The customs and habits of Zhuang nationality during the Spring Festival

The customs and habits of Zhuang nationality

build

Zhuang people like to live by mountains and water (because we are surrounded by mountains and rivers, it is hard not to like it, hehe ~). Between the green mountains and green waters, there are scattered wooden buildings, which are traditional folk houses of Zhuang nationality. People live above the wooden house and livestock are enclosed below (much better now because of the reform and opening up). No matter what house it is, the shrine should be placed on the central axis of the whole house. The front hall is used for celebrations and social activities, with people living in the wings on both sides, and the back hall is the living area. Life in the house is centered on the fireplace, and three meals a day are served by the fireplace (this is still maintained by some residents). ?

Dress

Most Zhuang people use homemade home-made homespun as their clothing material, with various styles. Zhuang women's clothes are generally blue and black, with slightly wide pants, jacquard towels on their heads and exquisite aprons around their waists; Young men wear double-breasted coats with a belt around their waist.

marriage customs

"Artillery fire" entered the bridal chamber.

A marriage custom of Zhuang nationality. On the wedding day, the bride must be baptized with "guns and fire" before she can enter the house. This marriage custom is popular in Zhuang villages such as Yufeng in Tianyang County, Guangxi. Before the bride comes to the groom's house, she should stop for a while and prepare to "charge" into the house, because there are seven or eight "artillery" groups of young men at the door, hall and new house, holding a string of firecrackers waiting for the bride to come over. When the bride is approaching the door, the "gunner" lights firecrackers to form a "fire wall" to stop the bride from approaching. If you are a timid bride, you have to retreat to the door and wait for the second "charge". The "gunmen" also summed up the experience of victory and prepared for the second "blocking". It can be said that the bride can't enter the door without two or three "charges". The onlookers, three floors inside and three floors outside, are very lively. After a hard struggle, the bride jumped over the door and came to the bridal chamber. This is the last sad hurdle, because the "gunner" has to put a "gun". At this time, the clever bridesmaids and bridesmaids "scouted around" and jumped into the bridal chamber with the bride in their arms when the "gunfire" was sparse. Suddenly, cheers thundered, congratulating the bride on "winning the flag". After the wedding reception, guests will watch the bride go out to "carry water" in the dark under the guidance of the bride. The bride will fill the water tank, which is a test of whether the bride can bear the pain. In this way, the bride can't enter the bridal chamber until late at night.

memorize words

In some places at the junction of Yishan and Huanjiang County in Guangxi, young Zhuang people get married, and the custom of "reciting characters" has been popular to this day. "Bei Zi" is a transliteration of Zhuang language. In fact, it is not a word, but a broadband one foot four feet long and more than one foot wide, which was sewn by the woman's mother with dark black (the best color) homespun woven or bought by herself. On the daughter's wedding day, ask the man to assign a person who can recite words to take the cloth back to the groom's house in case the nephew is born as a baby. This custom is called "memorizing characters" in the local Zhuang language. A person who "recites words" must have three conditions: a father and a mother; Unmarried young men; Smart and polite. The ceremony of reciting characters was held in the main hall of the woman's house. The person who presides over the ceremony must be a respected elder in the village and has become a grandfather. The elders first offered two cups of local famous wine to the people who recited the words. The person who recited the words politely held cups in both hands and respectfully gave the elders two cups as a gift, which both sides had to drink at once. Then the elders tie the prepared tapes to the shoulders of the people who recite the words, and then toast each other and say auspicious words. After reading the word "nian", set off firecrackers to bid farewell to the wedding guests and return safely. People who recite words bow to their elders and say goodbye, step out of the gate and open an umbrella, which means sheltering "grandchildren" from grandma's house. Back to the man's house, the host burned incense and fired a gun, welcoming the "back word" person to return home in triumph. When I was young, the ceremony of "removing Chinese characters" was also presided over by my elders. After toasting each other, the elders gently took off the cloth and gave it to my mother for safekeeping. The groom's parents should also reward those who recite words. Soon after, the bride and her girlfriends came to the groom's house in droves, and the wedding day was even more lively.

