“Urban village” as an ethnic enclave

The concept of the urban village first emerged from sociological studies of ethnic enclaves, notably in Gans’ research on inner-city migrant communities. It refers to areas where successive generations of migrants from shared ethnic backgrounds concentrate, sustaining dense, localised social ties within metropolitan environments [1,2]. Empirical studies document such formations in diverse contexts, including Italian, German, Jewish, Lithuanian, and mixed-ethnic settlements in cities such as Sydney, Espírito Santo, Chicago, and Manhattan, as well as Little Saigon in southern California [1].

In these settings, urban villages function as socially cohesive environments shaped by kinship networks, cultural traditions, and collective practices. They provide supportive frameworks that facilitate migrants’ adaptation to urban life while maintaining symbolic and practical connections to places of origin. At the same time, these enclaves may remain partially socially segregated from the wider urban context [2].

Although many historic ethnic enclaves have been transformed or displaced by inner-city redevelopment, new ones continue to emerge through ongoing migration. Their persistence highlights forms of urban authenticity grounded in everyday social practices and cultural continuity, reinforcing their relevance to debates on urban identity and inclusive regeneration.

“Urban village” as a neighborhood planning concept

In the early 1980s, Neo-traditionalism emerged in the United States (US) as a response to Modernism and postwar urban planning. Approaches such as New Urbanism, Traditional Neighbourhood Development, Transit-Oriented Development, and Smart Growth promoted compact, walkable, mixed-use neighbourhoods as alternatives to dispersed urban form [3–6]. During the 1990s, growing environmental awareness and the adoption of Agenda 21 further reinforced the emphasis on sustainable neighbourhood development, particularly in the UK and the US [7,8].

Within this context, the Urban Village Concept evolved through transatlantic exchanges between British and American planners, notably the Urban Villages Group and the Congress for the New Urbanism [9,10]. Aldous’ manifesto [11] framed the urban village as a compact, mixed-use neighbourhood capable of supporting everyday life within a human-scale environment. Drawing on urban design traditions associated with Jane Jacobs and Kevin Lynch [5,10,12], the model foregrounds density, functional mix, pedestrian-oriented public space, access to employment and services, and a strong sense of place [6].

Distinctively, the concept aspires to restore a degree of social and functional self-sufficiency associated with traditional villages. Although proponents recognise that the term “village” is partly metaphorical, it deliberately invokes ideals of stability and community cohesion as planning objectives [10,11].

Nevertheless, the concept has been widely criticised for its nostalgic framing, normative assumptions about community, and limited sensitivity to social inequality and local socio-cultural diversity. Critics argue that urban-village rhetoric often mobilises nostalgia to legitimise regeneration strategies while obscuring displacement and social exclusion [13]. Others highlight the gap between sustainability claims and the realities of commercially driven housing development, raising doubts about the model’s transferability across contexts [14]. From a cultural perspective, the “village” invoked in neotraditional planning has been interpreted as a form of spatial marketing that produces sanitised, nostalgic environments and may reinforce exclusionary identities [15]. Together, these critiques caution against the uncritical application of the Urban Village Concept beyond its original socio-spatial settings.

“Urban village” as the Villages-in-the-city phenomenon

Since the 2010s, an increasing number of publications have associated the term urban village with the context of rapid urbanisation, particularly in China and other countries of the Global South. In this context, the term refers to the phenomenon of ViCs – traditional rural settlements engulfed by urban expansion [16–21]. Studies on ViCs have gained significant prominence and now represent the dominant strand in urban village scholarship [1].

While ViCs are most commonly studied in China (chengzhongcun in Chinese), they are also found in a variety of Global South contexts [1,22], including Vietnam [22–25], India [26–29], Indonesia [30–33], Malaysia [34,35]. In Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, these settlements are often referred to as urban kampung [32,36,37].

A defining feature of ViCs is their physical encirclement by expanding urban areas. They frequently serve as hubs for rural-to-urban migrants, leading to extremely high population density, overstretched infrastructure, and ambiguous land tenure. Spontaneous development and unauthorised construction – often in the absence of effective planning oversight – have led many scholars to categorise ViCs as a form of “informal settlement”.

However, recent studies have also highlighted the positive attributes of ViCs. These include walkability, accessibility, mixed land use, community cohesion, and a high degree of self-governance – characteristics aligned with the Urban Village Concept [16]. Also, ViCs contribute significantly to urban transitions: they provide alternative income sources for villagers displaced from agriculture, offer affordable housing for low-income migrants, ease public welfare burdens, and supply labor to the urban economy [16,38,39]. Proximity to economic and civic centres grants residents better access to opportunities, distinguishing ViCs from other informal settlements worldwide [40]. Moreover, their compactness and strong social networks encourage non-motorised mobility and attract creative communities, contributing to the growth of local creative industries [41,42].

