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1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. What is Co-housing?

Cohousing is an intentional community of private homes clustered around

shared space. The term originated in Denmark in the late 1960s.Co-
housing can be defined by the following standards

(1) Physical layouts, common facilities, legal forms, decision-making
Thesis Report V-SPARC VIT
processes.

(2) Internal social dynamics.
(3) Relations between cohousing and the environment.

1.2. History of Co-housing

Early mentions of co-housing begins from 14th century, one of the

early influencer Thomas More, in his famous book Utopia (“a place

nowhere”, 1516) described a society which has equal education for men and
women and without private properties. The houses had shared a common

dining hall which had common servants, ideally called the Communal

Kitchen.
“In most nineteenth century communes ‘women’s work’ remained

sex stereotyped, but men and women benefited when cooking, cleaning, and

child care were collectivized” (Hayden, 1977).

Architect researcher Dolores Hayden wrote a book called “The seven
American Utopias” (1977). She analyzed the US communitarian

settlements from 1790 to 1930 and concluded that the driving forces behind

different designs of communities could be categorized into three main
motives which are,

 The garden ideal, characterized by the placement in an

idealized landscape with an emphasis on horticulture and
agricultural productivity.

 The machine ideal, characterized by industrial productivity

and political inventiveness.

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