Beijing is always referred to as Old Beijing, and its unique courtyards are always referred to as the physical evidence which can best proclaim the city's age-old history and unique culture. Yet in the face of impatient urbanization, one courtyard after another is being pulled down and replaced by towering mansions. This prompted renowned writer Shu Yi to once write in an article: "the residents of Beijing, those on business trips to Beijing and overseas visitors to Beijing, are all accosted by the same question: Can Beijing really still live up to its name?"

Different from the western detached house, where a person finds the residential building in the centre of the grounds, Beijing's courtyards feature a number of dwellings gathered around a quadrangular yard. For many people, the courtyard gives them memories of a childhood so nostalgic that it seemed almost heavenly. Shi Yan, 23 years old, lived in a courtyard until he was six years old.

"The children living in the yard were all about the same age. We never ran short of games: we set traps to capture sparrows and played rubber-band skipping with girls. In the yard, there was a rockery and several big cotton-rose hibiscus trees; I still remember the beautiful flowers of the trees. After dinner, while us children were playing around, the adults were able to walk around the yard and chat with each other."

However, the expanding population of Beijing simply could not be confined within its historical homes. Back in 1949, a courtyard housed one family, but as the years passed, several families, even several dozen families, began to share single courtyards. Courtyards have become compounds. Filthy and crowded with poor facilities and various odds and ends piling everywhere, many are no longer the pleasant places they once were. An old female resident explains:

"I've been living here for nearly half a century. Around 30 households live here, each room holding a family. The piled-up goods make the yard even more crowded. My eight-year old granddaughter lives with my husband and I, she doesn't like it here. She can't bear the winter. When the wind blows, we can feel it seeping through the wall into our house. I want to move out from this yard."

This kind of complaint is arguably what pushes city planners to demolish these old houses and build high modern buildings. Yet Beijing’s courtyards have existed for hundreds of years, and ancient architecture often has advantages over rushed modern constructions. Shu Yi has been a member of China's top advisory body: Chinese Peoples' Political Consultative Conference for two successive sessions, and has made several proposals for the protection of old architecture.

"Courtyards can shut out noise and dust and create their own climate; we can plant trees and flowers in the yard and find ourselves close to nature whenever we want. In the downtown areas, it is quite relaxing and peaceful to live in courtyards. We can't help but admire this ancient architecture for its advanced design."

More pointedly, Shu Yi says that the deteriorating condition of many courtyards cannot be blamed upon the four walls and courtyard within.

"It's not because of the architecture itself, it's because it shoulders too high a population and is overused. We do not need to pull them down, the first thing to do is to lower the number of residents, and then equip it with modern household facilities, such as good heating and electricity, and broadband. Its original charm can be restored."

Certainly, it is sad to say that when urbanization and history meet, the ancient buildings are always the once forced to give way. The large-scale destruction of courtyards began in the 1990s, when the municipal government adopted a housing renovation policy that allowed developers to replace old but not necessarily derelict homes with new high rise buildings.

Meanwhile, hutongs, Beijing’s ancient alleyways, are also disappearing at a fantastically depressing speed. Statistics show there were over 7,000 hutongs in Beijing in 1949, with the number shrinking to 3,900 during the 1980s. Currently, about 600 hutongs are demolished every year. Shu Yi says he is heartbroken to see such larges-scale renovation:

"Some of the courtyards need to be retained as they were, some need repairing, and some need renovation; we can't use bulldozers everywhere."

A large number of scholars, researchers and various NGOs agree with Shu Yi’s point of view, and have called upon the government to take effective measures to retain and protect these precious legacies of Beijing. Their efforts have not been in vain. Not long ago, the municipal government of Beijing adopted a preservation and rehabilitation plan, listing 25 blocks, and about 600 courtyards, under government protection. Listed areas now accounts for about one third of the old city area. but Shu Yi says that this level of protection is still far from enough.

"The protected zone shouldn't be restricted to one district, or one lane, it should cover a large area, and within this area, high buildings should be prohibited and the old lanes and quadrangles should be arranged and retained as they always were."