Two New ways of traditional Village Protection

"list protection" is undoubtedly the most important and important for the protection of traditional villages. however, this way can not "dominate the world", and it has become a consensus to find a more comprehensive and effective solution and protection. Treating the adjacent and related villages as a whole is conducive to the mutual support of the village humanities, the inheritance of historical memory and the maintenance of traditional vitality. On the contrary, if all villages are "protected" in an across-the-board manner, it will inevitably lead to herbalization and landscaping. Open-air museum is a collection of scattered and precious houses scattered in the countryside, concentrated protection and display, its significance is to preserve the most difficult to preserve human heritage-historical dwellings and details of life. It must be emphasized that historic buildings are the most valuable only if they are protected in situ. Of course, if they cannot be preserved in place, we cannot let them "sit back and wait for death". In this context, the use of open-air museums for centralized protection and use is indeed one of the best choices.

At present, the protection of traditional villages in our country is to use name recording, that is, "directory protection", that is, villages with complete traditional forms, rich relics and high historical and cultural value are selected and identified one by one, included in the list and protected. This way is undoubtedly the most important and important for the protection of traditional villages. However, is it possible to "dominate the world" in this way? Are there any areas that are not covered by "directory protection" that need to be assisted in other ways?

With the continuous improvement of the whole social and cultural consciousness and the increasing understanding of the value of traditional villages, people strive to find more comprehensive and effective solutions according to the actual situation, and some new ways of protection have emerged quietly. There are two ways worth paying attention to, one is "ancient village reserve" and the other is "open-air museum".

Promote ancient village protection areas to avoid herbalization and scenic spots

Ancient village protection area refers to the protection of some villages (ancient village groups) with the same shape and humanities in a region as a whole. Some of these villages have been listed in the national traditional village list, and some are not included, but they are a family-oriented historical community, often called "ancient village group". Non-community traditional villages are suitable for single protection, while "ancient village groups" can adopt protected areas.

Although each village appears to be an individual, in fact, the historical life of each village is related to each other. In some areas, the neighboring villages are inextricably linked in the process of establishment and development. In the common historical destiny, natural changes, ethnic evolution or division or combination; in the same climatic conditions, natural environment, national background and way of life, share the same folk culture. For this kind of "ancient village group", if a single individual protection is adopted, their historical context will be cut off and their humanities will become isolated and thin. On the contrary, if we treat these adjacent and related villages as a whole, it will contribute to the mutual support of the village humanities, the inheritance of historical memory and the maintenance of traditional vitality. China's non-heritage protection has identified some "cultural and ecological protected areas", which have achieved good results, avoiding the problem that a single "list protection" separates the non-heritage from its cultural soil. We can imagine that all villages will be "protected" in isolation behind closed doors across the board, and over time, it will inevitably lead to herbalization and landscape.

Of course, not all traditional villages have to set up protected areas, which is conditional. The "ancient village group" referred to in the protected area must contain two major elements: first, there must be traditional villages listed in the national list, no matter one or more, which is the key point. Secondly, there are still some villages around, although they are not included in the list, they are interdependent in history and humanities with the traditional villages listed in the protection list, and the cultural ecology is well maintained. This kind of "ancient village group" is suitable for the establishment of protected areas.

In recent years, although some places do not use the concept of protected areas, they have adopted a holistic or continuous way to protect this "ancient village group", such as Wuyuan in Jiangxi, Songyang in Zhejiang, Miao and Dong villages in southeastern Guizhou, and so on. These areas have achieved remarkable results through the self-cohesion, complementarity and strengthening of the humanistic forces of each "ancient village group" collective, and they are successful models for the protection of ancient villages.

At a recent national file investigation meeting on traditional villages in Xingtai City, Hebei Province, a plan for "Shahe Ancient Village Protection area" drafted by the Shahe Prefecture Government aroused my interest. Shahe is located in the western foot of Taihang, built a village according to the mountain, stacked stone for the house, simple folk customs, mellow humanities, and is a famous red revolutionary base of the Anti-Japanese War in the middle of the last century. Five ancient villages in Shahe have been listed on the national protection list, and some villages, although not included in the list, are important members of this farming community. The environment, history and culture of the villages set off each other, and their fate is vital, so continuous and overall protection is very necessary. The well-preserved "ancient village groups" in Hebei Province are not only in Shahe, but also in Shexian, Jingxing, Yuxian and other places, which are also suitable for the use of "protected areas". Of course, there are some such "ancient village groups" in other provinces and regions of our country, and some local governments have taken the initiative to establish ancient village protected areas.

It can be said that the ancient village reserve is an active creation of the local government, a manifestation of cultural consciousness, and a scientific way of protection in line with the characteristics of traditional villages, which should be supported by all walks of life.