Yongshanxiang is the Yi territory, which is the place under the control of the chieftain Tumu. Before setting up the county, the territory of Yongshan was divided into Yunnan and Sichuan. During the Yongzheng period, Ortai, the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, pacified Wumeng (today's Zhaotong) and implemented "reforming the land and returning it to the locals". In the fifth year of Yongzheng's reign, Zhaotong Prefecture was established, and in February of the sixth year of Yongzheng's reign, a county magistrate, edict, and history official were established in Mitie. Since then, it has been under the jurisdiction of Yunnan and under the jurisdiction of Zhaotong.
Yongshan is one of the birthplaces of the Yi people. As indigenous residents, the Yi people have thrived here since ancient times. They have a long history and created a splendid culture. The entire vast river of Yi culture also contains the hard work and sweat of the Yongshan Yi people. The two major historical books of the Yi people, "Quhuang" and "Guhou" published in Liangshan, Sichuan, were mostly collected in Yongshan.
The war led to a sharp decrease in the population, the migration of Han, Hui, Miao and other ethnic groups, mutual learning and integration, and the instillation of ruling ideas, which had a huge impact on the traditional culture of the Yongshan Yi people. With the passage of time and historical changes, the Yongshan Yi people have gradually formed unique living customs and habits that are different from the Daliang Mountains of Sichuan and the eastern dialect areas of Zhaotong, Kunming, Guizhou and other places. Among them, marriage customs have obvious characteristics.
1. Engagement
Marriage among the Yongshan Yi people basically involves a marriage contract, which is called the "matchmaker's words and parents' orders" agreement. From today's legal perspective , does not have legal effect, but it has been established by convention. It is a rule abided by by the Yi family. A promise is made for a thousand dollars, and even a child who is engaged when he is one or two years old rarely breaks the contract. The conclusion of a marriage contract generally follows the following process:
Proposing marriage. If a girl falls in love with a girl from a certain family, the man's parents will first talk about it and find out what the girl's parents say. If the girl's parents talk well and there is a possibility of a marriage contract, a matchmaker (Fuga in Yi language) will be invited to go to the girl's house to discuss the marriage. There is a special situation, that is, the uncle's family has priority. If the uncle's family asks for a marriage (in Yi language), other families are not allowed to propose marriage. There is a famous saying of the Yi people: "Oh Nea Menzhi" means "uncle is the mother", so they respect their uncle very much. Most girls will be proud to marry into their uncle's family and respect their uncle, and their parents will also be proud of being able to repay their brothers. Happy.
Say kiss. That is, the man invites someone to bring a jar of wine and nine cooked eggs to the woman's house to discuss matters related to the marriage contract. Including whether to agree to the marriage, discussing the bride price (commonly known as betrothal silver in Yi language) and the time to send the bride price. The amount of the bride price varies, ranging from a thousand yuan to a few hundred yuan, with the ending number being "eight" or "nine". It is usually given in three installments and cannot be given out in one go.
Roast chicken (Sa in Yi language). The first dowry was called roast chicken. That is, after choosing an auspicious day, the matchmaker will lead the proposing boy, his elders, relatives and friends (must be an odd number, usually nine people) to bring a jar of wine, nine cooked eggs, a pair of chicks (one female and one male) and the agreement. The bride price is submitted and a formal engagement ceremony is held at the woman's home. Several relatives and friends of the woman (mostly women) poured cold water on the man's coming at the gate to welcome him, and they only stopped entering the house. After entering the house, the matchmaker placed the wine and eggs next to a pile of shengs filled with grains, then placed the bride price in the shengs and handed them to the owner together. It means abundant wealth, and finally the chicken is handed over to the owner for feeding, which means that the pair of little mandarin ducks will be together from now on. Then the pigs and sheep are slaughtered, and the owner usually invites relatives, friends and neighbors to accompany him, firstly, to inform everyone about the marriage, and secondly, to celebrate together. That night, relatives and friends from both sides chatted about their family affairs, said many blessings, and drank and sang together all night long. When they say goodbye at dawn, the girl's parents also send some money to her future son-in-law to show their acceptance. Afterwards, the woman will pay a courtesy visit to the man, who will receive her ceremoniously. Roast chicken represents the formal conclusion of the marriage contract.
