CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES OF TRADITIONAL

MALAY HOUSE: A CASE STUDY OF RUMAH KUTAI

PERAK

BY

KHAIRUL FIKRI BIN KHAIRUDIN

A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the

degree of Master of Science (Built Environment)

Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design

International Islamic University Malaysia

NOVEMBER 2019

i

ABSTRACT

The uniqueness of Rumah Kutai in terms of the fineness of the carvings on the doors,

windows openings, walls and the wide use of its ceilings. It is also reinforced by the

long-standing history of the building and its occupants. In view of the uniqueness of the

architecture, it appears to be inseparable from some of the influences of the exterior

architecture, especially the architectural influences of the Rumah Aceh and Rumah Adat

Bugis from Sumatra. However, certain features of the architecture and its structural

materials remain with its own identity, namely the architecture of the local people of

Perak. These special features are especially noticeable in the lebah bergantung and the

use of kelarai wall to glaze over the screen. The Kutai House consists of two types,

namely the tiang 12 and the tiang 16. The roof structure with a unique technology

system, the sliding doors and the windows of its own could never be seen on other

traditional Malay house architectural elements both in Malaysia and other regions.

Due to rapid modern development, traditional Malay houses seem to disappear from

the landscape of Malaysia. The advancement of technology has deteriorated the

construction of traditional Malay houses, making people choose a modern house over a

traditional Malay house because of its efficiency and effectiveness. Such action has

made these traditional houses less practised in Malaysia and made it difficult to preserve

these structures. The research aims are to study the specific construction techniques

applied for Rumah Kutai and identify the jointing system type used by the house based

on its type. Its objectives include understanding the sequence and chronological process

of erecting Rumah Kutai; to identify the method of construction applied for Rumah

Kutai, and to document the selected construction method applied for Rumah Kutai for

future reference and preservation. Rumah Kutai is a type of indigenous Perak traditional

house which was selected for detailed observation. Five (5) houses which comprised of

two (2) Kutai Asli and three (3) Kutai Anjung Beranda were analyzed and compared on

their construction techniques and tanggam system that was applied to the house. The

houses were investigated using graphical documentation and measured drawing which

is done during the site visit and via semi-structured interview. A semi-structured

interview was conducted with the surrounding neighbourhood and the caretaker of the

houses to collect information pertaining to the house especially on the alteration that

has been made to the house. Also, a semi-structured interview was conducted with six

(6) experts in Rumah Kutai and traditional Malay construction techniques. The results

revealed that the construction of Rumah Kutai between Kutai Asli and Kutai Anjung

Beranda has depicted similarity on the sequence of constructing the house, which starts

with the erection of structural components followed by the non-structural components.

The findings indicated that the construction of traditional Rumah Kutai was mainly

influenced by the knowledge of the tukang of the house especially on the use of tanggam

system. By having this data, it was possible to document the techniques of the

construction applied for Rumah Kutai. It is expected that the documentation of the

construction method of Rumah Kutai could give insight and reference to the generation

in inquiring knowledge of traditional Malay construction, and could benefit heritage

body, society and those concerned with traditional buildings in Malaysia.

ii

البحث خلاصة

وقد زادت أصالته بتاريخه الأبواب والنوافذ والجدران والأسقف الواسعة، يتميز البيت الملايوي التقليدي بدقة النحت علىة المعمارية الخارجية، ولا الطويل ومكانته من حيث الطابع المعماري الفريد داخل المبنى الذي لا يتجزأ؛ بتأثير من الهندس

ات العمارة والمواد الأساس سم سيما تأثير البيوت التقليدية في آتشيه وأدات بوجس في سومطرة، ولكن؛ تحتفظ بعضالخشبية المنحوتة على بهويتها الخاصة، ولا سيما عمارة السكان الأصليين لولاية بيراك التي تُلاحَظ بخاصة في القطعٍ، واستعمال جدارية )كلاري( لتزجيج فتحات النوافذ، وللبيت الملايوي التقليدي ن ، ١٢وعان؛ هما: تيانج شكلِ مُعينن

لاقية والنوافذ مماثلة وتتميز هيكلية الأسقف بنظام تقاني مميز، ولا يمكن رؤية عناصر معمارية للأبواب الانز ،١٦وتيانج نارر الطبيعية في ماليزيا، ما في سائر ماليزيا وما حولها، ونتيجة سرعة التطور الحديث تكاد تخلو البيوت التقليدية من الم

