bouwtipo

Bouwtipo is a term used in Dutch-speaking architecture and urban planning to refer to a building type—the standardised form or typology that a building or group of buildings share. In standard Dutch the conventional spelling is bouwtype; bouwtipo may appear as a variant spelling in some texts or non-Dutch contexts.

A bouwtype describes constellations of form, function, and construction. It can be classified by function (residential, commercial, industrial), by scale (single-family house, row house, apartment block), by massing and façade rhythm, or by construction method and materials. In practice, planners and designers use bouwtypes to organize housing stocks, guide design guidelines, and compare urban fabrics across neighborhoods and time periods.

Historically, standardized bouwtypes emerged with mass housing, public housing programs, and prefabrication, enabling faster production and predictable outcomes. Today, the concept remains a tool for urban analysis, heritage assessment, and policy development, helping to preserve diversity of forms while meeting functional requirements and building regulations.

See also: architectural typology, housing type, urban morphology, building stock, mass housing.