Information on Ethnic Customs in the West

The western region is China's ethnic minority areas, 44 of the country's 55 ethnic minorities, they are: Mongolia, Hui, Tibet, Uygur, Miao, Yi, Zhuang, Buyei, Manchu, Dong, Yao, Bai, Hani, Kazakh, Dai, Lisu, Wa, Lahu, water, Dongxiang, Naxi, Jingpo, Kirgiz, Tu, Daur, Qiang, Brown, Salar, Gelao, Siberian, Yugu, Security, Russian, Tatar, Uzbek, Pumi, Nu, Achang, Panglong, Dulong, Geno, Deang, Menba and Lhoba. Tatar, Uzbek, Pumi, Nu, Achang, Benglong, Dulong, Jinuo, De'ang, Menba and Lhoba.

I, Tibetan

(A), etiquette and taboos

1, diet

(1) Tibetans avoid eating donkeys, mules, horsemeat and dog meat, and generally do not eat fish and shrimp (some Tibetan areas to eat fish), chickens, ducks, geese, and their eggs, but also do not eat seafood, do not reluctantly persuade to eat. Because according to Tibetan tradition, should eat even-footed animals, depending on other animals as evil, and chicken, duck, goose is five paws, is odd, and therefore do not eat.

Elderly women do not eat meat slaughtered on the same day.

(2) When toasting, the guest must first dip his ring finger in a little wine and flick it into the air three times in a row as a sign of sacrifice to heaven, earth and ancestors, then sip gently and the host will fill it up in time, then sip and fill it up again, and drink three times in a row, and then drink all of it in a single gulp when it is filled up for the fourth time.

(3) When eating, you should eat without filling your mouth, bite without making a sound, and drink without making a sound. When eating milk residue and yogurt, avoid using chopsticks, avoid burning milk residue to eat.

(4) drink ghee tea, the host poured tea, the guest to wait for the host hands in front of the face, only to take over to drink. Avoid using one hand to receive items. When the master poured tea, the guest shall use both hands to pour the tea bowl forward, in order to show respect.

2, life

(1) when receiving guests, whether walking or talking, always let the guests or elders first, and the use of honorifics, such as in the name of the word after the "la", to show respect and cordiality, avoid calling them by their first names. Welcome guests, bowing and bending the knees, with a smile. Indoor seating, can not look around, to sit cross-legged, not straight legs, the soles of the feet toward people. When accepting gifts, one must receive them with both hands. When giving gifts, bow and raise your hands above your head. When you offer tea, wine or cigarettes, you should offer them with both hands and not put your fingers in the mouth of the bowl.

(2) It is forbidden to spit in front of others, or spit on their backs or clap their hands.

(3) Step into the tents and apartments of the Tibetans, not to step on the threshold with your feet, and when you enter the tents of the Tibetans, the men sit on the left and the women sit on the right, and not to sit in a mixed manner. Whistling and singing of love songs are not permitted inside the house; the Buddha altar at home is not allowed to be touched by others, nor is it permitted to be casually pointed out; it is forbidden for women to stand or squat on the hearth; hosts and guests are seated at the head of the fire, and are only allowed to sit in a cross-legged position or on their knees; they are not allowed to casually cross the fire; and they are not permitted to put miscellaneous objects on the shrines.

(4) Tibetans have a sick person in the house or when a woman gives birth, it is taboo for others to enter the house. In front of the door are marked, some outside the door to build a pile of fire, some inserted in the door of the branch or upside down wooden pole, some stick a red cloth strip. When outsiders see this mark, they must not enter. There is a critically ill person in the family or the family is not good, outdoor inserted green branches and cypress leaves or stones with a red line, or stone pressure stabbing, to show that they thank the guests.

(5) in Tibet folk, sky burial is a more common form of funeral. There are many taboos against sky burials, including taboos against the viewing of living beings.

(6) It is taboo to throw bones in the fire. Do not beat or kill cranes, geese, eagles, eagles, crows, domestic dogs and cats. Refrain from urinating and defecating in places where cattle are tethered, horses are tethered and sheep are penned. Avoid using paper with Tibetan writing as hand towel or wiping things.

The Yi people

(1) etiquette and taboos

1, life

The Yi people hate to be called "old Yicheng" and "barbarians", and they think that this kind of name is the biggest insult to them. They believe that this kind of name is the biggest insult to them.

