展華

臺灣人習稱家為“厝”，意思是安身的住處，如家宅叫“厝宅”，祖家叫“祖厝”，家里人叫“厝內人”，房東叫“厝主”，房租叫“厝租”，房地產契叫“厝契”，喬遷新居叫“入厝”，等等。臺灣所屬市縣含“厝”的地名相當多，這些“厝”大都是同姓人聚居的地方，聯系姓氏根源與宗族關系，顯示出古色古香的部落色彩。

位于臺南玉井、楠西間的江家古厝，是人們公認的全臺灣最大且保存相當完善的閩南式傳統(tǒng)農村聚落。江家古厝占地面積3.5公頃，保留了130多棟房屋，其中多棟有百余年歷史，包括土角厝、竹編厝、鐵皮屋、紅磚屋、洗石子屋以及磚墻、竹編墻、溷凝土墻等10余種建筑格式，體現出臺灣300年來農家建筑變遷的縮影。江家古厝最大特色是十幾代聚居而未分家，目前仍有30多戶人家居住，儼然活態(tài)的博物館。

臺灣人中的漢族人，絕大部分是古代從祖國大陸的閩南遷移過去的。他們不忘故鄉(xiāng)，按照閩南民居的建筑格式起厝，有一些古今不容忽視的風俗：測量厝向，選擇方位，確定放水。如果房地對沖巷口、橋梁的地方，必須在厝角立一塊石碑，上刻“泰山石敢當”，借以禁壓不祥。此后，建厝以及主要工序都要擇吉日良辰，并有大小不一的儀式。

搬進新厝也必須舉行隆重的“謝土”竣工儀式。謝土，即答謝土地神。厝主在庭院大擺五牲等豐盛祭品致祭，燃放鞭炮，宴請親朋好友。大門、房門都要張貼喜聯，如“吉日竣工酬天帝；良時完建謝地神”“謝福地幸福常至；慶吉宅大吉頻臨”“慶喬遷合家皆禧；居新宅世代永安”“龍吐九珠來福宅；鳳含八寶入華堂”“吉日安居萬事如意；良辰入厝百年遂心”，并懸掛與姓氏祖家相關的匾額，如張姓喜掛“金鑒千秋”“漁陽惠政”，李姓愛懸“西陽望族”“北海名流”，林姓習慣題書“西河世澤”“九龍衍派”，等等。多數民居還習慣在大門左右掛上一對日字長形燈籠，在上面寫些吉利字句，如“大展鴻圖”“一帆風順”等，有的在燈籠上寫本戶姓氏，謂之“字姓燈”。對于建厝這種百年大業(yè)，臺灣人十分樂意接受這些習俗。

臺灣住宅以三落大厝、五落大厝為正規(guī)建筑，宅地長方形，左右相稱，力求均衡美觀。“地打牢，萬年興?！钡鼗驍党呱睿钌鲜^、泥土，固以石灰，上鋪龜甲形的磚瓦。屋頂構造采用兩面落水型，瓦片普遍是直接鋪于桷仔之上。屋脊前后兩面砌上各種彩色的瓷片，塑成有人物或花鳥的圖案，顯得非常靈動。大廳柱梁門窗所用木材，均為臺灣出產的樟木，施以雕刻并繪色，古雅又美觀。屋內墻壁和廊前壁體按照磚的原紋飾，拼擺成各種圖案，與門窗的雕刻融成一體，格外醒目。屋內不設仰板，桶仔、簾柄、筒仔、梁仔等顯露可見，反而不失古樸。

臺灣民居喜歡用紅磚紅瓦，還用紅色筒瓦，特別俗艷，非常獨特。原來，閩南泉州籍的臺灣人沿襲祖居地的種種生活習慣，因此，建房造屋無論平面布局還是立面形式，或者整體造型、細部裝飾上，都深受影響，臺北陳氏祖宅、大溪李姓祖屋、麻豆林氏住宅等傳統(tǒng)民居都完好地表現了泉州紅磚古厝的建筑風格。祖籍閩南的臺灣人自豪地稱這種傳統(tǒng)的披紅瓦房子為“皇宮起”?！捌稹钡拈}南語是“建筑”的意思，“皇宮起”就是皇宮體式的民居。臺灣和閩南有個民間故事解釋由來：五代十國時，閩王王審知的皇后黃惠姑每逢連綿陰雨天就傷心落淚，閩王問原因，方知皇后擔心父母家房屋破漏，不能遮擋風雨。閩王當即說：“賜你一府皇宮起?！蓖趺鼈鞯交屎竽锛胰荩癖娬`以為一府地區(qū)都可以建皇宮建筑，遂大興土木。后來閩王聞報，連忙下令停建，至于已經建好的，也就不予追究?！盎蕦m起”名頭吉利，同時表象色彩濃烈、敦厚，與亞熱帶的自然風景配合相稱，于是泉州一帶崇尚之風蔓延，流傳臺灣不絕。在臺中市南區(qū)大肚山附近有一種“同安厝”，一律用土角起厝，僅門框用紅磚建造，藉以保持傳統(tǒng)。

