ABSTRACT
When I was invited to speak on vernacular technology, I must admit that I felt that another theme would have been closer to my personal interests. For me, the problems of why societies have determined the forms of building that they use seem far more challenging, and ultimately more important, than the questions of how. Nevertheless, the invitation prompted me to focus on those aspects of the subject which relate to vernacular technology. Use of the term begs the question of what we mean by ‘vernacular’, but this will be discussed elsewhere. I will therefore merely state that for me, vernacular architecture – or shelter – embraces the entire field of tribal, folk, peasant, popular and informal sector urban building. The anthropology of shelter has a multitude of aspects, of which those which come within the scope of technology are clearly important.
