Burdei

A bordei is a type of dugout-style shelter, somewhat between a sod house and log cabin. This style is native to the Carpathian Mountains of Eastern Europe but closely resembles similar buildings from elsewhere such as a French-Canadian "caveux".

In countries like Romania, the bordei was properly build to constitute a permanent housing place and could accommodate a whole family. Thus, a Romanian bordei could have had multiple rooms, typically a "fire-room" where the stove was installed, a room called "celar" and a "living room".

This type of shelter was created by many of the earliest Ukrainian Canadian settlers as their first home in Canada at the end of the 19th century. The first step was to peel back and save the sod, then excavate the earth to a depth of approximately a metre. A poplar roof frame was then created, over which the saved sod would be laid. Then a window, a door, a wood stove, and a bed platform would be installed. A typical burdei measured no more than 2 x 4 metres. The bordei was a temporary refuge until a "proper" home of poplar logs and mud/straw plaster could be built.

ee also

* Culture of Romania
* Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village
* Earth sheltering

References

* http://www.muzeul-satului.ro/oltenia_54_castranova.php
* Lehr, John C., "Ukrainians in Western Canada" in "To Build New Land" (Baltimor and London: The John Hopkins University Press, 1992) pp 309-330.