Gasshō-zukuri is a unique form of Japanese architecture that features a thatch-covered roof with a herringbone shape that resembles the clasping of hands, hence the name "hapu." The wooden buildings are constructed without the use of nails but are still very strong.

The roofs of the Gasshō-zukuri are steep, allowing snow to slide down easily and not accumulate, ensuring that the roofs will not collapse during the winter months, a design concept similar to that of European buildings.

The thatch used for the roof has a short lifespan, necessitating its replacement every 30 to 40 years. It requires a lot of manpower to replace the thatch, so every time a family's roof needs renovation, the whole village works together to do it, a form of cooperation called "knotting."

In Japan, there are only three remaining Hapu settlements: the Takemachi settlement in Shirakawa-go and the Punuma and Aikura settlements in Gokuzan.

The most famous of these is the Yakumachi settlement, which was designed to fit the surrounding environment by relocating and preserving the haphazard buildings of the nearby abandoned villages of Kasura, Magari, Oshino, and Shima. More than 600 remnants of the Minpei clan still live in the Yakumachi settlement, living the same simple life as their ancestors.

The main material used in the construction of hapu houses is thatch. To avoid sunlight damaging the lifespan of the thatch, the roof of the Hapu house is built along the east side of the mountain, reducing the sunlight on the east side of the roof, ensuring that sunlight is evenly distributed, and the lifespan of the house is increased.

The orientation of the hapu house also follows the direction of the local wind, taking into account the wind protection effect. Since strong winds blow from the north to the south along the river, orienting the roof surface of the house to the east and west will reduce the damage caused by the wind.

The space between the double-layered exterior walls serves as a walkway, providing a transition between the interior and exterior so that snow does not directly damage the interior walls in winter and also serves to keep the house warm.

The architectural form of the Hapo Village is easy to understand, with thatched roofs resembling the herringbone shape of the Hapo and a sloped roof of over 45 degrees, ensuring that snow cannot accumulate, making it an excellent design to accommodate the heavy snowfall in winter.

Shirakawa-go, a village located in the Gifu Prefecture, was initially designated as the site for the construction of a dam. Still, since 1967, the earliest surviving 400-year-old "Wada Family Residence," designated as a nationally important cultural property, has been the center of the village, and houses from all over the world have been relocated to Shirakawa-go to be preserved.

This relocation has created the largest surviving settlement of Gasshō-zukuri. At present, there are 113 houses of the Gasshō-zukuri in Shirakawa-go.

In 1971, to protect these special buildings, the residents of the village launched a conservation movement and established the Shirakawa-go Ogi-machi Village Nature Conservation Association.

This organization set up regulations for the protection of the assets of the residents. In 1995, Shirakawa-go and Gokayama's Gasshō-zukuri settlement were registered as a World Heritage Site.

Gasshō-zukuri is a unique form of Japanese architecture that has survived for centuries.