Towards a synthetic perspective on urban villages

Despite sharing the same label, the three strands – ethnic enclaves, the Urban Village Concept, and ViCs – have largely developed in parallel. Ethnic enclave studies focus on identity and migration; planning-oriented accounts privilege normative design models; and ViCs research foregrounds informality, hybridity, and contested redevelopment. Few studies have examined how these perspectives might intersect within a single empirical context.

As a result, the conceptual potential of the urban village remains fragmented. A synthetic perspective offers an opportunity to examine how community, identity, informality, and planning ideals coexist and interact in practice. Such an approach is particularly relevant for cities in the Global South, where imported planning models encounter historically layered settlement patterns and socio-cultural hybridity.

Da Lat city and its vicinity

The spatial scope of this study follows Plan No. 704, encompassing Da Lat city and Lac Duong, Don Duong, Duc Trong and (part of) Lam Ha districts. The area encompasses approximately 335,930 ha, with a projected total population of 700,000–750,000 by 2030.

Da Lat presents a distinctive case of urban formation shaped by colonial planning and successive waves of domestic migration. Initially identified in 1893 as an uninhabited highland area, the city was developed by the French colonial administration as a hill station intended to embody European urban ideals. This colonial core emerged as an “island” within a broader region historically inhabited by indigenous communities. Subsequent migration waves from northern and central Viet Nam gradually populated both the city and its surrounding districts, producing a complex socio-spatial landscape characterised by overlapping settlement histories and ethnic diversity. [43–51]

The Green Urban Village pilot project

Despite the absence of an official national definition of the urban village, Lam Dong became the first locality to propose a Green Urban Village model aligned with the strategic orientation of Plan No. 704. Within the context of Da Lat’s expansion towards a satellite urban system, aiming by 2050 to establish newly high-quality residential areas [52], the model is supported by Decision No. 1528/QĐ-TTg issued by the Prime Minister in 2015, which provides a number of specific mechanisms and policies including authorisation for its pilot implementation. In 2016, Lam Dong Provincial Department of Construction defined the terms as follow [53]:

Interspersed among urban areas are zones for the development of high-tech agricultural production combined with residential areas - these are urban villages, offering a quality of life comparable to that of the city, and developed according to green and sustainable principles - referred to as Green Urban Villages.

Approved in 2021, the pilot project was designated in Xuan Tho commune (Fig 1) [54]. The selected site’s existing condition consists mostly of agricultural land (79.3%) with a sparse population of approximately 680 people. Notably, no pre-existing village settlement exists within the project boundary. Remaining largely vacant until now, this greenfield orientation reveals a significant gap between policy ambition and socio-spatial reality.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 1. The existing condition and the master plan of the pilot Green Urban Village.

Source: Reprinted from [54] under a CC BY license, with permission from VITILAND, original copyright 2026.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g001

While drawing inspiration from the Garden City movement, New Urbanism, and the Urban Village Concept [52,53,55], the model exhibits several conceptual limitations. It prioritises low-density, single-use residential development and lacks clear urban design criteria, contradicting the mixed-use, multifunctional principles central to its reference models. More critically, the absence of existing social structures and cultural continuity raises questions about the authenticity of the “village” label and the long-term sustainability of the model.

A historical stream with the companionship of village communities and ethnic clusters

Understanding the historical formation of Da Lat and its surrounding districts requires tracing the intertwined processes of colonial planning, successive waves of domestic migration, and the emergence and enduring presence of village communities. These processes not only shaped the city’s demographic and spatial structure but also fostered conditions for the emergence of ethnic or localised place-of-origin clustering. This section provides a historical account of these dynamics, highlighting how villages were embedded within the urban fabric of Da Lat and how patterns of settlement in the vicinity resonate with characteristics commonly associated with ethnic enclaves.

During the early phases of Da Lat’s construction, the French colonial administration prioritised transportation infrastructure, relying heavily on Vietnamese labourers who had been forcibly relocated from the northern and central regions of Viet Nam [49]. From the original intention of a “French resort station”, by 1919, the growing Vietnamese population prompted French planners to designate specific areas for them within their master plans [48,50]. Then, the 1930s saw a surge in population following the completion of transport networks, witnessing the emergence of a “little Vietnam” within Da Lat. Between 1946 and 1953, nearly a dozen villages were founded, often based on the regional origins of incoming migrants [50].

