What are the cultures of Shanxi

When it comes to Shanxi culture, the first thing to be mentioned is the Sanjin culture. The history of Shanxi started from the Paleolithic Age, and evolved through Yao, Shun and Yu, and the Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties

Thousands of years of evolution, and by the time of the Jin Dynasty and the Sanjin Period, it had already formed a distinctive feature that differed from the cultures of other regions.

During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, Shanxi became the birthplace of the Warring States Legalists, Zongheng and Hengjia, the famous debaters and the military, as well as an important branch of Confucianism in the early pre-Qin and Qin Dynasties, which led to the formation of the spectacular Sanjin Confucianism. These progressive ideas are in the same hundred schools of thought in the era of contention, not only have mutual reinforcement and agitation, but also have each other to complement and promote, *** with the creation of a progressive characteristics of the culture of Sanjin.

The three Jin culture and the birth of the Jin culture Jin merchants are businessmen in Shanxi (a province in the central plains of China), Shanxi is short for "Jin". Jin merchants created the first ticket company in Chinese history. The "ticket number" was a way for merchants to do business, and it was once prominent in China's history as a way to communicate with the world over long distances. Until now, the saying "Shanxi people are good at doing business and good at financial management" has been spread.

Food culture, mainly noodles

History and culture

Shanxi is one of the birthplaces of the Chinese nation. In this land, 100,000 years ago, there are human beings living and reproducing, Xihoudou culture and Dingcun culture sites show that as early as the Paleolithic era, there have been human beings living and reproducing here. During the Zhou Dynasty, Shanxi was the territory of the Tang Kingdom. Later, Tang Shuyu's son, Xiefu, changed the name of his country to Jin because it was near the Jin River. During the Spring and Autumn Period, Shanxi was the state of Jin, one of the five hegemonic states. In 403 B.C., the three kingdoms of Han Kangzi and Wei Huanzi and Zhao Xiangzi divided Jin, and the three kingdoms of Han, Zhao and Wei, which were separated from Jin, were known as the Seven Kingdoms of the Warring States together with Qin, Chu, Qi and Yan. After Qin Shi Huang unified China, there were five counties in Shanxi, including Taiyuan, Shangdang, Hedong, Yanmen and Dai County. By the time of Sui Dynasty, Taiyuan was the third largest city in the Yellow River basin after Chang'an and Luoyang. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, Li Yuan and his son rose up in Taiyuan, and after establishing the capital Chang'an, Taiyuan was honored as the "Northern Capital", meaning "Other Capital". During the Five Dynasties period, the Later Tang Dynasty, the Later Jin Dynasty, the Later Han Dynasty and the Northern Han Dynasty were all based in Shanxi. During the feudal society of China, the status of Shanxi was very important, and due to its special geographical location, the more important it was in the chaotic times, whoever possessed Shanxi would be able to dominate the world. Therefore, Gu Zuyu of the Qing Dynasty pointed out in "The Chronicle of the Reading of History and Fangyu" that: the situation of the world must be taken from Shanxi. During the Jin and Yuan Dynasties, Shanxi's economy and culture took the lead in northern China. During the Ming Dynasty, Shanxi Xingzhongshu Province was set up in Taiyuan, which was later changed to Chengxuan Buzhengji (承宣布政使司), and it was in charge of five provinces and three states in Shanxi. In the Qing Dynasty, it began to be called Shanxi. Shanxi has a long history and a rich cultural heritage. So far the written history of three thousand years, known as the "Museum of Ancient Chinese Culture", also known as "the cradle of Chinese civilization". The legends of "Jingwei reclaiming the sea", "Nuwa mending the sky" and "Yu chiseling the Mengmen Gate" took place in Shanxi. Yao, Shun and Yu, the three emperors of ancient China, built their capitals in the south of Shanxi, which were "Yao Capital Pingyang (present-day Linfen