When visiting the homes of the Yi people, you should sit on the top or right side of the pots and pans (i.e., the fire pits), not on the bottom or left side of the piles of things and sleeping places. It is forbidden to step on the pots and pans with one's feet, and even more forbidden to jump over the pots and piles of firewood. Yi family has a sick person, it is taboo to say words such as death and injury; taboo said "kill the New Year pig", but to say "catch the New Year pig" or "take the New Year pig"; taboo on the baby with "fat", "beautiful", "beautiful", "fat", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful", "beautiful". ", "beautiful", "heavy" and other praise for babies; avoid whistling at night; regardless of gender, avoid crossing the fire; avoid slaughtering goats on the day of marriage and funeral; avoid burning buckwheat from the guest side; burning buckwheat buckwheat poop out of the fire from the hot pond, do not immediately turn and penetrate with a stick; avoid burning the buckwheat buckwheat poop from the hot pond, do not immediately turn and penetrate with a stick. and through with a stick; taboo hoe and axe together; taboo hoe or axe in the house on the shoulders; pregnant women are not combing the bride's hair, but also taboo to the bride sewing wedding clothes. It is taboo to touch the man's "heavenly bodhisattva *", taboo offenders to slaughter animals, playing wine to thank and make amends.

2, food and drink

Yi people are sincere, warm hospitality, every guest, must be wine to treat guests, "three wine" is the Yi people to receive the guests of etiquette.

The first wine for the bar door wine, that is, at the door to meet the guests, Yi family members blowing trombone, suona, play the moon zither, singing and dancing, singing the "welcome tune", the guests off the horse, by the dress of the Yi girls on a cup of wine, if the wine cups are placed in the wood leaves, it indicates that the guests to be sung back on the spot a song of wine.

The second wine for the blessing of the wine, that is, at the banquet to the noble guests from afar on the double cup of wine, but also to offer a toast. Wine songs have ready-made tunes, the tone of voice warm and high-pitched, singing the content of the traditional words, but also improvisation creation, according to the identity of the guests to sing some of the wishes of praise, auspicious words. Toast songs can be sung by one person, or several people can sing collectively.

The third toast is the guest wine, that is, when the guest is leaving the host's home, the host sends the guest to the door and asks the guest to drink the last cup of wine at the time of parting. Toast, trombone, suona at the same time playing "stay guest tune", young men and women singing and dancing, the master holding a cup of wine singing the wine to send off the song, the content of the guests blessed with happiness, good luck, as well as to express the master's attachment, retention. The guests must drink the wine before departing. Toasting the three wine is the highest etiquette for the Yi to receive their honored guests.

The Yi people pay attention to the difference between men and women when dining, the order of elders, elders sit on the upper seat, guests sit on the upper seat or above, the younger generation can only sit down on the seat of the party. When entertaining guests, good wine and good food are the first to honor the guests or elders. Some places have women can not eat with the guests at the table of food customs. Sichuan Liangshan Yi, they are very important in social activities in the wine, folk "Han people expensive tea, Yi people expensive wine," said and "guests to the home without wine is not a tribute to" the tradition. If a guest comes to your house, you should pour a glass of wine for him to drink, and even if it is too late to cook rice for him to eat afterwards, the guest will not be offended. The Yi people can't live without wine when they visit their friends and relatives. They have to bring wine when they visit their friends and relatives, send wine and

livestock to weddings, send wine and goats to funerals, and participate in religious activities without wine and livestock.

When the Yi feasts, the male host often accompanies the guests, or lets the guests eat first, and the hostess waits for the guests to finish eating before eating. Therefore, when you are a guest of the Yi family, you should not eat all the food and wine. After the meal when you say goodbye, the guests should give some gifts or leave some money, as a token of appreciation. Hospitality guests, if the kill is a small pig, after the meal will be half of a small pig's head with some lump meat, buckwheat cakes together with the guests to take away; if you kill a sheep, after the meal will be the sheep fan bone meat to the guests; if you kill a cow after the meal will be the cow's hind legs of the large pile of meat weighing about 5 pounds of meat to the guests to take away. It is forwarded by the guest to a female compatriot with the same surname as the guest.

The Yi people avoid eating the meat of horses, mules, dogs, monkeys, crows, snakes and frogs.

Three, the Qiang

(a), etiquette and taboos

1, life

To the Qiang people's home as a guest, enter the door to go from the shrine side, not from the side of the put the living utensils, otherwise it will be considered impolite. Don't cross over clothes, hats and pillows, and be careful not to sit on them. When sitting around the fire, you should not cross the fire or step on the tripod with your feet, or bake shoes, socks and clothes on the tripod; you are not allowed to strike the three feet on the fire with a poker, the head of a match, or with any other utensil, and you should not pour water into the fire. Do not touch the idol with your fingers in a Qiang home, as they believe it will offend the god. They avoid touching the objects on the shrine without washing their hands, and they have to wash their hands before offering sacrifices to the gods. It is forbidden to move the Bodhisattva's spiritual seat and the sacrificial vessels on the roof of the house. When you sleep on the floor, you can't put your feet toward the shrine in the corner of the house, and you are not allowed to hang clothes or other labor tools in front of the Bodhisattva. The Qiangs avoid guests going into their onion gardens, believing that the onions will then dry up and die.