كفاءتها، ومن ثم؛ قلن ا، مما جعل الناس تختار المنازل الحديثة عليها؛ بسببفقد أدى التقدم التقاني إلى تراجع بنائهلخاصة المطبقة في البيت استعمال البيوت الملايوية التقليدية والحفاظ عليها، ويهدف البحث إلى بيان أساليب البناء ا

جعلها مرجعًا، وللحفاظ على يقها، و الملايوي التقليدي، وتحديد نوع نظام توصيل القطع الخشبية حسب نوع البيت؛ لتوثرنة خمسة بيوت من حيث تاريخها؛ إذ تعدُّ البيوت الملايوية التقليدية ميزة للسكان الأصليين في بيراك، وقد جرت مقا

أثناء الزيارات الميدانية تقنيات البناء ونظام التوصيل المعتمد، مع فحصها باستخدام الرسوم التصويرية والقياسات فييما التعديلات التي ابلات مع سكان المنطقة المحيطة بالبيوت والقائمين على رعايتها؛ لجمع معلومات عنها، ولا سوالمق

لتقليدي، وبينت النتائج أن أجريت عليها، وكانت هذه اللقاءات الميدانية مع ستة خبراء مختصين بتقنيات البناء الملايوي ا المكونات يير الهيكلية، وأن من حيث تسلسل بنائها بنصب الأسس الهيكلية ثم أنواع البيوت الملايوية التقليدية تتشابه

وصيل القطع الخشبية بعضها لخبرة الحرفيين تأثيراً على بناء البيوت الملايوية التقليدية، ولا سيما في استعمال نظام تلتقليدي، ومن المتوقع البيت الملايوي اببعض عند الزوايا، ومن خلال هذه المعلومات كان من الممكن توثيق تقنيات بناء

وأن يفيد هيئة التراث أن يكون هذا التوثيق نظرة متمعنة مرجعية للأجيال للاستفسار عن البيت الملايوي التقليدي ،والمجتمع والمعنيين والمهتمين بالمباني التقليدية في ماليزيا.

iii

APPROVAL PAGE

I certify that I have supervised and read this study and that in my opinion, it conforms

to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and

quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science (Built Environment).

…………………………………..

Nurul Hamiruddin Salleh

Supervisor

…………………………………..

Srazali Aripin

Co-Supervisor

I certify that I have read this study and that in my opinion it conforms to acceptable

standards of scholarly presentation and is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis

for the degree of Master of Science (Built Environment).

…………………………………..

Sufian Hamat

Internal Examiner

…………………………………..

Mohd Sabrizaa Abdul

Rashid

External Examiner

This thesis was submitted to the Department of Architecture and is accepted as a

fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science (Built Environment)

…………………………………..

Srazali Aripin

Head, Department of Architecture

This thesis was submitted to the Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design

and is accepted as a fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science

(Built Environment).

…………………………………..

Abdul Razak Sapian

Dean, Kulliyyah of Architecture

and Environmental Design

iv

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this thesis is the result of my own investigations, except where

otherwise stated. I also declare that it has not been previously or concurrently submitted

as a whole for any other degrees at IIUM or other institutions.

Khairul Fikri Bin Khairudin

Signature ........................................................... Date .........................................

v

INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

DECLARATION OF COPYRIGHT AND AFFIRMATION OF

FAIR USE OF UNPUBLISHED RESEARCH

CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES OF TRADITIONAL MALAY

HOUSE: A CASE STUDY RUMAH KUTAI PERAK

I declare that the copyright holders of this thesis are jointly owned by student and

IIUM.

Copyright © 2019 Khairul Fikri Bin Khairudin and International Islamic University Malaysia. All

rights reserved.

No part of this unpublished research may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,

or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder

except as provided below

1. Any material contained in or derived from this unpublished research

may be used by others in their writing with due acknowledgement.

2. IIUM or its library will have the right to make and transmit copies (print

or electronic) for institutional and academic purposes.

3. The IIUM library will have the right to make, store in a retrieved system

and supply copies of this unpublished research if requested by other

universities and research libraries.

By signing this form, I acknowledged that I have read and understand the IIUM

Intellectual Property Right and Commercialization policy.

