Shikumen (simplified Chinese: 石库门; traditional Chinese: 石庫門; pinyin: Shíkùmén; lit. 'Stone Warehouse Gate', Shanghainese: zaq⁸ khu¹ men⁶, IPA: [zᴀʔ¹¹ kʰu¹¹ mən²⁴]) is a traditional Shanghainese architectural style combining Western and Chinese elements that first appeared in the 1860s.
The term 石库门 is derived from the Shanghainese dialect 石箍门, 箍 meaning "to frame or encase." 石箍门 referred to the characteristically "stone-framed door" of the tenement houses. At the height of their popularity, there were 9,000 shikumen-style buildings in Shanghai, comprising 60% of the total housing stock of the city; however, the proportion is currently much lower, as most Shanghainese live in large apartment buildings. Shikumen is classified as one type of lilong residences, sometimes translated as "lane houses" in English.
