The Miao have their own language, which is divided into three major dialects: Xiangxi, Qiandong, and Chuanqian Dian. 1956, a script program in the form of the Latin alphabet was designed. Because of the long history of interaction between the Miao and Han Chinese, a large proportion of the Miao are fluent in both Chinese and Chinese.
The Miao region is mainly agricultural, supplemented by hunting. The Miao's arts and crafts, such as flower picking, embroidery, brocade weaving, batik, paper-cutting, and hand-decorated jewelry making, are magnificent and colorful, and are famous both at home and abroad. Among them, the batik craft of the Miao people has a thousand years of history.
There are more than 130 kinds of Miao costumes, which are comparable to those of any other ethnic group in the world. The Miao are a people who can sing and dance well, and are especially famous for their love songs and wine songs. The Lusheng is the most representative musical instrument of the Miao people.
Customs
The Miao pay great attention to etiquette. Guests visit, must kill chickens and slaughter ducks hospitality, if it is a long way to the guests, the Miao people used to invite guests to drink ox horn wine. Eat chicken, chicken head to honor the guests in the elders, chicken legs to give the youngest guests. In some places, there is also the custom of sharing the heart of the chicken, that is, the oldest master of the family uses chopsticks to flick the heart of the chicken or duck to the guest, but the guest can not eat it himself, and must share the heart of the chicken equally with the old people in the audience. If the guests have a small capacity for alcohol and do not like to eat fat meat, they can explain the situation and the host will not force them to do so, but if they do not eat and drink enough, they will be regarded as looking down on the host.
Marriage customs
The food that is also essential in the process of marriage between young men and women is glutinous rice. Miao people in Chengbu, Hunan province, painted with mandarin ducks sticky rice poi as a token to give each other; when the wedding is held, the bride and groom to drink the cup of wine, the bridegroom, the bride will also be invited to eat painted with the dragon and phoenix and Bong dolls sticky rice poi pattern.
Food customs
The Miao people in most areas eat three meals a day, with rice as the main food. Most of the first dry rice into the pestle and mortar to pound away the chaff, now pounding now eat, each pounding 3-5 pounds. Now many places have used electricity, water milling rice.
Fried food is most common in deep-fried poop. Deep-fried poi is the first sticky rice and a small amount of soybean soaking, beaten into a paste, and then scooped into the batter batter made of iron mold into the rolling oil frying, was golden brown can be. If you add some fresh meat and sauerkraut as filling, the flavor is more delicious.
Meat from livestock, poultry rearing, Sichuan, Yunnan and other places of the Miao people like to eat dog meat, there are "Miao dog, Yi wine," said. Dog meat is hot, warm abdomen and stomach, strong food tonic effect. In addition to animal oil, the edible oil of the Miao family is mostly tea oil and vegetable oil. Chili pepper as the main condiment, some areas even have "no spicy dishes" said.
There are many kinds of dishes for the Miao people, and the common vegetables are beans, melons and greens, radishes, and most of the Miao people are good at making bean products. The Miao who live in the alpine mountains like to eat vegetables boiled in white water as tamari. The Miao in Sichuan also make bean paste into bean flowers to treat guests.
All over the Miao people generally like to eat sour dishes, sour soup is necessary for every family. Sour soup is made from rice soup or tofu water, which is put into a tile jar and fermented for 3-5 days, and then used to cook meat, fish and vegetables. In the summer in Qiandongnan, guests enter the door, the host always sends the first sour soup, drink and feel sour and cool to quench their thirst.
The Miao people's food preservation, the general use of pickling method, vegetables, chicken, duck, fish, meat, like pickled into a sour flavor. Almost every Hmong family has an altar for pickled food, collectively known as the sour altar.
The Hmong have a long history of brewing wine, and there is a complete set of techniques from making music, fermentation, distillation, blending, and cellar storage. Smack wine is unique, drink with a bamboo tube inserted into the urn, drinkers along the wine urn in a circle, the first drink by the elders, and then from the left to the right, in turn. After sucking the wine juice can be washed into the drinking water, until it is tasteless. Once the smacking wine is opened, the leftover wine, no matter how thick or thin, will not be used again.
The most common daily drink is oil tea. The Miao people in western Hunan also have a special kind of flower tea. Besides tea, sour soup is also a common drink.
