The Sedentary Process and the Evolution of Energy Consumption in Eight Native American Dwellings: Analyzing Sustainability in Traditional Architecture

María Jesús Montero Burgos, Hipólito Sanchiz Álvarez de Toledo, Roberto Alonso González Lezcano and Antonio Galán de Mera
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María Jesús Montero Burgos: Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Comunicación, Campus de Moncloa, Universidad San Pablo-CEU, CEU Universities, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Hipólito Sanchiz Álvarez de Toledo: Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Comunicación, Campus de Moncloa, Universidad San Pablo-CEU, CEU Universities, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Roberto Alonso González Lezcano: Escuela Politécnica Superior, Montepríncipe Campus de Boadilla del Monte, Universidad San Pablo-CEU, CEU Universities, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Antonio Galán de Mera: Facultad de Farmacia, Montepríncipe Campus de Boadilla del Monte, Universidad San Pablo-CEU, CEU Universities, 28040 Madrid, Spain

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 5, 1-28

Abstract: According to the research developed by André Leroi-Gourhan in 1964, entitled “Gesture and speech”, the evolution of human beings during Prehistory was linked to the search for work efficiency. As time passed, man designed increasingly complex tools whose production implied a decreasing amount of energy. The aim of the present research was to determine if this evolution, which occurred in parallel to the sedentary process, also affected architecture, specifically if it can be detected on traditional dwellings, particularly in those built by the Native American Indians during the pre-Columbian period. Due to their great diversity, since both nomad and sedentary models can be found among them, and to the available information about their morphology and technical characteristics, these models offer a unique opportunity to study the consequences of this process for architecture. In order to achieve it, an alternative parameter that can be determined for any type of building was designed. It allows us to establish the amount of energy an envelope is equal to. The results obtained suggest that the efficiency of the dwellings decreased as this process went forward, but this pattern changed in its last step, when agriculture appeared and permanent settlements started to be built. Besides, statistical graphs were used in order to show graphically the relationship between it, the climate, the morphology of the dwellings and their technical characteristics.

Keywords: vernacular architecture; sustainability; energy efficiency; history; statistics; society (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:5:p:1810-:d:326293

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