Engawa

<h2 id="structure">Structure</h2>
The engawa is supported on posts, identical to the other uprights of the house.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6">6</a> A row of uprights runs long the inside of the engawa, and the shōji sliding screens run between these; a second row of uprights runs along the outside of the engawa.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7">7</a> The posts traditionally stand on half-buried stones,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8">8</a> pounded into the earth with a specialized maul, and the wood posts shaped to fit the upper surface.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9">9</a> More recent houses may use concrete footings.
The engawa floor may not be finished, or it may be polished or lacquered.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10">10</a>

<h2 id="terminology">Terminology</h2>

En means an edge; gawa a side.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11">11</a> The terms en and engawa were historically used interchangeably,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12">12</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13">13</a> but engawa now generally refers to the <a href="/facts/Veranda/TqpLNYnz">veranda</a> directly outside the shutters. Types of en include:

<h3>Positional terms</h3>
<ul><li>hiro-en (広縁), an inner en, possibly enclosed</li>
<li>ochi-en (落縁), an en set one step below the floor (or en) inside it</li>
<li>nure'en (濡れ縁, lit. 'a wet en'), an en protruding from under the <a href="/facts/Eaves/qrtJv53K">eaves</a> and not protected by amado.</li></ul>
If there are fewer than three en, an en may be described by more than one of the positional terms.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14">14</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15">15</a>

<h3>Structural terms</h3>
<ul><li>mawari-en (回縁), a wrap-around en, often a wrap-around veranda</li>
<li>kirime-en (切目縁), a en with boards running across its width</li>
<li>kure-en (榑縁), a en with boards running along its length</li>
<li>sunoko-en (簀子縁), a veranda with a slatted floor for better drainage</li>
<li>takesunoko-en (竹簀の子縁), a bamboo sunoko-en</li></ul>

<h2 id="relation-to-other-house-components">Relation to other house components</h2>
The core of a traditional <a href="/facts/Shinden_style/qYbkyEWp">Shinden-style</a> building was the innermost room or <a href="/facts/Moya_(architecture)/gjKEBu8e">moya</a> (母屋) (see diagram). This was surrounded by the <a href="/facts/Hisashi_(architecture)/TvFIwbRa">hisashi</a> (廂,庇), which was on the same level, and was usually inside the windows and shitomi storm shutters. The hisashi was often a ring of tatami-floored rooms, but could be an unmatted en; see also hirobisashi (広廂/広庇/弘廂). In a large building, there could be further layers of tatami-floored rooms,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16">16</a> courtyards, and further floorplan complications.
In <a href="/facts/Shoin_style/1vjp3B2x">Shoin-style</a> buildings, the positioning of the engawa varied more, and the storm shutters slid rather than being hinged (usually horizontally). The modern <a href="/facts/Sukiya_style/J9kqfVLU">Sukiya-style</a> of building uses amado, storm shutters that not only slide but pack away in a cupboard called a to-bukura by day; unlike the Shoin-style shutter, these generally run on the outside of the engawa.
The width of an engawa varies with the building; 1–1.3 m (3 ft 3 in – 4 ft 3 in) is common, while large temples may have over 3 metres (9.8 ft) of engawa. The engawa is supported on posts, identical to the other uprights of the house. The posts stand on half-buried stones<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:17" href="#fn:17">17</a> or concrete footings.

<h2 id="cultural-role">Cultural role</h2>
Engawa are often proportioned so that one can sit on the edge and observe the garden.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:18" href="#fn:18">18</a> They provide a space for playing children and casual visitors.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:19" href="#fn:19">19</a>
An engawa is part of the house, and shoes are therefore not worn on it. Guests' shoes are lined up pointing outwards.
While engawa declined with the Westernization of Japanese architecture,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:20" href="#fn:20">20</a> they are making a comeback in modern architecture.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:21" href="#fn:21">21</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:22" href="#fn:22">22</a>

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Engawa.