City)", "Shun Capital Puzhan (present-day Yongji City)", and "Yu Capital Anyi (present-day Xiaxian County)". ". During the Spring and Autumn Period, Chong Er, the Duke of Jin, was one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, Datong (then known as Pingcheng) was famous as the capital city of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The capital city of Taiyuan, known as the location of the "Dragon Vein", has always been a place of war, the end of the Sui Dynasty, Li Yuan's father and son rose up Jinyang (now Taiyuan City), and then captured Chang'an, the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, and later set Taiyuan as the northern capital of the Tang Empire. At the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, the Central Plains were plagued by years of war and frequent calamities, while Shanxi, especially the area around Jinnan, was economically prosperous and densely populated, and became the main area for emigration in the early Ming Dynasty. In as long as half a century, Shanxi had emigrated more than a dozen times. Dahuishu in Hongdong County was a major immigration station. Many parts of the country circulated "ask me where my ancestors, Shanxi Hongdong Dahuishu", that is, from this. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the rise of Jin merchants and Shanxi ticket companies became famous in China and abroad. After China entered a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, the economic and cultural development of Shanxi was seriously damaged. However, the people of Shanxi heroically resisted the invasion of foreign enemies. Especially during the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the War of Liberation, the people of Shanxi carried out a more tenacious struggle, and wrote countless songs and heroic stories on the land of Sanjin, the Great Victory of Pingxingguan, the Hundred Regiments Battle, and the Battle of Shangdan, which will live in infamy. 1949 April, the province was liberated. September, the People's Government of Shanxi was established, and from then on, a new chapter in the history of Shanxi's socialist revolution and construction was opened. Over the decades, the people of Shanxi have made significant contributions to the socialist construction of the country. The Yellow River flows through Shanxi, which has nurtured countless heroes and heroines. In various periods of China's history, Shanxi has produced many statesmen, militarists, scientists, literati and historians. The most famous ones are Chong Er, the Duke of Jin Wen, one of the lords of the Spring and Autumn Period; Wu Zetian, the only female emperor of China and an outstanding statesman of the Tang Dynasty; Xue Rengui, the General of the White Robe; Guan Yu and Zhang Liao, the "Saints of Wushu" and the famous generals of the Three Kingdoms Period; Direnjie and Peidu, the famous prime ministers of the Tang Dynasty; Wei Qing and Huo Zaodi, the famous generals of the Han Dynasty, whose resistance to the Huns is famous in history; and Huo Zaiwei, the famous generals of the Han Dynasty. There are Pei Xiu, a cartographer of the Western Jin Dynasty, who founded the "six styles of cartography"; Luo Guanzhong, the author of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, one of the four great masterpieces of ancient China; famous poets of the Tang Dynasty, such as Bai Juyi, Wang Bo, Wang Zhilu, Wang Wei, and Wang Changling; famous literati, philosophers, and political reformers of the Tang Dynasty, such as Liu Zongyuan; famous statesmen of the Song Dynasty, such as Sima Guang; and famous literati and poets of the Jin Dynasty, such as Yuan Haowen. There are three famous opera singers among the four great Yuanqu Opera masters, Guan Hanqing, Bai Pu and Zheng Guangzu; Fu Shan, a thinker, writer, medical doctor, painter and calligrapher in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties; Gao Jin, who was regarded as "a straight official in the whole world" by Emperor Jiajing; Yang Shanshou, one of the six Hundred-and-Fourth Centurions in the late Qing Dynasty; and Xu Xiangqian and Fu Zuoyi among the Ten Famous Generals. etc. Shanxi, the outstanding people, generation not lack of people. The footprints of the Jin merchants have traveled all over China and are known around the world.