The Qiang people avoid people sitting on the threshold or chopping things with knives and axes on the threshold. They are generally not allowed to cut their hair, comb their hair and shave their beards in the afternoon, and those who wear mourning are even more taboo. In addition also taboo night still hang clothes outside.

The Qiang people hang a yoke or back pocket outside the door when a woman is in labor, avoiding outsiders to enter the house; when the family has a sick person, hang a red note on the door, avoiding outsiders to visit.

2, food and drink

Qiang people avoid throwing rice or eating rice at the bottom of the bowl after eating residual rice. Avoid knocking the bowl with chopsticks while eating. Avoid inserting chopsticks in the center of the bowl of rice, because only in the funeral custom of "worshipping the god of chicken feet" only in the rice insert a pair of chopsticks. After eating, it is forbidden to put the bowl back on the table, because only after the patient takes the medicine, the bowl will be fastened on the table, to show that the future will not be sick to take medicine. Jiao children eat chicken claws, for fear of bad writing in school reading. Eating taboo back to the center of the table to eat, because only the dead eat this way. It is also forbidden to put chopsticks on the bowl and to hold the wine cup upside down because it is a ritual to honor the ghosts and it is unfavorable to do so.

When the Qiangs entertain their guests, they will bring a plate full of chicken. Only the eldest of the Qiangs will eat the head of the chicken, and then they will divine the fortune of the host's family from the bones of the chicken's head; it is forbidden for the young ones to eat the head of the chicken. They avoid eating vegetables on New Year's Eve, fear of the next year, no meat to eat, so there can be no vegetables on the table on New Year's Eve.

Four, Bai

(a), etiquette and taboos

Bai hospitality, the first guest after the host is the etiquette of Bai hospitality. Guests at home, to wine, tea and hospitality. The famous "three-way tea" is the Bai hospitality ritual. But the Bai people believe that "wine full of respect for people, tea full of deception", so the general pouring full cup of wine, pouring tea but only half a cup, drink and then renewed. Bai people pay attention to etiquette, dining elders to sit on the seat, the younger generation in turn on both sides or the opposite seat, the younger generation should be added to the elders at any time to add food and soup.

To the Bai family to visit friends or visit the sick, not in the morning, to the afternoon and evening is appropriate. However, on the day of the New Year Festival or the first day of the first month, you cannot visit other families. The fire pit of the Bai people's house is a sacred place, it is taboo to spit into the fire pit, and it is forbidden to cross over the fire pit. It is forbidden to stand or sit on the threshold of a Bai family's house. In the hall, taboo on the table for ancestors to step on, sit, not allowed to cut things with a knife on the threshold. The tools used by men are not allowed to be crossed by women. The Bai people taboo wearing a filial pall to enter, that will bring uncleanliness to the family.

The Bai people in Dali are not allowed to move the knife on the first day of Lunar New Year, water, sweeping; Lunar New Year's Eve, must be lent to others to get back, otherwise the next year to earn money is not good, food is not abundant, if you borrowed someone else's things, but also must be in the Lunar New Year's Eve to return to others. The seventh day of the Lunar New Year is the Women's Day, when women do not cook, carry water, or do other labor, but have fun. The ninth day of the Lunar New Year is the Men's Day, when men rest. The Bai people in Nujiang avoid the presence of outsiders when they offer sacrifices to their ancestors before dinner on the 30th day of the Lunar New Year. The Bai people in Yunlong County, July 30th this day is not allowed to people walking around.

The Bai people believe that pregnant women are not allowed to enter the Buddha Hall, temples, monasteries, not to enter the newly married people's new room, not to observe the bride, not to enter the home of the newly born child. The Bai people have a child (or horse, cow, sheep, pig under the child) after the taboo birth for the tiger, cow, sheep, pig people into the home. After the birth of a child in the gate to spread stove ash, idlers are not allowed to enter. Babies are also not allowed to enter the Buddha Hall, temples, monasteries, not to go to the place where the gods and ghosts.

