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A shack (or, in some areas, shanty) is a type of small shelter or dwelling, often primitive or rudimentary in design and construction. Unlike 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 Scavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While scavenging generally refers to carnivores feeding on carrion, it is also a herbivorous feeding ...
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 In law, a dwelling (also known as a residence or an abode) is a self-contained unit of accommodation used by one or more households as a home - such as a house, apartment, mobile home, houseboat, vehicle, or other "substantial" structure. The ...
.


Background

In areas of high
population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...
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. Fire is a significant hazard in tight-knit shack settlements.A Big Devil in the Jondolos: A report on shack fires by Matt Birkinshaw
/ref> Settlements composed mostly or entirely of shacks are known as slums or shanty towns. In
Australian English Australian English (AusE, AusEng, AuE, AuEng, en-AU) is the set of varieties of the English language native to Australia. It is the country's common language and ''de facto'' national language; while Australia has no official language, Eng ...
''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

File:Kayamandi 02.jpg, Shacks in Kayamandi,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
File:Tyrnava River 20070506.JPG, A shack by the Tyrnävä River (''Tyrnävänjoki'') in
Tyrnävä Tyrnävä () is a municipality in the North Ostrobothnia region of Finland with a population of (). It covers an area of , of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. The city of Oulu is located abou ...
,
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...
. File:Rundown Shack.jpg, In relatively affluent areas, shacks are often used for storage or have been abandoned. File:Jakarta_slumhome_2.jpg, A multi-family shack in a riverside shantytown,
Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital city, capital and list of Indonesian cities by population, largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coa ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
. File:Shacks within Namib Desert.jpg, Shacks of
Damara people The Damara, plural Damaran (Khoekhoegowab: ǂNūkhoen, ''Black people'', german: Bergdamara, referring to their extended stay in hilly and mountainous sites, also called at various times the Daman or the Damaqua) are an ethnic group who make ...
within Namib Desert File:Watchman's houses Fridingen.jpg, Shack near railway line


See also

* Radio shack * Beach hut * Log cabin *
Log house A log house, or log building, is a structure built with horizontal logs interlocked at the corners by notching. Logs may be round, squared or hewn to other shapes, either handcrafted or milled. The term " log cabin" generally refers to a sm ...
* Hunting lodge *
Mountain lodge Mountain Lodge was the former summer residence of the Governor of Hong Kong on Victoria Peak on the Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. The second building was a two-storey Renaissance style home and was demolished in 1946. The site is now the V ...
* Sweat lodge * Tipi


References

{{Huts House types es:Cabaña