堂安侗语称为“口当an”。对于该村的始建时间，由于侗族历史无文字记载，无史 可稽。据寨中老人说：在很久以前的“吴王”“康熙”时，蓝氏家族的先人被兵燹所迫，到处迁徙。由洛香再迁地坪，后往厦格寨上，总共有十几代人了。
1995年4月中国和挪威学者组成的课题小组应贵州省文化厅的要求，对在贵州建立生态博物馆的设想进行实地考察。挪威生态博物馆专家约翰.杰斯特龙先生，中国博物馆学会常务理事、贵州省文物保护顾问苏东海先生、安来顺先生及省文化厅胡朝相先生等一行伴着绵绵春雨，到黎平堂安侗寨考察。堂安侗寨优美的环境、丰富多彩的侗族文化、热情好客的民风，使杰斯特龙先生兴奋激动不已。
堂安寨为行政村，属黎平县肇兴乡管辖，西向距肇兴乡人民政府驻地——全国最大的侗寨肇兴5公里，距黎平县城75公里，海拔935米。
堂安侗寨居住着侗族村民160余户，800多人，住户散居在“班柏”、“几定”两支山脉和“贵近”冲。房屋大多数取南北向，全寨人以赢陆两姓为主，还有潘、蓝、吴、杨、石七种姓氏和睦相处，按传统风俗，寨中陆姓与潘姓又有大陆、小陆、大潘、小潘之分。
堂安侗寨的鼓楼、戏楼、吊脚楼民居、石板路、古墓葬群、古瓢井以及水碾、石碓、纺车等古朴典雅的实物，每个角落，都蕴藏着深厚的侗族文化内涵的实物，杰斯特龙先生感叹地说：堂安侗寨是人类返璞归真的范例，从这个寨子的实物细细品味，完全可以证实它的历史悠久性。这里有着深远的历史蒲а芯考壑担凶哦弊逦幕约岸弊宸缜檠芯考壑担凶哦泵褡迓糜巫试纯⒓壑岛腿死嗌；ぜ壑怠?SPAN lang=EN-US>
堂安侗寨四面青山，峰峦叠嶂，阡陌纵横，梯田层叠。山腰间的民居依山就势，悬空吊脚。井然有序。寨中的鼓楼是该寨的吉祥物，可以扣住侗家人的灵魂。鼓楼与戏楼、歌坪形成三位一体，显示出侗族村寨的特征。寨中四通八达，小径曲曲。寨中信道均用青石板墁地。
九条出寨子的路口都建有寨门，
寨子中的附属设施还有禾晾、谷仓、水碾、石碓榨油房、鱼塘、井亭、祭萨塘等建筑物，都具有它们的独特文化个性。
寨子中间，还有一块墓地，有坟十余座，多为清代所建，雕龙刻凤，卷草花纹等工艺精美，是堂安侗族文化遗产的另一种体现。
鼓楼上坎那眼四季长流的清泉，流入用青石打制成的2尺见方而带把的石头中，石斗下用多边形石礅支撑，清冽的泉水在斗中聚满，又从左右凹槽流出，这里的侗家人把这种带把的斗井称为瓢井，因为他的形状如同木瓢。
对于堂安侗寨自然景物和古朴的建筑与民风，杰斯特龙先生说：这里的一切自然和文化遗产都是生态博物馆的一部分，任何实物都可能成为本社区、人民过去的历史记录。
堂安作为一个侗族文化社区，一种文化体，辐射整个六侗地区。堂安现像是人与自然和谐发展的运转过程。这座活生生的生态博物馆的保护与建设以及整个社区的遗产保护必将给旅游业带来广阔的前景。
1999年12月9日，贵州省人民政府同意在黎平县堂安寨建立贵州黎平堂安侗族生态博物馆。
Tang’an, The Dong Ecology Museum
Tang’an Village is called Dang’an in Dong language. Without any historical records, the beginning of the village is unknown. The old persons in the village said that in Kangxi, Qing Dynasty, the King Wu rebelled. To take refuge from the war, the Lan family moved to Diping from Luoxiang Village, then to Shage Village. At last they settled in Tang’an. It has been ten odd generations since then.
In April, 1995, at the invitation of the Cultural Department of Guizhou Province, the Chinese and the Norwegian scholars made a survey to certify the tentative plan of setting up the ecology museum in Guizhou. The Norwegain expert Mr John Jasterome, The Chinese experts Mr Su Donghai, An Laishun, Hu chaoxiang and their party came to Tang’an village, Liping County. In the spring drizzle, they entered the beautiful Dong village. The rich andcolourful Dong culture and the hospitable custom made the experts greatly excited.
Tang’an is under the jurisdiction of Zhaoxing, Liping County. It is 5 kilometers west of Zhaoxing Village , 75 Kilometres from Liping Town, at an elevation of 935 metres. Over 160 Dong families, more than 800 people live in Tang’an. The houses are scattered on Banbai and Jiding Mountains and Guijn Valley. Most of the houses take the north-south direction. The family names are mainly Ying and Lu besides Pan, Lan, Wu, Yang and Shi. They all live in harmony. According to the tradition, the Lu is divided into Major Lu and Minor Lu, Pan into Major Pan and Minor Pan.
The drum tower, the stage building, the hanging buildings (houses with the ground storey not fitted up ), the slabstone paths, the ancient tombs and dipper like springs, the water-powered rollers (for grinding grain) and trip-hammers (for husking rice ), the spinning wheels etc. are so primitive and fine, Everywhere in the village you can find the original Dong culture. Mr Jesterome sighed with feeling that Tang’an is the model of Man returning to nature. Everything here tells its long history and is worth researching. As a model of Man ecology, it is valuable for preservation and tourism.
Tang’an is surrounded by green mountains. Layer upon layer of the terraced fields are so maganificent and expressive. The hanging buildings are built on the half way of the mountain orderly. The winding lanes in the village are paved with slabstones. The drum tower, which is a magical building linking the souls of the Dong people together, with the stage building and the singing square, is the typical Dong structural group. There are nine entrances to the village, each has a gate building. The extra structures are the rice stands, granaries, water-powered rollers and trip-hammers, the oil mill, fish pools, well pavilion and the sacrificial alter.
The cemetery is in the middle of the village. There are ten more tombs there. Most of them were built in Qing Dynasty. The tombstones were elegantly carved with patterns of dragous, phoenixes, flowers and grasses.
The spring above the drum tower comes from the thick forests. It flows gurglingly all the year round. This is the source of drinking water for the whole village and it is well protected.
Mr Jasterome said “Any legacy of nature or culture here is part of the ecology museum. And it can be the historical record of this region and people.”
On December 9, 1999, the Government of Guizhou Province agreed to set up the Dong Ecology Museum in Tang’an Village, Liping County. This will bring a good foreground to the development of the legacy preservation and tourism in this area.