Typical foodstuffs include: blood dunking soup, chili bone, turtle and phoenix soup in Miao township, sheep cabbage, worm tea, Wanhua tea, pounded fish, sour soup fish, etc.
Festivals
The Miao people used to believe in the spirit of all things, worship nature, and worship their ancestors. There are many festivals, in addition to traditional annual festivals and sacrificial festivals, there are also festivals specifically related to eating. Such as: eating duck festival, eating new festival, fish festival, tea festival. In addition to the preparation of wine and meat for the festival, but also must prepare seasonal food.
Miao Nian Miao Nian generally first in the first month of the first d, lasting three, five days or fifteen days. Before the year, each family should prepare a sumptuous New Year's food, in addition to killing pigs, slaughtering sheep (cattle), but also to prepare enough glutinous rice wine. The New Year's dinner is sumptuous, with "all seven colors" and "all five flavors", and the best glutinous rice is used to make "New Year's Poi". They are also known as the "New Year's Panda", which is made of the finest glutinous rice.
Fish-killing festival in the riverside, by the women with rice, bacon, sausage and other food and wine, as long as the fish caught, that is, the bonfire, set up pots and pans to cook the fish until the fun square return.
"Sacrifice Drum Festival" is the largest festival of the Miao folk. Generally seven years a small festival, thirteen years a big festival. In the lunar calendar from October to November of the Bhai day, when to kill a bullock cattle, dancing Lusheng dance, sacrifices to see the ancestors. The food invited friends and relatives *** to get together, in order to enhance the relationship, family harmony.
Sticky rice is the Miao festivals, social activities in the necessary food, many areas of the Miao commonly used glutinous rice noodles made into dumplings, but also as a food during the festival. Regardless of the wedding or funeral must have wine, sour meat, sour fish, otherwise it is considered rude.
Lusheng Culture
The golden autumn is a great time for the Miao to make lusheng. At this time, the Miao boys cut back the golden bamboo from the mountains and begin to cut the bamboo, make the spring and set the hoop. So a handful of different sizes of reed sheng with a generation of new reed sheng hand made, and played a pleasant tune, attracted the girl's laughter and favor.
The lusheng is a traditional reed instrument of the Miao people and is widely played in the Miao area. According to documents, the lusheng has a history of more than 3,000 years. As far back as the Tang Dynasty, the court had the lusheng's performance. At that time, Lusheng was called "Lady Sheng". In the book "Dongxi Fibers", Lu Ziyun, a Qing man, made a specific depiction of the shape of the lusheng and the scene of the Miao men and women playing the lusheng when they "jumped to the moon": "(Men) hold the lusheng. The sheng has six pipes and is made of two feet. ...... shengjie jagged, blowing and singing, hand is Xiang carry on, foot is Yang carry on, favor turn limb back, spinning God swing carry on. At first, they want to receive also away, less and sound flying and dancing, hand in hand quickly by and by." This shows the role and status of the reed-sheng in the life of the ancient Miao people. Now the shape of the reed-sheng has undergone great changes, divided into large, medium, small and other types. It consists of three parts: the pipe of the sheng, the bucket of the sheng and the reed. Commonly used reed sheng tube 6, the outer side of the sound hole, the lower end of the device copper spring, inserted into a long wooden gourd, each reed a sound. In every two or three sheng tube at the upper end of the bamboo tube as a *** sound tube. Small reed sheng tube length of more than ten centimeters, large reed sheng four, five meters long. Bass reed-sheng class, there are in the large bamboo tube installed a thin bamboo tube, the pronunciation is called "reed-sheng tube". Now reformed, the number of sheng tube to more than 20, each tube on the top end of the set of thin copper skin made of *** sound tube, the range up to two octaves and five degrees. The sound of the reed sheng is bright and thick, and both men and women can play it. Whenever the New Year, wedding ceremony, house building, people always have to hold the reed-sheng, singing and dancing, as a way to express their joy and feelings.
