Folklore & Intangible Heritage: Top 10 Famous Intangible Cultural Heritages in Hainan
Top 10 Famous Intangible Cultural Heritages of Hainan
- Li Traditional Spinning, Dyeing, Weaving, and Embroidery Skills
Intangible Cultural Heritage | World Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Li traditional spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery skills are a textile technique created by the Li women of Hainan Province. It integrates spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery, using cotton thread, hemp thread, and other fibers to make clothes and other daily necessities. On May 20, 2006, the Li traditional spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery skills were approved by the State Council of the People's Republic of China to be included in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List; in 2009, they were included in the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.
- Li "March Third" Festival
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
The Li "March Third" Festival, also known as the Love Festival or the Day of Discussing Love, is held annually on the third day of the third lunar month. It is a traditional festival for the Li people of Hainan to commemorate their hardworking and brave ancestors and to express their yearning for love and happiness. On the third day of the third lunar month each year, the Li people dress in festive attire, carry baskets of mountain rice wine, and bring bamboo tube rice. They gather from all directions to worship their ancestors, or meet in small groups to sing antiphonal songs, dance, and play percussion instruments to celebrate the festival. On May 20, 2006, the Li "March Third" Festival was approved by the State Council to be included in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
- Danzhou Diaosheng (Tuned Singing)
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Danzhou Diaosheng is a traditional folk song that circulates only in Danzhou City, Hainan Province, and possesses a unique regional style. Its main feature is antiphonal singing between men and women, integrating singing with dancing. According to the Maigoo editor, Danzhou Diaosheng originated during the Western Han Dynasty and developed in modern China. It is sung in the Danzhou dialect, with a bright rhythm, beautiful melody, and passionate emotion, and is both singable and danceable. It is praised as a "wonder of the Southern art garden." On May 20, 2006, Danzhou Diaosheng was approved by the State Council of the People's Republic of China to be included in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
- Hainan Coconut Carving
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Coconut carving uses coconut shells, coconut coir, and coconut wood as raw materials to create various practical products and sculptural art pieces by hand. It is one of the specialties of Hainan Island. Coconut carving crafts feature novel styles, simple shapes, elegant designs, and lightweight textures, blending ornamental value with practicality and possessing a strong Hainan style. The carving techniques include relief carving (flat and three-dimensional), openwork carving, three-dimensional carving with coir, and shell inlay carving, among others. On June 7, 2008, coconut carving was approved by the State Council to be included in the second batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List; in 2014, it was successfully selected for the UNESCO "Seal of Excellence for Handicrafts."
- Qiong Opera
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Qiong Opera, also known as Qiongzhou Opera or Hainan Opera, is a traditional drama from Haikou City, Ding'an County, and other places in Hainan Province, and is one of the traditional local dramas of the Min Nan language family. Boldness and simplicity are the characteristics of Qiong Opera's singing style. The melody is born from the lyrics with a wide vocal range. It not only has elegant and舒缓 tunes and melodious, broad melodies but also comes in rich and varied forms, featuring both high-pitched and impassioned styles, as well as gentle and graceful ones. In June 2008, Qiong Opera was approved by the State Council of the People's Republic of China to be included in the second batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
- Yazhou Folk Songs
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Yazhou Folk Songs are one of the ancient song genres of Hainan Province's local folk songs. They are popular in areas west of Yacheng in Sanya, the coastal areas of Ledong, and other ancient Yazhou territories, as well as the Gancheng area in Dongfang. They are Chinese folk ballads sung in the dialect of the Yazhou guests (Han people), characterized by extremely strict metrical rules and a unique style, originating in the countryside of the "Six Li West" of ancient Yazhou and spreading to the surroundings. Yazhou folk songs have no flashy embellishments; folk singers inject enthusiastic melodies into their chanting, releasing their love for life thoroughly and heartily using simple language. On May 20, 2006, Yazhou Folk Songs were approved by the State Council of the People's Republic of China to be included in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
- Li Bamboo and Wood Instrumental Music
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Li bamboo and wood instrumental music has a long history and a distant origin. It is mainly circulated in the Li-inhabited areas at the southern foot of Wuzhishan in central Hainan Province. The common traditional Li instruments in this region mainly include eight major types: the single-log drum, Dingdong wood, nose flute, mouth bow, Lilie, Koubai, Dongshao, and Bida. These instruments exude the atmosphere of primitive social life. The Li people handcraft them using raw materials such as bamboo, wood, and animal skins found in nature, vividly reflecting the local Li people's concepts of life and aesthetics that revere nature. On June 7, 2008, traditional Li instruments were approved by the State Council to be included in the second batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
- South China Sea Navigation Route Genglujing
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
The South China Sea Navigation Route Genglujing, commonly known as "Genglu Bu" or "Genglu Zhuan," is the knowledge and practice of South China Sea navigation routes summarized by the people of Hainan over thousands of years of practice. It is a traditional folk culture popular in Wenchang City and Qionghai City, Hainan Province. Coastal residents of Hainan Island summarized their navigation experiences and wrote them into the "South China Sea Genglu Bu," which circulated in the form of hand-copied books. In addition to this, the orally transmitted "Genglu Zhuan" is also popular among the people. In June 2008, the South China Sea Navigation Route Genglujing was approved by the State Council to be included in the second batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
- Li Costumes
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
Li costumes are ethnic costumes circulating in Hainan Province based on the four traditional Li crafts of spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery. They are woven and sewn using island cotton, hemp, kapok, bark fiber, and silk. Their evolutionary history spans thousands of years. In traditional Li costumes, Li women often wear straight-collar, collarless, buttonless, open-front upper garments, or pullover-style upper garments in some areas, and tube skirts of varying lengths on the bottom. They tie their hair at the back of the head, secure it with bone or silver hairpins, drape embroidered headscarves, and wear earrings, necklaces, and bracelets. Traditional men's attire generally involves tying hair at the front or back of the head; the upper garment is collarless and opens at the chest, while the lower garment consists of a loincloth (Diaochan). The upper garments of some Meifu Li men are not very different from those of women. In June 2008, Li costumes were selected for the second batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage.
- Li Bark Cloth Making Technique
Intangible Cultural Heritage | National Intangible Cultural Heritage
The Li bark cloth making technique is a technology that uses plant bark as raw material to process it into cloth through beating techniques. It is a traditional handicraft of the Baoting Li and Miao Autonomous County in Hainan. Bark cloth holds an irreplaceable special position in anthropology and cultural history because only bark cloth can prove the development process of human clothing from non-woven fabric to woven fabric. Making clothes from bark cloth is the Li people's great contribution to human society. On May 20, 2006, this making technique was approved by the State Council to be included in the first batch of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection List.