在臺灣人心目中，厝不僅是家宅，而且是鄉(xiāng)里，是村社。在臺灣，時常聽到這樣的問話：“有起新厝了嗎？”“買厝了嗎？”起厝、買厝為臺灣人的第一追求，民間故有“富不富，看新厝”之說。筆者有好多親戚在臺灣，我問起他們生活好過以后想的是什么，他們無一不說“買厝”。臺灣人投資的首選是厝，婚嫁的首選也是厝，無怪乎，有人戲稱“臺灣女子是嫁給房子的”。在臺灣文化中，也常有“厝”的影子。翻閱一些報刊，屢可見到“厝”字，甚至有的報紙欄名也開辟“阮厝人”。有一首閩南臺灣方言歌曲《二水的月娘》中唱道：“月娘汝敢會照著遠遠阮的厝，月娘汝敢會照阮返去厝的路。月娘啊月娘啊，敢會照著阮阿娘，月娘啊月娘啊，敢會帶去阮的思念?！保ㄗⅲ哼@里的“阮”不是姓氏，而是“我”的意思。）

對臺灣人來說，厝包蘊著親睦團結、溫馨融和的感情，凝集著“厝內人”和家鄉(xiāng)人的無限感情。臺灣人說“厝邊頭尾”“好厝邊”，說來順口，聽之親切。臺灣人也?？蜌獾匮堄H友：“有閑來阮厝坐！”在閩南臺灣方言中，“阮厝”就是“我家”的意思。多么樸實、熱心、溫情！

在海外，臺灣人也會情不自禁地互問：“你厝在哪里？”有的回答：“阮厝和恁厝都在祖國大陸的閩南?！币粏栆淮?，拉近了兩岸同胞的距離，密切了兩岸同胞的親情。

（本文照片由林長華拍攝、提供）

Residences in Taiwan Take Roots in Mainland

By Zhan Hua

In Taiwan， the physical residence is called 厝 （pronounced as cuo in pinyin）. This word comes from the Minnan Dialect of the southern Fujian Province. The dialect is widely spoken in Taiwan Province， as most Han people in Taiwan are descendents of the migrants from the southern Fujian Province. After all， Fujian and Taiwan is separated only by the Taiwan Strait， which is about 180 kilometers wide.

The Jiang Family Residence in Tainan is widely recognized as the largest and the best-preserved traditional home in the Minnan architectural style. The ancient residential compound covers an area of 3.5 hectares where more than 130 houses stand， erected in different times and in different styles and materials. The compound reflects the evolution of rural residential houses in Taiwan over the past 300 years. The compound has evolved and expanded with quite a few houses added over the centuries largely because more than 10 generations have lived together. At present， more than 30 families of the Jiang clan still live there. The compound serves as a living encyclopedia on the history of the family and the architecture.

When people moved from the southern Fujian to Taiwan， they built houses in the style and the only way they had known for centuries. The tradition is kept alive： before a house is built， a survey must be carried out to determine how the house will stand and how it will interact well with and benefit from the specific terrace and the general natural ambience. If the plot faces an entrance to a lane or a bridge， one corner of the new house must be reinforced with a stele engraved an inscription that says “泰山石敢當”， meaning it can withstand the weight of Mount Tai. With this charm， the stele embedded in the corner symbolizes a miniaturized Mount Tai strong enough to keep away all adversary forces.

The tradition is complex and all-inclusive： it stipulates in detail what rituals must be carried out before， during and after the house is constructed and how the rituals must be conducted. Following the tradition， people know when they can move in and when they should hold a housewarming； following the tradition， people know where they should hang a couple of family-name lanterns and which auspicious phrase to write on the lanterns to indicate their ancestry on the mainland； following the tradition， people express gratitude to the god of land before the foundation is laid and to the god of heaven when the construction is completed；

The Minnan architecture stipulates that a standard large residence should have three rows or five rows of houses in a rectangular plot and the whole compound must be in a harmony of symmetry. The people in Taiwan observe the design requirements.

The residential houses built in the Minnan architectural style are highly recognizable. Red bricks and red roof tiles are two prominent hallmarks. This preference for red walls and red roofs reflects the tradition of Quanzhou， a city in southern Fujian Province. Houses in the red color look like royal palaces and merge with the tropical landscape perfectly. As a folk story goes， the people in Quanzhou began to build red houses in the ancient time after they heard of the royal decree that they were allowed to erect houses like palaces. It turned out that it was a permission given only to the queens parents. The king finally stopped the building boom and he was generous enough not to have the built houses dismantled.

Cuo （厝） is a big key word in everyday life of Taiwan. It is more than a house where people live. It refers to a place where you were born and raised， where you grew and merged with your community and your family and relatives. For residents of Taiwan， home purchasing is the foremost important investment and home is the most important consideration in marriages. Some people jokingly say that women are married to houses.