Over 2,500 Chinese villages listed for cultural protection

Over 200 traditional villages in China have been recognised for conservation to protect their historical and cultural legacy after a nationwide survey, taking the total number of such villages to 2,555, officials said today.
Since June, a conservation program has surveyed and made records of 218 traditional Chinese villages, the centre responsible for the program said.
Pu Jiao, vice director of the Research Center for Conservation and Development of Chinese Traditional Villages, told state-run Xinhua news agency that the 218 villages are among 2,555 state-recognised traditional villages which merits official protection.
Among the 218 villages, the largest group is located in north China's Hebei Province.

A first volume of the Records of Traditional Chinese Villages about the Hebei villages will be published by the end of this year, Pu said.
The survey aims to research traditional Chinese villages by gathering information to be recorded both in text and photos.

Eight categories of information will be collected based on anthropological and folkloric principles.
There are over 5,000 traditional villages worthy of conservation in China.
"Creating a file for each of them is a long process, requiring participation by more experts and volunteers," said Pu.
Traditional villages are those where the original village layout, typical houses and classic architecture are still largely intact.