A Comparative Study on the Spatial Structure Characteristics of National-Level Traditional Villages in Liaoning, China

Abstract

Knowing the spatial structure of traditional villages is required to promote and preserve these villages. These traditional villages are an essential part of China’s farming legacy and hold substantial historical and cultural significance. Therefore, this article analyzed 30 nationally recognized traditional villages in Liaoning Province, selected from the 6819 traditional villages in the province, as samples. These were divided into three types based on elevation: plain-type (below 200 m above sea level), hilly-type (200–500 m), and mountain-type (above 500 m) villages. Two villages of each type were selected for a total of six villages as the study objects; for these, quantitative comparative research on the spatial structure of these villages was carried out. The results of the study show that: (1) plain-type traditional villages are little affected by the terrain, the overall presentation of the surface space, the village traffic is well developed, able to form a commercial street as the core of the road interruptions in the head of the road more; (2) hilly-type traditional villages are influenced by mountains and water systems, forming a linear space with main roads as the core and crossroads, their core areas are more remote and lack space for public activities, and the villages rely on religious venues or the former residences of celebrities to attract tourists; (3) mountain-type villages are greatly influenced by the mountains, making it difficult to form a commercial area, the distribution of each natural town is relatively scattered and forms a point-like space, each point is developed with public space as the core, and there is a lack of characteristics within the village. The above quantitative characteristics are compared and three targeted conservation strategies for national-level traditional villages in Liaoning are proposed.

1. Introduction

In China, the term “traditional villages” refers to villages that were formed a relatively long time ago compared to most villages, possess rich cultural and natural resources, and have notable historical, cultural, scientific, artistic, economic, and social values that should be protected. Therefore, the achievement of rural regeneration and the creation of a magnificent China greatly depend on the conservation of traditional villages [1,2,3,4]. Each traditional village is rich in the life paths and memories of generations, including both tangible and intangible heritage. Hundreds of traditional villages are an important component of the historical and cultural landscape of the Chinese countryside [5,6,7,8,9]. The spatial structure and morphology of villages vary in different regions, periods, geographical locations, and climatic environments [10,11,12,13]. Liaoning Province, located in northeastern China, has an integrated multi-ethnic background, with traditional villages in some areas that retain unique ethnic customs and habits having deep cultural connotations and high research value [14,15], Its long-standing focus on unified planning and planned development coupled with its lack of flexibility and autonomy have, to a certain extent, diluted the diversity of local cultures and impeded the retention and inheritance of traditional village characteristics. In Chinese, this phenomenon can be described as “having villages without worries, having houses without souls,” but from Liaoning Province’s perspective, the idea of preserving traditional villages is proving difficult, mostly because of a lack of research on the importance of traditional villages [16,17,18]. Therefore, the spatial structure of villages not only plays a direct role in the conservation and growth of those villages; it can also enable people to better recognize traditional villages allowing them to protect the entire lifestyle of villages and to pass the historic and cultural values to the next generation [11,19,20,21].

Early research on the development of rural settlements focused primarily on geography, followed by a shift to and integration of multiple disciplines, such as geography, history, anthropology, and sociology; later, this research mainly shifted from analyzing the physical nature of settlements to the human living environment and social issues as well as from the qualitative description of communities to employing research methods that combine qualitative and quantitative methods [22,23]. For example, in 1841, Kohl, a German settlement geographer, published a book titled “The Relationship between Human Traffic and Settlement and Topography,” which for the first time systematically analyzed the process of settlement formation and compared metropolises, market towns, and villages, as well as the association between the distribution of settlements with terrain and geography. The book “Types of Rural Settlements in France” categorized the morphology and structure of rural settlements and analyzed the relationship between the formation of different types of settlements and the natural world, society, and population. In 1963, Burton put forward the slogan “Measurement Revolution” in geography, which led to the rapid development of geography and had a significant impact on this field of study. The rapid development of econometric geography has also had a significant impact. The enrichment of research has also led to the fast pace of urbanization in rural areas and industrialization of the countryside, leading to changes in the spatial structure of rural communities. In light of the factors discussed above, an in-depth study of rural reconstruction has been conducted. Eva mainly analyzed the reconstruction of the countryside in the transition period [24]. Brown analyzed rural reconstruction and the distribution of populations, tending to use more humanistic content [24,25]. Research on rural spaces mainly focuses on the theoretical study of rural space, spatial reorganization, spatial utilization, spatial structural change, and spatial transformation. For example, in 2000, Gray conducted a theoretical study on the development of rural space in Scotland [26]. In 2004, Mačiulytė investigated the reorganization of rural space in Lithuania through the perspective of European integration [27]. A 2005 study by Yang focused on the reuse of space [28]. In 2013, Kong examined the spatial structural changes and characteristics of rural to urban spaces [29]. Research by Ionela in 2015 explored the valorization of autochthonous traditional rural spaces in the context of tourism opportunities [30]. In 2017, Amit-Cohen investigated the preservation of rural spaces from the perspective of Israel [31], while Barrett examined structural transformations in African agricultural and rural space processes [32]. Furthermore, Navarra studied the transformation of rural spaces in Mozambique in 2021 [33]. These studies provide some references for the protection of rural settlements but still lack targeted protection and use strategies.

