The Li Nationality

The Li nationality has a population of over 1,110,000, mainly living in Hainan Province. The Lis have their own language. Though they have created new characters of their own, the Han written language is commonly used. Mainly involved in agriculture, they fish as well. 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. The Li people are good at singing and dancing. They have many different kinds of vertical bamboo flutes, some of which can be played either by the mouth or nose. Their dances have their own style, and their folk songs are equally colorful.

On beautiful Hainan Island where banana and coconut trees grow so luxuriantly, live the Lis among the Wuzhi Mountains and along the banks of the Wanquan River. Their ancestors were the earliest inhabitants of Hainan Island, who made enormous contributions to its development.

The Lis usually live in pyramidª²shaped 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 at each side and one at the front. The house is often divided into three rooms, the side-rooms-serving as the bedroom or kitchen and the middle one as the living room. In Hemu area on Hainan Island, the Lis still live in their traditional boatª²shaped houses. There is nobed in the house, and every one sleeps on the mat spread on the kitchen floor. Hanging high on the kitchen range is a bamboo basket used for roasting food. Nowadays, the Lis living near towns and cities build light and spacious houses with tiled roofs.

The Lis make their clothes of cotton and flax. They spin these materials, and weave, dye and sew them entirely themselves. The men wear collarless jackets buttoned down on the front. The women wear open-front blouses and close-fitting skirts. They love black color while the fronts, cuffs and collars of their holiday best are embroidered with delicate patterns. The women's skirts are close-fitting and reach the knee, showing off their beautiful figure. There is a great variety of colors and patterns-the workmanship is really exquisite.

Hainan Island has an abundance of products. The Lis continue to enjoy "country-cooking," and rice roasted in bamboo tubes has its own special taste. To make bamboo-tube rice, they first hollow out a thick tube of tender bamboo, and then stuff it with locally produced fragrant glutinous rice, some water and salt and sometimes some lean meat. This is then roasted on a fire. After the water begins to boil inside, both ends of the tube are sealed with leaves or corks. By turning the tube continuously, it cooks evenly. When the rice begins to smell, the tube is cut open and it is ready to serve. The fragrance of the bamboo is mixed with the scent of the rice, and the rice is especially tasty.

In March of the lunar calendar, Hainan Island is filled with bright sunshine and gentle breezes. Deep in the cool quiet forests of rubber trees, the Lis get ready for the great Love Festival.

Legend has it that in the remote ages of ancient times, the Lis who lived by the banks of the Shihua River were hit by a great flood. Only one pair of lovers sitting in a big gourd ladle which floated to the Yanwo Hills survived the disaster. On March 3, the flood retreated, and the lovers became husband and wife. The husband planted crops and the wife wove cloth, and the family gradually expanded with sons and daughters. So the Li nationality gradually developed. Later generations worship the couple as their ancestors. On March 3 every year, the Lis hold big gatherings where they offer sacrifices and hold singing, dancing and sports competitions. In the course of all these activities, the young men and women will also try to find a lover. If things take their course, the boy fastens a hairpin made of deer bone in the girl's hair, and if she loves him in return, she puts a carefully woven seven-colored belt round his waist. They then make an appointment together to see each other next March 3. Many young people have found their lifelong companions on the March 3 gatherings, this is why it is also called the Love Festival.

The magical dance for the Li men is called Qianling Double Dagger Dance, or Taijian in the Li language. The two dancers act the parts of "local tyrant" and "young man." The tyrant holds a weapon called Qianling while the youth has a dagger in each hand. The young man moves deftly and surely in the mock fight; the "tyrant," puts on a wicked expression and twists wildly at the waist like a demon. The dance is traditionally played on a winnowing bamboo pan which is only one meter in diameter. The daggers and Qianling are real ones, and the actors fight fiercely without stepping outside the tray. Tacitly cooperating with one another, they also compete with each other in demonstraª²ª¤ting their martial skill.

The Li people enjoy dancing very much, and dances are often performed during big wedding ceremonies. A bride who wants to show off her skill dances together with other girls. Holding pestles in their hands, 4 or 6 girls sing and dance around the wooden mortar. Imitating the movement of husking rice, this dance expresses the pleasure of work. The sound of pounding rice alternates with the music's beat. The dancers match their steps to the rhythm, which gradually increases in speed. The Li women's love for work and life is fully expressed in the dance.

The Lis have developed the tools they use to scare wild animals out in the fields into a "pealing" instrument. They call it "Langgong." Stuck with a stick, it makes a bellª²like sound. With a strong rhythm and compact melody, people used it to boost their courage and frighten the beasts away. This gradually evolved into the Dingdong dance, which is performed on important occasions by the whole village singing and dancing to the bellª²like sounds. The scene is really spectacular and fun.

The Lis are making use of their location and traditions as well as their tourist resources to attract large groups of tourists and investors from China and abroad. They are developing rapidly ª² soon they will show a new face to the world in the southern sea of China.