Yelang culture

Regarding the clan of Yelang, it is generally believed that Yelang is not a single nation, and some people think that Yelang came from the Xie people of Xu Huaiyi in Zhou Dynasty. Some people think that from the thoughtful Qin and Han dynasties, there were Liao people in Vietnam, Pu people in the south and Qiang people in today's Yi ancestors, all of which were the main ethnic groups in Yelang area. Some people think that the Qiang and Yi people are in a dominant position in Yelang, and the Yi people are the ancestors of the Yi people today. Some people think that the main ethnic group of Yelang is the ancestor of Buyi people today; The Miao nationality in Guizhou is a big family, although some people think it is the main body of Yelang.

However, it is generally believed that Miao people entered Guizhou long after Yelang's death, which is denied by Miao people's own legends. There are two views about Yelang's political center: Galand Department and Yelang Department.

Yelang culture was put forward in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is an important part of Guizhou's history and culture and an important gene or source of contemporary Guizhou culture. It was jointly created by all ethnic groups in Yelang period and people who later lived in Yelang's native land, and it was also the result of interaction between Yelang and surrounding areas. Many customs of Yelang, such as reproductive worship, ancestor worship, ghost worship and the architectural form of Yelang people, have been affecting people's lives today. Such as nest residence, mountain residence and "dry fence", have played an important role in the formation of architectural characteristics of Buyi, Dong and Shui nationalities.

In Guizhou, "Yelang everywhere" has long been well known, but its castle or political center has been looking for and controversial, involving Anshun, Zhenning, Liuzhi, Anlong, Ping Huang, Xingren, Hezhang and other places. These places are beautiful and picturesque, and many Yelang historical sites make people in the wild full of curiosity, in order to find lost things. With the continuous expansion of the expedition team and the continuous enrichment of historical materials and cultural relics, the true face of Yelang may gradually become clear, but it is an eternal subject to explore the rich Yelang culture, our national mentality and modernization. In this sense, it will remain a mystery. The diet of Gelao people often depends on local conditions. Corn is the main food in mountainous areas, rice is the main food in Pingba, and wheat, beans and potatoes are generally eaten at the same time. Gelao people have a unique flavor of corn. It grinds corn into fine powder, steamed or boiled, which is sweet and delicious and has a unique taste.

Gelao people like to eat camellia oleifera. If there are guests, add glutinous rice balls, eggs and the like, peanuts and rice flowers to the oil tea. They also like to eat sour food. There was a saying that "those who didn't eat sour for three days walked to salvage". When vegetables and peppers are on the market, every family will soak sauerkraut and pickled peppers. They also like making wine. They use glutinous rice, corn, sorghum and millet as raw materials to make various wines, such as miscellaneous wine, sweet wine and rice wine, for their own consumption or for entertaining guests.

The Gelao people in the border areas of Sichuan and southern Guizhou and the former Tianqiao Township are hospitable. If there are guests, they will be very enthusiastic. There are four ways to entertain guests during the Spring Festival. The first is to pack cigarettes and drink tea, and eat foods such as sunflowers and peanuts; Then eat wine, supplemented by all kinds of Baba and so on. Followed by drinks, sausages, eggs, peanuts and so on. It's an appetizer Finally, the main course, vegetarian dishes and so on.

Their food tools are mostly wooden, such as wooden barrels, wooden spoons, wooden bowls, wooden basins and so on. Now with the development of society, they are accepting some new things, and some iron drinking utensils have also entered their families. Like the Han nationality, the Gelao nationality is monogamous. A long time ago, marriage was freer. Men and women can love songs in their own labor. As long as they love each other, they can form their own marriage with heaven and earth as evidence and trees or stones as media. Later, for a while, it was arranged by their parents. Therefore, there is a saying that relatives get married, straps are close, and fingertips are married. Generally, marriage must go through "three media and six certificates". "Three media" refers to the first media (giving gifts to the woman's parents) and the second media (giving gifts to the woman's uncle). In addition to the first media) and the third media (expanding the scope of gifts to women's grandparents, etc. "Six Certificates" refers to six procedures: winning the lottery (for the wedding ceremony), asking the name (asking the woman's name and birthday), Najib choosing an auspicious day for the wedding, collecting money (giving the woman money), inviting marriage (confirming the wedding date) and welcoming the bride (marrying the bride).

Before girls get married, they should practice "crying wedding songs" and pour out their feelings of leaving their parents and sisters. When you get married, you should hide and be dragged into the sedan chair by your relatives. Then there are relatives to see them off. The bride and groom should pay homage to heaven and earth, worship their ancestors, make a toast, and then enter the bridal chamber. Make trouble on the wedding night. Everyone went to the bridal chamber to talk and laugh, and invited the bride and groom to perform the program to add a happy atmosphere. Now Han people in some places also have the custom of making love. The programs of the Gelao people are similar to those of the Han people, especially the Spring Festival. On New Year's Eve, a sumptuous banquet will be held to worship ancestors, burn incense and paper, and pay homage to ancestors for the new year. Then the whole family takes a seat, the old man must sit in the seat, and the children and grandchildren sit next to eat the "New Year's Eve". Dang Jia Shi Jia

Be sure to iron your feet with hot water, or you will have no worries about food and clothing in the coming year, and then the whole family will sit around and bake their heads and talk a little, waiting for the next year. This is called "shou sui". The difference is that "July 7th" is the traditional "Eating New Festival" of the Gelao people. Whenever the rice is ripe, every household should cook the first grain of rice into new rice, and worship the ancestors to taste the new rice first to thank them for their good weather for a year.

Gelao people sing and dance during weddings and festivals, and hold various colorful entertainment programs. Most of the Gelao people practice cave burial and sarcophagus burial. There are two kinds of caves: natural caves and artificial caves.

The coffin was put in the cave. The sarcophagus is made of slate, which is usually buried in mounds, hilltops, rivers and rocks (in some places, there is water burial, and the deceased is put into the Red River after making a coffin). In the Qing Dynasty, due to the economic and cultural exchanges among various ethnic groups, the Gelao people began to carry out burial. When the old man was dying, he called the whole family to the village entrance to listen to the old man's will. At this time, children should wait carefully, which is called "farewell". After death, the deceased is washed all over, then put on a shroud, shoes and socks, cover his face with earthenware paper, and park in the hall, taking children as "vigils". At the funeral, a one-year-old man held a torch and one burned straw to lead the way. One dutiful son holds the spiritual tablet, the other holds the spiritual pivot, followed by the funeral band and relatives and friends attending the funeral. After the funeral, the families of the deceased should hold a banquet to entertain the guests.

Among the Gelao people, the funeral of young people's death is different from that of old people. People who die outside can't enter their own halls, but can only park in the side room or under the eaves. If you die in Zhengyi, you should be buried like an old man and have a grand funeral. It will take three to five days to mourn. It can be seen that the Gelao nationality is a nation with a sense of justice. It is very simple to bury young adults who died before marriage and only hold a small funeral to express their parents' grief. Those idle young adults are dead, so just dig a hole and bury them.

After the death of a child, there are generally two kinds of burial methods: one is wooden box burial (small coffin) and the other is bamboo burial. But the Gelao people forbid their parents to send their daughters to the funeral.