Bride crossing the river

The marriage custom of Zhuang nationality is popular in Longsheng Autonomous County in northern Guangxi. In the mountainous area of northern Guangxi, there were only forty or fifty miles of mountain roads, but it was necessary to wade across the river five or six times and cross three or four bridges. So when getting married, the bride should be carried across the river and bridged. People who carry brides are called "sailors", mostly unmarried young men. When crossing the river, three guns were fired and horns sounded. "Sailors" hold their knees with two palms and bow down. Only when they have a good back can they cross the river or cross the bridge. Bride-carrying pays special attention to civility and politeness, and can't be rude in action, let alone ridicule. Therefore, people who carry their brides are mostly the best in moral character. When crossing the river, "Ying Niang" (held by unmarried young women) holds an umbrella to shade the bride. On the river about 50 or 60 meters wide, the wedding procession was pulled into a line, which was very lively. After landing, the clever "Ying Niang" put the umbrella very low to prevent others from peeking at the veiled bride. Longsheng's Zhuang marriage has to go through "three customs" and "ten doors". First fall in love, then get engaged, and then get married. This is the so-called "three customs". Greeting, singing, going out, crossing the village, crossing the river and bridging the bridge, getting started, singing, returning to the door, going home and entering the bridal chamber are called "ten doors". "Crossing the river" is only the fifth "gate" among the "ten gates", and you can only enter the bridal chamber after passing the "ten gates".

Ler and Buji

When a Zhuang woman gives birth to Lejiao (Zhuang language, that is, baby), her housewife should personally find a "wet nurse" to nurse her daughter-in-law. This is to let the postpartum daughter-in-law have a good rest and keep healthy. The "wet nurse" is usually taken by a woman five months after giving birth, without pay. It is a great honor to be a "wet nurse" and have the reputation of "second mother". When children grow up, they should bring gifts to the "wet nurse's house" on holidays. Four or five-year-old children are sick, so parents should look for "Buji" (Zhuang language, that is, second father) as their children's backer to ensure their health. Buji is very professional. After taking office, he often discussed with his parents, sought medical advice, and cooked in many ways to make his children grow up healthily. When children grow up, they will treat Buji like a wet nurse and do their best to be filial.

Enter the village on stilts

In the Zhuang village in Jinlong area, Longzhou County, Guangxi, people have to walk on stilts when going out or entering the village. Go out to the village entrance. Hang stilts on specific nails, and then work in the fields or go somewhere else. When entering the village, take the stilts off the nails and step on them, jump off the stone steps at the door, then hang them by the door, wash your hands and feet, and then go upstairs. It is said that these shoes were handed down from ancestors. They are located in the subtropical zone, rainy all the year round, with muddy roads and inconvenient walking. If they enter the house with muddy feet, it is really unsanitary, so they invented this "non-"shaped "stilt shoes".

Social sacrifice

It is a sacrificial ceremony for Zhuang people in Huanjiang, Guangxi, to pray for the vigorous growth of rice seedlings, disease-free children and fat livestock in the New Year every summer on New Year's Eve.

The following are the festivals of our Zhuang nationality:

Tonggu steet

Traditional festivals of Zhuang nationality in Donglan Ai Dong and Changle Township. They are held on the first, fifteenth and thirtieth days of the lunar calendar. At that time, the boys of each village will form a bronze drum team, carry the bronze drum to the top of the mountain near the village, hang it on the wooden frame, beat the drum to worship the ancestors first, and then have a bronze drum competition. The method is drum-to-drum, small drum-to-small drum, four sides 1 group, 3 people per drum, taking turns to play without interruption. Win by playing loudly and beautifully, with bright rhythm and lasting endurance. Games often stay up all night. At the same time, young men and women sang together. At the end of the game, people had a picnic with food such as Zongba brought from home, and songs and laughter resounded through the valley.

Frog Festival

Traditional folk festivals of Zhuang nationality in Donglan, Nandan and Tiane counties. Commonly known as festivals. The festival lasts from the first day of the first lunar month to the 30th day (in some places, it lasts until the 15th day), and it is held jointly in large villages or several villages. There are sacrificial ceremonies such as "inviting frogmen", "singing frogmen", "filial piety frogmen" and "burying frogmen". Throughout the festival, praise the frog god for bringing rain to the world and blessing the harvest. It is a song and dance event to entertain the gods. People regard the first frog found on the first day of New Year's Day as sacred, and the person who caught the frog was respected and supported, and became the leader who presided over the frog sacrifice ceremony that year. The modern Frog Women's Festival has evolved into a festival and song meeting for mass entertainment, so it is also called "Ma Songhui".