In China, research on the development of the spatial structure of traditional villages has mainly shifted from a focus on geography and social anthropology to history as well as the humanities, thus affecting the characteristics of the spatial structure of traditional villages, with later studies obtaining quantitative data to gain a deeper understanding of the spatial structure characteristics. The current study focuses on the protection of the spatial structure of national traditional villages in Liaoning. At present, various scholars have conducted extensive research on traditional villages in Liaoning, mainly concentrating on their spatial distribution, morphology, layout, texture, and so on. For example, in 2014, Liu and Hu found that the spatial density of traditionally distributed villages varies significantly over time, with a prominent core-edge structure, which is affected by geographical and environmental factors [34]. In 2019, Zhang used quantitative indicators of spatial syntax to resolve the spatial pattern of features of western Liao Xi′s traditional villages and proposed a conservation strategy [35]. In 2020, Zhang discovered that the state-level traditional villages in Liaoning Province showed an aggregated distribution, and the differences in the spatial allocation of state-level traditional villages among various regions were apparent [36]. In 2022, Li explored the features of the spatial texture of the traditional villages in western Liaoning, so that the traditional village texture in western Liaoning can be better continued and passed on [37]. In 2023, Zhang et al. conducted a quantitative investigation of the spatial characteristics of traditional villages and alleys in Liaonang utilizing relevant methods and theories, including morphology, typology, spatial syntax, and statistics, and proposed protection strategies for traditional villages [38]. However, articles on the type of protection that is needed for villages in the province of Liaoning are lacking.

Therefore, this article uses spatial syntax to explore the original structure of traditional villages and deeply grasp the internal logic of their existence [39]. The study of spatial syntax includes axial, linear segment, and convex space analysis methods; because this paper analyzed the large spatial areas and physical space of villages, the axial method in spatial syntax was chosen for this study [40].

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Study Object

The terrain of Liaoning Province, located in the southern part of northeast China, is inclined from north to south and from east to west (Figure 1), forming a saddle-shaped terrain with undulating hills on the east and west sides with a vast plain in the central part of the province, which forms a spatial pattern of ”six mountains, one water, and three fields” [41].

Based on information published by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People’s Republic of China and other documents [42], Liaoning has 6819 national-level traditional villages. Of these, a total of thrity national traditional villages in Liaoning Province were included in China’s five groups of nationally recognized traditional villages: eight in the third group [43], located in the four cities of Chaoyang, Fushun, Huludao, and Fuxin; nine in the fourth group [44], located in the three cities of Chaoyang, Jinzhou, and Huludao; and thirteen in the fifth group [45], located in the cities of Chaoyang, Shenyang, Anshan, and Huludao.

The digital elevation data used in this study were downloaded from the geographical spatial data cloud and the locations of the 30 national-level traditional villages in Liaoning were converted into the form of coordinate points; these data were superimposed using ArcGIS10.8 software (ESRI, Redlands, CA, USA). The elevation of Liaoning Province was found to be between −326 and 1336 m a.s.l. (Figure 2). The overall layout of the national traditional villages in Liaoning Province exhibited a pattern of more villages in the west and fewer villages in the central and eastern regions of the province. For this paper, the 30 national traditional villages in Liaoning were divided into three categories. There were nine traditional villages with an average elevation of less than 200 m, which were classified as plain type, represented by those associated with the cities of Shenyang, Huludao, Chaoyang, and Jinzhou. A total of 16 traditional villages with an average elevation of 200–500 m were classified as the hilly type, which was represented by those associated with the cities of Chaoyang, Fushun, Jinzhou, Anshan, Huludao, and Fuxin. In addition, five traditional villages with an average elevation of more than 500 m were classified as mountain type, which was represented by those associated with the cities of Chaoyang, Fushun, Jinzhou, Anshan, Huludao, and Fuxin. Traditional villages with an average elevation above 500 m are classified as mountain-type villages, as discussed by Chaoyang [46].

By describing the relationship between mountains, water, and fields in the natural environment surrounding the nationally recognized traditional villages in Liaoning, this study categorizes the spatial structure according to the topographical features of the plains-type, hilly-type, and mountain-type villages (

Table 1. Description of spatial structure of traditional villages.

