the Naxi Ethnic Group  

cctv.com 02-15-2006 16:23

With a population of about 300000, the Naxi Ethnic Group mainly live in Lijiang, with the rest being scattered throughout Yunnan Province as well as in Sichuan and Tibet.

The Naxi language is traditionally written in a unique pictographic script called the Dongba script, created more than 1,000 years ago. These complicated pictographs are unique, and quite distinct from Chinese pictographs. The script is highly regarded for its anthropological value, as it is considered to be a living fossil of early pictographic writing styles. Many characters do seem to bear a resemblance to what we would consider typical cave drawings. Due to frequent economic and cultural exchanges with the Han people since the Yuan and Ming dynasties, Naxi people have gradually adopted Chinese as their main means of communication, as well as developed an alphabetic script for their own language.

Their traditional music is also considered a living fossil. One particular style known as Dongjing Music is a type of Taoist music which was introduced to Yunnan from the central regions of China during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Deeply rooted and widely spread among the Naxi people, Dongjing Music is today one of the most well-preserved traditional musical forms in all of China. Another style known as Baisha is one of ancient China's few large-scale, classical orchestral forms of music. It is said that this music dates from the Yuan dynasty. The early Yuan emperor Kublai Khan reportedly left half of his band and many musical scores as a gift to the Naxi people in appreciation for the help they had given him while crossing a treacherous river.

Traditionally, the Naxi believed in the Dongba religion, which is a form of Shamanism, and also in Lamaism. Sorcerers, called "Dongba," are invited to chant scriptures at weddings, funerals, and New Year Day and other festivals.

Naxi women wear wide-sleeved loose gowns, with jackets and long trousers, tied with richly decorated belts at the waist. They often wear sheepskin slung over the shoulder, on which are seven stars exquisitely embroidered, with sun and moon symbols, one on each side. This reflects the Naxis' admiration for diligence -- "people start working early in the morning and do not stop until late in the evening." Men's garments are similar to those of the Han people. In certain parts of Naxi society, women formed the main work force and a matriarchal family structure was dominant, with the woman considered head of the family.

This is a unique and fascinating ethnic minority in China, centred in the area of Lijiang.

Editor:Wang  Source:CCTV.com