Since ancient times, the reed-sheng has been played with dance, and the dance is played while the reed-sheng is played. However, according to the different customs of each region, the performance of the reed-sheng also varies. In Guizhou's Qiandongnan Miao region, the "pedal lusheng", a grand scale, tall lusheng, lusheng team playing the lusheng, music, rich, strong music, majestic, moving. Lusheng players blow while skillfully making inverted, rolling, hanging, backward, climbing pole, stacking Luohan and other difficult actions. In some areas, the lusheng solo and duo dances are often seen, with bright melodies, free rhythms, skillful techniques, and fascinating performances. In some areas, the lusheng is smaller, and men play and women dance with a smooth and soothing rhythm, which is intriguing. These different customs of the lusheng skills, gathered into a bunch of rich national characteristics of the art of the odd ball, passed from generation to generation, never decline.
In addition, the lusheng is not only a purely ethnic musical instrument, but also an important "medium" for the marriage of young Miao men and women. Through it can make the cardamom years of youth, mutual understanding, produce love, married. Whenever the wind and moonlit night, the love of the young man holding a beloved reed-sheng blowing a melodious love song, the girls heard, will understand, to the crisp song relative to this way of falling in love, the outsiders do not understand, insiders, listen to the self-evident. Therefore, the lusheng in the hearts of the Miao people is sacred, precious, families can not leave it.
Flowering clothes and silver
If the dressed-up Miao girls converge together, it will surely turn into a beautiful silver world. Like to wear silver jewelry is the nature of the Miao girls, they pull hair in a bun on top of the head, wearing about 20 centimeters high, beautifully made silver flower crowns, flower crowns inserted in front of the 6 uneven heights of the silver wings, most of the top of the production of the two dragons playing with the beads pattern. In some areas, in addition to inserting silver pieces of silver crown, but also inserted about 1 meter high silver bullhorn, the tip of the corner Department of colorful floating, more noble and rich. Silver crown along the lower edge of the circle hanging silver flower belt, hanging a row of small silver flower pendant, the neck wearing a silver collar has several layers, more than a silver piece of beaten flowers and small silver ring even set and become. Chest wearing silver locks and silver pressure collar, chest, back wearing a silver cloak, hanging many small silver bells. The earrings and bracelets are all silver. Only the two sleeves show embroidery in a fiery red color, but the cuffs are also inlaid with a wider circle of silver ornaments. Miao girls often have several kilograms of dress, some of which have been inherited for several generations. Known as "flower clothes and silver Sai Tianxian" beauty. Miao silver craft, ornate and elaborate, ingenious, fully displaying the wisdom and talent of the Miao people.
The skirt of the Miao girl is called pleated skirt, but in fact there are more than 500 pleats on a skirt, and the number of layers is many, some as many as 30 or 40 layers. These skirts, from weaving the cloth to bleaching, dyeing and sewing, all the way to the final drawing and embroidery, are all done independently by the girls themselves, plus hand-embroidered flower belts and flower chest pockets, which are really colorful and beautiful.
Gu Dirty Festival
There are many Miao festivals, and there are hundreds of them throughout the year***. The more common ones are the New Year's Festival, the Eat New (Valley) Festival, the Lusheng Festival, the April 8 Festival, the Catch the Autumn Festival, the Sisters' Rice Festival, and the Dragon Boat Festival, etc. However, the oldest and most magical ones are those that take place over several years. The most ancient and magical of all is the Guliang Festival, which takes place only once every few years.
The Gulu Festival, also known as the Drum Festival, La Drum Festival, Drum Festival, is a grand traditional festival of the Miao people. The cycle of the festival varies from place to place, there are 3 years, 5 years, 7 years, 9 years, 11 years, 13 years held once, there are also 30 years held once. Most are held once in 11 or 13 years due to the huge cost. The festival is usually held from late September to early November of the lunar calendar.
The country's largest Miao village in Leishan County, Guizhou Province, Xijiang Thousand Households Miao Village, every 13 years, the Goujiao Festival, the most recent was held in 1986 (Year of the Tiger), starting on the 22nd day of the ninth lunar month. In the two years prior to the festival, villages of the same clan jointly elected the drum master, commonly known as the head of the bullu dirty, by the respected, children and grandchildren of the old man as. The drum master presided over the preparations for the drum offerings, the first is to choose the sacrificial cattle, well fed, shall not be used in service. In the eighth month of the lunar calendar to choose an auspicious day will be used in the previous drum from the hidden drum caves carried back to the village, placed in the drum field, known as "wake up the drum". Then they cut down the large wood and chiseled new drums, and carried the new drums into the cave, announcing that the new drums would be activated and the old drums abandoned. The new drums will be carried into the cave and the old drums will be discarded. 13 days after the festival, the three or four million people of all ethnic groups gathered together to step on the lusheng for seven to nine days. Usually not allowed to start the ritual of the heavy bronze drums, but also to lift out for the song and dance accompaniment, called jumping bronze drums.
