China has, officially, 56 ethnic groups and it was interesting to see a few of these groups close up. Many
live in the province of Yunnan.
The Naxi (or Nahki) live in the foothills of the Himalayas, where Li Jiang is located. Originally it is believed that
they migrated from northwest China and displaced the Tibetan people living along the rivers. Although they
have been influenced by the Han Chinese culture, the Naxi have retained their own religion, language, writing,
music and dress (especially the women). Over the centuries the Naxi women have been important to the economy
since they were the shopkeepers and brokers for the economy. They did most of the work while the men were
away on caravan business.
The Naxi have known wealth and some education, but it seemed to me that they living in a less prosperous
part of modern China. Tourism is a boon to the ethnic groups and Li Jiang Old Town and other Naxi communities
were busy with the tourist trade. It was a shoppers' paradise. You could see remnants of a rugged past with the
birds-of-prey which were displayed by proud owners. And, the Naxi still hunt with falcons, making this a rarity
in modern China.
Below are some interesting pictures.
One is a rack of ethnic dresses for sale.
The second is an authentic elderly Naxi woman.
The next shows Naxi writing, which is the only pictograph writing system that is still used. It resembles the writing of the Maya and ancient Egyptians
No comments:
Post a Comment