Chi lijie

Folk festivals of Zhuang nationality in Longzhou County and Pingxiang City. Chi Li Zhuang language means "celebrating" or "making up for the Spring Festival". According to legend, when the Spring Festival approached, French invaders invaded the frontier. In order to crack down on invaders, local young adults took up arms to defend their homes, so they failed to celebrate the Spring Festival on time. On the 30th day of the first month, the soldiers who went to war returned home in triumph. The villagers slaughtered chickens and sheep, made glutinous rice cakes, warmly entertained them, celebrated their victory, made up the Spring Festival, and followed suit. During the festival, people dance lions, play dragon lanterns, sing and dance, which is very lively.

Farm tools festival

Traditional festivals of Zhuang nationality in southwest Guangxi. It is held every year on February 29th of the lunar calendar. On that day, all kinds of agricultural production tools processed and produced by every household were picked out in the market and arranged in a row in turn, including plough frame, yoke, dustpan, dustpan, shoulder pole, hoe, plow, rake, hoe handle, laundry basket, bamboo mat, grain basket, grain bucket, furniture and so on. People are shopping for spring ploughing.

Huapo Festival

Traditional festivals of Zhuang nationality. According to folklore, Liu Jia, the ancestor of Zhuang nationality, was born from flowers. Later, the director sent flowers and children. All people came to this world from the flowers in Liu Jia Garden, so they are considered as the goddess of flowers. February 29th of the lunar calendar is the birthday of Huapo God. Zhuang women hold sacrificial ceremonies. Women of the same generation in the village formed sisters with different surnames, raised funds to prepare chickens, ducks and incense sticks to sacrifice to the flower gods, and then went to the wild in droves to collect flowers and wear them, praying for fertility and wishing their children healthy growth. Women who have no children will go to the wild to pick flowers and wear them in the future, so that the flower god can send them flowers and give them to their children. If you are pregnant in the future, in order to make the child have a soul after birth, you must ask the teacher to chant Buddhist scripture in the wild, to spend flowers, and to do a bridging ceremony in the ditch on the roadside to take the flowers off the bridge. After the child is born, the goddess should be installed in front of the maternal bed and worship regularly. This custom has disappeared now.

March 3 rd song festival

Traditional festivals of Zhuang nationality. Also known as the March Song Festival. Guangxi is known as the "sea of songs", and the Zhuang people have several regular folk song gatherings every year, among which the third day of the third lunar month is grand. On this day, every household cooks colorful glutinous rice and dyes red eggs to celebrate festivals, some of which last for two or three days. There are specific venues for local song concerts. Generally, it is a slope. Some people use bamboo and cloth to build a karaoke room to receive singers from other villages. The participants are mainly unmarried young men and women, and the elderly and children also come to entertain. Around Xu Ge, vendors gather and folk trade is active. Thousands of men, women and children came from dozens of miles away in Fiona Fang to attend a larger concert, with a sea of people, singing one after another and being very lively. Famous song concerts include Panyang River in Bama, Mianshan in Du 'an, Qiao Ye in Tian Yang, Yang Yan in Tiandong, Xia Jian in Yishan and Yufeng Mountain in Liuzhou. People go to song parties to compete and enjoy songs; There is a song friendship between young men and women, and people who love each other will give each other tokens as tokens of love. In addition, there are recreational activities such as throwing hydrangeas, touching eggs and performing Zhuang opera. The Song Festival is not only a grand gathering of national culture, but also a grand gathering of national economic exchanges. In order to carry forward the national culture, the people's government of the autonomous region organized 1984 "March 3" song meeting. Singers from all over Guangxi gathered in Nanning, and brothers, compatriots from Hong Kong and Macao, and foreign friends from all over the country also came, with unprecedented pomp. 1985 The People's Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region designated "March 3rd" as a culture and art festival.