Derived from the city’s historical gazetteer [48], Vietnamese migrants from the northern and north-central provinces formed a substantial portion of Da Lat’s early population. After 1954, the Geneva Accords and the dissolution of the Montagnard Autonomous Region (1955) spurred further migration from the North, including ethnic minorities, reshaping Da Lat’s demographics. By then, the city comprised 37 villages. After 1975, the city continued to absorb various new populations under the state’s new economic zones policy.

Scholars [48–50,56,57] affirm that, throughout history, Da Lat’s villages were initially settled by migrants from northern and central Vietnam. The author’s previous research [58] argues that Da Lat developed as a city in parallel with the existence of villages embedded within its urban fabric. Also, the study emphasised their distinct residential origins and settlement histories. In particular, residents often clustered according to shared places of origin. A notable example is Ha Dong flower village, where the majority of inhabitants came from Ha Dong (now part of Hanoi). Today, this village has been officially recognised as a “traditional craft village” located within the heart of the city. The presence of village temples, collective activities such as worship ceremonies, and, especially, agricultural landscape within urban boundaries suggest that certain rural village characteristics were preserved in the city's development. These features form the basis for the hypothesis regarding the existence of ViCs in Da Lat.

The districts surrounding the city share a common demographic characteristic: a diverse and mixed population in terms of ethnicity and origin. These areas are home to both indigenous groups, ethnic minority migrants from northern provinces, and Kinh settlers. Migration to these areas occurred in three major waves [43,45–47]. The first wave began with the colonial administration’s decision to develop Da Lat as a hill station. Kinh migrants were brought to Lam Dong to construct transportation infrastructure, build settlements, and establish plantations for tea, coffee, and vegetables. The second major migration occurred between 1954 and 1975. From 1954 to 1955, following the signing of the Geneva Accords, ethnic minorities from northern Vietnam – mainly the Thai, Tay, Nung, and Hoa ethnic communities – along with Catholic followers and relatives of French veterans, were forcibly resettled in the South. From 1955 to 1975, political repression by the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) led to the migration of tens of thousands of people from coastal provinces in Central Vietnam to Lam Dong. The third wave began in 1975 and has progressed rapidly. It had been driven largely by national policies aimed at redistributing labor and population to promote socio-economic development in the Central Highlands and Southeastern regions. This demographic growth had been fueled by both planned migration programs and spontaneous migration.

Although these migration dynamics do not stem from international migration flows – as is often the case in studies on ethnic enclaves – certain areas in the vicinity still display characteristics of ethnic clustering, where minority communities form localised concentrations due to internal migration patterns.

Original socio-spatial structures of Vietnamese Kinh villages

In Vietnam, the village has traditionally been regarded as a “miniature nation”, embodying the essential structures of society [59]. The Northern Delta is recognised as the cradle of Vietnamese Kinh’s village culture – the Kinh being the majority ethnic group of the country [60–62]. From the fifteenth century onward, as the central coastal regions were incorporated into the national territory, Kinh villages in the Central provinces gradually took shape there as well [61]. With the southward expansion, Kinh villages in the Mekong Delta emerged much later, with a history of only about three centuries [63]. Given that the villages of Da Lat were initially settled by migrants from northern and central Vietnam, this study confines its scope to these two regional traditions.

Over centuries, northern villages developed highly cohesive and resilient organisational structures, governed in parallel by formal administrative apparatuses and autonomous self-governance. By contrast, central villages emerged through the southward expansion of the nation. Unlike the northern model, characterised by clearly demarcated boundaries between villages, kinship groups, neighborhoods, and households – reinforced by symbolic community landmarks such as communal houses, temples, pagodas, banyan trees, and village wells – the social and spatial markers of cohesion in central villages have been comparatively less pronounced [64]. However, in central villages, kinship plays a pivotal role in social life. Lineages credited with land reclamation and village founding are especially revered, with rituals and festivals centered on these ancestral figures [61].

In both northern and central Vietnam, the communal house (đình làng) stands as the most significant architectural and spiritual landmark, embodying the village’s cultural identity. Among folk beliefs, the cult of the village deity (Thành Hoàng) most fully reflects collective consciousness, while the village festival has long served as a vital arena for solidarity, cultural transmission, and creativity [64–67]. Notably, elements of these traditions remain, more or less, present within Da Lat’s settlements.

In sum, the Vietnamese Kinh village can be understood as a relatively self-contained socio-spatial unit, encompassing public facilities, subsistence-based economic activities, and a distinct “spiritual universe” governed by customs and village regulations. Despite historical and institutional transformations, enduring structures such as kinship networks and traditional norms have proven resilient. Consequently, when migrants from northern and central Vietnam settled in Da Lat and its surroundings, these social, economic, environmental, and governance features of the village were reproduced – though in new forms – within the emerging settlements.

