Analysis of the evolutionary process of traditional village spatial pattern: The case of Gaoyi village in Western Hunan, China

The examination of the characteristic law of traditional village transformation over time represents a vital nexus in cultural heritage preservation and the transmission of vernacular culture. Historical event points were used to augment village development information, facilitating the restoration of the village’s historical pattern. Geographical analysis methods, including Standard Deviation Ellipse Analysis (SDSEA), Nearest Neighbor Analysis (NNA), and Source-Destination Analysis (SDA), were employed to explore the characteristics of the village’s geographical center of gravity, changes in concentration and dispersion, and functional transfer. The stepwise progression of the village’s evolution was investigated, as well as the mechanism of residents’ behavior during the evolution process. The results reveal: 1) The spatial evolution of the settlement shows a trend of agglomeration. As time passes, the center of gravity of each functional space gradually converges, and the average distance between elements decreases, resulting in a shift from a dispersed to a clustered distribution. 2) The village space changes from simple to complex due to the conduct of the villagers. Residential behaviors promote the establishment of residential space and the development of public and commercial space. The usage, abandonment, and functional transitions that occur inside the space cause functional zones to nest with each other, resulting in a more intricate spatial structure. 3) Both the degree of change and the preservation of the village’s functional space show an increasing trend, indicating that the protection of the built space and the expansion of the unbuilt space occur simultaneously. This represents a developmental trend that is consistent with the social surroundings and the villagers’ ambitions.