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Hutong is a typical name of an alley formed by lines of siheyuan in Beijing. Many neighborhoods were formed by joining one siheyuan to another to form a hutong, and then joining one hutong to another. Nearly all siheyuan had their main buildings and gates facing south for better lighting; thus a majority of hutongs run from east to west. Between the main hutongs, many tiny lanes ran north and south for convenient passage. During dynastic period, Beijing city layout was planned according to the etiquette systems. At the center were the royal palaces, surrounded in concentric circles by the Inner City and Outer City. Citizens of higher social status were permitted to live closer to the center of the circles - the Forbidden City.


The large siheyuan of aristocrats, high-ranking officials and wealthy merchants often featured beautifully carved and painted roof beams and pillars and carefully landscaped gardens. The hutongs they formed were orderly, lined by spacious homes and walled gardens. Farther from the palace, and to its north and south, were the commoners, merchants, artisans and laborers. Their siheyuan were far smaller in scale and simpler in design and decoration, and the hutongs were narrower. Historically, hutong was also once used as the lowest level of administrative geographical divisions within a city in ancient China as in the Paifang (Archway) system: the largest division within a city in ancient China was a Fang, equivalent to current region or district. Each Fang was enclosed by walls or fences, and the gates were shut and guarded every night. In each Fang, there were several archways indicating small living zones containing several Hutongs like current community.

Nowadays, Beijing Municipal government has realized the importance of maintaining Hutongs since they represent important culture element. Hutongs in the vicinity of the Bell Tower, Drum Tower, Houhai and Shichahai Lake area are especially well preserved. Some are several hundred years old, and attracts tourists who tour the quarter in rickshaws.

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