Explore 109 stories across 2 topics
In the borderlands of western Yunnan, the Achang people (, Ā chāng zú) are renowned throughout China for the Husa knife. With a population of approximately 44,000, they are one of China's smallest ethnic minorities, yet their metalworking skills have earned national fame.
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On the shores of Erhai Lake, with the snow-capped Cangshan Mountains rising behind them like a painted screen, the Bai people (, Bái zú) have created one of China's most sophisticated regional cultures. With a population of approximately 2.1 million, the Bai are centered in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture in western Yunnan, a region of extraordinary natural beauty that has been a crossroads of trade and culture for over two millennia. The Bai name means "white," and white is their sacred color — the color of purity, dignity, and the snow that caps their beloved Cangshan peaks.
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Along the banks of the Heilongjiang (Amur), Songhua, and Ussuri rivers in northeastern China, the Hezhen people (, Hè zhé zú) are one of China's smallest ethnic minorities, with approximately 5,400 people. The Hezhen are China's only ethnic group traditionally centered on fishing, and they are renowned for their extraordinary fish-skin culture — crafting clothing, shoes, containers, and even thread from fish skin.
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In the deep gorges of the Nujiang River in northwestern Yunnan, the Nu people (, Nù zú) have created a culture as dramatic as their landscape. With a population of approximately 37,000, the Nu live along one of the world's deepest river valleys — the Nujiang, or "Angry River" that gives them their name.
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With a population exceeding eighteen million, the Zhuang people (, Zhuàng zú) constitute China's largest ethnic minority — a vibrant community whose culture has shaped the landscape of southern China for millennia. Centered in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, with communities extending into Yunnan, Guangdong, and Guizhou, the Zhuang have developed a civilization deeply rooted in the karst mountains and rice terraces of their homeland. Their culture, expressed through song, textile art, and a profound connection to the land, represents one of the great indigenous traditions of southern China.
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The zhúxiāo is the vertical bamboo flute of the scholar — breathy, intimate, and the instrument of moonlit solitude in poetry.
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The bāngzi are a pair of hardwood clappers that set the tempo of northern Chinese clapper opera. Struck together to mark the beat, they are the rhythmic backbone of an entire theatrical tradition.
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Jīngyùn dàgǔ is the refined northern story-song of Tianjin and Beijing, sung by a soloist over a small drum and a string quartet.
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Shífāngǔ is a southern percussion suite of Nanjing and Suzhou, layering drums, gongs, and wind in intricate, evolving patterns.
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The zhù was an ancient long zither struck with a slender stick — the instrument played by the assassin Gao Jianli for the First Emperor.
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