Chinese architecture is the embodiment of an architectural style that has developed over millennia in China and has influenced architecture throughout East Asia. Since its emergence during the early ancient era, the structural principles of its architecture have remained largely unchanged. The main changes involved diverse decorative details. Starting with the Tang dynasty, Chinese architecture has had a major influence on the architectural styles of neighbouring East Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and Mongolia in addition to minor influences on the architecture of Southeast and South Asia including the countries of Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and the Philippines.
Buddhist religious architecture developed in the Indian subcontinent. Three types of structures are associated with the religious architecture of early Buddhism: monasteries (viharas), places to venerate relics (stupas), and shrines or prayer halls, which later came to be called temples in some places.
Buddhist temples or monasteries are the most numerous, famous, and important religious buildings in Japan. The shogunates or leaders of Japan have made it a priority to update and rebuild Buddhist temples since the Momoyama period. The Japanese word for a Buddhist monastery is tera (寺), and the same kanji also has the pronunciation ji, so temple names frequently end in -dera (voiced) or -ji. Another ending, -in (院), is normally used to refer to minor temples. Examples of temple names that have these suffixes are Kiyomizu-dera, Enryaku-ji and Kōtoku-in.
Newar architecture or Newa architecture is an indigenous style of architecture used by the Newari people in the Kathmandu valley in Nepal. Newar architecture consists of the pagoda, stupa, shikhara, chaitya and other styles. It is also known for its exquisite craftsmanship. Unique city planning and the harmonious integration of art, religion, and daily life. This architectural style is closely related to the cultural and historical development of Kathmandu Valley and has greatly influenced the architectural traditions of the region. The valley's trademark is the multiple-roofed Pagoda which may have originated in this area and spread to India, China, Indochina and Japan. Residential houses, monastic courtyards known as baha and bahi, rest houses, temples, stupas, priest houses and palaces are the various architectural structures found in the Kathmandu valley. Most of the chief monuments are located in the Durbar Squares of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur, the old royal palace complexes built between the 12th and 18th centuries. The style is marked by striking brick work and a unique style of wood carving rarely seen outside Nepal. The style has been propagated by Nepalese architects including Arniko.
The architecture of the Song dynasty (960–1279) was noted for its towering Buddhist pagodas, enormous stone and wooden bridges, lavish tombs, and extravagant palaces. Although literary works on architecture existed beforehand, architectural writing blossomed during the Song dynasty, maturing into a more professional form that described dimensions and working materials in a concise, organized manner. In addition to the examples still standing, depictions in Song artwork, architectural drawings, and illustrations in published books all aid modern historians in understanding the architecture of the period.
The Beisi Pagoda or North Temple Pagoda is a Chinese pagoda located at Bao'en Temple in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China. The base of the pagoda has an octagonal frame, and the tower rises nine stories in a total height of 76 m (249 ft). The pagoda was once eleven stories tall, but was damaged and reduced to nine stories. Its double eaves and flying corners are similar to that of the Liuhe Pagoda found in Hangzhou. Its base and outside walls are made of brick, the balustrades made of stone, and the eaves and banisters encircling the structure are made of wood.
The Lingxiao Pagoda is a Chinese pagoda west of the Xinglong Temple in Zhengding, Hebei Province, China.
The Liaodi Pagoda of Kaiyuan Monastery, Dingzhou, Hebei Province, China is the tallest existing pre-modern Chinese pagoda and tallest brick pagoda in the world, built in the 11th century during the Song dynasty (960–1279). The pagoda stands at a height of 84 meters (276 ft), resting on a large platform with an octagonal base. Upon completion in 1055, the Liaodi Pagoda surpassed the height of China's previously tallest pagoda still standing, the central pagoda of the Three Pagodas, which stands at 69.13 m (230 ft). The tallest pagoda in pre-modern Chinese history was a 100-meter (330 ft)-tall wooden pagoda tower in Chang'an built in 611 by Emperor Yang of Sui, yet this structure no longer stands. It is considered one of the Four Treasures of Hebei.
The Songyue Pagoda, constructed in 523 CE, is located at the Songyue Monastery on Mount Song, in Henan province, China. Built during the Northern Wei Dynasty, this pagoda is one of the few intact sixth-century pagodas in China and is also the earliest known Chinese brick pagoda. Most structures from that period were made of wood and have not survived, although ruins of rammed earth fortifications still exist. In 2010, the Pagoda was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List along with other nearby monuments as part of the 'Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in “The Centre of Heaven and Earth”' site.
The Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple of Ying County, Shanxi province, China, is a wooden Chinese pagoda. It is also known as the Wooden Pagoda of Ying County. It was constructed in 1056, during the second year of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty and was renovated and expended in 1195 during the sixth year of the Jin dynasty. The pagoda was built by Emperor Daozong of Liao (Hongji) at the site of his grandmother's family home. The pagoda, which has survived several large earthquakes throughout the centuries, reached a level of such fame within China that it was given the generic nickname of the "Muta".
Fawang Temple is a modern Chinese Buddhist monastery located 5 km (3.1 mi) northwest of the town of Dengfeng in Henan province, China. Situated at the bottom of the Yuzhu Peak of Mount Song, the monastery claims to be the descendant of the second Buddhist monastery constructed in China. However, the type of Buddhism espoused before the revolution was Chan, which had not yet evolved in the time of the monastery's legendary founding.
Lingyan Temple is a Buddhist temple located in Changqing District, Jinan, Shandong Province, China, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of the city of Tai'an. The temple grounds are situated in a valley on the western edge of the Taishan range. The Lingyan Temple has a long recorded history, and was one of the main temples in China during the times of the Tang and Song Dynasties. Its most renowned landmarks are the 11th century Pìzhī-tǎ and the Qiānfó-diàn which houses a Ming dynasty bronze Buddha statue as well as 40 painted clay statues of life-size luohan from the Song dynasty.
The Tianning Temple, is a Buddhist temple located in Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China, is noted for its giant pagoda, the Tianning Pagoda (天宁宝塔/天寧宝塔). Construction began in April 2002 with the opening ceremony for the completed structure held on April 30, 2007, where a crowd of hundreds of Buddhist monks gathered for the ceremony. With 13 stories and a height of 153.79 metres (505 ft), this is now the tallest pagoda in the world, taller than China's tallest existent pre-modern Buddhist pagoda, the Liaodi Pagoda built in 1055 at a height of 84 m (275 ft). Although the existing pagoda was built by April 2007, the temple grounds and the pagoda have a history of construction and destruction for the past 1,350 years, since the time of the Tang dynasty (618–907). Building of the pagoda was proposed by the Buddhist Association of China in 2001, yet providing money donations for the temple was an international effort, as leaders of 108 Buddhist associations and temples worldwide attended the opening ceremony at the temple.
The Baoguang Temple is located in Xindu district 18 km north of Chengdu, Sichuan province, China. It was founded during the Tang dynasty.
Kaiyuan Temple is a Buddhist temple located in West Street, Quanzhou, China, and is considered as the largest Buddhist temple in Fujian province with an area of 78,000 square metres (840,000 sq ft). The central figures of veneration in the temple are the Five Tathāgathas from Chinese Esoteric Buddhism who are enshrined in the temple's Mahavira Hall. In 2021, the temple was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List along with other sites near Quanzhou because of its importance during the medieval global maritime trade based in Quanzhou and its testimony to the global exchange of ideas and cultures. The temple is also one of few in China to contain Hindu monuments, left there by traders from Southern India. It is of Buddhist Dense-Eaves architecture and is most famous for the largest stone pagodas in the world, the twin pagodas of Zhenguo and Renshou, which were completed using stone during the Song dynasty.
The architecture of Myanmar, in Southeast Asia, includes architectural styles which reflect the influence of neighboring and Western nations and modernization. The country's most prominent buildings include Buddhist pagodas, stupas and temples, British colonial buildings, and modern renovations and structures. Myanmar's traditional architecture is primarily used for worship, pilgrimage, storage of Buddhist relics, political activism and tourism.
The Wuying Pagoda, also known as the Xingfu Temple Pagoda and The Thousand Year-Old Pagoda of Wuhan, is a Buddhist pagoda in Wuchang, Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. Built of stone 750 years ago during the final years of the Southern Song Dynasty, it is the oldest standing architectural feature in Wuhan. Wuying Pagoda is a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level.
Caotang Temple is a Buddhist temple located on the north hillside of Mount Guifeng, in Huyi District of Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Lingguang Temple is a Buddhist temple located on the east hillside of Mount Cuiwei (翠微山), in the Shijingshan District of Beijing. The temple is renowned for its collection of the tooth relic of the Buddha.
The Four Treasures of Hebei are four artifacts of high historical value located in Hebei, China. They include the Great Bodhisattva of Zhengding, the Anji Bridge, the Liaodi Pagoda, and the Iron Lion of Cangzhou.