Affirmed by Khairul Fikri Bin Khairudin

……..…………………….. ………………………..

Signature Date

vi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

“Bismillahirrahmanirrahim: In the name of God, the Most Gracious and the Most

Merciful”

Alhamdulillah and I praised Allah the Almighty for His help throughout the completion

of this thesis.

Firstly, it is my utmost pleasure to dedicate this work to my dearest parents,

Khairudin Jaafar, Norzila Mohd Zain and my family, who granted me the gift of their

unwavering belief in my ability to accomplish this goal: thank you for your support

and patience. My gratitude can never be enough.

I wish to express my appreciation and thanks to those who provided their time,

effort and support for this project. To the members of my research thesis, thank you for

sticking with me.

Finally, a special thanks to Asst. Prof. Dr. Nurul Hamiruddin bin Salleh as the

main supervisor for his continuous support, encouragement and leadership. He provided

valuable advice, ideas, recommendations, guidance and knowledge throughout the

research process and for that, I will forever be grateful. I would also take this

opportunity to record my appreciation to my co-supervisor Asst. Prof. Ar. Dr. Srazali

Aripin for the support and motivation in assisting the research journey.

vii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract .................................................................................................................... i

Abstract in Arabic .................................................................................................... ii

Approval page .......................................................................................................... iii

Declaration ............................................................................................................... iv

Copyright Page ......................................................................................................... v

Acknowledgements .................................................................................................. vi

List of Tables ........................................................................................................... x

List of Figures .......................................................................................................... xii

List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................... xvii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .................................................................. 1

1.1 Background of the Study ........................................................................ 1 1.2 Problem Statement .................................................................................. 2

1.3 Research Gap .......................................................................................... 5

1.4 Research Aim.......................................................................................... 5

1.5 Research Objectives................................................................................ 6

1.6 Research Questions ................................................................................. 6

1.7 Significance of the Study ........................................................................ 6

1.8 Organization of Thesis ............................................................................ 7

1.9 Chapter Summary ................................................................................... 10

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ..................................................... 11

2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 11 2.2 Traditional Malay Houses ....................................................................... 11

2.2.1 Tukang as a Traditional House Builder ........................................ 14

2.2.2 Human Proportions as Medium of Measurement ......................... 15

2.2.3 Construction Process – Step By Step of Erecting Traditional

Malay House ................................................................................. 18

2.3 Timber Jointing System .......................................................................... 23

2.3.1 Tanggam System ........................................................................... 23

2.3.2 Tetupai, Baji, and Pasak ................................................................ 28

2.4 Construction of the Building Components ............................................. 30

2.4.1 Structural Components .................................................................. 31

2.4.2 Non-Structural Components ......................................................... 39

2.5 Rumah Kutai (Kutai House) ................................................................... 45

2.5.1 Type of Rumah Kutai .................................................................... 49

2.6 Chapter Summary ................................................................................... 53

CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .................................... 54

3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 54 3.2 Reviews on Related Methodology .......................................................... 54

3.3 Methodologies Adopted for this Study ................................................... 60

3.3.1 Reviewing the Available Related Literature ................................. 64

3.3.2 Case Study ..................................................................................... 65

viii

3.3.3 Graphical Documentation and Measured Drawings ..................... 65

3.3.4 Semi-Structured Interview ............................................................ 68

3.4 Cross Analysis ........................................................................................ 74

3.5 Chapter Summary ................................................................................... 77

CHAPTER FOUR: CASE STUDY ...................................................................... 78

4.1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 78 4.2 Selection of the Rumah Kutai ................................................................. 78

4.2.1 Rumah Perak Pendekar Uda Noh, UPM – RK 1 .......................... 80

4.2.2 Rumah Kutai Mat Isa, Pasir Salak – RK 2 .................................... 84

4.2.3 Rumah Kutai Hajjah Alamiah Luakang, Kulliyyah of

Architecture and Environmental Design (KAED), IIUM – RK

3 ....................................................................................................88

4.2.4 Rumah Kutai Tok Pelita, Pasir Salak – RK 4 ............................... 93

4.2.5 Rumah Kutai Puan Wok Haji Kulup Mat Hassan, Kompleks

Sejarah Pasir Salak, Perak – RK 5 ................................................ 97