Plain Type
Type	Village Name	Schema	Village Name	Schema
Linear	Xinbaozi Village, Lijiabao Township, Suizhong County, Huludao City		Jinlingsi Village, Daban Township, Beipiao City, Chaoyang City
	Gongzhuling Village, Sijiazhi Mengu Township, Faku County, Shenyang City
Polygon	Shifoyi Village, Shifosi Street, Shenbei New District, Shenyang City		Shifosier Village, Shifosi Street, Shenbei New District, Shenyang City
	Pandaogou Village, Tashan Township, Lianshan District, Huludao City		Sanjuxing Village, Shangyuan Township, Beipiao City, Chaoyang City
	Shifo Village, Futun Street, Beizhen City, Jinzhou City		Yemaotai Village, Yemaotai Town, Faku County, Shenyang City
Hilly Type
Type	Village Name	Schema	Village Name	Schema
Point	Xigou Village, Yong′an Township, Suizhong County, Huludao City		Shierguanyingzi Village, Wulanbai Town, Lingyuan City, Chaoyang City
	Sanjia Village, Shengli Township, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City
Linear	Xiaojiadian Village, Yangshan Town, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City		Yaozhan Village, Jiahe Township, Xinbin Manzu Autonomous County, Fushun City
	Xidazhangzi Village, Liucheng Town, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City		Xiaowopu Village, Siguanyingzi Town, Lingyuan City, Chaoyang City
	Longgangzi Village, Futun Street, Beizhen City, Jinzhou City		Huashan Village, Dashi Town, Beizhen City, Jinzhou City
	Dingziyu Village, Shizimiao Town, Xiuyan Manzu Autonomous County, Anshan City		Botaigou Village, Daban Town, Beipiao City, Chaoyang City
	Sanfu Village, Xiafu Development Zone, Beipiao City, Chaoyang City		Bapangou Village, Tangzhangzi Village, Beisijiazi Township, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City
Polygon	Fosi Village, Fosi Town, Fuxin Menggu Autonomous County, Fuxin City		Baiyinaili Village, Nanshao Street, Kalazuoyi Menggu Autonomous County, Chaoyang City
	Hetuala Village, Yongling Township, Xinbin Manzu Autonomous County, Fushun City
Mountain Type
Type	Village Name	Schema	Village Name	Schema
Point	Xindi Village, Xiwujiazi Township, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City		Sandaogou Village, Xiwujiazi Township, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City
Linear	Er′angou Village, Goumenzi Town, Lingyuan City, Chaoyang City		Lieshanliang Village, Sanshijiazi Town, Lingyuan City, Chaoyang City
Polygon	Wangjiadian Village, Jiabeiyan Township, Suizhong County, Huludao City

). The national traditional villages of the plains had relatively little difference in elevation. These villages tended to be clustered and mapped mainly as polygons. These areas were mostly surrounded by farmland and stream corridors. Hilly-type national traditional villages were mainly linear-based structures, so these presented a belt-shaped area with many branches, but no cut-offs. The layout of these villages was mainly influenced by mountains and stream corridors. Finally, mountain-type national traditional villages were mainly point-based with drastic differences in local topography. These villages were formed by a variety of scattered individuals and affected by the topography; furthermore, they are characterized by the formation of point-like clusters between natural tunnels.

In summary, the city of Shenyang had the largest number of national-level traditional villages. Of these, the following were selected: Shifoyi village in Shenbei New District, Shenyang, and Yemaotai village in Faku County, both of which are mainly in the shape of a polygon; the hilly type national traditional villages were mostly located in or near the cities of Chaoyang and Anshan, of which the following were selected: Xiaojiadian Village in Yangshan Town, Chaoyang City, and Dingziyu Village in Shimiaozi Town, Anshan City. Both of these have a primarily linear shape. Two point-type villages were selected: the villages of Xindi and Sandaogou in Xiwujiazi Township, Chaoyang City. Therefore, a total of six national-level traditional villages of Liaoning were selected for this study comparing the spatial structure of national-level traditional villages (

Table 2. Scope of the sample village study.

Type	Village Name	Scope of the Study	Altitude Range	Average Altitude
Plain Type Polygon	Shifoyi Village, Shifoyisi Street, Shenbei New District, Shenyang City		13–97 m	54 m
	Yemaotai Village, Yemaotai Town, Faku County, Shenyang City		46–155 m	102 m
Hilly Type Linear	Xiaojiadian Village, Yangshan Town, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City		214–284 m	248 m
	Dingziyu Village, Shizimiao Town, Xiuyan Manzu Autonomous County, Anshan City		172–338 m	224 m
Mountain Type Point	Xindi Village, Xiwujiazi Township, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City		510–663 m	585.5 m
	Sandaogou Village, Xiwujiazi Township, Chaoyang County, Chaoyang City		497–676 m	583.5 m

).

