受西方人類學的影響，過去臺灣人類學對泰雅族的研究多聚焦於社會組織或團體方面的議題，而較少關注一向被視為私領域的「家」。 近年來人類學對東南亞家屋的研究，指出家屋空間作為濃縮的宇宙，家屋與「起源」的概念有象徵上的連結（ J. Fox 1996），並且家屋內部作為「不動的中心」（Waterson 1996），蘊涵著出「女性的」以及母親為生命來源（ mother as source）的意像，成為蓄積力量的中心。 本文以泰雅人的家為研究主題，先由神話所隱含之起源的觀念談起，對應到家屋空間內則表現在以爐灶象徵根源、祖訓 gaga，並以爐灶內的灰形容家的興旺與否。在神話中以異性手足為最原初的一對，在現實生活中則經由泰雅族夫妻—異性手足—姻兄弟間的儀式性交換與互動，使得家得以建立在一對夫妻為中心的基礎上，經由實踐祖訓 gaga，及與妻子娘家關係的建立與互動，獲得家的興旺繁盛。而家屋本身所隱含子宮的意象，包括其空間作為人生產及死後埋葬的主要場域，亦呈現了泰雅文化中家屋與生命來源的關聯性。

This article discusses the notion of the house in Atayal culture. The symbolism of houses of Atayal has long been neglected by Anthropologist in Taiwan, since, under the influence of structural-functionalism, houses were usually categorized as less important private domains, and thus were only mentioned concerning their organizational aspects and social functions in earlier writings. Nevertheless, recent anthropological research of the houses symbolism in South-East Asia reveals that inhabited spaces are cultural constructions carrying symbolic loads (Waterson 2009: xvi). Houses in South-East Asia constitutes a microcosm (Ibid: Xvii) and thus is invested with powerful meanings such as the concept of origin as well as feminine life source (J. Fox 1996; Waterson 1996). In both the Atayal myth and house the origin of human's life was symbolically represented in the form of plants' roots as well as cross-sex sibling relationships. The hearth of a house is said to be the root of a family, and the prosperity of the hearth fire, a symbol of the house's economic and fertile success, is believed to rely on the family member's daily practice of gaga (ancestral disciplines or norms) including the incest-avoiding restrictions between brothers-inlaw. In the myth of origin a pair of cross-sex sibling gave birth to the people's ancestor, while in reality, their role in breeding is transformed, through the practice of incest-avoiding restrictions, into a triangular relationship between husband, wife and brothers-in-law. Furthermore, the inner of the Atayal house is the only culture-approved space where women deliver children, and the place where lochia and placenta were ritually wrapped and buried as corpses in funerals. By and large, this essay gives an overview of the symbolism of houses in Atayal culture, showing that the Atayal house, like its counterparts in South-East Asia, is a manifestation of the culture's universe, in which the dweller's daily activities also become powerful and meaningful in terms of keeping the house's fertility and prosperity.