How many Han and ethnic minorities are there in Sichuan?

Miao nationality is one of the most populous ethnic minorities in southwest China, with a population of about 7.3 million (1990).

Miao people are widely distributed, mainly living in Guizhou, Yunnan and Hunan, the rest in Guangxi and Sichuan, and a few in Hainan Island of Guangdong and the southwest corner of Hubei. Guizhou, Yunnan and Xiangxi have large Miao communities, while Miao people in other places live in scattered areas, generally in one or several villages, and live together with other ethnic groups. The degree of mixed living varies from place to place, but large mixed living and small mixed living are the main forms. This form is the same feature in the multi-ethnic areas in the southwest provinces of China, especially because of the large number and wide distribution of Miao people.

In the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau and marginal mountainous areas, there are usually several or dozens of Miao people who form a village, scattered on hillsides, mountain passes and open flat dams in mountainous areas and places with convenient transportation.

Historically, Miao people in different places mainly scattered from several relatively concentrated settlements in different periods; There are also some ethnic elements from different sources that have been integrated into the Miao nationality. Some people once thought that the "Three Miao" mentioned in China literature who once lived in Jianghuai area and later settled in Dongting Lake area may be the ancestors of Miao people now.

Due to the long-term diaspora of Miao people, influenced by various factors in the development process, the languages, names and costumes of Miao people in different regions are complicated, which leads to the Miao people in different regions not talking in Miao language, and their costumes have their own characteristics, even in festivals and arts.

Miao language belongs to the branch of Miao Yao language family of Sino-Tibetan language family. Generally speaking, there are three dialects: Xiangxi, Qiandong, Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan. Xiangxi dialect is popular in Xiangxi, Songtao in Guizhou, Xiushan in Sichuan, Laifeng in Hubei, Hefeng and other places. Dialects in eastern Guizhou are popular in counties in southeastern Guizhou and northern Guangxi, and Zhenfeng, Xingren and Xingyi counties in southwestern Guizhou. Sichuan-Guizhou-Yunnan dialect is popular in southern Sichuan, western Guizhou, central Guizhou, western Guangxi and counties in Yunnan. There are great differences between dialects. Under dialects, some are divided into several sub-dialects or dialects.

In addition, there are some places where people who call themselves Miao people speak the same language as other ethnic groups. Due to the long-term contacts between Miao and Han, many Miao people, especially those living in mixed areas, are fluent in Chinese and generally use it.

In the past, there were different names for Miao people in different places, such as long skirt Miao, short skirt Miao, red Miao, black Miao, highland Miao and Bazhai Miao. Now they are collectively called Miao people.

The natural environment in which Miao people live is very different. Southeastern Guizhou, southern Guizhou and northern Guangxi live on the edge of Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, and the terrain inclines from northwest to southeast, and the altitude drops from 1000m to about 400m m. Miaoling Mountain Range straddles it, and rivers include Qingshui River, Duliujiang River and Panjiang River. The topography and elevation of Xiangxi, northeastern Guizhou, southwestern Hubei and southeastern Sichuan are similar to those of southeastern Guizhou, with Wuling Mountain in the mountains and Yuanjiang and Lishui in the rivers. Except for a few alpine mountainous areas, these areas are generally abundant in rainfall, mild in climate, lush in bamboo and wood on the mountains and rich in underground treasures. Crops include rice, corn, potato, sorghum, beans, flue-cured tobacco, ramie, sugarcane, rape, peanuts, cotton and so on. It is also rich in camellia oleifera and tung oil. Wood resources are very rich, such as pine, fir, cypress, nanmu, green bar and so on. And Chinese fir is the most famous. Damiao Mountain in Guangxi is known as "Linhai", and Qingshui River Basin in Guizhou is one of the important timber supply bases in southern China. The output of raw lacquer in northwest Guizhou ranks first in China, and the quality of Quercus variabilis as raw material of cork industry is quite high. The precious medicinal materials such as Codonopsis pilosula, Platycodon grandiflorum, Evodia rutaecarpa and Notoginseng produced in Miao areas are famous at home and abroad. Wool produced in Weining, Guizhou and other Miao areas is slender and soft, which is a high-quality raw material for wool spinning industry. Coal, iron and copper in northwest Guizhou and mercury in northeast Guizhou have long been famous. In addition, the reserves of tungsten, antimony, tin and lead are also very large. The Miao area of tropical Hainan Island is also rich in rubber and various tropical fruits. These rich resources have gradually played an important role in the socialist construction of the motherland.

