Dolan Muqam and the Twelve Muqams： the Wild and the Elegant

The Twelve Muqams is a musical encyclopedia of the Uyghur culture. The system was developed over thousands of years, when the ancient nomadic Uyghur settled and adopted an agricultural lifestyle. Upon analyzing their musical structure and method of performance, it can be certain that it is a musical genre rooted in an urban lifestyle. Dolan Muqam, unlike the Twelve Muqams,is spontaneous in nature and distinguishes itself with a unique musical structure, melody and instruments.     

Origins of the Names of Chinese Ethnic Minorities （5）

Bouyei
The Bouyei people have a long history. In their own language, ＂Bou＂ means ＂ethnic group＂ or ＂people,＂ and ＂yei＇＂ and its variants refer to the name of an ethnic minority. Thus, in the old local chronicles, the Bouyei nationality is sometimes recorded as ＂Yei nationality＂,＂Yei family ＂ or ＂Yei people.＂ As well as their self-appellations, the Bouyei people in different areas referred to other groups of Bouyei as ＂Bulong Buna Butu Budou Buyang ＂ and ＂Bulongha＂ etc.     

New Railway to Boost Southern Xinjiang Economy

<正>The Ku-E Railway(between Kuqa and Ehobulake)in southern Xinjiang has recently gone into service.The line is designed to transport coal from Ehobulake to power stations in Kashgar in southern Xinjiang and to boost the local economy.The line is located in Kuqa County,Aksu Prefecture of southern Xinjing.It starts its 86-km route from the east part of Kuqa West Railway Station and terminates at Ehobulake Station,crossing national highways 314 and 217     

Restoring the Luster of Miao Culture

Shi Shougui was a very happy man on October 23, 2012, the day he received the ＂Huayuan Badai Culture Association＂ plaque and became the first presider of Badai Culture Association. For him it was a sign of government endorsement of Baidai culture research, and an important step towards restoring Baidai culture to its proper place.     

＂Setting the Warp＂

There is a ballad Miao weaving process that goes like this;Select the cotton,pound the cotton,     

Book Information

A Parchment： History and Culture of the Qiang People in China
By Jiao Husan
Publisher： Guangxi Normal University Press
Publication date： May 2013
Prior to the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, historians and anthropologists knew very little about the Qiang people. Post earthquake and serving as a breakthrough study into the Qiang culture and history, this book documents the lives of the Qiang people. Rather than obtaining facts from a library, the author lived amongst the Qiang in their villages and gathered real life facts.     

Nocturnal Eel Hunt

＂Lighting up yellow eels＂ or ＂pincering yellow eels,＂ are terms used by the Miao people to refer to their custom of eel catching. In Miao villages of western Hunan, the first ten days of May, just after plowing but before planting, is the time when the process of eels＇ sex change is at its height （When born all the eels are female, they mature and immediately after mating and spawning they turn male）. They swarm to the edges or to the center of the fields in order to spawn, preparing to become male. During this period, they always emerge from the mud at night, so it is easy to catch them, which the local people do, carrying torches and bamboo clamps to hunt their prey.