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Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Brian Ashcraft Avatar
Brian Ashcraft
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Land came come at a premium in Japan, especially in big cities. For urban dwellers, sometimes the only option is to build small. Real small.

In Japanese, these cramped abodes are called “narrow homes” (狭小住宅 or “kyoushou jyuutaku”). Typically, they’re built on plots of land that are less than 50 square meters. The notion is not new*; however,”narrow homes” as we now know them started appearing in the 1950s and the 1960s. Architects like Takamitsu Azuma helped define the narrow home in the decades after World War II.

(*Before and during the war, there were narrow “row houses” that were residences packed side-by-side, often sharing the same walls. These are different from “narrow homes” and can still be seen in Japan today.)

Realise that not everyone in Japan (myself included!) lives in a cramped house or a tiny apartment. Moreover, not all apartments look chic. Even in the cities, there are large homes and big apartments. In the suburbs and the countryside, dwellings can get even larger.

But there’s something so appealing about how beautiful and artfully these narrow homes use small spaces — that is, unless you are claustrophobic! Recently, Japanese site Naver did a round up of some of the standout tiny homes. Below, you can find some of the houses featured, along with some other unique narrow homes I’ve added. Let’s have a look.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Azuma House by Tadao Ando. Osaka, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Sakai’s Cramped House by Seiji Fujihara. Osaka, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Element House by CAPD. Nagoya, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Garden House by Ryue Nishizawa. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Simple Small-Sized House by Tokyo Juken. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

House in Nada by Fujiwaramuro Architects. Hyogo Prefecture, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Jolly by Shuichi and Saori Niibori. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

House in Horinouchi by Kota Mizuishi. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

The Narrow House of Rokko by Seiji Fujihara. Kobe, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Living Life in a Big Crevice by OnDesign. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

House in Showa-cho by Fujiwaramuro Architects. Osaka, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Lucky Drops by Yasuhiro Yamashita. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Moriyama’s House by Suppose. Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

The Cramped House of Shibuya by Sakae Kitabata. Tokyo, Japan.

Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses
Cramped Or Not, I Want To Live In These Tiny Japanese Houses

Reflection of Mineral by Yasuhiro Yamashita. Tokyo, Japan.

If you are wondering what typical Japanese houses or apartment buildings are look, just look at the structures surrounding these unique narrow homes.

Photos: Cap-D, Hypenotice, TokyoJuken, DesignBoom, HetGallery, Blog.Goo, Ameba, HouseCo, HomeDsgn, Dezeen, ArchDaily, OnDesign, Suppose, E-Architect, Home Reviews, Tekuto, Zaus, Zaus, Zaus, Zaus

To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter @Brian_Ashcraft.

Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.

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