Li Ethnic Firewood Dance [Specialty of Sanya, Hainan]

What is the Li ethnic group's firewood dance? Authentic Hainan Sanya Specialty: Li Ethnic Firewood Dance

Content Summary:Do you want to know what Li Ethnic Firewood Dance is? This article is a detailed introduction to the local specialty of Sanya, Hainan - Li ethnic group's firewood dance. It was compiled and edited by the editorial team of China Specialty Network after reviewing and collecting relevant information on Li ethnic group's firewood dance. The full text takes about 13 minutes to read, mainly including the basic introduction of Li ethnic group's firewood dance and the product characteristics of Li ethnic group's firewood dance? How did the history of Li ethnic group's firewood dance come about? Wait

Basic Introduction to Li Ethnic Firewood Dance

Firewood dance is the most representative folk dance of the Li ethnic group, called "Zhuan Cha" or "Tai Cha" in Li language. It originated from the funeral customs of the Li ethnic group in the ancient Yazhou region (now Sanya City, Hainan Province). Chai dance is one of the oldest and most popular dance styles of the Li ethnic group. The Li language "Zhuansha" originated from the funeral activities of the Li ethnic group in ancient Yazhou. It is a funeral dance used by ancient Li people to protect the body, drive away wild animals, suppress shock, and worship ancestors when they die. On May 20, 2006, the Li ethnic group's firewood dance was approved by the State Council and included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list. The movement style includes three postures of the pole holder: sitting, squatting, and standing, with various changes. The firewood dance consists of nine relatively independent steps, including the flat step, sharpening step, small rope step, small frog step, big frog step, dog chasing deer step, rice screening step, monkey stealing grain step, and crow step. In the rhythmic and regular sound of collisions, dancers not only need to jump back and forth agilely at the moment of bamboo pole opening and closing, but also need to perform various beautiful movements naturally and gracefully. When pairs of dancers skillfully jump out of the bamboo pole, the pole holder will shout loudly "Hey! Hehe!" The occasion is extremely heroic and free spirited, and the atmosphere is lively. If the dancer is not proficient or timid, they will be caught in the foot or hit on the head by a bamboo pole. The pole holder will use the pole to lift the person caught and fall out, and laugh in groups. On the contrary, young men who are good at jumping often win the favor of girls at this time due to their intelligence, agility, and adaptability. The firewood dance has a strong and powerful rhythm, simple and rough movements, vivid and vivid imagery, strong artistic appeal, and strong entertainment value. It is a good way to carry out mass cultural and sports activities. In 1957, Jin Jing participated in a minority cultural and artistic performance and was hailed as the "flower of Wuzhishan art"; When performing in multiple countries such as Romania, Yugoslavia, Pakistan, and Japan, it is also known as the "world's rare aerobics"

Inheritance Status

With the changes of the times, the custom of "jumping firewood" has gradually spread and evolved among the Li ethnic group. Nowadays, it has become a sports and fitness activity with ethnic cultural characteristics. The habit of only allowing "women to beat men and dance" in the past has now been changed to "mixed gender dancing". Nowadays, jumping bamboo poles has become a healthy activity during the "March 3rd" Lizhai Mountain Love Festival. Young men and women use bamboo pole jumping activities to find "partners" and enhance their friendship. A small bamboo pole has erected a 'magpie bridge' for young men and women

Inheritance significance

Due to the special props, rhythm, and dance techniques of the Chai dance, as well as its strong entertainment and competitive elements, Chai dance quickly spread throughout the Li ethnic region of Hainan and became a famous dance form of the Li ethnic group

Inheritance Value

Historical Value

The "living fossil" of the ancient Li ethnic group's corpse protection dance. Many ethnic groups have corpse protection dances. The only dance closely related to funeral customs is the wood cutting dance. After research, it has been found to be an ancient corpse protection dance of the Li ethnic group, which has important reference value for studying the historical origins of Li ethnic dance

Artistic value

It has a set of fixed jumping techniques and proprietary terms. Among the various dances of the Li ethnic group, there are complete sets of dance content, dance techniques, and proprietary terms, only the firewood dance

Competitive value and fitness value

Due to the use of thick wooden sticks and the fact that the entire dance process is completed by hitting wood up, down, left, right, and crossing, it emphasizes the coordination, tacit understanding, courage, agility, and footwork between the wood beater and the dancer. A slight carelessness can result in injury. In ancient times, the local Li ethnic group also took advantage of funeral activities to dance the firewood dance and engage in competitive competitions

Social Impact

After the liberation, the firewood dance was processed, adapted, and became popular throughout Hainan Province. And it has been included in some physical education textbooks for universities, vocational schools, and primary and secondary schools, benefiting greatly

The state attaches great importance to the protection of intangible cultural heritage. On May 20, 2006, the Li ethnic group's firewood dance was approved by the State Council and included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list

Endangered Status

The development of Li ethnic society and the government's advocacy for the reform of Li ethnic funeral customs after the founding of the country. In the 1950s, many aspects of Li ethnic rural funeral customs were reformed and simplified, including the custom of dancing firewood. So far, only Langdian Village in Yacheng Town, Sanya City, has preserved this custom in the province. If the funeral customs in Langdian Village are reformed again, the original ecological form of the firewood dance will disappear from the Li people's folk culture. In a few years, people may not know when, where, and what the origin of the firewood dance was

What are the product features of Li ethnic wood dance

The firewood dance, also known as the bamboo pole dance, is performed by placing two long wooden poles 2-3 meters apart horizontally on the stage, and then placing 4-5 pairs of thin wooden poles horizontally on top of them. Women of the corresponding number kneel on opposite sides of the long poles, hold both ends of the thin wooden poles with their hands, and in a unified rhythm, strike the poles in their hands together or use them to strike the long poles on the ground, making a regular sound. In the past, dancers were all men, who danced lightly and imitated the movements of frogs and monkeys in the gaps between the opening and closing of thin wooden poles, following the rhythm and avoiding pincers, creating a fun atmosphere. Dancing to climax, the women stood up and the wooden poles crossed the space. The dancers were still not caught in the crossfire and easily leaped over, thrilling and wonderful. Nowadays, women also enter the stage to dance with men, which is even more unique. Moreover, bamboo poles are often used instead of wooden ones to make the sound system more pleasant to listen to, and they are also brought to the stage for performances. On the floor of the sun drying field or mountain slope, two square wooden blocks that are as thick as legs are arranged in parallel as a cushion frame. Several long bamboo poles that are as thick as wrists are placed horizontally on the cushion frame. The pole holders hold one end of the bamboo pole with each hand facing each other, and strike the bamboo pole against the cushion frame and the bamboo pole to make a rhythmic sound, which is called "chopping wood". The woodblock dance has a complete set of dance equipment and techniques, consisting of two wooden blocks and several pairs of small trees. When dancing, place two wooden pads parallel to each other about 2 meters apart on the ground, and place several pairs of small wooden sticks on the pads. The two ends of the wooden stick are held by several people, facing each other in pairs, striking up and down, left and right, opening and closing, and crossing, emitting a strong and powerful rhythm. Dancers jump into wooden sticks, jumping back and forth, crouching, imitating human labor conditions and the movements and sounds of various animals

How did the history of Li ethnic group's firewood dance come about