are not
thought to provide the basis for a separate oushe type.

6. Insakas
An insaka is a structure which is similar in western
thought as a gazebo. In Zambia these structures have
significant roles in social life in village life and the
preparations of food. Insaka is a Bemba word for "place
to gather" It is derived from the verb isa " to come
together".
Culturally it is very important!!
A cooking insaka is a small hut which a fire is kept.
Women socialize around this nucleus of activity. Men
socialize in the insaka which is more public, where one
greets a visitor. The men and the women have different
accepted social areas.
Traditionally people would gather underneath a tree. The
tree naturally enclosed a space and offered protection
from sun and the rain.An insaka basically encloses a
space. This for protection from the elements while
allowing for work or socializing.

7. Main Functions Of Insakas
•Cooking
•Social
Construction of Insakas
Insakas are constructed in all shapes and
sizes.The structures provide protection from
the elements, mainly wind but also rain and sun.
1. A shallow foundation is dug and
burnt bricks ( or pole and mud) is
built to a height of about 1 meter.
2. Poles are placed into the ground
about .5 meter deep. It is also common
for the poles to be placed before the
walls are constructed. The poles are
either plastered into the walls or just
sit outside of them.
3. After the poles are built for the
roof structure, thatch is added on top.
Poles and Walls: The support poles can either be
embedded into the walls with bricks plastered
with them or poles are placed just outside of
the walls.

8. Functional Structures
Some structures are used in everyday village life for
storing food and other crops. Even though they are small in
size they play a huge role in the pattern of village society.
The structure is raised off the ground about .5 meter to
protect it from moisture. It is similar in concept and
construction as a grainy but at a smaller scale.
Pit latrines are open toilets (no plumbing). The
walls are constructed of either bricks or pole
and mud. Floor is constructed of poles or
timbers crossing over opening and covered and
packed with earth. The pit, on average, is 4m
deep and could last up to 2 years, depending on
use. The pit is usually treated with lime.

9. Granaries
Granaries is one of another important structure for storage of
food and a common vernacular structure.
Construction
Step 1: The base of the granary is usually
raised off the ground to; prevent from animals
from eating, to keep it off of the wet ground,
and to allow for ventilation underneath.
Step 2:Support poles for the granary depends on the size desired and
availability of materials. 12 pegs ( on average) are used to support
cross poles. Pegs have "T' shape to take in cross poles.
Step 3:The pole and mud structure is tall and skinny,
and has a large overhang.The bamboo structure is
larger and squatter. This could be left unplastered.
Step 4:The roof structure is usually removable. It is a
thatched roof, with a large overhang to protect mud walls
from the rain. The roof is removable to allow for access
inside, or from a side panel.The connections are raised off
of the ground. The walls are usually woven with bamboo and
thus allows for ventilation.

10. Components of Granarey
1. Big support poles
2. Roof added
3. Vertical supporting poles
4. Base plastered over
5. Smaller support poles
6. All plastered
7. Woven basket raised on base

11. Homesteads
Homestead layouts vary, are similar in nature, but are
not identical.. The structures themselves are quite
small but outdoor spaces are utilized because of warm
temperatures.The combined structures and spaces of a
homestead equals the size of a house in the U.S.
Homestead Layout: Each homestead usually has
these spaces and structures. Variances do occur but
this is seen as typical.
•Latrine
•Functional Area
•Social/ Public Area
•Homestead
•Fields
•Nature Buffer
Tall grass or bush defines the homestead.The homestead area is trodden, well worn, where
grass does not grow.Connections are made to other homesteads by walking paths.
Many homesteads comprise of extended families; the fathers house, then the sons
and their wives and families. Arrangements of homesteads vary from area to area but
3 main variations exist.

12. These homesteads are very open to each other with no major barriers in-between..
Separations are achieved by layouts of individual homesteads,
creating courtyards. Plantings, or nature are used for separation of spaces and
homesteads.
These homesteads are rarer; yards are completely enclosed by bushes or
hedges. The plantings are uniform in size and placement, and this effect
creates "streets" through a village.
Various Layouts
These following pictures are examples of different layouts of the homestead. Some
homesteads or yards are for single houses while others are comprised of many
houses in a single family. Some homesteads are enclosed by shrubs or other natural
features while others are open to others.

13. The end