Ruka (Mapuche House)

The ruka (also ruca) is the traditional house of the Mapuche people of south-central Chile and adjacent Argentina; ruka means "house" in Mapudungun. It is a single large room under a roof thatched with straw, reeds or rushes, and was the main dwelling of the extended family.

Form and size

Rukas were originally round with a conical roof, and later also oval, rectangular or square. The Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino describes rectangular, circular and elliptical rukas of various sizes, most often with a strong frame of oak (roble, Nothofagus) timber. Wikipedia gives a typical floor area of about 120 to 240 m² (1,300 to 2,600 sq ft). Walls are of coligüe cane or timber poles reinforced with posts inside.

Roof

The roof, and sometimes the walls, are covered with bundles of straw or with rushes such as tule (Schoenoplectus acutus) and junquillo. The museum notes that this thick vegetable covering insulates against heat and cold and keeps out rain. Materials depend on what grows nearby.

Orientation and interior

A ruka has no windows and a single main entrance facing east, towards the rising sun and the Puelmapu, the eastern lands associated with the deities; a small secondary door to the west is possible. At the centre is a hearth (kütralwe) that is kept burning for cooking, light and heat. Smoke darkens the walls over time, forming a protective layer. Beds line the walls and food and tools hang from the roof structure.

Communal building

Rukas were built collectively, in a work tradition called rukatun or rukan, and the completion was celebrated with food and dancing, including masked dances (kollong).

Today

The museum notes that traditional ruka building has largely fallen out of everyday use and that most Mapuche communities now live in Western-style houses, though their layout often recalls the ruka. The form has also inspired modern Mapuche housing, such as a 2011 project in La Pincoya, Huechuraba (Santiago), whose main doors face the rising sun and whose facades use a double skin of coligüe cane.