Abstract:
As one of the regions in China where the Russian ethnic group predominantly resides, Ergun City features traditional villages along the Argun River within its territory that exhibit unique regional characteristics of cultural integration in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. This article takes 11 national-level traditional villages along the Argun River as the research subjects. Through elevation and proximity analysis, these traditional villages are classified into four types: mountain-plain type, hilly-valley type, foothill-terrace type, and valley-plain type. Based on the classification results, four types of spatial layout are summarized using grass, water, villages, fields, and mountains as spatial elements, and then analysis of the villages’ spatial layouts are traced. The research indicates that: 1) Traditional villages exhibit a site-selection characteristic of settling near water bodies; 2) Overall, traditional villages demonstrate spatial forms with water adaptability and spatial layouts with terrain adaptability; 3) The integration of culture and nature in the region jointly shapes the unique layout characteristic of ’farming at a distance and herding nearby, living in clusters’ among traditional villages along the Argun River. This study can provide a reference perspective for the sustainable conservation of traditional villages.