<ul><li><a href="/facts/Loggia/U2ogHPUx">Loggia</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Bay_window/D8RAF745">Bay window</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Oriel_window/K9pr2PEA">Oriel window</a></li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1">縁 [En]. The Daijisen. Shougakukan. 1995. <a href="縁" target="_blank">縁</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:2">"Shoji Screens". www.rothteien.com. <a href="http://www.rothteien.com/superbait/shojiscreens.htm" target="_blank">http://www.rothteien.com/superbait/shojiscreens.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:3">A., Kester, Jeffery (18 March 2017). "The Kester House & Garden". kesterhouse.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) <a href="http://kesterhouse.com/exterior/engawa.html" target="_blank">http://kesterhouse.com/exterior/engawa.html</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:4">Duits, Kjeld (14 June 2008). "1890s • Woman in Room". Old Photos of Japan. <a href="http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room" target="_blank">http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:5">A., Kester, Jeffery (18 March 2017). "The Kester House & Garden". kesterhouse.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) <a href="http://kesterhouse.com/exterior/engawa.html" target="_blank">http://kesterhouse.com/exterior/engawa.html</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:6">Edward S. Morse (1885). "5: Entrances and Approaches". Japanese Homes and their Surroundings. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help) <a href="https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html" target="_blank">https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:7">Edward S. Morse (1885). "1: The House". Japanese Homes and their Surroundings. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help) <a href="https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh01.html" target="_blank">https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh01.html</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:8">Edward S. Morse (1885). "5: Entrances and Approaches". Japanese Homes and their Surroundings. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help) <a href="https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html" target="_blank">https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:9">Edward S. Morse (1885). "1: The House". Japanese Homes and their Surroundings. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help) <a href="https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh01.html" target="_blank">https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh01.html</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:10">Edward S. Morse (1885). "5: Entrances and Approaches". Japanese Homes and their Surroundings. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help) <a href="https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html" target="_blank">https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:11">"The definition of engawa". www.dictionary.com. <a href="http://www.dictionary.com/browse/engawa" target="_blank">http://www.dictionary.com/browse/engawa</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:12">"Engawa 縁側". www.aisf.or.jp. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Retrieved 2008-07-20. <a href="http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/e/engawa.htm" target="_blank">http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/e/engawa.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:13">"En 縁". www.aisf.or.jp. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. <a href="http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/e/en.htm" target="_blank">http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/e/en.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:14">"Nure-en 濡縁". www.aisf.or.jp. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. <a href="http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/n/nureen.htm" target="_blank">http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/n/nureen.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:15">"Ochi-en 落縁". www.aisf.or.jp. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. <a href="http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/o/ochien.htm" target="_blank">http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/o/ochien.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:16">"Shinden-zukuri 寝殿造". www.aisf.or.jp. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. <a href="http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/s/shindenzukuri.htm" target="_blank">http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/s/shindenzukuri.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:17">Edward S. Morse (1885). "5: Entrances and Approaches". Japanese Homes and their Surroundings. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help) <a href="https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html" target="_blank">https://www.kellscraft.com/JapaneseHomes/JapaneseHomesCh05.html</a> <a href="#fnref:17" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:18">"ELEMENTS - The Engawa". Archiscapes. 15 January 2015. <a href="https://archiscapes.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/japanese-traditional-engawa-space/" target="_blank">https://archiscapes.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/japanese-traditional-engawa-space/</a> <a href="#fnref:18" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:19">Duits, Kjeld (14 June 2008). "1890s • Woman in Room". Old Photos of Japan. <a href="http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room" target="_blank">http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room</a> <a href="#fnref:19" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:20">Duits, Kjeld (14 June 2008). "1890s • Woman in Room". Old Photos of Japan. <a href="http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room" target="_blank">http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room</a> <a href="#fnref:20" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:21">Duits, Kjeld (14 June 2008). "1890s • Woman in Room". Old Photos of Japan. <a href="http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room" target="_blank">http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/en/photos/274/woman-in-room</a> <a href="#fnref:21" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:22">Reinholdt, Eric (9 December 2014). "Design Workshop: How the Japanese Porch Makes a Home Feel Larger". Houzz. <a href="https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/34439424/list/design-workshop-how-the-japanese-porch-makes-a-home-feel-larger/" target="_blank">https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/34439424/list/design-workshop-how-the-japanese-porch-makes-a-home-feel-larger/</a> <a href="#fnref:22" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
</ol>

Engawa open-in-new

Engawa