Folk Customs along the Yangtze
As it crosses from West to East through 11 provinces, the mighty Yangtze River embraces various folk customs and cultures which rank as the most diverse place in the world. Ethnic minority groups of people living along Yangtze are endowed with extremely amazing folkways and customs and their uniqueness make them a great attraction to both local and foreign visitors.
From the source of Yangtze in Tibetan-Qinghai Plateau all the way to the big city of Shanghai, you will find different customs practiced in various cultures such as Naxi, Tibetan, Bashu, Tujia, Huxiang, Jingchu, Wuyue and Liangzhu. Since ancient times, Yangtze River Basin has been a fertile and rich land which has greatly facilitated development of different folk customs as highlighted here below:
Marriage customs- The Weeping Marriage
The Tujia Ethnic Minority welcomes the marriage ceremony for girls with crying. As far as their custom is concerned, the new bride/ girl expecting to be married off should start crying at least a month before the start of the wedding ceremony. Over time, the aspect of whether a girl is able to cry or not about her upcoming marriage has been used as a criterion of valuing the virtues and ability of the girl.
For a girl to be recognized by the local community as a good bride, she should start mastering the art of crying for her marriage as early as she is 12 years. The aspect of crying for the marriage is so serious that some girls will go as far as inviting experienced women for some crying lessons. At the age of fifteen years, the girls will also invite one another to determine who cries better than the other. Crying methods are also taught/ discussed during this time.
When the girl is crying for marriage, there are certain songs that are sung during the ceremony. Such include songs sung for the parents, brothers, sisters, ancestors and the match maker. During the singing, emotions are expressed fully through mournful tones. Upon hearing the strong and vivid words in the song, even the stone-hearted men end up giving into crying and tears start rolling. The singing by girls is a way of protesting against the system of arranged marriage and expressing their sentimental attachments to their families and relatives.
Weeping songs are sung by either one or two girls. Where a girl sings alone, she will be crying for her own destiny while expressing her deep love to her family and relatives. Where two girls weep together, this is referred to as ‘sister crying’ where the other girl will be consoling the bride being married off.
The Funeral Customs-Funeral Dance
A unique custom of Tujia people who live in western parts of Hubei province is the funeral dance. Through these happy folk dances, the community expresses prayers to the deceased to have a happy life.
Upon the death of an elder, the Tujia ethnic minority places the body in a coffin which is put in his house’s main room for a period of between one and three days. Friends and relatives are required to dance and sing for the deceased every night. One of the dancers will be beating the cowhide drum as he sings and the others will be dancing around the coffin. Normally, there will be between two and four men dancing at a time.
As per the customs, women cannot dance for the deceased. The drummer sings lively songs in differing words. Such songs include love stories, interesting episodes, stories of legends and the dead. The dancers sing the last sentence of every song with the drummer to help drive grief out of the family.
Fishermen and Their Related Customs
As you cruise along Yangtze River, you will see fishermen rowing their wooden fishing boat. This is one of the most exciting and unique scenes you can see on this river. Fishing on Yangtze River has a long history that dates back more than 7000 years ago. Since ancient times, people have been using these small wooden boats as their fishing vehicle.
The fishing boat normally measures about three feet wide and twelve feet in length. The boat also has about five or six cabins which includes navigation cabin, living cabin and the engine room. Currently, with living standards along River Yangtze improving, local fishermen have now installed engines on the boats as a way of saving on man power. This way, you fishermen do not have to row the boats manually using the paddles.
The fishermen use two ways to catch fish from River Yangtze. These include use of hooks and net casting net. During the day, the fishermen will cash net into the river with big stones acting as anchors. Two boats will then be used to drag the net along the two ends in order to catch fish. The fishermen will put out the fishing hooks before sunset where they will real fish till morning.
Thanks to their long experience and knowledge about fishing on Yangtze River, the fishermen are well knowledgeable about the life cycle of the fishes and places where they can gather more fish easily. During dog summer days, this is the time of the year when fishermen will repair their wooden fishing boats. The dog days simply refer to the months of July and August that are characterized by hot days.
During the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival, the family is required to eat a reunion lunch with all family members in the cabin. Also, incense is stuck on the fore as they shoot off the fire crackers and burn papers. This is regarded as a way of making a sacrifice to god of water. it is an expression of their hope to good sailing in the river and making more catch.
Yangtze Trackers
Since ancient times, dangerous waterways brought about many inconveniences to passenger and freight traffic crossing through Yangtze River. This led to the birth of a unique profession of the trackers. The trackers tugged wooden boats in the river against the rapid as they sung work songs. The singing helped in coordinating work rhythm and cheering up. Since trackers need to drag the boat from the water, they usually work naked to prevent sickness. Dressing in clothes in the water for a long time may cause related sickness.
Today, with the construction of Three Gorge Dam having been completed, the previous dangerous river rapid has been turned into a smooth channel.
Consequently, this marked the end of trackers profession. However, the tracker’s cultural custom especially the work songs are going to be cherished forever.
Three Gorges area is believed to be the place where most of Yangtze folk customs were developed. The Local Tujia Ethnic Minority community is the largest Chinese ethnic community living around Yangtze River Banks and is well known for having the most interesting customs and culture around the river banks. Besides being very famous for their ability to produce brocades, the Tujia community has a very interesting life especially though their funeral and marriage customs.
When travelling to Yangtze River region, life habits, food specialties, local dialects and language as well as cultural heritage of Yangtze River basin is one of the interesting and richest customs you can appreciate. You will be amazed to see the hanging coffins, huge bridges, Three Gorges Dam , the canals and ancient towns that are a great pleasure to experience.
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