Indigenous villages in urban areas of the Central Highlands

This section builds upon the foundational work of Nguyen Hong Ha [68]. Indigenous villages in the Central Highlands exhibit distinctive socio-spatial structures that persist despite increasing urban integration. While many villages were established prior to the French colonial period, others were resettled or reshaped under colonial and wartime interventions. Their built environment reflects both continuity and transformation: traditional stilt houses, longhouses, and communal houses (nhà rông) coexist with newer ground-level dwellings influenced by Kinh settlement practices. Settlement patterns differ across ethnolinguistic groups – Austronesian communities such as the Ê Đê and Jrai often occupy dispersed plots of 20–40 hectares with defined household compounds, while Mon-Khmer groups like the Bahnar and Xơ Đăng reside in compact, nucleated clusters averaging 10–15 hectares, with houses closely arranged and public spaces interlinked by footpaths.

Cultural and spiritual landmarks remain central. The communal house, ancestral houses of village founders, ritual spaces, water sources (giọt nước), cemeteries, and gong culture arenas function as symbolic and functional anchors of collective life. Intangible heritage – including epic traditions, gong music, festivals, and ritual practices – continues to structure social cohesion. Kinship retains a pivotal role, with the authority of village elders and customary laws governing land use, inheritance, and dispute resolution.

Economically, some villages have adapted by engaging in small-scale tourism and cultural performances, while others face challenges such as land commodification, Kinh in-migration, and uneven urban planning oversight. Public infrastructure and spatial planning often remain limited to preserving existing forms rather than guiding future development. Ecologically, villages sustain a close relationship with the natural environment through swidden agriculture, household garden-pond-livestock systems (VAC), and cyclical resource management, which together form resilient socio-ecological systems.

These structures illustrate how indigenous villages in the Central Highlands function not only as residential units but also as socio-spatial systems that intertwine cultural identity, governance, ecology, and adaptation within expanding urban contexts.

Step 1 – Constructing spatial data and locating the hypothesised urban villages

Based on the historical review, the 1960s were identified as a period of relative stability in the spatial structure of villages in Da Lat and its vicinity. Accordingly, historical maps produced between 1964 and 1971 [69] were used as the primary spatial references. Villages were georeferenced and digitised as point features, then cross-validated and supplemented using documentary sources [48–51,54,56,70]. This process also enabled the inclusion of nine traditional craft villages and three craft villages as officially recognised in 2023.

Villages located within the planned urban development boundary were hypothesised as potential urban villages. To spatially contextualise these locations, the current commune-level administrative boundary layer was overlaid with the urban development boundary defined in Plan No. 704. A 500-meter buffer was applied to each village point to account for positional uncertainty in historical maps and manual digitisation. This distance, corresponding to a 5–7 minute walking radius commonly used in neighbourhood-scale urban studies, was intended to minimise false exclusion rather than delineate precise village boundaries. Villages whose buffer intersected the urban development boundary were classified as urban villages.

Verification interviews were conducted with commune and ward leaders in all relevant administrative units to confirm the continued existence and administrative recognition of identified villages A semi-structured checklist covered village name, establishment period, location, area, population size, and population origins. Interview data were used solely for validation and not subjected to qualitative analysis.

Step 2 – Constructing observational data from literature review

This step aimed to identify variables for defining urban villages in Da Lat and its vicinity. Relevant literature was retrieved from Scopus and ScienceDirect using the search terms “urban village”, “ethnic enclaves”, “Urban Village Concept”, “villages in the city”, and “ViCs”. Articles were selected based on three criteria: (i) peer-reviewed status, (ii) explicit engagement with urban villages, ethnic enclaves, or ViCs, and (iii) relevance to socio-spatial characteristics.

Variables were extracted from definitions, conceptual discussions, and empirical descriptions. Duplicate or overlapping variables were consolidated through semantic comparison, merging indicators that described the same underlying phenomenon at a higher level of abstraction.

To reflect settlement origins specific to the case study, additional literature on traditional villages in northern and central Viet Nam and on indigenous villages in urban areas of the Central Highlands was incorporated. Sources on these Vietnamese Kinh villages were drawn from domestic scholarly works [61,64–67,71–75], while insights on indigenous villages followed established ethnographic research of Ha [68].

In total, 91 articles were reviewed (Table 1), yielding 432 variables, including 267 derived from the three major interpretations of the urban village and 165 specific to the Da Lat context. Variables were synthesised through theory-informed qualitative content analysis conducted by the author as a single primary coder to ensure conceptual consistency. Coding combined deductive guidance from the theoretical framework with inductive refinement based on recurring themes.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Table 1. Count of articles, context and initial variables.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.t001

All variables were subsequently organised into four thematic categories – social, economic, environmental, and institutional & governance – reflecting a commonly adopted analytical structure in sustainable development research aligned with the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) framework, while explicitly incorporating the Economic dimension.

