Hongwan Village Yi (Axi) Ethnic Culture Protection Area in Xiyi Town of Mile City, Honghe

Geographical Location and Environment

• Location: Hongwan Village is situated 15 kilometers south of Xiyi Town, under the jurisdiction of Qifei Village Committee, Xiyi Town, Mile City.
• Natural Environment: The village is surrounded by rolling mountains to the east and dense forests to the west, including Mount Mizhi and Mount Jilong, with lush vegetation. Mountain springs flow through the valleys, creating a serene natural landscape.

Ethnic Composition and Population

• The village consists of two sub-villages, Dazhai (Big Village) and Xiaozhai (Small Village), inhabited entirely by the Yi ethnic group (Axi branch). Their language belongs to the Axi dialect of the southeastern Yi branch of the Tibeto-Burman language family, and they use Chinese characters. As of November 2020, the village has 313 households with a total population of 1,203, over 98% of whom are Yi people.

Historical Culture and Traditional Customs

• Historical Origins: The name “Hongwan” originates from the Hongyan Cave west of the village, believed to be a prehistoric dwelling place of the Axi ancestors. The village boasts a long history and profound cultural heritage.
• Traditional Beliefs: It preserves primitive religious beliefs such as worship of the Fire God, Mizhi Tree God, Dragon God, Mountain God, Rain God, Wrestling God, and Torch God.
• Traditional Festivals: Notable festivals include the Mizhi Festival, Fire Worship Festival, and Torch Festival. The Fire Worship Festival, the most solemn ritual of the Axi people, takes place on the third day of the second lunar month. Activities include drilling wood for fire, welcoming new fire, worshiping the Fire God, and hosting pine-needle banquets. Participants paint fire-related patterns on their bodies and faces, dancing and singing in imitation of primitive ancestors.
• Folk Arts
  • Music and Dance: The Axi people are renowned for their folk music, including flute tunes, four-string lute melodies, and suona music. The collective improvisational dance Axi Tiaoyue (“Axi Moon Dancing”) features light, agile movements and joyful leaps, alongside other dances like the Overlord Whip Dance and Saber-Fork Dance.
  • Folk Literature: The village preserves rich oral traditions, including myths, folk songs, and proverbs, such as The Story of the Flying Horse and The Legend of Axi Tiaoyue.
• Traditional Clothing and Embroidery: Axi traditional attire is distinctive: women wear long robes (shorter in front, longer at the back), with embroidered patterns on the sleeves, collars, and chest. They wear white-and-black striped linen aprons and colorful embroidered belts, often accessorized with silver jewelry. Axi women excel in embroidery, using patterns inspired by nature—flowers, plants, mountains, and forests—mainly to decorate baby carriers and aprons.
• Traditional Architecture: The dwellings in Dazhai and Xiaozhai are mainly three types: traditional wood-and-earth structures, brick-wood structures, and non-traditional brick-concrete structures. Built with local pine wood and tiled with green or copper-colored roof tiles, these houses are naturally cool in summer and warm in winter.

Protection and Development

• Protection Milestones:
  • In 2005, Hongwan Village was named the “Yi Fire Culture Protection Area” by the Honghe Prefecture Government.
  • In 2006, it was listed as a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage protection area in Yunnan.
  • In 2014, it was included in the Third National List of Traditional Villages under Protection and the First Batch of China’s Ethnic Minority Characteristic Villages.
  • In 2019, the Xiyi Town Hongwan Village Yi (Axi) Traditional Culture Protection Area met the criteria for national-level cultural ecological protection area application.
• Current Development: Over the years, the village has promoted rural tourism through its Yi “Axi Fire Worship Festival.” The 2025 festival attracted over 100,000 visitors, generating tourism consumption of over 10 million yuan and increasing collective village income by over 1 million yuan, boosting rural revitalization.

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