national costume

Miao costumes have their own characteristics in different places, and there are great differences. Miao people in northwest Guizhou and northeast Yunnan wear patterned linen and wool felt with geometric patterns on their shoulders; In other places, Miao men generally wear short clothes with double-breasted or left-breasted buttons. Wear trousers, a big belt, a long blue scarf on your head and more leggings on your feet in winter. Women's clothes, the bun and scarf on their heads, the color of clothes, the embroidery pattern, the presence and length of skirts and so on. , often not only between provinces, between counties, and sometimes even between villages have different characteristics. Miao women in western Hunan and northeastern Guizhou are dressed in underwear with big breasts and right front, and their sleeves, trouser legs and collars are inlaid with flower ornaments. Most Miao women in other places wear short skirts with big collars, long or short pleated skirts, and skirts are covered with skirts. There are long skirts that reach the instep and short skirts that reach the knee. Women also wear all kinds of silver ornaments when they dress up. Wear earrings, collars, bracelets and other accessories. There are many kinds of women's headdresses, which are tied on the top of the head with various headscarves, some with bags or spires, and some with their hair wrapped on a bracket and standing high on the top of the head, which is unique. Women's clothing is unique in southeastern Guizhou. Silver ornaments are nailed on clothes to form "silver clothes", and silver headdresses shaped like horns are worn on their heads, which are more than feet long.

housing construction

The Miao area is rich in wood, so most of the houses are made of wood, and the roofs are made of tiles or Chinese fir bark and thatch. Thin slate roofs are also used in central or western Guizhou. The form of houses varies from place to place. A diaojiao building built in a mountainous area is built on a slope with two or three steps. Using the natural terrain of the slope, a long wooden column is erected below and a short wooden column is erected above to support, pave the floor and build a house. No one can live in the diaojiao building. Generally, it is to pile up sundries or raise livestock, which is economical, practical and unique. Miao people in Hainan Island and Zhaotong, Yunnan Province, live in rectangular thatched huts or very simple "forked huts". This kind of thatched huts is built by crossing tree trunks, weaving walls with branches or bamboo pieces, and then coating them with soil to resist the cold in extremely cold areas.

way of life

Miao people have great respect for their elders. When the younger generation meets their elders, they usually bow and salute. When eating, they invited the old man to sit at the table and let him go first. On festive occasions, all people, old and young, should bow and remember not to shake hands with women.

When visiting the Miao family, don't sit on the stool next to the fire kang, because the fire kang is where the Miao family sets up coffins to worship their ancestors. At night, if the host calls you "Bao Zong" (meaning to sleep), you should not climb into bed, but sleep on the "ground floor" of the kang, but you must never say that this is the "ground floor". The Miao family sleeping on the ground floor is called "Bao Dadou", which refers to the livestock sleeping on the ground. Arranging guests to "sleep on the ground floor" is to let the guests sleep with the ancestors of the host to show respect for the guests.

Festival culture

Lusheng Festival is a traditional Miao festival on February 16 every year. It is not only a meeting to exchange production experience and agricultural products, but also a grand meeting for young men and women to fall in love and socialize. Mothers pay special attention to observing young people's singing and dancing skills and intelligence, and further understand their moral quality and labor quality to help their children choose their partners. During the festival, there will also be bullfighting, horse racing and ball games.

The festivals celebrated by Miao people in different places are not exactly the same. This area celebrates this festival, and that area celebrates that festival; The same festival can have a sequence in time. The "Miao Year" is popular in southeastern Guizhou and parts of Rongshui County, Guangxi. It is held on the ugly day of rabbits (cows) from September to November in the lunar calendar, and there are activities such as drumming, dancing lusheng, horse racing, bullfighting and "tourism". On the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, Miao people in several counties near Guiyang put on their costumes and came to the fountain in Guiyang. Blowing sheng played a micro-tune, and exchanged songs to commemorate the legendary ancient hero "Yanu". In addition, there are Dragon Boat Festival, Huashan Festival (the fifth day of May), Spring Festival (the rice is ripe in June and July of the lunar calendar), Tomb-Sweeping Day, Autumn Festival (beginning of autumn) and so on. Miao people in Yunnan climb Mount Hua almost every year. Although this kind of stepping on Huashan has superstitious content, it is also a traditional mass entertainment festival of Miao nationality. Couples who have been infertile for many years "make a wish" for their children and act as "bearers", responsible for preparing the wine that people who climb Huashan need to drink, planting a pine tree in a wide flat not far from the village in advance and hanging a pot of wine on it. Many young men and women are singing and dancing under this tree. In addition, there is a "bullfighting" game. After liberation, National Day and Labor Day have also become new grand festivals for Miao people.

food culture

Miao diet, Miao people in southeastern Guizhou, western Hunan, Hainan Island and Rongshui, Guangxi, mainly rice, but also corn, sweet potatoes, millet and other miscellaneous grains; Miao people in northwest Guizhou, south Sichuan and northeast Yunnan live on corn, potatoes, buckwheat seeds and oats. Saussurea involucrata is a kind of pickle with unique flavor. In the past, due to the lack of salt in mountainous areas, many Miao people lived on light food all the year round and could only use hot and sour seasoning. Drinking is also a hobby of Miao people. Almost every family makes their own wine, including shochu, liqueur and sparkling wine, among which shochu is the most common. Every wedding, funeral or visit by relatives and friends, guests should be treated with wine. There is a rare species of Miao people in western Hunan-the rock-stick frog, which is oval, dark brown, about 20 cm long, larger than the average frog, and the largest is about 1 kg. The meat is tender, delicious and nutritious, and it has the effects of promoting blood circulation, strengthening tendons, nourishing liver and improving intelligence.

