What are the classifications of China folk songs?

There are many classifications of China folk songs. According to genre classification, it can be roughly divided into three categories: chant (including carrying chant, boatman chant, workshop chant, etc. ), folk songs (including general folk songs, grazing folk songs, Tian Yang folk songs, etc. ) and minor (including ballads, seasonal tunes, custom ceremony songs, dance music, etc. ). In some scholars' works, folk songs are divided into chant, folk songs, pastoral songs, field yangko, boat songs, nursery rhymes, minor songs, custom ceremony songs and so on. Genre classification is helpful to understand and study the relationship between folk songs and people's lives, the social functions of folk songs, and the methods and characteristics of music expression.

Classification by ethnic and regional styles and colors. There are 56 nationalities in China. Due to the differences in historical traditions, language characteristics and living customs, the styles and colors of folk songs of various ethnic groups are far apart. Some ethnic groups with a large number and a wide living area, such as Han, Mongolian, Tibetan, Zhuang and Uygur, can also be divided into several color areas according to the musical characteristics of folk songs in different regions. For example, Han folk songs can be roughly divided into eight color zones: Northwest, North China, Northeast China, Southwest China, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Taiwan Province, Hunan, Hubei and Jianghuai, among which the first three zones belong to the north, the fourth to sixth zones belong to the south, and the seventh and eighth zones belong to the transition zone between north and south. There are four other regions, namely, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan Province. There are different points, each with its own basis.

The classification of style and color is helpful to understand and study the style and color of folk songs and the relationship between music and folk customs. Classifying according to theme content is helpful to understand and study the relationship between content and form of folk songs. In addition, there are special classifications based on historical development periods or for the needs of a special study.