2.2. Data Collection and Analysis

Spatial structure can be defined as the combination of the relationship between the constituent elements of space, while the spatial elements can be divided into material and immaterial elements. This paper mainly focuses on the study of spatial structure, which is dominated by material space, including the natural ecological elements of mountains, rivers, water systems, and farmland as well as the artificial material elements, such as roads, nodes, and buildings. Therefore, in this work field research was conducted on selected national traditional villages in Liaoning, the material elements of the spatial structure were categorized, and photographs, videos, interviews, and mapping were employed to examine the overall spatial pattern of the villages so as to draw the general plan of the sampled villages (

Table 3. Basic information on the selected traditional villages.

Village Name	General Layout Plan	Basic Information	Material Factors
Shifoyi Village		Shifoyi village is known for its Xibe culture, and the construction of Shuangzhou City during the 923rd period of Emperor Taizong of Liao, as a state city during the Liao and Jin dynasties, represents the heyday of Shifosi′s historical development. It is rich in natural resources, surrounded by seven star mountains as a backdrop, fields, and water. A spatial pattern of “mountain-field-village-field-water” is evident.	Village area: 696 hm2 Natural ecological elements: (1) Mountains: Qixingshan. (2) Streams: Liao River. (3) Cropland: 580.9953 hm2. Human-made material elements: (1) Roads: four main roads; 58 branch roads; seven paths. (2) Constructions: single-entry front and backyard layout; sloping roof. (3) 9 Knot: the main categories are memorial, life, religious, military, and leisure.
Yemaotai Village		Once a place of defense against invasion, the village of Yemaotai developed into a trading town in later years and was also the hometown of six prime ministers of the Liao Dynasty. It now boasts the largest Liao Bei livestock market in northern China. The village is surrounded by farmland with the Sacred Trail Mountain as a backdrop. A spatial pattern of “mountain-field-village-field” is seen.	Village area: 1838 hm2 Natural ecological elements: (1) Mountains: Shengji mountain. (2) Streams: none. (3) Cropland: 1379.57 hm2.
			Human-made material elements: (1) Roads: six main roads; 92 branch roads; 27 paths. (2) Constructions: single-entry front and backyard layout; shallow-vaulted roof. (3) 10 Knot: the main categories are history and business.
Xiaojiadian Village		In the Guangxu period, in order to continue the spirit of rural civilization, a small number of elderly residents opened a preaching hall, which was later expanded to Yuqing Palace, the only site in the county to host Taoist activities. It is surrounded by mountains. A spatial pattern of “mountain-village-field-water-mountain” is seen.	Village area: 305.47 hm2. Natural ecological elements: (1) Mountain: Lazi Mountain. (2) Streams: Sitaiziying River. (3) Cropland: 75.762 hm2.
			Human-made material elements: (1) Road: two main roads; 58 branch roads; 25 paths. (2) Constructions: single-entry layout; shallow-vaulted roof. (3) 7 Knot: the main categories are religion, leisure, and life.
Dingziyu village		Dingziyu village was once a sentry town used for guarding and defense during the Goguryeo period. More than 75% of the people in the village are Manchu, and there is also a patriotic education base—the former residence of Huang Xiansheng. The village is surrounded by mountains and adjacent to a stream. A spatial pattern of “mountain-field-village-water-mountain” is seen.	Village area: 751.82 hm2 Natural ecological elements: (1) Mountains: Xi mountain and Dong mountain. (2) Streams: Qingtaiyu River. (3) Cropland: 159.8667 hm2.
			Human-made material elements: (1) Road: one main road; 15 branch roads; 31 paths. (2) Constructions: single-entry layout; sloping roof. (3) 7 Knot: the main categories are memorial, life, religious, commercial, and recreational.
Xindi village		In the early Qing Dynasty, people with the surname Wang migrated from Shandong to Xindi village, and the leading industry is based on animal husbandry. The village′s Daqing Mountain is within the Natural Resource Conservation Area. It is surrounded by mountains with seasonal rivers. A spatial pattern of “mountain-field-village-water-field-mountain” is evident.	Village area: 1135.59 hm2. Natural ecological elements: (1) Mountains: Daqing mountain. (2) Streams: used for drainage. (3) Cropland: 209 hm2.
			Human-made material elements: (1) Road: two main roads; 61 branch roads; 10 paths. (2) Constructions: single-entry layout; shallow-vaulted roof. (3) 7 Knot: the main categories are life and leisure.
Sandaogou village		andaogou village was expanded by the Mongols during the Song and Liao Dynasties. The village is home to the former residence of the scholar NAME, born during the Qing Dynasty. The village is also the core protection area of Daqing Mountain. Surrounded by green mountains, it is built along the mountain trend. A spatial pattern of “mountain-field-water-village-field-mountain” can be seen.	Village area: 1833.55 hm2. Natural ecological elements: (1) Mountain: Daqing mountain. (2) Streams: mainly used for drainage. (3) Cropland: 198.7333 hm2.
			Human-made material elements: (1) Road: two main roads; 77 branch roads; 28 paths. (2) Constructions: single-entry layout; shallow-vaulted roof. (3) 11 Knot: the main categories are religious and life.

