Village Morphology and the Construction of Place Identity in the Aihui
Area along the Heilongjiang River, China
Abstract
Place identity is the emotional connection between people and a place.
It is significant for local development and people’s satisfaction and
happiness in where they reside. The physical environment is one of the
most important factors affecting people’s emotions toward a place. In
order to clarify the theoretical analytical framework of the process
from village space morphology to place identity, this study takes the
area of Aihui along the Heilongjiang River, China, as an example. The
research was conducted regarding two aspects: First, we analyzed the
space morphology of the villages in the Aihui district and interpreted
their locality. On this basis, we conducted a survey of villagers’
subjective perceptions of the village space and their place identity
through in-depth interviews. From the collected interview texts, we
extracted, verified, and analyzed the role of morphological constituents
in the construction of place identity. Finally, a comprehensive
framework was established. The features of space morphology are the
projections of locality in physical space. People use morphological
constituents to construct an image of the village and scenes of local
life; morphological constituents with local characteristics can help
enhance people’s place identity.