The Li ethnic group, with a population of 1.30 million, mainly
reside in Hainan Province, China's second largest island after Taiwan.
Ninety percent of the Li are scattered throughout the Li-Miao Autonomous
Prefecture in Hainan, with the rest living with the Han and Hui
people in other areas such as Baoting, Ledong and Dongfang.
The Li ethnic group consists of five branches: the Qi, Ha, Run,
Sai and Meifu. Their ancestors can be traced back to the Luoyue
people - a branch of the ancient Baiyue tribe who once lived in
south China. Early before the Qin and Han periods, ancestors of
Li ethnic group immigrated into Hainan Island from Guangdong and
Guangxi provinces. At first, they only lived in the monticule and
mesa areas near the gulfs and rivers, later, they gradually moved
to all parts of the Island. During the Sui Dynasty, they were called
as "Liliao" and after the Song Dynasty, "Li ethnic
group" was formally used to address them. Li people call themselves
"Sai" people. Having inhabited Hainan for over 3000 years,
they were believed to be the earliest settlers of Hainan.
The Li people have their own language, which belong to the Li branch
of the Chinese-Tibetan phylum. Although a written script was created
in 1957, Han written language is commonly used.
The Li people usually live in pyramid shaped thatched cottages.
The roofs are supported with tree trunks and the walls are made
of knotted bamboo strips coated with mud. Their houses have three
doors in all, one in each side and one in the front. The house is
often divided into three rooms, the side-rooms serve as the bedroom
or kitchen and the middle one as the living room. Today, many Li
people living near towns and cities build light and spacious houses
with tiled roofs.
The Li nationality lives mainly on agriculture. Situated in subtropical
zone with fertile land and abundant rainfall, the Li area is a tropical
paradise for agriculture. People in some places reap three crops
of rice a year and grow maize and sweet potatoes all the year round.
The area is also the country's major producer of tropical crops
such as coconut, areca, sisal hemp, lemon grass, cocoa, coffee,
rubber, palm oil, cashews, pineapples, mangoes and bananas. Besides
agriculture, other industries such as hunting, handicrafts, fishing,
commerce and forestry also play an important role in their economy.
The Li people have the earliest weaving technology in Chinese history.
Li women are skilled in spinning and weaving and are especially
adept at weaving silk cotton. The brocade they make has a long reputation
for its magnificence and exquisite workmanship. In the very early
days, the Li people knew how to use silk cotton as weaving material.
In the 5th century, Li textile technology reached a considerably
high level. In the early Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368), Huang Daopo,
an expert in ancient textiles, learnt then advanced the textile
skills from the Li people. She returned to her native home in Wunijing
(today's Shanghai), Songjiang Prefecture to teach textile technology,
thereby pushing forward the development of China's traditional textile
industry.
Li people are also famed for their knowledge of herbal medicine.
Their remedies for snakebites and rabies have proved very effective.
Li people normally have three meals per day. Their staple food
consists of rice, corn and yam. Vegetables are very rare. Bamboo
rice, which is cooked in a bamboo tube, is the highlight of the
Li food. Li people also like roast meat and pickled sour meat mixed
with rice meal and wild herbs. Most Li people are fond of drinking
and they mostly make the wine that they drink. Also, chewing areca
is a popular practice of all Li people.
The cloth of the Li ethnic group has a unique style. As experts
of spinning, weaving, dying and sewing, they often make their clothes
entirely by themselves. The men wear collarless jackets, buttoned
down on the front. The women wear open-front blouses and close-fitting
skirts. The women's skirts are close-fitting and reach the knee,
showing off their beautiful figures. Women like to do their hair
in a coil at the back and pin it with bone hairpins and wear embroidered
kerchiefs. They like to wear silver jewelry, and some still tattoo
their faces.
Today, most Li people wear Chinese-style clothing rather than their
traditional costume. Traditional clothing is worn only for festivals
and some ceremonies such as weddings and funerals.
Most Li practice traditional ethnic religions, including ancestor
worship, worshiping earth gods and spirits. They believe the spirits
of their ancestors have the ability to protect them.
The Li people are good at singing and dancing. Their folk songs
are rich in content with styles in three-, five-, seven- and nine-word
sentences. The Li nationality dances combine art and physical culture
and are brisk and lively. On each happy occasion, Li men and women
sing in antiphonal style or sing and dance all through the night.
They also have many different kinds of vertical bamboo flutes, some
of which can be played either by the mouth or nose.
Li people celebrate the Spring Festival, Lantern Festival, March
3rd Festival, the Ox Festival etc. The March 3rd Festival, as a
festival of ancestor worship, is the most important of all.
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