Cave-style folk house is the unique folk house form of the plateau area in the middle reach of the Yellow River. Since the local yellow earth cover is very thick and the ground water level is low, so the earth here is very hard and not easy to collapse. Therefore, the people of this place dig the yellow earth and build the cave shaped buildings with arc roofs. Cave-style folk house is an ancient living style, and its basic structure has lasted for several thousand years. From the time when ancient people dug caves for the purpose of living, the folk house that combines cave dwelling and common building into one gradually came into being. At present, there are about 40 million Chinese people living in these buildings and the yellow earth is their home.

Cave dwelling is fire and noise proof and it is warm in winter and cool in summer. It does not need pillars and bricks to build cave dwellings, so a lot of woods and energy will be saved. In addition, there are many trace elements in the yellow earth that are good for men's health. Living in the cave dwelling can help slow down the aging speed of human organs. It is safe to say that cave dwelling is the living style that is both environment-friendly and energy-saving and this kind of living style closely integrates man into nature and the earth.

According to the variance of surface configuration and position, the styles of cave dwelling built can also be different. They can be divided into mountain-dependent cave, subsidence-type cave and independent cave. Mountain-dependent cave refers to the cave dwelling along the valley and cliff areas of mountain slope and soil tableland. The Qilipu earth caves in Yanan of Shaanxi Province are the typical mountain-dependent cave. If a concave yard is dug firstly on the ground and then the cave dwelling is made on the walls of the yard, it is called subsidence-type cave dwelling. This type of cave dwelling is represented by the pit-style yard in western Henan Province. Independent cave dwelling means the earth-covering type of building in the modern buildings. That is, to build a house on the ground with bricks and shape the roof of the doors into the arc doors of cave dwelling. This is the most advanced form among the cave dwelling buildings. The ancient folk houses in Pingyao of Shanxi are the representatives of the independent cave dwelling. They are not only preserved in a sound condition, but also exquisitely decorated. As a result, Pingyao is said to be the "Large Museum of Folk Art". The cave-style folk house of different styles is glaring scenery in the culture of Loess Plateau.