Religious belief

Miao people's religious belief is mainly ancestor worship, with Pangu the Great as the ancestor. Nature worship also occupies an important position, superstitious about Shan Gui, Duke of Dragon, Duke of Land, Duke of Kitchen, etc. 1930 years later, Christianity was introduced into some areas of Miao nationality.

Life etiquette

Miao people are generally monogamous families, and the same surname does not get married. Older parents are usually supported by younger children. In some areas, fathers and sons have the habit of sharing the same surname, the son's first name and the father's last name. Usually only call your real name, not your father's name. Influenced by the patriarchal feudalism of the Han nationality, some established word generations, ancestral halls and genealogies. Marriage is mostly decided by parents, but young men and women have relatively free love activities before marriage, mostly in festivals or off-seasons. There is a fixed place near the village, where girls from the village and boys from other villages sing. After they are interested, they give each other gifts as tokens of love. This traditional social activity between young men and women is called "wandering" in southeastern Guizhou, "sitting as a sister" or "sitting in a village" in Rongshui, Guangxi, "meeting girls" in Songtao, Xiangxi and Guizhou, and "walking on the moon" in northwestern Guizhou. Even if you make friends in the music industry, you usually have to ask your parents for permission to get married. A few decades ago, the Miao people in Chuxiong, Yunnan Province had a "girls' room" system, that is, two public houses were set up in the village, and unmarried young men and women came back from work every day, that is, they lived in one public house, sang and entertained, and chose their spouses. At the same time, there is a habit of "grabbing girls". If the robbed girl disagrees, she can still go home. If they agree to get married, they will hold a grand banquet.

Miao people in Xiangxi and Guizhou also have the custom of "returning girls" (also known as "returning seeds"), that is, my uncle's family has the priority to marry my niece as a wife. Even if my uncle has no children, my niece must ask her permission to send a "nephew's money" to my uncle's family. Some still keep the habit that husbands and brothers can marry widows or sisters-in-law, which is called "transferring houses". There is also a kind of "wife-sister marriage" among Miao people in Yunnan, that is, brothers and sisters marry a husband one after another, but rarely. Many Miao people in Guizhou are still popular with "staying at home", that is, the bride returns to her family after marriage and lives in her husband's family for two or three years.

The funeral of Miao people is also a wooden coffin burial, with no funerary objects. Generally, Daogong is invited to hold a funeral, and wealthy families have to "fast" for three days before they die.

Entertainment and sports entertainment

Miao nationality also shows diversity in literature and art on the same basis. Miao nationality is a people who love singing and dancing, and folk literature is also very developed. Miao songs are easy to understand, usually five or seven words, and most of them only talk about tones without rhyme, and the length is not limited. Some of them are only a few lines, and some are as long as 15 thousand lines. The short ones are generally lyrical, and the long ones are generally used for narration; There are ancient songs about the history of the Miao people, such as "The Old Man Opens Heaven and Earth" and "Ninety-nine suns and Ninety-nine moons", which reflect the struggle between the ancient Miao people and nature. There are also bitter songs that accuse the old society, anti-songs that praise the rebels, love songs that tell love, folk songs that praise the new life and so on. Generally, the tune is simple, with little change and less strict rhythm. When the tone remains the same, it often changes with the singer's volume, which can be long or short. The "flying song" in Shidongkou area of Qiandongnan (accurate free translation should be "singing loudly", that is, "singing loudly". ) It is often sung by two or four people in chorus, loud and unrestrained, with lively tunes and strong appeal.

Lusheng is a famous musical instrument popular in Miao areas. It consists of six bamboo tubes, the largest of which is one or two feet long and the smallest is only eight or nine inches. There are significant differences in the structure and tone of Lusheng in different places. Accompanied by a wayward tube. The large tube is eight or nine inches in diameter, hollowed out from the trunk, and contains a bamboo tube with a spring plug. When in use, two people lift one person to blow, and the sound is low, loud and strong. In addition, there are suona, flute, flute, bronze drum, harmonica and so on. Miao youth in many areas are also good at blowing leaves. Lusheng Dance, Encouragement Dance and Bench Dance are popular dances. Miao songs and dances were performed at home and abroad and received warm welcome.

Miao people's arts and crafts such as flower picking, embroidery, flower weaving, batik and paper cutting are colorful. Draw a pattern on the white cloth with a wax knife soaked in wax, then dip it into a dyeing vat for dyeing, and then boil it in water. The batik process has a history of about 1000 years, which removes yellow wax and displays white patterns on a blue background. Now it has developed to be able to dye colorful patterns and export them abroad.