Folk customs

Marriage: Shuozhou people get married, as in other places, usually by the words of matchmakers, parents' orders. Despite the changing times and changing customs, but still largely along the old habits, especially in rural areas, the important etiquette program, stick to the rules, so far unchanged, roughly have to go through a blind date, engagement, marriage, back to the door in four steps. Matchmaking: Matchmakers propose marriage for men and women, introducing the situation of both sides, such as age, genus, birth date, character, looks, as well as the family's financial situation and parents, and so on. After weighing the conditions of the two families and discussing with all the people, those who are interested in getting married will go to the woman's home with the matchmaker to have a look at the man. Both sides agree, that is, about time, and then invite the woman to the man's home to see, the favorite will stay at the man's home to eat, tacitly agreed to discuss the marriage, see not like that is to leave. Engagement: the matchmaker in the men and women between the two families for many times to determine the bride price and dowry, the woman exchanged children's birthdates and eight characters, choose an auspicious day for the engagement wedding, the man to send the "food box" and part of the bride price to the woman, and hosted a banquet to celebrate. The following day, the woman hosts a banquet for the man. After that, choose a day to get a marriage license, some also travel, after the wedding, men and women give each other some clothes, said for summer or winter. Marriage: before the wedding in January, the bride price, commonly known as "tea", the male party to make the matchmaker will "bride" out of the recruitment of clothing (underwear) and "water gift" (rice, flour, meat) sent to the female family, and The date of the marriage is notified. Afterwards, the closest relatives of both the man and the woman invite the prospective groom and the bride to their homes for a meal, which is called a "katsura" (a meal for the head of the family). The day before the wedding, friends and relatives came, commonly known as "to be", some invited "drummer" to help, so also known as "An drum", the evening of men and women to eat in their own homes. "Turnover Cake". Marrying day, men and women early in the morning fried cake to eat, said "eat happy cake". After breakfast, the male party to play drums and music, carry sedan chair (some with a horse-drawn carriage or mule pack sedan chair, now basically with a car) to the female home to marry. Generally by the male uncle, the realities of marriage. The groom should bring the bride a red belt, said: "happy ending"; bring a bottle, bottle inserted a green onion, called "rooted after"; with five ribs of pork or mutton a piece of pork, called "away from the mother of meat", "five parties to celebrate", to marry back, the male party to the two ribs to bring back, said that after the marriage of husband and wife, said: "tendons and bones do not leave". Women set up tea, sweets, pastries and other hospitality to welcome the bride. The bride put on the clothes brought by the male party (generally red cotton clothes, cotton pants), to the parents to say goodbye, by the siblings to help on the sedan chair (car). Peers have to send a new, open the box, after the "He Tang" (also known as round meal) who followed, according to the pre-selected hour into the male family. To the male family, the bride was assisted by a pro-led, step "red felt" into the new room, and for the "He Tang" who "burned tea", eat "dinner at the door". Noon bride and groom to worship heaven and earth, after the ceremony that is the beginning of the banquet, called: "sitting". Seats during the bride and groom to toast to the guests, salute, recognize the size. In the evening by the groom's brother-in-law presided over the bridal chamber ceremony, commonly known as "inverted treasure pot", so that the bride and groom said tongue twisters, riddles, jokes to make fun of the couple to eat across the table, late at night after the end of the party. Early the next morning, the bride and groom to relatives and friends salute, said: "worship" (some places in the worship of heaven and earth held after), and by the party to be worshiped by the gift of money to express congratulations. Back to the door: generally in the marriage ceremony the next day, the female family sent people and cars, personally invited the bride and groom back to the door, set up a banquet to entertain the bride and groom and female friends and relatives, during the toast to the guests, salute, recognize the size of the evening or the next day to return. The fourth day after the wedding, the woman with the son-in-law province, known as "live on the moon" or "live four six". In recent years, with the progress of society and the development of the times, Shuozhou wedding customs have also undergone great changes, the rituals from simple. Funeral: Ancient Shuozhou's funeral etiquette program is extremely complicated, generally can be divided into small convergence, large convergence, burning paper, send lamps, resignation, funeral, and re-two and so on. After the death of a person wearing a life jacket, break a hole in the windowpaper, help the door on the board, parked in the back of the Hang, kill the "inverted chicken", the head of the next burning paper, light lamps, incense to the sacrifice, the children let out a cry, this is a small convergence. Then post the "disaster certificate" and hang "tell the sky paper" in the street outside the door, obituaries in the township. The younger generation wearing mourning, mourning son wearing heavy mourning to the master (the deceased's next of kin) home to report the funeral. The next night to move the body into the coffin, commonly known as "into the convergence", the body covered with a red cloth, false cover the coffin lid, the bier in the hall, place offerings, light lamps, the night and day to lay. Family, friends, clansmen, neighbors to the spirit of burning paper condolences.