4.3 Chapter Summary ................................................................................... 102

CHAPTER FIVE: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS .................................. 103

5.1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 103 5.2 Collection of Data ................................................................................... 103

5.3 Analysis and Result of Semi-Structured Interview................................. 104

5.4 Construction Order of Erecting Rumah Kutai ........................................ 112

5.5 Structure of the Selected Rumah Kutai ................................................... 121

5.5.1 Column Arrangement (House Grid).............................................. 121

5.5.2 Height from Ground to Floor ........................................................ 126

5.5.3 Connection between the Sections of the House ............................ 130

5.6 Connection of the Selected Components of Rumah Kutai ..................... 136

5.6.1 Column to Stump .......................................................................... 137

5.6.2 Beam to Column ........................................................................... 140

5.6.3 Floor to Bendul to Wall ................................................................ 144

5.6.4 Roof Component ........................................................................... 150

5.6.5 Wall Component ........................................................................... 162

5.7 Chapter Summary ................................................................................... 167

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................ 168

6.1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 168 6.2 Discussion of Findings ........................................................................... 168

6.2.1 Sequence and Chronological Process of Erecting Rumah Kutai .. 169

6.2.2 Method of Construction Applied to Rumah Kutai ........................ 170

6.2.3 Documentation of Selected Construction Method Applied to

Rumah Kutai ................................................................................. 172

6.3 Limitation of Research ........................................................................... 173

6.3.1 Financial Constraint ...................................................................... 173

6.3.2 House Condition Constraint .......................................................... 174

6.3.3 Components Measurement Constraint .......................................... 174

6.3.4 Detail Information Pertaining to the House .................................. 174

6.3.5 Material Determination ................................................................. 175

6.3.6 Time Constraint ............................................................................. 175

ix

6.4 Implication of Research .......................................................................... 175

6.5 Recommendations................................................................................... 176

6.6 Conclusion .............................................................................................. 178

REFERENCES ...................................................................................................... 180

APPENDIX I: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS- RESIDENT ................................ 183

APPENDIX II: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS- EXPERTS ................................. 186

APPENDIX III: PUBLICATION ........................................................................ 192

APPENDIX IV: LETTER OF PROOFREADING CERTIFICATION .......... 193

GLOSSARY ........................................................................................................... 194

x

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1.1 Number of Rumah Kutai which still exists in Perak 4

Table 2.1 Shows the example of Islamic months and their

consequences if people erect a house in a particular month

19

Table 2.2 Types of wood used in the Traditional Malay house by

Mohd Firrdhaus (2003) extracted from Yuan (2002)

31

Table 3.1 Distinctions between qualitative and quantitative data 55

Table 3.2 An overview of the research methodology by previous

researchers

57

Table 3.3 Techniques adopted to measure the research questions 60

Table 3.4 Checklist of the selected components during the fieldwork 67

Table 3.5 Section of the interview question and the expected outcome 69

Table 3.6 Type of respondents based on the selected Rumah Kutai 70

Table 3.7 List of selected expert/academician for a semi-structured

interview

73

Table 4.1 Justifications of the selected traditional Rumah Kutai. 79

Table 5.1 Results of the semi-structured interview with experts 105

Table 5.2 Arrangement of tiang for the five (5) selected Rumah Kutai

(cont)

122

Table 5.3 Drawings of the five (5) selected Rumah Kutai with its height

of space from the ground

127

Table 5.4 Connections of the sections for the five (5) chosen Rumah

Kutai

131

Table 5.5 Connection from column to stump 138

Table 5.6 The jointing system of the beam to a column of the five (5)

selected Rumah Kutai

141

Table 5.7 Shows the arrangement of floor and bendul to wall 145

xi

Table 5.8 Jointing system of alang panjang and alang pendek column

to the

152

Table 5.9 Connection of tunjuk langit to alang pendek and

panjang

alang 157

Table 5.10 Type of wall of the chosen Rumah Kutai. 163

xii

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1.1 Organization of the thesis 9

Figure 2.1 Traditional Malay houses of some states in Malaysia (a)

Rumah Melaka, (b) Rumah Negeri Sembilan, (c) Rumah

Kelantan and (d) Rumah Terengganu

12

Figure 2.2 Reasoning of design applied for traditional Malay house

which served as a sustainable house

13

Figure 2.3 Building elements according to the human body 16

Figure 2.4 Size of the window in proportion to human scale. 17

Figure 2.5 The system measurement based on human proportions. 18

Figure 2.6 The tiang seri of traditional Malay house which is wrapped

with a white cloth.