).

2.3. Methods

Spatial syntax is a mathematical method for describing and analyzing spatial relationships proposed by British (UCL) scholar Bill Hillier in the 1970s. The core concept of spatial syntax is to abstract and construct a model based on the actual space, and to reveal the inherent implicit logical relationships in the space using algorithms. In this paper, the spatial structure was transformed into an axial map that closely approximated the spatial characteristics for data analysis. The satellite map was downloaded to draw the axial model, strictly following the principle of spatial syntax axial model by drawing “the longest and the shortest axis”. The axial model was obtained after the guide. dxf format file and imported into the software DepthmapX (GitHub, UCL, London, UK). Following repeated model correction, the model showed green, indicating that the model was drawn correctly so as to obtain the data [47]. A comparative analysis of the spatial structure of the three types of traditional villages could then be carried out using six quantitative indicators of spatial syntax: degree of integration, intelligibility, and degree of choice, as well as connection, depth, and control values (

Table 4. Selection of parameters.

Parameters	Characterization	Definition	Formula
Integration [HH]	degree of contact	Closeness of space and linkages between spaces	$Intergration(d)={\displaystyle \frac{1}{RRA(d)}}$
Intelligibility	readable	Difficulty in recognizing the whole space through the local	Correlation between local integration and global integration
Connectivity	permeability	Higher values indicate good permeability of this space	$Ci={\displaystyle \sum Rij}$ Rij refers to the relationship between both i and j in a given cell space
Choice	wearability	Number of times a space node appears on the shortest topological path	$Normalized Choice={\displaystyle \frac{Choice}{Total Depth}}$
Depth	accessibility	Minimum number of spatial transitions from a space node to a neighboring space node	$Di={\displaystyle \sum _{d=1}^{s}d\times }{N}_d$ Dij is the shortest topological number connecting any two nodes i and j in the graph, and s is the number of cell spaces within the spatial system
Control	ability control	Level of impact of the space unit on the surrounding environment	${Ctrl}_i={\displaystyle \sum _{j=1}^k\frac{1}{c_j}}$ Assuming that the weight of each element in the space is 1, the weight assigned to the neighboring element B of an element A is (1/B′s connected value), that is, the weight assigned to A from the neighboring element

).

3. Results

DepthmapX software was used for data analysis to ensure that the quantitative indicators of the six research objects could be obtained (

Table 5. List of quantitative spatial syntax indicators for sample villages.

Parameters	Polygon		Linear		Point
	Shifoyi	Yemaotai	Xiaojiadian	Dingziyu	Xindi	Sandaogou
Integration [HH]	1.23	0.90	0.71	0.54	0.39	0.27
iIntelligibility	0.57	0.28	0.39	0.46	0.18	0.10
Connectivity	2.17	2.21	2.29	2.20	2.23	2.22
Choice	3767.35	16,827.20	5374.46	8177.49	15,460.74	22,650.67
Depth	6.89	10.60	10.84	14.72	20.42	29.71
Control	1.00	1.06	1.00	0.99	1.01	1.02

). The following is a detailed analysis of each indicator for each of the three types of traditional villages.

The analysis shows the degree of integration of the polygon (1.23 and 0.90) > line (0.71 and 0.54) > point (0.39 and 0.27) village shapes (Figure 3). The three types of villages showed a gradual deterioration of accessibility based on changes in topography over time. The integration parameter values of the face villages were all above 1, with a high degree of integration, among which Shifoyi village showed the highest parameter value of 1.23. This is because Shifoyi village is located on the outskirts of the city, and both sides of the village road are centered on a commercial street dominated by Sibe culture, including the entrance plaque, bilingual door signs, and wall paintings, which attract large amounts of people and traffic. In contrast, the axis of Yemaotai village (shown in red in Figure 3) is a cross-shaped intersection, with both main streets being commercial streets. The largest livestock trading market in northern China is found to the north of the village center in Liaobei. All are important gathering places for village residents, and together they organize the development of the entire village. Due to topographical factors, the point-like village is cut into several natural tunnels and develops from the inside to the outside, and the parameter values are all lower than 0.5. The center of Xindi village is dominated by two main roads. The public activity plaza serves as the core of the two small cities, the three small cities are far away from each other, and the parameter value of 0.39 is lower. Sandaogou village is organized with the former residence of the cited person at the center, and the other two small cities are organized with the public activity plaza as the core of the development of the village; the linear village is in the middle of the surface and point, the parameter value is higher than 0.5, and the central trunk road serves as the core of the entire village. The axis of Xiaojiadian village is a single main road that runs through the village. This road organizes the main development direction of the village, with shops on both sides. At the entrance of Xiaojiadian village, Yuqing Palace, a Taoist site, attracts crowds with an interest in religious places. Dingziyu village is mainly guided by the main road towards the development direction of the Xishan group and the Dongshan group, and the former residence of Huang Xiansheng, a popular educational site, is located on the north side of the village and attracts many tourists. From this, it can be seen that in terms of spatial structure, polygonal villages are more integrated than line villages, which are more integrated than point villages, with polygonal villages having a higher degree of integration, stronger agglomeration, and better accessibility.