Step 3 – Defining observed variables

Variables assessment using Modified Delphi method.

Preliminary observed variables (OVs) were defined using a Modified Delphi method [76] (Fig 2), replacing initial interviews with variables derived from the literature review.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 2. Defining OVs by Modified Delphi Method.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g002

In Round 1, experts assessed each variable on a 5-point Likert scale according to its relevance for identifying urban villages in Da Lat and its vicinity. Mean scores and Content Validity Ratio (CVR) were calculated. Variables with Mean 4.0 were retained, those with Mean < 3.5 or low CVR were excluded; and mid-range items (Mean 3.5–3.99), together with newly suggested variables, proceeded to Round 2.

Due to time constraints, a third Delphi round was not conducted. This limitation was partially mitigated by combining expert assessment with data-driven topic modelling and subsequent multi-criteria weighting.

Experts were selected through purposive and snowball sampling and included researchers, planners, architects, and local administrators with professional experience in Da Lat. Familiarity with the Green Urban Village was required to ensure informed judgement, while diversity in institutional background was maintained to reduce normative bias. Following standard Delphi practice, 25 experts were engaged, and a minimum CVR threshold of 0.37 was applied based on Lawshe’s table.

Criteria modeling using Latent Dirichlet Allocation algorithm.

After Round 1, the temporary OVs set – including retained variables, mid-range items, and newly suggested variables – was grouped into thematic criteria using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA). LDA is a machine learning-based topic modeling technique that identifies latent thematic structures in textual data by analysing word co-occurrence patterns. As a generative probabilistic model, it assumes that documents are composed of multiple latent topics, each represented by a distribution of words, enabling a systematic and data-driven extraction of underlying themes [77].

LDA was applied as an exploratory clustering tool to structure a large and heterogeneous variable set, rather than as a substitute for expert consensus. Its use was motivated by practical constraints related to expert availability and project timeline, and it served to support subsequent evaluation and weighting procedures.

The analysis was conducted in a Python environment using open-source libraries. Gensim (v4.3.3) was used to train the LDA model, with text preprocessing performed using NLTK, including stopword removal, tokenisation, and lemmatisation. Model training employed controlled random initialisation (random_state = 42) to ensure reproducibility, with iterative updates (update_every = 1), a chunksize of 100 documents, and 10 passes through the corpus to support stable topic convergence. The Dirichlet prior for topic distribution (alpha) was set to auto, allowing the model to infer an appropriate asymmetric prior from the data, while other hyperparameters were kept at default settings.

Model validation prioritised semantic interpretability over predictive performance. The number of topics was optimised by comparing coherence scores across models with different topic counts, enabling the selection of semantically coherent and interpretable topic structures. Perplexity scores were examined during model iteration but were not used as the primary selection criterion, given their limited interpretability for small, concept-driven textual datasets. An overview of the modelling workflow is presented in Fig 3.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 3. The process of topic modeling using LDA.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g003

Each topic was characterised by its ten highest-weighted keywords and consolidated into final evaluation criteria through theory-informed interpretation. To mitigate potential researcher bias, the resulting criteria were further validated through expert-based weighting using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP).

Addressing inconsistencies in AHP matrices using Evolutionary Multi-objective Optimisation (EMO).

In the AHP, inconsistency in expert judgments arises when the CR exceeds the acceptable threshold of 0.1, indicating that the pairwise comparisons may be unreliable. This often results from the cognitive difficulty of evaluating numerous items simultaneously, leading to partial or unacceptable consistency. To improve this, in the Python environment, EMO method via Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) [79] was selected for its efficiency, robustness, and ability to optimise CR while preserving the original matrix structure, making it ideal for small samples. A summarisation of the process can be found in Fig 4.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 4. Workflow of AHP consistency check and weight derivation.

Source: Author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g004

Step 4 – Scoring areas hypothesised as urban villages

A field survey was conducted using the finalised OVs checklist. Collaborators were recruited from civil servants working in wards and communes encompassing the studied villages and were identified in consultation with local administrations based on their familiarity with settlement histories, land use, and community conditions. Each village was assessed by five collaborators, allowing triangulation across informants while maintaining feasibility. The number of collaborators was selected to balance diversity of local perspectives with practical constraints, prioritising cross-validation of observations over statistical representativeness. Responses were recorded in binary form (yes/no) to enhance inter-rater consistency.

