Journals Information
Civil Engineering and Architecture Vol. 13(1), pp. 506 - 521
DOI: 10.13189/cea.2025.130132
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An Investigation of Boat Symbolism in West Lampung Traditional Houses, Indonesia
A. Asrul Sani 1,2, Edi Purwanto 3,*, Wijayanti 3
1 Doctoral Program in Architecture and Urbanism, Diponegoro University, Indonesia
2 Study Program in Architecture, Sumatera Institute of Technology, Indonesia
3 Department of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering, Diponegoro University, Indonesia
ABSTRACT
The Kenali traditional houses in West Lampung that still survive today, built and shaped by the cultural heritage of boats, show original and unique characteristics. Ship cloth and boat toponyms have shown their influence on Kenali traditional house, especially related to the conception of belief. Through a case study of five Kenali traditional houses, this paper aims to investigate, identify and analyze important elements regarding the brief history of the morphology of the Kenali village, local terminology, general and specific architectural characteristics of traditional houses, as well as the social culture of the Kenali people in West Lampung. This research is based on observations and in-depth interviews within the framework of interpretive qualitative research. As a first step, we identified several local terminologies related to boats sourced from the results of interviews, then conducted in-depth and intensive observations on ten observation units. In the final stage, the interpretation process was continued in stages to obtain the meaning of the boat symbol embedded in the Kenali traditional house. The findings of this study show that the symbolism of the boat has been embedded in the architecture of the traditional Kenali house. The bilik kebik room is the main bedroom intended for the eldest male child through hereditary or patrilineal kinship. It symbolizes steering the boat, the eldest son symbolizes the boat's helmsman, and the son represents the ancestor. Therefore, the house symbolizes a boat where ancestors are the orientation of life through the inheritance of good values in the transition of the human life cycle from birth to death. This paper hopes that the results of this study will provide a better understanding of the cultural context in the practice of spatial content of the Kenali traditional house. In addition, these findings can enrich the treasury in the search for Indonesia's identity as a maritime country.
KEYWORDS
Patrilineal Kinship, Boat Symbol, Structure and Construction, Traditional Architecture, Coastal Lampung, Maritime Country
Cite This Paper in IEEE or APA Citation Styles
(a). IEEE Format:
[1] A. Asrul Sani , Edi Purwanto , Wijayanti , "An Investigation of Boat Symbolism in West Lampung Traditional Houses, Indonesia," Civil Engineering and Architecture, Vol. 13, No. 1, pp. 506 - 521, 2025. DOI: 10.13189/cea.2025.130132.
(b). APA Format:
A. Asrul Sani , Edi Purwanto , Wijayanti (2025). An Investigation of Boat Symbolism in West Lampung Traditional Houses, Indonesia. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 13(1), 506 - 521. DOI: 10.13189/cea.2025.130132.