The New Year is a traditional festival that is celebrated all over the world in our country. On this day, most people will have a holiday from the company, factory, enterprise, or unit, or reunite with their families, or visit relatives and friends, or go out to travel, and celebrate the most solemn event in their favorite way. festival. The first day of the lunar calendar is the Spring Festival of the Han people, and some ethnic minorities also have their own Spring Festival. For example, the Miao people have the Miao year, and the Dong people have the Dong year. Before, we came to Zhaoxing Dong Village in Liping, Guizhou, the largest Dong village in the country. We all felt the strong flavor of the New Year in the streets and alleys of the village.
Zhaoxing Dong Village is located in Liping County in the southeastern part of Guizhou Province. It is not only the largest Dong village in Guizhou, but also the largest Dong village in China, and it is also the folk culture center of the Dong people. There are more than 1,100 households in the village, and more than 6,000 people live there. The village is surrounded by mountains on all sides, and two streams merge into a small river to pass through the village. The houses in the village are stilted buildings with stilts, row upon row, well-proportioned, all built with Chinese fir, and covered with small green tiles on the hard hilltop, which is simple and practical.
It is understood that the entire Zhaoxing Dong Village is Dong with the surname of Lu, and it is divided into five major Fang clans who live in five natural areas, which are called "Tuan" locally. It is divided into five groups: Ren Tuan, Yi Tuan, Li Tuan, Zhi Tuan, and Xin Tuan. Each group has a tall drum tower, so it is also known as the hometown of drum towers, and it is also the hometown of singing and dancing. There are Dong songs in the village. troupe and Dong opera troupe. In 2005, it was selected as one of the "Six Most Beautiful Ancient Rural Towns in China" by "China National Geographic". In 2007, it was jointly selected as "the 33 most attractive tourist destinations in the world" by "Fashion Travel" and "National Geographic" of the United States. "one.
When we came to Zhaoxing Dong Village, it was the eve of the New Year's Eve, and the street was full of lights and festoons, and it was very lively. Fortunately, we were warmly received by the staff in the village, who introduced Zhaoxing to us. The Dong village said that the village is "the largest ethnic museum in the world", "the last home of human tired soul", "the oldest ballad preserved by human beings", and the United Nations World Cultural Foundation has identified it as the world's "return to nature and return to nature". One of the top ten tourist destinations, one of the 18 ecological and cultural protection circles in the world awarded by the World Rural Culture Protection Foundation (there are two in Asia, and the other is Tibet, China except Qiandongnan)...Zhaoxing Dongzhai has many titles , and it is also one of the six photography paradises in China selected by international photographers.
Strolling in the alleys of Tizhai in Zhaoxing, you can hear melodious singing and cheerful Lusheng music everywhere, and you can also see groups of Dong people gathering together, some of them get together to enjoy the fire (during this period The temperature in Guizhou is very low, even in the daytime it is below 10 degrees), some get together to chat, play chess, and some get together to chop vegetables, cook, and serve meals.
This is a lively scene we saw in a courtyard dam in Zhaoxing Dong Village. The courtyard dam is near the pond. Dozens of Dong men are more busy. Some are chopping vegetables, some are carrying water, and some are lighting fires. , Some people are very busy cooking.
Beside the men who are busy, their women are sitting around a brazier warming up and chatting. They have no intention of stepping forward to help. This seems to be completely different from the impression that people have a man outside and a woman inside. Everyone knows What's the matter? Is it rare that all Dong people do housework by men? Friends in the same industry lamented that Dong women are really happy.
This kind of scene is really lively. It is not a performance because Zhaoxing Dong Village is a scenic spot, but a custom that has been passed down from generation to generation by Dong compatriots for thousands of years. Every New Year, everyone will get together, sing, Dancing to celebrate the New Year, friends from outside the village come to visit (singing and dancing competitions, etc.), the village must be responsible for their meals, and this important work is basically contracted by the men in the village.
I saw them talking and laughing, and their movements were skillful. It didn't feel like rushing ducks to the shelves temporarily. This shows that they have long been used to these tasks in their daily lives. They are good at cooking, cutting vegetables, and handling spoons.
The Dong year is coming. According to local friends, during the Dong year in Zhaoxing Dong village, every family will hold ancestor worship activities, offering good fish, good meat, glutinous rice, good wine, etc. to the ancestors, and asking the ancestors to come back and be with themselves. Celebrate the New Year together, and read auspicious words for ancestor worship, expressing respect and deep memory for ancestors. At the same time, the Dong people believe that after autumn, when the crops are plentiful, the livestock are prosperous, and all farming affairs are completed, it means that the working year has passed and the new year is coming.
Just like the Han people used to celebrate the New Year, the Dong people also set off firecrackers to celebrate the New Year, saying goodbye to the old and ushering in the new. They believe that setting off firecrackers can create a festive atmosphere, and it is a kind of recreational activity for festivals, which can bring people joy and auspiciousness. At the same time, it can also drive away evil spirits, avoid plague, and bless the Dong family with safety and auspiciousness.
We are fortunate to meet such a grand festival. It is said that during the Dong Year, there will be grand welcomes at the gate of the village, Lusheng competition, bonfire party, Dong song competition, parade of officials and other activities, so we also plan to stay in Zhaoxing Dong Village for two days. Today, let’s take a good look at the grand occasion of the Dong people celebrating the New Year. If you also want to know, please pay attention to the content that Yufan will release next.