Colonialism on Spatial Transformation: A Socio-Spatial Analysis of the Outdoor Transitional Spaces of Sri Lankan House

Abstract

Sri Lanka, under the British from the early 19th century to 1948, saw a rapid growth in urban areas and the emergence of metropolitan bourgeoisie. Increasing demand for housing was met through housing schemes and private houses on smaller plots. Previous colonials, the Portuguese and the Dutch, adapted and continued the traditional house forms where outdoor transitional spaces such as verandas and courtyards remained as an integral part responding to climate and socio-cultural needs. However, the British period saw the advent of two noteworthy types of housing—a smaller re-adapted traditional house and an imported version of an all-enclosed house. This study evaluates the shift in socio-spatial role of the outdoor transitional spaces of single-unit houses from pre-colonial time up to independence using graphical analysis of the plan form combined with interviews on use of space.