2. Marriage
Like engagement, marriage also needs to go through several processes.
Select a date. When both men and women reach a certain age and the woman's age is an odd number (mostly seventeen, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-three), the man will ask Mr. "Bi Mo" to calculate and choose an auspicious day. The calculation is based on the birth dates of both men and women and their parents. It mainly depends on whether the girl's family is "out of the year" and whether the boy's family is "in the year of the fourth year". Secondly, it depends on whether there are other "compatibles".
Delivery date. After choosing a wedding date, the man asks the matchmaker to bring a jar of wine and nine eggs to inform the woman.
Get married (lower mother in Yi language). The wedding was held over two days and two places. On the first day, the bride's family is the main one. The groom's family organizes a wedding team to carry a jar of wine, nine eggs, and the clothes, headdress, felt clothes, skirts, belts, shoes and socks prepared for the bride to the bride's family to welcome the bride and carry the dowry. The wedding team is all male except for the matchmaker. It is led by the matchmaker. There must be a younger brother of the groom. If there is no biological younger brother, a cousin is also acceptable. The other members must not only be young and strong, but also be good at singing, dancing, and eloquence. Otherwise, the woman's relatives and friends will look down on the man, and even laugh at the man's relatives and friends for his incompetence.
Splash water. When the wedding team arrived at the gate, the bride's girlfriends and sisters poured cold water on them.
Paint your face. After dinner, when night falls, the bride's girls mix the soot and yangchen in the pot with water, first wipe the groom's younger brother (Mubei in Yi, commonly known as Hualiantou), and then wipe it on the faces of some of the wedding team members. Wipe them all, and there must be an odd number. After smearing the face, you cannot wash your face again. You have to go back to the groom's house to wash it together and then pour the water under the bride's bed.
Anticipatory songs. After wiping their faces, the two female singers from the woman's side began to challenge, and the two singers from the wedding team faced off. The form is two people versus two people, you say something to me, you sing something to me, they sing the same song with the same lyrics, dancing and singing at the same time. The contents include astronomy, geography, ancient and modern times, China and foreign countries, which are far more knowledgeable than others; they may joke with each other to make relatives and friends happy; they may express traditions, ethics and sages to teach younger generations; or they may describe the most pure and true family love in the world. The dance is simple, the melody is elegant, the lyrics are gorgeous, and the answers are back-and-forth, soul-stirring. When the rooster crows, the song of leaving relatives is sung instead (the Yi language is still qualified). The format is changed from two-on-two to a collective duet, each led by a singer, with the same melody and different lyrics; the first content is the woman's ridicule and lashing of the wedding team, the second is the bride's retention, and the third is the wedding team It expresses the determination to take the bride away and the comfort to the family. The gentle melody and sentimental words vividly express the attachment and parting sadness between the bride and her relatives. Meanwhile, the bride has dressed up and put on her trousseau.
Pull the ears (in Yi language, Nao Beike, commonly known as snatching a bride). As dawn approaches, the bride's young men and women surround the bride layer by layer, while the wedding team protects the groom's brother again and again, rushes into the wall and pulls the bride's ears until he pulls them.
Cry kiss. After pulling off her ears, the bride became a member of another family and began to cry goodbye to her relatives. The first is the parents, followed by the brothers and sisters, etc. The content recounts the nurturing grace of the parents, the brotherly love of the brothers and sisters, and the sorrow that cannot be repaid.
Carry the bride on your back. After crying, the wedding takes place. The bride's brother carries the bride out of the house and hands it to the wedding team. The groom's brother carries the bride on his back to the groom's side. The wedding venue is also transferred to the groom's side. Some of the people who pick up the bride carry the dowry, and some take turns carrying the bride all the way to the groom's house. The bride cannot touch the ground. When someone else is carrying her, a straw mat will be put on her back for her to step on. Among the people seeing off the bride, the one who is responsible for holding the straw mat is the bride’s younger cousin (in Yi language). Only straw mats are given to relatives.