Drawing on literature, the finalised OVs, field observations, and collaborator input, settlements were found to be demographically mixed rather than homogeneous. Accordingly, a context-based evaluation framework was applied (Table 2), assigning different sets of OVs to different settlement types to avoid normatively biased comparisons.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Table 2. Scoring framework.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.t002

For the unimplemented Green Urban Village pilot project, assessment was conducted by the author based on site observation and analysis of official planning documents [54]. The project was first evaluated using Urban Village Concept OVs, followed by the full OVs set for comparability.

Missing or invalid responses were excluded. For each OV, an average score was calculated across valid responses, and a simple majority rule was applied (true > 0.5; false < 0.5). Ambiguous results (average = 0.5 or blank) were excluded from further analysis. While transparent and consistent, the absence of sensitivity analysis is acknowledged as a limitation.

To evaluate each hypothesised urban village, a criterion-based scoring procedure was applied using the finalised OVs and criterion weights derived from the EMO-optimised AHP analysis. For each village, only categories relevant to its settlement context were considered, ensuring that villages were assessed against variables applicable to their socio-spatial characteristics rather than against the full variable set indiscriminately.

For each evaluation criterion, two quantities were calculated:

• The number of matched OVs, defined as the count of unique OVs associated with that criterion that were positively identified in the village; and
• The total number of applicable OVs, defined as the count of unique OVs associated with the same criterion and belonging to categories relevant to the village.

The criterion-specific score for village v under criterion c was calculated as:

where Nmatched represents the number of OVs identified in village v for criterion c, Ntotal represents the total number of applicable OVs for that criterion, and Wc denotes the weight of criterion c. If a criterion had no applicable OVs or no identified variables, the score for that criterion was recorded as missing and excluded from aggregation.

Criterion-level scores were subsequently aggregated to produce an overall score for each village. These overall scores are relative indices, intended to support comparison across villages within the study area rather than to represent absolute measures of performance or predefined thresholds of “good” or “poor”. Interpretation therefore focuses on comparative patterns, internal ranking, and differences across village types, rather than on normative cut-off values.

Variables derived from the Urban Village Concept were not applied to existing villages, as they represent prescriptive design principles rather than empirically observable features. Applying these variables retroactively would risk introducing normative bias into the assessment. The binary scoring scheme simplifies complex socio-spatial phenomena but was intentionally used to reduce subjectivity among non-academic collaborators and to support systematic cross-site comparison; this trade-off is acknowledged as a limitation.

Given the exploratory and case-based nature of the study, inferential statistics and confidence intervals were not applied. Robustness was instead sought through triangulation, context-sensitive variable selection, and transparent aggregation rules.

Ethics statement

This study involved expert consultations, verification interviews with local officials, and community-based assessments conducted by civil servants at the ward and commune levels. All participants were informed of the study’s purpose, the voluntary nature of participation, and their right to withdraw at any time without consequences.

Informed consent was obtained verbally from all participants prior to data collection. Verbal consent was appropriate given the non-sensitive nature of the study and the professional roles of participants. Consent was documented through field notes and survey records.

Formal ethical approval was not required, as the study did not involve vulnerable populations, sensitive personal data, or experimental interventions.

The hypothesised urban villages

Alongside the vacant site designated for the Green Urban Village pilot project, 75 verifiable villages were identified within the planned urban development boundary and hypothesised as urban villages (Fig 5). Based on documentary sources and verification interviews (Table 3) nearly all villages in Da Lat originated from migrant populations from northern and central Viet Nam, whereas indigenous settlements are more prevalent in Don Duong and Duc Trong districts. All hypothesised urban villages in Lac Duong are of indigenous origin, although several – including Bac Hoi, Drong, and Kekaff – exhibit mixed demographic compositions. No villages were identified within the urban development boundary of Lam Ha District.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Table 3. List of the hypothesised urban villages.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.t003

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 5. Positioning the hypothesised urban villages.

Source: by author, with the commune-level administrative boundary layer and the urban development boundary layer extracted and adapted from the Land use plan for Da Lat city and its vicinity to 2030, under a CC BY license, with permission from Department of Construction of Lam Dong province, original copyright 2026.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g005

Criteria and observed variables

Results from the first Delphi round and AHP.

From an initial pool of 432 variables, the first Delphi round retained 114 variables, forwarded 100 for reconsideration, and incorporated 46 newly proposed variables. Using coherence-based optimisation, all variables were grouped through LDA into eight thematic topics, subsequently consolidated into eight Evaluation Criteria (Fig 6; Table 4).