The festival to kill a pig to say "kiss the big official"; to take the knife to say "take the leaf to"; with straw to burn the pig, to say "take the quilt to the officer to cover"; to eat a full meal, said the "full warehouse full library"; open the pig's brain said "open the door". In short, talk to take the rich and auspicious.
Jumping bronze drums and stepping on the Lusheng at the same time. Drum field on the middle-aged and elderly people, reed-song field, mostly young men and women, playing the reed-song young man to take turns for the girls to lead the dance, girls in silver clothes, three layers outside three layers in a large circle, stepping hands dance, young man stepped on the reed-song in the last two days, you can ask for a flower belt to the girl in the lookout for. The girls will even put the valuable silver collar, watch, etc. as a token to hang to the man of the man of the reed-sheng tube, every such, the whole audience cheered, heartfelt congratulations. In the center of the drum field there are two large tanks of rice wine, two young men holding a large horn cup full of wine, with a bamboo stick knocking on the horn, in the dancers to choose the object of the toast. The chosen one should pour the cup and drink, and cannot take the cup with his hand, otherwise he has to start all over again. This method of drinking is called "feeding the bull" because the bull is highly respected.
The festival, which is held every other year, is not easily organized. As a result, people get very excited when the festival comes around and there is often a sea of people on the bullocking grounds to watch this amazing traditional festival.
Miao Mountain Horsefighting
Guangxi Rongshui Dahmiao Mountain rolling stacks of barriers, lofty and beautiful, at the foot of the mountain in an open dam, people cheering are watching a unique horsefighting competition.
Horsefighting is a folk recreational activity of the Miao people in Guangxi, held on December 26 every year, lasting three days.
On the first day, people are busy releasing water into the fields to catch fish and cooking fresh fish porridge to taste the new; they also steam glutinous rice, brew sweet wine, slaughter chickens and kill ducks to entertain friends and relatives from afar.
The second day of the horse race, the third day of the horse race, the horse race is a fascinating competition. At 10 o'clock in the morning, after a row of "over the hill" earth gun sounded, Lusheng high music, lion dance and dragon dance up and down, followed by the mighty team of horses, majestically into the arena. The Miao, Yao and Dong girls in full dress hold colorful ribbons and form a circle outside the Lusheng hands, dancing to the rhythm of the Lusheng. Horsefighting arena, horses gathered, dozens of selected good horse all fat and strong, at the edge of the field, waiting for the field. When the referee announced a list of fighting horses on the field, the two lines of horses each led out a horse, untie the rope, the two horses that is to the other side pounced over, feet in the air face to face, biting each other, or suddenly turned around and cocked the back foot, kicking each other. Tense and intense and interesting fighting scene from time to time caused by the audience around the burst of applause and cheers. After a few rounds of dueling, the field of smoke and dust rolling, mud and sand splash, a horse fell to the ground or defeat will be divided into winners and losers. Then another two horses are brought into the arena. The horses are then brought into the arena, and the top three winners are determined in a round-robin duel with each other. At this point, people gathered around to see the sweaty winning horses and praised them. The owners of the winning horses also receive congratulations from the people with smiles on their faces. The organizers, surrounded by the crowds, drape the winning horse in red and give awards to its owner.
Horse racing is a serious test of the riders' bravery and skill, and the Miao mountainous region is characterized by high mountains, steep roads and rugged trails. It requires the contestants to be bold and skillful in riding. Competition began, the riders in five or six meters away from the front of the rush to run, air on the horse. Horse back without a saddle, the rider's legs clamped to the horse body, the horse in the mountain trail forward galloping, thrilling scenes, attention to the gods. The first rider to reach the finish line is praised and rewarded.
The boys and girls are very active on the days of the horsefight. They concentrate on the hillside and carry out activities such as lusheng races and "stepping on the hall". From Guizhou and nearby villages to participate in the horse fighting event of the various ethnic groups, up to more than 20,000 people, many people also brought mushrooms, fungus, animal skins, medicinal herbs, dried bamboo shoots and other local specialties exchange, adding to the warm atmosphere.