V. Miao

(1), etiquette and taboos

The Miao people pay attention to the true feelings, very enthusiastic, the most avoid pompous and hypocritical. The master of the road to meet the guests do not take the first step, do not walk in front; conversation with honorific address; guests do not call the master "Miao", they like to call themselves "Meng". Miao welcome guests to wear holiday clothes; to the guests to the village outside the wine to welcome; guests to the door, the male host to call the door, told the hostess at home, the hostess to sing the door to welcome the guests; in front of the guests, the hostess does not climb up the stairs. Banquet to chicken, duck guests as a delicacy, especially the heart, liver is the most valuable, to be given to the guests or the elders first, the guests will be distributed to all people to enjoy, the order is the first long after the young.

Guests must remember not to eat the head of the chicken, and generally not to eat the liver, chicken and chicken legs; the liver and chicken should be honored to the elderly women, and the chicken legs are reserved for the children. When leaving the home of the Miao hosts, be sure to politely say "wow week", meaning "thank you", thank the Miao family for your hospitality.

In the Miao family, you can not sit on the place of the ancestral gods, and the tripod on the kang can not be stepped on.

When you meet the door hanging straw hats, tree branches or wedding and funeral festivals, do not enter the house; when you meet the newlyweds, do not pass through the middle.

The Hmong people are not allowed to see outsiders when they return to the fields for the first time every year, and if they do, they are not allowed to greet them.

Some Hmong areas, avoid scrubbing drinking pots, rice packets, rice pots, can only be washed when eating new rice to show that the old rice to meet the new rice. Scrubbing at any time will wash away the family's wealth. It is forbidden for women to sit on the same bench with their elders. Not allowed to whistle at home or at night; playfulness is not allowed to use the belt to tie the Hmong.

Hmong funeral bier during the family taboo on eating vegetables. Within one month after the burial, nothing in the home may be sold or borrowed.

Six, Dai

(A), etiquette and taboos

To visit any Buddhist temple in the Dai village, you must take off your shoes before entering. The Han Chinese like to touch the head of a child to show affection, but in Xishuangbanna encountered a small monk, must not touch his head. When a young monk is touched by outsiders, especially women, his merits will be nullified and he will see you as his greatest enemy. And the monk's shadow should not be stepped on.

To the Dai family's bamboo house, you have to take off your shoes when you enter the door, and you can't sit on top of or cross the fire, let alone move the tripod supporting the pot.

The Dai family bamboo building indoor generally have three or four columns, the center near the fire that column is the Dai family's "top pillar", must not rely on; leaning out of a is "auspicious column", can not be relied on; leaning in a is the "ascension column". The one on the inside is the "heavenly pillar", which is used for bathing and dressing when family members die, and cannot be leaned on or hung up on anything.

Can't peep into the bedroom of the Dai family, before the liberation of the male guests to see the son-in-law, female guests to see the three years to do work in his home; now although open, some hosts in the way may allow you to look at a glance, but it is always impolite.

In the Dai people's home, you can not whistle at will, nor can you cut your nails.

When you eat, you should be polite, you can't grab the food, you can't hold the food under other people's chopsticks, you can't use chopsticks to hit a cat or a dog, you can't add the food after it's finished, and you can't put the pot up. You can't spit while eating. You can't kill a chicken by chopping off its head first, and you can't eat one chicken leg but only a pair.

You cannot kick a stool for someone else to sit on, you cannot kick burning firewood with your feet, you cannot add wood to the stove, and when you burn wood you must burn the larger end first.

No sitting on the threshold. No one is allowed to sit on the parent's bed (which is often next to the fire pit). The parents have a bottle of "holy water" placed next to the bed, which no one is allowed to move.

The bed should not be slept in with the head towards the door, as this is considered unlucky, as people die with their heads towards the door. 71

Handbook of Religions and Customs of the Major Minorities in the West

Clothes that are torn cannot be mended with pants, which are considered to be poor; tops cannot be converted into pants; nor can clothes be used as pillows, which cannot be sat on.

There are temples in the Dai villages, and there are sacred trees next to the temples, so you can't urinate, defecate or tie a horse under the sacred trees. You can't move or touch the ghost plaques, ghost baskets, ghost platforms, bamboo poles and other offerings under the tree.

The Dai villages have bamboo or wooden platforms with wooden stakes, called "Jaiman", meaning "God of the Village", which cannot be used for sitting or tethering horses.

When the festival is held in the village, outsiders are not allowed to enter the village, and people in the village must wait for the festival to finish before they can come out.

After the Door Closing Festival (September 15, Dai calendar, the lunar calendar, the day of the mango), the production of busy, forbidden to fall in love and marriage, until the Door Closing Festival (December 15, Dai calendar, the lunar winter solstice) after the male and female young people's social life has become normal.