Shack

A shack (or, less often, shanty) is a type of small, often primitive shelter or dwelling. Like huts, shacks are constructed by hand using available materials; however, whereas huts are usually rural and made of natural materials (mud, rocks, sticks, etc.) shacks are generally composed of scavenged man-made materials like abandoned construction debris, repurposed consumer waste and other useful discarded objects that can be quickly acquired at little or no cost and fashioned into a small dwelling.

A large shack near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Background

In areas of high population density and high poverty, shacks are often the most prevalent form of housing; it is possible that up to a billion people worldwide live in shacks.[1] Fire is a significant hazard in tight-knit shack settlements.[2] Settlements composed mostly or entirely of shacks are known as slums or shanty towns.

In Australian English shack can also refer to a small holiday house with limited conveniences, for instance it may not have running water or electricity.

In Canadian oilfield drilling, a shack can also be the word for a wellsite trailer. These structures are notorious among oilfield workers for being cramped, uncomfortable and generally unpleasant to be in.

Gallery

• 
  Shacks in Kayamandi, South Africa
• 
  In relatively affluent areas, shacks are often used for storage or have been abandoned.
• 
  A multi-family shack in a riverside shantytown, Jakarta, Indonesia.
• 
  Shacks of Damara people within Namib Desert

See also

• Beach hut
• Log cabin
• Log house
• Hunting lodge
• Mountain lodge
• Sweat lodge
• Tipi

References

1. Planet of Slums, Verso, 2006
2. A Big Devil in the Jondolos: A report on shack fires by Matt Birkinshaw