The main customs of the Miao people are as follows:
1. Culture:
The Miao people have their own language, and the Miao language is divided into three major dialects: Xiangxi, Qiandong and Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan. After 1956, a text scheme in the form of Latin letters was designed. Due to the long-term exchanges between the Miao people and the Han people, a large part of the Miao people are proficient in Chinese and use Chinese.
The Miao area is mainly based on agriculture, supplemented by hunting. The Miao people's arts and crafts such as cross-stitching, embroidery, brocade, batik, paper-cutting, and hand-made jewelry are magnificent and colorful and well-known at home and abroad. Among them, the batik craft of the Miao people has a history of thousands of years. There are more than 130 kinds of Miao costumes, which can be compared with the costumes of any ethnic group in the world. The Miao people are good at singing and dancing, and are particularly famous for their love songs and drinking songs. Lusheng is the most representative musical instrument of the Miao people.
2. Customs:
The Miao people attach great importance to etiquette. When guests come to visit, they will kill chickens and ducks to entertain them warmly. If they are distinguished guests from afar, the Miao people are accustomed to treat the guests to drink horn wine first. When eating chicken, the chicken head should be given to the elder among the guests, and the chicken legs should be given to the youngest guest. In some places, there is also the custom of dividing chicken hearts, that is, the eldest host in the family uses chopsticks to give chicken or duck hearts to the guests, but the guests cannot eat them themselves and must divide the chicken hearts equally among the elderly people present. If the guest is a light drinker and does not like to eat fat meat, it can explain the situation. If the host does not force the meal, but does not eat and drink enough, it will be regarded as looking down on the host.
3. Marriage customs:
Glutinous rice is also an indispensable food in the marriage process of young men and women. The Miao people in Chengbu, Hunan, give each other glutinous rice cakes with pictures of mandarin ducks as tokens. During a wedding, the bride and groom drink cups of wine, and the officiant invites the bride and groom to eat glutinous rice cakes with pictures of dragons, phoenixes and dolls.
4. Clothing:
The Miao costumes vary from place to place. Men mostly wrap their heads with cloth and wear shorts. However, Miao women generally dress more elegantly, especially in costumes, which are extremely They are exquisite and have many floral decorations. Some skirts have more than forty layers, hence the name "pleated skirts". The various patterns embroidered on the skirts are antique and colorful. Women are good at weaving, embroidery, and batik, and their craftsmanship is very exquisite.
5. Food customs:
The Miao people in most areas have rice as their staple food for three meals a day. Fried food is the most common fried food. If you add some fresh meat and sauerkraut as filling, the taste will be more delicious. Meat mostly comes from livestock and poultry breeding. The Miao people in Sichuan, Yunnan and other places like to eat dog meat. There is a saying that "the dogs of the Miao people are the wine of the Yi people." In addition to animal oil, the edible oils of the Miao family are mostly camellia oil and vegetable oil. Chili is used as the main condiment. In some areas, there is even a saying that "no dish is complete without spicy food". The Miao people have a wide variety of dishes. Common vegetables include beans, melons, green vegetables, and radishes. Most of the Miao people are good at making soy products. The Miao people in various places generally like to eat sour dishes, and sour soup is a must-have in every household. Sour soup is made from rice soup or tofu water. After fermentation in an earthen pot for 3-5 days, it can be used to cook meat, fish, and vegetables.
The Miao people generally use pickling to preserve their food. Vegetables, chicken, duck, fish and meat all like to be pickled to make them sour. Almost every household of the Miao people has a jar for pickling food, collectively called a sour jar. The Miao people have a long history of brewing wine and have a complete set of techniques from making koji, fermentation, distillation, blending and cellaring. Camellia oleifera is the most common daily beverage. The Miao people in western Hunan also make a special kind of Wanhua tea. Sour soup is also a common drink. Typical foods mainly include: blood soup, chili bone, Miaoxiang turtle and phoenix soup, cotton cake, insect tea, Wanhua tea, pounded fish, fish in sour soup, etc.
6. Festivals:
The Miao people used to believe in animism, worship nature, and worship their ancestors. There are many festivals. In addition to traditional New Year festivals and sacrificial festivals, there are also festivals specifically related to eating. Such as: Duck Eating Festival, New Eating Festival, Fish Killing Festival, Tea Picking Festival, etc. In addition to preparing wine and meat for the festival, seasonal food is also necessary.
The Miao Year usually begins on the first Mao day of the first lunar month and lasts for three, five or fifteen days. Before the New Year, every household must prepare a sumptuous New Year's meal. In addition to slaughtering pigs and sheep (cows), they must also prepare plenty of glutinous rice wine. The New Year's meal is rich, with emphasis on "all seven colors" and "all five flavors", and the best glutinous rice is used to make "New Year cake". Treat each other to feasts and gifts. Fish-killing festivals are often held on the riverside. Women bring rice, bacon, sausages and other food and drinks. As soon as they catch a fish, they light a bonfire and cook the fish in a pot until they are satisfied. "Drum Sacrifice Festival" is the largest sacrificial activity among the Miao people. Generally, there is a small sacrifice every seven years and a big sacrifice every thirteen years. It is held on Yihai day from October to November of the lunar calendar. At that time, a Guzi ox will be killed, the Lusheng dance will be performed, and the ancestors will be paid homage to. Invite relatives and friends to gather together during meals in order to enhance feelings and family harmony.
The ancestors of the Miao people gathered in the "Five Streams" area during the Qin and Han Dynasties, which is today's western Hunan, eastern Guizhou and other places. In ancient Chinese classics, there are records about the ancestors of the Miao people more than 5,000 years ago. These are the clans and tribes known as the "Southern Barbarians" from the Yellow River Basin to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River.