The Influence Of The Tanglai Canal On The Patterns Of Settlements Along The Canal From The Ming To The Republican Period

The Ningxia Tanglai Canal in use and other ancient canals,collectively known as "Ningxia Huang Ancient Irrigation Area",entered the lists of the World Irrigation Engineering Heritage in 2017,and were heeded,protected,and regulated closely by Ningxia Water Resources Department and other units.The relics of settlements along the Tanglai Canal in Ningxia are classified as part of the defense system of the Western Great Wall and the North Great Wall of Ningxia,and are managed and protected by the Ningxia Cultural Relics Management Department and other units.Therefore,the Ningxia Tanglai Canal and the settlement sites along the canal are under the regulation of different departments,and each unit implements the "single","static" and "sealed" principles in their protection and regulation of the cultural relics and cultural heritage.As a result,the non-integrated concept of protection has led to the fade zone in protection and management as well as the fact that only 3 of the 21 sites along the Tanglai Canal has been remained,and the Tanglai Canal system has undergone many changes.Since the Ming Dynasty,through the Qing Dynasty,the Republican period,and to the present day,the influence of Ningxia’s Tanglai Canal on the alongshore settlements are essentially the result of the organic interactions between human behavior and the natural environment,which is in line with the evolutionary potential characteristics of the World Heritage "Cultural Landscape" category.Meanwhile,the interaction pattern between the two has integrated the natural ecological environment and historical and cultural styles of the Tang Lai Irrigation Area and vividly demonstrated the evolutionary linkage between human and the canal.Based on the concept of "the role of human behavior on the natural environment and the organic interaction and evolution and development between the two" of the "cultural landscape" category of World Heritage Heritage,this paper takes the macro,meso and micro perspectives of urban and rural planning and design as the research starting point of view,and is based on the classification methods and value theories of cultural landscape.Relying on Chinese ancient mapping methods and modern schema analysis strategy,the researcher constructs her technical route of study as the following: "time dimension—value cognition driven—pattern system—type—characteristics value—protection suggestions".Using the classification method of cultural landscape and the layering method of historical urban landscape,the researcher has sorted various historical documents and maps,taken on-site investigations of the present alongshore settlements,compared the locations with contemporary geographic information images and the current situation of the settlements,and finally demonstrated the results of the research on paper,reshaping the historical evolution of the Tanglai canal’s significance on the alongshore settlements from Ming Dynasty to the Republic period.At the same time,this paper focuses on the landscape components of the Tanglai Canal and the alongshore settlements,illustrates the canal system’s influences on the alongshore settlements,summarizes the characteristics and the functions of such influences,analyzes its spacial typology and the ways of construction,and discusses the essential characteristics and values of the cultural landscape alongside the Tanglai canal.The three conclusions of the paper are:1.The influence of the Ningxia Tanglai Canal on the alongshore settlements during the Ming to Republican period is essentially the control process of different dynasties on the ecological environment security,land boundary security,and water conservancy irrigation security of the Ningxia Plain.From the Ming to the Republican period,the macro pattern on both sides of the Tanglai Canal in Ningxia has always been based on the background of natural landscapes and artificial interventions,presenting a parallel and multiple pattern along the longitudinal and horizontal sections of mountains,waters,canals,lakes and fields: 5vertical and 3 horizontal segments in the Ming Dynasty,7 vertical and 6 horizontal segments in the Qing Dynasty,and 7 vertical and 5 horizontal sections in the Republican period.2.The influence of Ningxia’s Tanglai Canal on the alongshore settlements during the Ming to Republican period reveals the extent of the changing coupling relationship between cultural landscape heritage and human canal in Tanglai irrigation area in the historical period.From the Ming Dynasty to the Republican period,the development of the meso pattern on both sides of the Tanglai Canal in Ningxia showed an increasing trend of cultural landscape pattern types due to time migration,and a multi-landscape element configuration method of zoning,layering,segmentation,and central grid was constructed between the canal and the settlements,and the types of meso pattern were: 8in the Ming Dynasty,12 in the Qing Dynasty,and 13 in the Republican Period.3.The influence of Ningxia’s Tanglai Canal on the alongshore settlements during the Ming to Republican period focuses on the nurturing and development process of the center of the Ningxia Plain and important towns.From the Ming Dynasty to the Republican period.the micro-pattern of the two banks of the Tanglai Canal in Ningxia could be represented by the landscape pattern of Yinchuan City,i.e.taking the downtown as the center of the city,the layout of the city was expanded based on the circle diffusion system,evolving from the pattern of interdependence of the city and canal to the interactive pattern of the city and canal.The theme and type of real landscape gardens inside and outside the city have changed,and gradually evolved into a collective cultural landscape of intention.Three innovations of the paper are:1.Supplement the content of the research.Clarifying the spatial pattern of the Tanglai canal system in Ningxia from the Ming to the Republican period,the spatial pattern of settlements along the canal and the type of influences of the canal on the alongshore settlements pattern,and construct the research framework of the central town of the Ningxia Plain.2.Discussion about the value of the research object.Expanding the value extension of the Ningxia Tanglai Canal Water Conservancy Project heritage,and further exploring the value connotation of the influence of the canal on the alongshore settlements.3.Providing a new method for the overall protection and utilization of cultural landscape heritage in historical irrigation areas.The paper tried to construct a method: "time dimension-value cognition drive-pattern system-type-characteristics-value connotation-protection suggestions".This research method can provide a new perspective for the protection and utilization of cultural landscape heritage in the Huanggu Irrigation Area of Ningxia,and has theoretical support and practical guiding significance for the construction and planning of central towns in central and northern Ningxia.