Jianshui County Culture

Jianshui is a county with multi-ethnic groups. Different ethnic groups own different ethnic cultures, which form diverse and colorful ethnic minorities culture in Jianshui county. The culture in Jianshui is a multi-ethnic fusion pattern, main customs include "festival lantern", "long street banquet", folk song of Yi "four tune(四大腔)" and so on. Jianshui culture will be introduced from Jianshui history, architecture culture, traditional ethnic villages, festivals and culture tour, etc. 

History of Jianshui

Jianshui was also known as Butou(步头) or Badian(巴甸) in ancient time. In Nanzhao kingdom of Tang dynasty, Huili city(惠历城) was built, which was translated as "Jianshui" in Chinese and belonged to Tonghai government office(通海都督府). During Dali kingdom of Song dynasty, Jianshui belonged to Xiushan prefecture(秀山郡). In Yuan dynasty, Jianshui prefecture(建水州) was eastablished and it was called Lin'an in the Ming dynasty. In Qianlong period of Qing dynasty, Jianshui prefecture was changed to Jianshui county. With a history of more than 1200, Jianshui was the political, military, economical, cultural center of south Yunnan since Yuan Dynasty.

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Religion Culture

Since Hui is one of the main ethic minorities in Jianshui, a number of mosques can be seen there. In addition, Buddhism is the main religion, and there are some temples with a long history in Jianshui. 

Temples and Mosque in Jianshui

Jianshui Architecture Culture

The architecture culture of Jianshui is represented by the architecture of local dwelling house, and ancient buildings in Jianshui ancient town. 

Jianshui Ancient Town

Jianshui ancient town, called Lin'an in the ancient time, was built in the Tang dynasty, has a history of more than 1200 years. There are more than 50 well-preserved exquisite ancient buildings inside the ancient towns, which can be called an "ancient architecture museum" and "folk house museum". The ancient town is not big, mainly several streets with Lin'an road as the center. The most famous ones in ancient town are Jianshui Confucius Temple and Zhu Family Garden, and there are also many old buildings worth a visit.

Ethnic Groups in Jianshui

Jianshui county is home to many ethnic groups, including Han, Hani, Yi, Dai, Hui, Miao, Zhuang, Lisu, Lahu, Wa, Naxi, Yao, Zang, Jingpo, Bulang, Buyi, Achang, Xibo, Pumi, Menggu, Nu, Jinuo, De'ang, Shui, Man and Dulong, etc. Among them, Han has the largest population, about 2/3 of total population, followed by Yi, Hui, Hani, Dai and Miao, etc. Yi, Hani and Dai are indigenous people, Han and Hui moved in Jianshui during Yuan dynasty, while Miao people moved in after the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The minority groups account for 33% of the total population.

Traditional Ethnic Villages in Jianshui

According to the list of traditional Chinese villages, there are many traditional ethnic villages in Jianshui County. Here below are several of them. 

  • Shuidaying Village in Xizhuang Town, Jianshui County, Hong红河州建水县西庄镇水打营村
  • Dongzhe Village in Xizhuang Town, Jianshui County, Honghe红河州建水县西庄镇东者村
  • Tengzizhai Village in Puxiong Township, Jianshui County, Honghe红河州建水县西庄镇藤子寨村
  • Tuanshan Village in Jianshui County, Honghe红河州建水县团山村
  • Cangtai Village in Jianshui County, Honghe红河州建水县苍台村

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Ethnic Festivals in Jianshui

Jianshui is an ethnically diverse County where the major ethnic groups like Han, Hani, Yi, Dai, Hui and Miao live. And Different ethnic groups created brilliant culture and customs, formed diverse festivals and activities during the long-term social practice. Each ethnic minority in Jianshui county has their own unique festivals to celebrate such as the Torch Festival of Yi, Kuzhazha Festival of Hani, Huashan Festival of Miao, Water-splashing Festival of Dai, etc.

Intangible Cultural Heritages and its Heritors in Jianshui

With a large number of ethnic minorities and a long history, Jianshui has many intangible cultural heritages with ethnic characteristics and profound historical and cultural deposits, including Huadeng Opera, Hani Manggu Drum Dance and Color Painting, etc. Every intangible cultural heritage has its inheritor, who plays a vital role in the promotion and inheritance of culture.

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Culture Tours including Jianshui

Architecture culture, Confucian culture and purple pottery culture are important parts of Jianshui culture tour. Every year, Confucius Culture Festival and Jianshui Purple Pottery Cultural Tourism Festival are held in Jianshui. And activities are also conducted in Jianshui Confucius Temple every now and then, you can learn and exprience Chinese traditional culture there.

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