Why is Xinhua called Meishan?

The so-called Meishan is a historical geographical name. According to the biography of Meishan people by the Song Dynasty, "Meishan is a pretty mountain with a distance of thousands of miles, connecting Tan (Chenzhou, now Changsha, Hunan) in the east, Shao (Shaozhou, now Shaoyang, Hunan) in the south, Chen (Chenzhou, now Yuanling, Hunan) in the west and Ding (Dingzhou, now Changde, Hunan) in the north." That is, today's south of Dongting Lake, north of Nanling Mountains, southwest-northeast Shui Gu-Xuefeng Mountain area between Xiangyuan River. The land area is nearly 50 thousand square kilometers.

Then, why is this area called "Meishan" in history? At present, a statement affirmed by most people is that during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the central part of Hunan was the residence of the King of Chu, Chu was Mi, and Chu people lived in Mi Mountain. By the time of the Qin and Han Dynasties, Mei had helped the Emperor Gaozu to destroy the Qin Dynasty, so he sealed Hou, and the land was Zhongshan, Hunan (now Xinhua and Anhua). People call his place Meishan, which coincides with the local voice of rice. After that, it became a custom, and this land was called Meishan.

Before the Song Dynasty, Meishan area was "closed to the outside world" because of its high mountains and dense forests, strong folk customs, "language barrier" and inconvenient transportation, and the blockade policy implemented by the ruling class at that time. People here live a primitive life of farming, fishing and hunting, forming a primitive and closed indigenous culture with a strong witchcraft culture. At that time, the residents here were mainly Yao and other aborigines.

In the fifth year of Xining in Song Shenzong (A.D. 1072), after Cai Yu and Zhang Dun opened Meishan to Xinhua and Anhua counties, feudal rulers of past dynasties intended to immigrate here, and Meishan gradually became a place where Han, Miao, Yao, Tujia and other ethnic groups lived together. Due to the relatively closed living space and the relative independence of ethnic groups, for more than 900 years, the profound and long-standing indigenous culture and the foreign culture brought by immigrants from past dynasties have been continuously integrated, blended and assimilated, forming a colorful and unique Meishan culture. Meishan culture, based on ancient fishing and hunting culture, has its own unique folk culture and customs, and has a distinct regional brand. It is of great significance to the study of ethnology, sociology, history, religion and other fields.

Although Meishan culture originated and formed in Gumeishan area, as a cultural system, its spread scope far exceeds that of Gumeishan. In our province, it covers three quarters of the territory and almost involves many provinces and ethnic groups in southern China. At present, traces of Meishan culture have been found in North America, Western Europe, South Australia and Indochina Peninsula.