It was found that the intelligibility of the villages followed the order shown in Figure 4: Shifoyi (0.57) > Dingziyu (0.45) > Xiaojiadian (0.39) > Yemaotai (0.28) > Xindi (0.18) > Sandaogou (0.10); normally, traditional villages have low intelligibility. The intelligibility of Shifoyi was 0.57; due to its proximity to the city, the village developed rapidly and was able to establish overall spatial recognition from local space. The other traditional villages were fitted with R² parameters less than 0.5; the horizontal and vertical axes were unrelated, the axes were scattered and widely distributed, outsiders did not have a high recognition of the village interior, and the villages were therefore not easily affected by the outside world. As a result, the village’s non-core space was difficult to identify. Sandaogou Village had a developed public space as the center, and it has the lowest intelligibility of 0.10, with a scattered spatial structure. From this, it can be seen that polygonal villages had greater intelligibility, while traditional villages with a point shape had relatively poor intelligibility.

The connectivity of villages was considered based on the village street layout, with the spatial structure of road connectivity considered. Based on the related analysis, the connectivity of villages could be ranked as follows: Xiaojiadian (2.29, a linear village) > point villages (Xindi, 2.23, and Sandaogou, 2.22) > Yemaotai (2.21, a polygonal village) > Dingziyu (2.20, a linear village) > (Shifoyi 2.17, a polygonal village), as shown in Figure 5. As Xiaojiadian village is mainly developed with the main commercial street as the core, the high spatial connectivity value parameter of the surrounding streets and lanes indicates that the villagers have communication and interaction and that the spatial permeability is good from the entrance of the village throughout all the spaces of the village. Shifoyi, which also has the main road as the core, has more disconnected roads, streets, and lanes, i.e., a good road network connection is lacking. This caused Shifoyi Village to have the lowest connection value and the poorest spatial connectivity of the six study villages. Traditional villages designated as points had relatively good connectivity owing to their topography. These villages had only one main road; so, the streets and lanes were more connected, with the buildings being relatively closely spaced. As a result of this analysis, it is clear that the traditional villages of the plains with a polygon shape have poor peripheral road articulation, resulting in low connectivity. Meanwhile, the villages with a point and linear spatial structure had better connectivity and a stronger influence on the surrounding space. Better connectivity values were observed for point, linear, and polygonal traditional villages compared to faceted villages. Therefore, point and linear villages have better connectivity values than faceted villages.

The degree of choice (Figure 6) followed this order: Sandaogou (22,650.67, a point village) > Yemaotai (16,827.20, a polygonal village) > Xindi (15,460.74, a point village) > linear villages (Dingziyu, 8177.49, and Xiaojiadian, 5374.46) > Shifoyi 3767.35 (a polygonal village). The lowest selectivity parameter was found in Shifoyi village. This is due to the fact that the road network structure of Shifoyi village is shaped like a fishbone, with many bifurcated streets and lanes, and the axis of the village (shown in red in Figure 6) is a commercial street that provides a necessary route for commuting villagers; however, the spatial connection with the branch roads is not strong, indicating a lack of communication among villagers. The highest selectivity parameter was found in Sandaogou. This is because Sandaogou village develops from the inside to the outside and has a centripetal nature. The layout of its streets and lanes is complete, thus showing a high degree of selectivity. From this, it can be seen that the order of selectivity is as follows: point > line > polygon, because point-shaped villages have only one main road, so the layout of the streets is more compact. The polygon and line villages have many roads, so the layout of the streets is more dispersed, and the degree of spatial penetration is weaker. Based on the degree of choice, point traditional villages with a point shape offer more options for the direction of travel.

