ABSTRACT
Traditional typology of vernacular rural housing in the central area of the Andean Highlands of Colombia is suffering irreversible changes. As a result of the transculturation process between Indigenous and Spaniard elements, it was one of the most representative examples, remaining unaltered for nearly four centuries. However, recent modifications in the functions and ways of inhabiting spaces, and the introduction of industrialized materials used for building houses, mainly promoted by State policies and a price increase of raw materials, have lead to a process of change from the original mestizo to a hybrid typology. Some older elements have been preserved, but at the same time new ones have been introduced in the last twenty years; this is an ongoing process in the area of study, where in the recent past several elements mentioned in the ICOMOS’ Charter on Built Vernacular Heritage were easily recognizable, but today have mutated.