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Table 4. Eight criteria to define urban villages in Da Lat city and its vicinity.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.t004

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 6. Optimised number of topics via LDA.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g006

When these criteria were weighted using AHP, the aggregated comparison matrix exhibited substantial inconsistency (CR = 0.49), with 19 of 25 experts exceeding the acceptable threshold. This reflects the cognitive difficulty of pairwise comparison across abstract and interdisciplinary criteria among experts with heterogeneous backgrounds. Rather than discarding expert input, EMO optimisation was applied to reduce inconsistency while preserving the overall structure of judgments. The resulting weights indicate a balanced prioritisation, with no criterion disproportionately dominant or marginalised (Table 4).

Finalised observed variables.

Following the second Delphi round, 205 OVs were finalised (S1 Table). Variables associated with the Urban Village Concept recorded the highest retention rate, suggesting an expert inclination toward future-oriented planning models. Although ViCs-related variables experienced the highest rejection rate, nearly 50 were retained, underscoring the continued analytical relevance of this phenomenon.

Only three variables related to ethnic enclaves were retained. While limited in absolute terms, this represents 27% of the original ethnic enclave pool (11 variables across four core studies). Importantly, these retained variables capture foundational dimensions of ethnic enclaves: (i) adaptation to the urban environment, (ii) tightly knit community structures, and (iii) conscious maintenance of identity. These dimensions align respectively with the criteria of Social and Spatial Cohesion, Community and Social Structures, and Cultural Preservation, indicating that ethnic enclave characteristics persist as latent, cross-cutting attributes rather than as a dominant or standalone settlement form.

Context-based village topics further reveal that most variables specific to Traditional villages – Northern Vietnam or Traditional villages – Central Vietnam were rejected in isolation, while hybridised features were retained. Indigenous villages in urban areas of the Central Highlands retained a comparatively larger number of variables. Overall, literature strands related to the Urban Village Concept, ViCs, traditional villages in Northern and Central Vietnam, and indigenous villages remain analytically significant.

In terms of distribution, the Urban Village Concept shows the broadest coverage, particularly dominating Environment and Ecological Integrity – the most emphasised criterion. ViCs-related variables appeared across the remaining seven criteria. Indigenous villages contribute strongly to Social and Spatial Cohesion and Cultural Preservation, while traditional villages in Northern and Central Vietnam enriched Community and Social Structure. (Fig 7)

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 7. Number and distribution of OVs by criteria, literature topic and sector.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g007

Assessing the hypothesised urban villages

Valid survey responses were obtained from 74 of 75 villages. One village (Da Thanh, Ward 7) yielded no valid responses due to logistical constraints arising from the large number of villages surveyed within a limited timeframe and was excluded from further analysis.

Using the context-based evaluation framework, 38 of 39 villages in Da Lat and 31 of 35 villages in the surrounding area scored above 50/100, with several exceeding 75 points. High-scoring villages include Da Loc, Da Trung, Da Thien, Ha Dong Flower Village, Hong Lac, Nam Ho, and Nam Thien in Da Lat, as well as Lac Thien, Lac Quang, Quang Lac, B’Neur 1, and B’Neur 2 in the vicinity. These results provide strong empirical support for the existence of urban villages in Da Lat and its vicinity.

Most villages exhibited substantial alignment with ViCs-related variables, while features derived from traditional Kinh villages and indigenous villages contributed differentially across criteria. Several settlements – including Mangline, Bac Hoi, Drong, and Kekaff – display hybrid characteristics. Although only three ethnic enclave-related OVs were retained, these variables were present in nearly all villages, confirming the widespread persistence of core enclave values.

Urban Village Concept variables were excluded from the assessment of existing villages. Consequently, all villages met only seven of the eight criteria, consistently lacking in Environmental and Ecological Integrity, which is defined exclusively by future-oriented planning variables. This highlights a critical ecological deficit in existing villages under current conditions.

Fig 8 visualises both the total scores (0–100) and the distribution of OVs across evaluation criteria for each hypothesised urban village. The bar charts illustrate the number of OVs met per criterion, while the overlaid line plot indicates the aggregated village score. Most villages display relatively balanced performances across multiple criteria, rather than excelling in a single dimension. High-scoring villages consistently combine social and spatial cohesion, community structures, and cultural preservation, despite limited ecological performance. Overall, Fig 8 highlights urban villages in Da Lat and its vicinity as socially embedded and contextually resilient formations, while also exposing their shared environmental limitations.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 8. The observation of the hypothesised urban villages.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g008

Assessing the pilot project of Green Urban Village

When evaluated against the Urban Village Concept variables alone, the pilot Green Urban Village scored 65.78, indicating partial alignment with its reference model but also the absence of key elements such as public transport provision, prioritisation of walking and cycling, mixed-use integration, and coherent urban design guidelines.

When assessed against the full OVs set, the project scored 51.36. While it performed strongly in Environmental and Ecological Integrity – consistent with its green and high-tech agricultural vision – it showed weak performance in contextual dimensions, with only five variables related to traditional or indigenous villages identified.