The depth values (Figure 7) for villages were ranked from high to low as follows: point (20.42 and 29.71) > line (14.72 and 10.84) > polygonal (10.60 and 6.89), and their accessibility gradually improves in this order. The depth value of the spicy vegetable gully in Sandaogou village is the highest, and the accessibility is poor due to the terrain limitation and the distance. Meanwhile, the depth value of Shifoyi Village is the lowest; this village has good accessibility. It was relatively easy for people to gather in Shifoyi, and it was relatively convenient to reach the various parts of the village. This suggests that the accessibility of the traditional polygon-shaped villages of the plain was better when compared to that of the other two types of villages, making them easier to reach. Traditional villages with a point shape had higher depth values and poorer accessibility. The higher the depth value of the village, the worse the accessibility, as indicated by the quantitative indicators of spatial syntax when comparing depth values across surface, line, and point types. Therefore, faceted traditional villages have better depth values than point and linear ones.

The control values are shown in Figure 8. The comparison shows that the difference between the traditional villages was minimal, exhibiting almost no difference and all being extremely close to 1. Control was ranked as Yemaotai (1.06, a polygonal village) > point villages (Xindi, 1.01, and Sandaogou, 1.02) > Shifoyi (1.00, another polygonal village) > line villages (Xiaojiadian, 1.00, and Dingziyu, 0.99). The highest control value parameter was found for Yemaotai village because the axis of the village is on the west side of the village, where there are two peanut planting co-operatives, representing the main planting industry of Yemaotai village, and this space has a strong ability to control and influence the surrounding space. Meanwhile, Dingziyu village had low control values because this village had no core nodes and thus controls the surrounding neighboring spaces, so this village has a lesser degree of influence on the neighboring spaces. From this, it can be concluded that villages with polygons and points have a stronger control ability than linear villages having a linear spatial structure to control the space.

4. Discussion

After comparing the quantitative indicators of the three types of national traditional villages in Liaoning, the advantages and disadvantages of the spatial structure are summarized below, and corresponding protection strategies are proposed.

4.1. Advantages and Disadvantages of the Spatial Structure of Villages

The development of plain-type (polygon-shaped) traditional villages resulted in obvious advantages: these villages have commercial streets that make up the core, convenient transportation within and outside the village, and good spatial accessibility. However, the road system of Shifoyi had a fishbone pattern, with many dead-end roads, and the public space was not strongly connected to the core, which was not conducive to formatting an organic uniform space with the overall village. Yemaotai lacks open water and lies in a location that makes it difficult to establish a connection with the entire village within the local area. The public space in Yemaotai was not located in the core area; so, this village lacked a distinctive public space, making it difficult to unify the entire village.

The linear traditional villages in hilly terrain all had cultural relics of provincial significance that had been identified as protection units. The hilly terrain provides advantages, mainly by having a network of roads, although the buildings have no characteristics that provide special advantages. However, the core landscape of Xiaojiadian was not in the core area and was relatively remote, lacking a plaza for public activities. Dingziyu has three levels of small roads in a network that is not within the core area; however, one central road has a plaza at the center of the town that serves as the core of the public space.

The mountain-type traditional villages with point characteristics from a spatial perspective were all in the core conservation area of Daqing Mountain, and travel corridors were dominated by branched roads; these roads were influenced by topography, making for inconvenient transportation options both inside and outside the village. For example, the village of Xindi formed a single node with a lack of public space, typical village characteristics, and core areas. Meanwhile, all-natural villages in Sandaogou had public space as the core but lacked unifying village characteristics, therefore appearing scattered.

4.2. Preservation Strategy for Village Spatial Structure

4.2.1. Protecting the Topography of Villages and Exploring Their Characteristics

Topography affects the layout of traditional villages. The polygon-shaped traditional villages of the plains are little affected by the flat terrain, but the possibility of these being transformed exists; so, it may be necessary to control the expansion of these villages to retain their desirable characteristics. Shifoyi village itself is characterized by the Sibe ethnic group, and the characteristic areas of the village are protected and developed, while Yemaotai village is characterized by the livestock trade and the peanut planting industry. The linear traditional villages of hilly areas are affected by the terrain of the hills and the stream corridors. Their linear nature should enhance the protection of natural resources and preservation of the village and the protection of the characteristics of heritage resources. Xiaojiadian Village has sloping land, and the topographical features of this sloping land should be developed to create productive landscape features, while Dingziyu Village, which is characterized by the Manchu ethnic group, should retain and develop the characteristics of the Manchu ethnic group during the excavation of the village. In hilly traditional villages of this type, the constraints of topography limit the area available for farmland planning, posing survival challenges for farmers. Therefore, it is important to protect and maximize the use of viable planting spaces. Meanwhile, the influence of mountains causes a dispersed distribution of natural villages and towns. To preserve traditional villages in mountain-type points, increased emphasis should be placed on the protection of village characteristics as well as on the preservation of local history and culture centered on the protection of natural resources to promote the growth of these traditional villages. The traditional villages in mountainous areas are greatly influenced by mountains so natural towns have a scattered pattern of distribution. The core of the preservation of these villages involves the protection of natural resources, while at the same time, attention should be paid to the characteristics of each village and the protection of its history and culture. Traffic corridors should be safe and smooth. For the three natural cantons of Xindi village, the village′s agriculture and animal husbandry-oriented characteristics should be explored, while Sandaogou village should be characterized by the Mongolian ethnicity and the quality of the village′s history and culture should be further developed, thus promoting the development of traditional villages.