20

Figure 2.7 The erection of columns. 20

Figure 2.8 The installation of gelegar, pelancar, rasuk and also the

papan lantai.

21

Figure 2.9 The installation of alang panjang, alang pendek, and tunjuk

langit.

22

Figure 2.10 The installation of tulang perabung, kasau lintang and kasau

jantan.

22

Figure 2.11 The type of connections (a) Connection using bond and (b)

Connection using tanggam.

24

Figure 2.12 Tanggam temu 25

xiii

Figure 2.13 Tanggam lekap 26

Figure 2.14 Different types of Tanggam Parit (a) Tanggam parit tepat,

(b) Tanggam bajang berparit and (c) Tanggam parit

bertakuk

27

Figure 2.15 Application of tanggam tebuk 27

Figure 2.16 Several applications of tanggam lubang dan puting (a) alang

pendek to kayu tumpu kasau and (b) column and stump

28

Figure 2.17 Types of tetupai; tetupai pendek and tetupai panjang. 29

Figure 2.18 Figure of (a) baji and (b) pasak that function to support the

components in traditional Malay house and woodworking.

30

Figure 2.19 The function of the base for columns is which to prevent the

columns from sinking into the ground/soil.

32

Figure 2.20 The figure shows the different type of column bases. 32

Figure 2.21 The picture shown is for a connection between the column

and the base using tanggam puting dan tebuk system.

33

Figure 2.22 Tanggam Tebuk connection between (a) floor beam and (b)

column.

34

Figure 2.23 The connection between long-tie and short-tie beam with the

columns using tanggam puting dan tebuk, tanggam parit,

and tanggam lekap.

34

Figure 2.24 The illustrations and components involved in constructing

the floor.

35

Figure 2.25 The connection between bendul and the other part of it. The

connection is secured using pasak.

36

Figure 2.26 Floor and Bendul components 36

Figure 2.27 The basic roof types and additional roof types in Malaysia. 38

Figure 2.28 Roof components. 39

Figure 2.29 Types of walls for Rumah Kutai. (a) Normal Timber Wall (b)

Bamboo Matting Wall (kelarai)

40

Figure 2.30 Slot in timber wall 40

xiv

Figure 2.31 Staircases components and connections using tanggam

puting dan tebuk

41

Figure 2.32 The example of (a) Lebah bergantung and (b) Buah buton 42

Figure 2.33 Papan serong which located high at the roof part of the

house.

43

Figure 2.34 Shows the position of (a) Bendul luar and (b) Bendul dalam

in Rumah Kutai that plays a different role in the system of

the house.

44

Figure 2.35 Example of Papan cantik with floral pattern that carved

within it to gives a beautiful touvch to the Rumah Kutai.

(Source: Retrived from Google)

45

Figure 2.36 The evolution of Rumah Kutai 46

Figure 2.37 Rumah Kutai which preserved by Historical Complex Pasir

Salak that constructed on the year 1900.

47

Figure 2.38 The bamboo matting with Kelarai pattern installed on the

wall of Rumah Kutai.

48

Figure 2.39 Kutai Asli 50

Figure 2.40 Kutai Anjung 51

Figure 2.41 Kutai Anjung Beranda 52

Figure 3.1 Phases for data collection of the research. 62

Figure 3.2 Steps of collecting data for graphic documenting and

measured drawings

66

Figure 3.3 Process of content analysis 76

Figure 4.1 The original shape of the Rumah Perak Uda Noh Kanda

Jaafar which is found in Kampung Pendiat, Bota Kanan

Perak.

80

Figure 4.2 The shape of Rumah Perak Uda Noh Kanda Jaafar (a) front

view and, (b) the side view, after it has been rebuilt at

Muzium Warisan Melayu, UPM which consisted only rumah

ibu.