Send off relatives (Fu mother in Yi language). The bride’s family has to send her relatives and friends to escort the bride to the groom’s side. Anyone who is willing to go can participate in the send-off, usually dozens of people. Two or three sisters are also selected to accompany the bride.
Enter the wedding shed. The groom's family sets up a simple open-air shed at a suitable place outside the gate to welcome the bride, which is called the wedding shed. When they arrive at the groom's house, the wedding team carries the bride into the wedding tent. The people seeing off the bride sit on both sides. The groom's family brings out wine and each person pours a bowl. The guests and hosts encourage each other to drink, and the atmosphere is warm.
Comb your hair. In the bride's shed, the aunt (sister of the bride's father) who is still combing the bride's hair at the back of the family combs one strand of hair into two strands, which means that the hair belongs to her natal family and her husband's family. There is a saying in Yi language that "50 of the 100 hairs of my nephew's hair belong to my uncle's family." This is the origin of this saying.
Enter the room. After pouring wine and combing her hair, it is the groom's brother who carries the bride into the bridal chamber. The sisters who see off the bride sleep with the bride until she returns three days later. During this period, the groom is not allowed to sleep with the bride.
It's night, and the song is antiphonal again. The style changes from the woman's graceful style to a high-pitched and joyful melody.
Send off guests (gasa in Yi language). After breakfast the next day, the man bid farewell to the woman's bride-to-be.
First, the guests are greeted and seated in the place where the wedding tent was set up the day before, and then they use a dustpan to carry out the sheep divination, pig gall, pig connected stickers, as well as money to thank the matchmaker and honor the elders (fuga person), uncle's money (oh ni) those who give away their children), uncle's money (those who throw Oh), aunt's money (A's uncle), as well as money sent to brothers, cousins ??and other brothers who give away their children (those who give birth to children), cousin's money (those who stick to seats), and children's money (who do) (Zha Le Zha), every money and thing goes with a bottle of wine. The money for each group is not much, it is just a courtesy. The matchmaker looked at the pig's gall and the pig's joints, and blessed them with: "The gall is bright, the gall is long, and the family relationship will last forever."
Back to the door (Yue Na Gu in Yi language). Three days later, the bride and groom and their accompanying brothers and sisters, ranging from a dozen to a few people, brought a jar of wine and some even led a sheep back to Xie's family. The latter family killed pigs and sheep again to wait. Three to five days later, the groom alone takes the bride back to consummate the marriage and they officially become husband and wife.
Send it to the Pure Bodhisattva (written as Obu in Yi language). After marriage, both men and women will ask Mr. Bimo to send a pure Bodhisattva to remove impurities and drive away ghosts and monsters. Clear your tongue of right and wrong, so that your whole family will be pure, harmonious and healthy.
3. New Year greetings after marriage (Jiaogu in Yi language)
After getting married, every new year, the couple has to go home to pay New Year greetings. The gifts they bring are mainly a jar of wine, nine A hard-boiled egg and half a pig's head.
4. Marriage taboos
The Yongshan Yi people and even the entire Yi people respect the family relationship of blood and clan system, and intermarriage within the family is strictly prohibited. Before liberation, it was mostly forbidden to marry outside the caste and with foreign ethnic groups, but now it is open. Therefore, some people call the marriages of the Yongshan Yi people "marriages within the caste and outside the family." The children of aunt and aunt call each other brothers and sisters, and generally do not marry each other.
5. Commonly used numbers
In the marriage process of the Yongshan Yi people, odd numbers such as "three, five, nine, and eleven" are often used. Even numbers are only "eight" and occasionally one or two are used. times, I like to use "Nine" the most. "Nine" reads "Gu" in Yi language, and "Gu Gu Kou Kou" means solid and long-lasting. This means that parents hope that their children will have a long-lasting relationship, a happy marriage, and a stable and happy family. It can be said that they are well-intentioned. "Four and seven" are taboo.