Fig 9 illustrates the criterion-level performance of the pilot project and reveals a markedly different profile from that of existing villages. In contrast to the more balanced distributions observed among hypothesised urban villages, the pilot project exhibits a strong concentration in environmental criteria and pronounced deficits in Cultural Preservation, Community and Social Structures, and Migrant and Ethnic Integration.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 9. The observation of the pilot Green Urban Village.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g009

Across both evaluation frameworks, the pilot project does not constitute a viable urban village model. Its performance reveals limitations in both its translation of urban village planning principles and its integration with the socio-spatial context of Da Lat and its surrounding areas.

Coexistence of multiple urban village interpretations

Addressing the first research question, the findings confirm the coexistence of ViCs and the Urban Village Concept within Da Lat and its vicinity. Evidence for ethnic enclaves is numerically limited; however, the persistence of core attributes – such as strong social ties, adaptive capacity, and identity consciousness – suggests that ethnic enclave characteristics operate as foundational social dimensions rather than as a dominant or spatially discrete settlement form.

This has important theoretical implications. Rather than constituting parallel or competing typologies, the three interpretations function at different analytical levels: ethnic enclaves articulate social relations and identity, ViCs capture socio-spatial persistence under urbanisation, and the Urban Village Concept represents a normative planning aspiration. Their coexistence in Da Lat reflects a layered configuration in which social practices, spatial forms, and planning imaginaries intersect unevenly.

Hybridity as a distinctive feature of Da Lat

Compared with cases commonly documented in the literature, Da Lat exhibits a distinctive form of hybridity. Unlike Global South contexts where ViCs are primarily defined by informality and redevelopment pressure, or Western settings where the Urban Village Concept is often realised through market-led regeneration, Da Lat’s villages reflect a prolonged co-evolution of colonial planning, internal migration, indigenous settlement, and state-led experimentation. The result is a set of adaptive socio-spatial systems embedded within an expanding urban fabric, challenging binary distinctions between “formal” and “informal” or “planned” and “organic” settlements.

From conceptual integration to operationalisation: toward Green Urban Village 2.0

Addressing the second research question, the study shows that integration between existing villages and the Green Urban Village model is operationally plausible. The spatial proximity between the pilot site and Da Loc village provides a concrete illustration of such potential (Fig 10). A scenario-based combined assessment – analytically merging Da Loc village (score: 75.40) with the pilot project – yielded 133 OVs and an overall score of 67.92 distributed across all eight criteria (Fig 11). While not predictive, this exercise demonstrates how future-oriented planning interventions can be anchored in existing village structures. Compared with the pilot assessed in isolation, the integrated configuration displays a more balanced profile by compensating for socio-cultural deficits while reinforcing environmental dimensions.

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 10. The boundary of the pilot Green Urban Village and the proximity of Da Loc village.

Source: Adapted from [54] under a CC BY license, with permission from VITILAND, original copyright 2026.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g010

Download:

• PPT
  PowerPoint slide
• PNG
  larger image
• TIFF
  original image

Fig 11. The indexes of the combined urban village.

Source: author.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0345741.g011

Operationally, such integration does not require comprehensive redevelopment. In Da Loc, mixed-use integration could build on existing agricultural-residential interfaces through small-scale processing, local markets, and shared community facilities. Urban design interventions could prioritise pedestrian connectivity, incremental public space upgrades around communal institutions, and context-sensitive guidelines that respect existing parcel structures and everyday practices. In this sense, Green Urban Village 2.0 is best understood not as a new settlement type, but as a relational model that enhances – rather than replaces – the socio-spatial logics of established villages.

Methodological reflections, generalisability, and governance implications

The relatively high scores of existing villages may partly reflect measurement artefacts linked to binary scoring and the exclusion of future-oriented variables. While this limitation cannot be fully eliminated, it is mitigated through context-based variable selection, triangulation across multiple assessors, and consistent patterns across villages with diverse histories. The results should therefore be interpreted as indicative comparative patterns rather than definitive rankings.

Although grounded in Da Lat, the analytical framework may inform studies in other Global South contexts where informal persistence, internal migration, and experimental planning initiatives coexist, provided that criteria are recalibrated to local conditions.

Finally, the study carries implications for governance, particularly in light of Viet Nam’s administrative reforms enacted in July 2025, which introduce a two-tier local government structure. While these reforms do not alter the empirical findings, they may significantly affect the governance of urban villages by reshaping planning authority, coordination mechanisms, and community representation. Future research could explore how such institutional changes influence the capacity to implement hybrid models like Green Urban Village 2.0.