81

xiv

Figure 4.3 The interior arrangement of Rumah Perak Uda Noh Kanda

Jaafar (a) living room, (b) two rooms inside the house. 81

Figure 4.4 The current floor plan of Rumah Perak Pendekar Uda Noh

Kanda Jaafar, part of rumah ibu. 82

Figure 4.5 Elevations of Rumah Perak Pendekar Uda Noh; (a) Front

elevation and (b) Right elevation. 83

Figure 4.6 Shows the Rumah Kutai Mat Isa (a) frontage and, (b) side

elevation, in Pasir Salak, Perak Tengah. 84

Figure 4.7 The addition of spaces at the house (a) storage underneath

the house and, (b) toilet. 85

Figure 4.8 A review of the floor plan of Rumah Kutai Mat Isa. 86

Figure 4.9 (a) Front elevation and (b) Right elevation of Rumah Kutai

Mat Isa. 87

Figure 4.10 Rumah Kutai Anjung Beranda (a) front view and, (b) the side

of the house, in Parit, Perak. 88

Figure 4.11 The destroyed rumah dapur at the back of the house. 89

Figure 4.12 Construction process at the site (a) erection of column, (b)

installing the roof part, (c) assembling the wall to the

structure and, (d) touch up with finishes. 90

Figure 4.13 Rumah Kutai that has been transferred in front of Kulliyyah

of Architecture and Environmental Design, IIUM. 90

Figure 4.14 Shows the (a) current floor drawing of Rumah Kutai and, (b)

the front elevation of the house, (c) the addition of beranda

at the back of the house. 92

Figure 4.15 The picture taken shows the Rumah Kutai Tok Pelita (a) the

frontage of the house, (b) side view, (c) the destroyed rumah

dapur area and, (d) stumps for the rumah dapur (as

indicated). 93

Figure 4.16 The condition inside of the house (a) anjung area, (b) room

in the house and, (c) view facing to destroyed rumah dapur

from anjung space. 94

Figure 4.17 Floor plan of Rumah Kutai Tok Pelita located in Pasir Salak.

95

xv

Figure 4.18 (a) Front elevation and (b) Right elevation of the house. 96

Figure 4.19 Rumah Kutai Puan Wok Haji Kulup Mat Hassan (a) front

view and, (b) rear view, which relocated at Kompleks

Sejarah Pasir Salak during the year 1989.

97

Figure 4.20 Rumah Kutai Puan Wok Haji Kulup Mat Hassan which

situated along the riverbank at Sungai Perak.

97

Figure 4.21 (a) The current roof of the house – clay type material and, (b)

kelarai patterned wall from tepas material.

98

Figure 4.22 Shows the (a) physical model, (b) addition of wet area with

roofing and, (c) layout of the house.

100

Figure 4.23 Elevations of Rumah Kutai Puan Wok Haji Kulup Mat Isa;

(a) Front elevation and (b) Right elevation.

101

Figure 5.1 Tiang seri found at one of the selected Rumah Kutai, RK 4,

located at the Rumah Ibu space.

113

Figure 5.2 Illustration of the sequence of column erection in the

construction of Rumah Kutai (a) Kutai Asli and (b) Kutai

Anjung Beranda.

115

Figure 5.3 Exploded diagram of (RK 1) – Rumah Perak Pendekar Uda

Noh, UPM

116

Figure 5.4 Exploded diagram of (RK 2) – Rumah Kutai Mat Isa, Pasir

Salak

117

Figure 5.5 Exploded diagram of (RK 3) – Rumah Kutai Hajjah

Alamiyah Luakang, KAED, IIUM

118

Figure 5.6 Exploded diagram of (RK4) – Rumah Kutai Tok Pelita, Pasir

Salak

119

Figure 5.7 Exploded diagram of (RK 5) – Rumah Kutai Puan Wok Haji

Kulup Mat Hassan Kompleks Sejarah Pasir Salak.

120

Figure 5.8 The different tiang size at rumah ibu. 124

Figure 5.9 The position of tiang separuh and tiang penuh with the

difference in height that occupying rumah ibu.

125

Figure 5.10 Tiang Kaki Gajah of Rumah Kutai Tok Pelita. 128

xvi

Figure 5.12

Figure 5.13

The position of tetupai at the column to place the beam for

Rumah Kutai Tok Pelita (RK 4).

The application of tanggam lekap at the beam of the beranda

space of RK 3

143

143

Figure 5.14 The different type of wall used by the houses; normal timber

wall (a) RK 1 (b) RK 3 and, tepas wall (c) RK 5.

147

Figure 5.15 The installation of bendul using gelegar and extended floor

for RK 4.