4.2.2. Complete Spatial Structure and Optimized Spatial Core

The core of plain-type (polygon-shaped) traditional villages have a development structure with a village center from which the main roads spread out; these villages should focus on the development of the core area. Shifoyi village should enhance the systematic road network within the village to make the road system more holistic, while Yemaotai village should promote the development of the village from the inside out with the main road as the main focus, and complete the construction of the center of the village as well as the public area. For linear traditional villages in hilly areas, Xiaojiadian village should pay more attention to the construction of the main road and the roads connecting the various elements of the village using a hierarchical combination method, which makes the road system more distinct, while Dingziyu village should increase the construction of the core area at road intersections, making the spatial structure more complete. The point-shaped traditional villages of the mountainous areas have greater distances between each village. For Xindi village, the core spatial area should be increased to guide the development of point-like villages. Each natural village in Sandaogou village has a central spatial area as its core; these areas link the natural villages and should be utilized to develop the core characteristics of the village so that the natural villages will present a unified whole while retaining their own unique characteristics.

4.2.3. Communalization of Core Spaces and Enhancement of the Character of Public Space

In plain-type surface traditional villages, public space within the core area should be increased, focusing on the deep excavation of Shifoyi village’s Xibozu culture and enhancing the commercial cultural characteristics of Yemaotai village. For hilly linear traditional villages, the core public space at cross-type intersections should be expanded, making the space structurally complete. Finally, in mountainous traditional villages, farming culture should be preserved with public space as the village core, integrating various public spaces to enhance the village’s characteristics.

5. Conclusions

(1) Faceted villages have a high degree of integration compared to the other two types. In faceted villages, the parameter value is high, a commercial section of the main road serves as the core area of the entire village, and the village develops from the inside to the outside. Among the faceted villages in this study, the comprehensibility degree of Shifoyi village is higher than 0.5 and the structure of the village is easily recognized by outsiders. Moreover, the low value of the depth of the village indicates better accessibility and a close connection between the various spaces, and thus a stronger capacity to control the surrounding spaces. Linear traditional villages have a higher degree of integration and are dominated by main roads. Due to topographical factors, the spaces in linear villages are far away from each other and the values present a low degree of selectivity and a poor ability to control the surrounding spaces. The integration degree of point-shaped traditional villages is low, the entire village has no agglomeration center and is dominated by a main road, and the village is cut into points due to the topography, resulting in a low degree of comprehensibility and poor control values between the spaces.

(2) In terms of shared characteristics, all three types of traditional villages are rich in natural resources. However, the roads are not perfect, the hierarchy is not clear, the spatial structure of the core area is not reasonably laid out, and the characteristics of the public space are missing. In terms of individuality, the plain-type traditional villages considered in this study are developed with the main commercial road as the core. The core area of Shifoyi village does not appear on the right side of the main road in the village, the core location of the main road in the village, and the entire village does not form an organic whole. Yemaotai village has a local aggregation on the right side, and the core area appears in the north, which is deviated from its location. The hilly-type traditional villages rely on provincial cultural relics protection units. In Dingziyu village the roads are laid out as intersecting cross-type road networks, which do not form the core of the village. In Xiaojiadian village, the Yuqing Palace is at the entrance of the village, which is a relatively remote location in terms of the structural layout of the village. Although hilly traditional villages rely on the core natural resources protection areas, the villages are limited by topographical factors and each village exhibits a point-like layout, with no unity formed between the points. Each of the points in Xindi village and Sandaogou village has its own core area.

(3) Protection strategies are proposed for the national-level traditional villages in Liaoning. First, the topography of the villages should be protected, and their characteristics should be explored. Second, the spatial structure should be improved, and the spatial core should be optimized. Finally, the communalization of core spaces and enhancement of the character of public spaces should be prioritized across all types of traditional villages.

In addition, most of the discussion in this paper focuses on the spatial structure of traditional villages, which mainly consist of material space, while the non-material elements are not considered in detail. It is hoped that future research on traditional villages will incorporate non-material elements, including the cultural, social, and economic aspects of the villages. It is also hoped that in the future, mechanical methods such as random forest software will be added for further in-depth research, facilitating the joint interpretation of the characteristics of traditional villages.