The origin of Xiushan Lantern is controversial.

Xiushan (including Youyang) Lantern Festival has a long history. For thousands of years, folk lantern artists have been passed down from generation to generation and developed into a regional culture centered on Xiushan and Youyang and spread to the border areas of Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan and Guizhou. Regarding the origin of Xiushan Lantern, according to relevant historical records and various vivid folklore, there are three theories: native theory, foreign theory and the combination of native and foreign theory. Xiushan is located in the southeast border of Chongqing, which is the junction of Chongqing, Guizhou, Hunan and Hubei provinces. The terrain is dominated by mountain basins of different sizes, with undulating mountains, lush oil-tea trees, criss-crossing buildings and scattered villages, among which Meijiang River, Pinghe River, Rongxi River and Youshui River meander. Xiushan has beautiful scenery, suitable climate and rich products.

For thousands of years, Tujia, Miao and Han people have lived in this land on a self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy and lived in groups, forming unique customs, culture and art.

Among the people, it is generally believed that lantern art is native. Because its performance form, dance, music, lyrics, costume props and performance customs are self-contained and unique. It is essentially different from Yunnan Lantern Festival and Guizhou Lantern Festival. Its performance form and artistic style are different, and it is even more different from folk art in other places.

At the opening ceremony of lantern jumping, lantern watchers (folk lantern artists) must first set up a lantern hall in their own hall to show their respect for their ancestors, and then they can go to the village to jump lanterns. This is unique.

Most of the lyrics of lanterns are written in dialects. For example, when the old man comes to see the lamp, his hair will turn blue when he turns home ... The second child of the crop comes to see the lamp, and when they get home, they will make spring. ..........................................................................................................................

The clown (Lai) in the lantern duet uses a prop fan made of palm leaves, which is completely different from other places. The music of Xiushan and Youyang Lantern Festival is similar to the melody of local folk songs and obviously evolved from folk songs. Such as the famous boxwood pole, Acacia Four Seasons, embroidered lotus, yellow flower, Shangchashan and so on.

Some folk artists listened to their ancestors' legends, and Xiushan Lantern, a native of Xiushan, was gradually introduced to Yubei, Xiangxi, Youyang, Qianjiang and Pengshui in the middle of Qing Dynasty. People think that Xiushan Lantern was introduced from other places, and some folk artists also hold this view. Its basis is: in the aria of "Make a Big Red Light" sung by Xiushan Lantern, there are: The lamp is for, the lamp is the lamp, where does the lamp start? When will the light come on? Emperor Renzong boarded the dragon chair, and the mother god was blind and made 3600 red lights, two of which have been passed down to this day. Song Renzong's biological mother, Princess Li Dang, was persecuted and blinded by Queen Liu, which was recorded in the official history of unofficial history. According to legend, () is ()' s sixth son, and his biological mother Li is a servant of Zhenzong Liu. After giving birth to Quanzong, Li was accepted as his own son by Queen Liu, and Li was put in the cold. This is a civet cat in unofficial history for a prince. I didn't know the truth until Song Renzong ascended the throne. At this time, Li was blind because he cried at the lonely lamp year after year. In order to pray for the mother's eyes to see the light again, the whole clan made 3600 red lights, which became a symbol for Beijing to get rid of diseases and disasters and pray for light and happiness. This is also reasonable.

At that time, there were five surnames in Youyang and Xiushan: Dragon, Stone, Zhang, Luo and Fang. During the Zongzong period, there were as many as four or five hundred tribute teams at a time. When they saw that the emperor promised 3,600 red lights in Beijing to pray for the light of his biological mother, they brought back several red lights symbolizing good luck, eliminating diseases and eliminating disasters. Then passed down from generation to generation, gradually evolved. This has become the art of lanterns today. Today's Longshi surnames all have lamp families, probably descendants of the five surnames Fan who went to Beijing to pay tribute that year. Some lanterns in Banza are similar in shape to palace lanterns, and some lanterns are similar in tune to palace music. It can be considered that lanterns were introduced into Youyang and Xiushan from Kaifeng, the capital of the Song Dynasty, during the Northern Song Dynasty.

Some lantern classes have lanterns at the opening ceremony, and lanterns are lanterns. When did the lights start? When did the light come on? Since the Tang Dynasty, lanterns have been popular since the Song Dynasty. Lyrics. According to legend, in the Tang Dynasty, Youyang had lanterns after Bi Gang put them on. This can roughly prove that lanterns were introduced into Youyang and Xiushan during the Tang and Song Dynasties. Some scholars believe that Chen was defeated by the battle between Chen Youliang and Zhu Yuanzhang in Poyang Lake before Yuan Dynasty. Most of the defeated soldiers came from Anhui and Jiangxi. They lived in exile in western Hunan, southeastern Chongqing and other places, scattered and settled, and lived with the aborigines for a long time, thus integrating foreign folk art with local lanterns. Most people believe that in the first year of Qianlong reign (A.D. 1736), Wuling Mountain abolished the chieftain system and introduced China's advanced culture. A large number of Han people from Jiangxi and Huguang moved to Xiushan and Youyang. They cultivated land and built the country, which promoted the development of productive forces and introduced the folk art of the Han nationality. This is the historical achievement of Huguang filling Sichuan. For more than 200 years, immigrants and local Miao and Tujia people have lived together, worked together and married each other. The customs of Fenggu have gradually merged into one, and folk arts have learned from each other's strong points, forming a unique art of lanterns. Nowadays, some tunes in lantern music seem to be the same as those in Jiangxi tea picking and Anhui flower drum lanterns, which is the embodiment of the integration of foreign excellent folk arts and local folk arts.