148

Figure 5.16 Dinding tindih kasih that used to replace the previous tepas

wall of RK 2.

149

Figure 5.17 Papan serong located at Rumah Kutai; (a) RK 1, (b) RK 3,

(c) RK 4 and (d) RK 5.

155

Figure 5.18 (a) Connection of kasau (b) Tanggam tebuk and tanggam

parit bertakuk.

160

Figure 5.19 (a) Connection of kasau, (b) Close up view of the connection

between papan serong, kasau and alang and (c) Exploded

view of the connection.

161

Figure 5.20 Wall assembling process (a) Paneled wall, (b) Wall panel to

be pulled to the structure and (c) Wall panel is nailed to the

house structure.

165

xvii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

FAPS Faculty of Architecture, Planning, and Surveying

IBS Industrialized Building System

IIUM International Islamic University Malaysia

ISTAC International Institute of Islamic Civilization and English World

KAED Kuliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design

RK 1 Rumah Kutai 1

RK 2 Rumah Kutai 2

RK 3 Rumah Kutai 3

RK 4 Rumah Kutai 4

RK 5 Rumah Kutai 5

UiTM Universiti Teknologi MARA

UPM Universiti Putra Malaysia

1

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Malaysia consists of 14 states which vary in religions, races, and cultures. Every state

has its own cultural practices and religious ritual. The different kinds of cultural

practices have resulted in various types of architectural style, which has its own meaning

and symbolism behind every element. From among the largest 14 states, the research

intended to look into the architecture element of Perak.

Local people of Perak have their own identity especially in expressing

architecture. They legitimately devise their vast knowledge in building traditional

Malay house and cultural influences hence Rumah Kutai came into existence. Rumah

Kutai or Kutai House is a traditional type of Malay house that is indigenous to Perak

and has been in use since 1800. These houses can be found mainly along the Perak river

in three districts; Kuala Kangsar, Perak Tengah, and Pasir Salak.

Basically, the study explores how Rumah Kutai is being constructed in details.

Also, construction techniques of several components in Rumah Kutai will be analyzed

and documented. This is the way to sustain the used or acknowledge the existence of

tanggam probably for future reference as indicated by (Azmal & Nangkula, 2011).

Kutai House or the so-called Rumah Kutai is a traditional type of Malay house

that is indigenous to Perak. The existence of Kutai House is since the 1800s, and

therefore, it is given the name ‘Kutai’ which means old or ancient. As time passed by,

the application of traditional Malay house or Kutai house is no longer practised by the

younger generation. The term “traditional” seems no longer valid in the current era. A

study on Rumah Kutai is basically to explore in details the history and origin of Rumah

2

Kutai itself and precisely identify the technique used in the construction of Rumah

Kutai. By exploring construction methods, especially the mortise technique, it will be

possible to give a detailed view to the next generation about the uniqueness of Rumah

Kutai construction method.

Rumah Kutai has many special features which are really interesting. These

features contribute to sustainable architecture such as bamboo matting wall and raised

floor. It shows how Perak traditional house embraces and interacts with nature. In

today’s building design, sustainability is an important characteristic that should be taken

into account in order to give minimal impact on the environment. With the study of the

arrangement of the interior space, it will be possible to clearly see the arrangement of

space based on the priority of space.

With over hundred years of age, Rumah Kutai has uniqueness in terms of

fineness carved on openings of windows, doors, and walls as well as its use of a range

of mortise (tanggam). The younger generations need to be exposed to such traditional

Malay house characteristics so that the knowledge can be transferred to future

generations. As younger generations lack the knowledge and sense of appreciation of

traditional Malay house, such house may eventually disappear in the next few years. It

stands for a reason that Malay traditional house especially Rumah Kutai needs to be

explored and conserved.

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT

It is difficult for today’s generation to enjoy the privileges of Kutai house architecture

as it continues to disappear. The main factor that led to the extinction of the Rumah

Kutai is probably the insensitivity of the public about the richness of the heritage,

whether in terms of history or architectural heritage of the house itself (Hassan & Harun,

3

2013). With the advancement of technology and modernization, the application of

construction techniques of traditional Malay houses has slowly been forgotten. That

stands for a reason the unique construction of Rumah Kutai has not been thoroughly

identified, measured and studied in depth.

As the tanggam system has a similarity with the current technology that has

vastly employed by the massive building which is Industrialized Building System (IBS).

Tunku (2016) mentioned that the technique of assembling the whereby the material is

prefabricated and precast offsite and then assembled on the site in which the same

technique applied by the traditional construction technique, tanggam system. IBS

system has become more popular of its easiness in handling and fast in building a

structure. Likewise, tanggam is one of the traditional technique used by past people

where the technology was not as advanced as today. As the similarity has made the

tanggam is something to explore as it may be as useful as IBS system especially by

using local material.

Moreover, the erection of Rumah Kutai is no longer practised. The Rumah Limas

Potong Perak style has become more popular during the early 20th century, thus,

resulted in the number of traditional Rumah Kutai houses shrank (Mohd Sabrizaa,

2017). According to a research done by Kamarul Syahril, Lilawati and Mohd Fareh

(2013), the number of Rumah Kutai left in Perak is really at a crucial level as shown in

Table 1 as it is nearly disappearing. Preservation and conservation of Rumah Kutai

should be done to allow the future generation to view a tradition so that it will not

vanish. Time has changed as modern-style architecture is very different and dominates

the life of the community today. Indeed, this has drowned the traditional residence

which should be respected. Yuan (2002) and Çelik (2009) share the same perspectives

that the extinction of vernacular architecture (local) is because it is influenced by the

4

differing lifestyles and has endured transformations due to the changing social and

cultural structure. Therefore, the documentation of the characteristics of these

traditional dwellings becomes a necessity for their preservation.

Besides that, the traditional method is seemingly no longer valid and practised

by today’s generation. The decreasing number of rural tukang contributes to the factors

that cause the extinction of the traditional Malay house (Yuan, 2002). Abdul Razak

(1999) indicated that the tukang has knowledge attributes that a tukang needs to possess,

and with which he makes the understanding of traditional Malay architecture a holistic

concept. Considering the few numbers of tukang, the traditional construction technique

could not be recognized by the generations. However, many traditional houses are yet

to explore the construction techniques.

Table 1.1 Number of Rumah Kutai which still exists in Perak

Name of Kampung Number of Rumah

Kutai

Kampung Kota 1

Kampung Selat Pulau 5

Kampung Pisang (Atas Jeti) 2

Kampung Bawah Banggul 3

Kampung Takir Pecah 4

Kampung Pasir Salak 4

Kampung Biak Hulu 10

Kampung Bandar Tua 1

Kampung Pasir Panjang 1

Kampung Air Mati 2

Kampung Ciina 1

Kampung Bandar 2

Kampung Tabian (Bayan) 1

Total 37

(Source: A.H. Nasir (1988) as cited by Kamarul Syahril et al. (2013))

5

1.3 RESEARCH GAP

In Malaysia, traditional Malay houses have been thoroughly researched by the

researchers ranging from Rumah Johor, Rumah Negeri Sembilan, and Rumah Kutai as

well. Various researchers such as (Ariffin & Talib, 2004; Kamarul Syahril et al., 2013;

Mat, Monir, Rashid, & Hanafi, 2012; Talib, 2004; Zakaria, Rashid, & Ahmad, 2016)

highlighted the architecture of Rumah Kutai and the types of Rumah Kutai. (Mat et al.,

2012; Rohaizat et al., 2014; Zakaria et al., 2016) are among researchers who explained

the design, elements, components, and features of Rumah Kutai. Also, a book entitled

Pembinaan Bangunan Tradisional Melayu and Lukisan Perincian Pembinaan

Bangunan Tradisional Melayu by (Zulkifli, 1996) has indicated generally the

construction techniques of traditional Malay houses but did not specifically focus on

Rumah Kutai as a whole. In addition, a study of tanggam conducted by (Utaberta &

Spalie, 2011) focused on the strength and the area of application of tanggam generally

in Malay building.

Based on this, it shows that many types of research done by various researchers

have only highlighted the architecture and types of Rumah Kutai, the elements and

special features of the Rumah Kutai and the general construction technique of traditional

Malay houses. However, the deep focus on the construction techniques applied to

Rumah Kutai has not yet been thoroughly discovered and specified.

1.4 RESEARCH AIM

The research aims are to study the specific construction techniques applied to Rumah

Kutai and to identify the jointing system type used by the house based on its type.