Li

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Li

PRONUNCIATION: LEE
ALTERNATE NAMES: Ha, Gei, Zun, Moi-Fau, and Shai
LOCATION: China (primarily Hainan Island province)
POPULATION: 1.2 million
LANGUAGE: Li
RELIGION: Ancestor worship
RELATED ARTICLES: Vol. 3: China and Her National Minorities

INTRODUCTION

The ancestors of the Li were included in the ancient "Luoyue," the general term for the minorities in southern China during the Western Han Dynasty (206 bc-ad 8). The name of Li, however, appeared in the ancient historical documents at the end of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and has remained unchanged since the Song (960-1279). The Li continuously paid tribute to the imperial dynasties. Entering the Li's districts rather early, the Chinese developed marketplaces and towns. The development increased significantly under the imperial Tang (618- 907), which became interested in trading with countries in the south by way of Hainan Island. At that time, 5 districts and 22 counties were set up. Since the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Li headmen were appointed to rule their people by the imperial government. In the following centuries, the economic development of the Li districts was on par with their Chinese neighbors. They planted "double-harvest rice," made use of iron farm implements invented by the Chinese, and even learned to set up and operate bamboo-tube waterwheels for irrigation. Country fair trade at regular intervals flourished for centuries. Exports to the Chinese mainland represented an important part of the Li economy; among the main items exported were a local brand of oxen, coconut, and areca. Yet, oppression from the feudal government and native officials was so intense as to arouse quite a few uprisings of the Li in the last centuries. In contrast to the Li farmers, who adopted Chinese methods of agriculture in most Li districts, the rest of the population still lived in abject poverty. A primitive co-cultivation system, hemu, had been prevalent in these areas. A piece of land was owned and co-cultivated by several families bound by ties of blood and led by a senior member, the hemu "head." After the payment of common expenses and the reward for the hemu, the crops were divided equally.

LOCATION AND HOMELAND

Li population was 1.2 million in 2000. They live in Hainan Province, dwell together with the Chinese, Miao (Hmong), and Hui in Baoting, Ledong, Dongfang, Qiongzhong, Baisha, Wanning, and Danxian counties. Hainan Island is located in the subtropics and boasts abundant rainfall and rich soil. In some areas, the hot climate yields three crops of rice annually. Corn, sweet potato, and cassava can be planted all year round. Coconut, pineapple, mango, cocoa, coffee, rubber, and areca abound in Hainan.

LANGUAGE

Li language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan family, Zhuang-Dong group, Li Branch. There are five dialects. An alphabetical system of writing based on Latin was created in 1957. The self given names of the Li include Ha, Gei, Zun, Moi-Fau, and Shai. Shai has been most popular; however, most now use the term Li, a traditional Chinese given name.

FOLKLORE

The Li myth of origins is closely linked to the culture of pumpkins and to the history of the flood. A long, long time ago, so the story goes, there were two brothers. Both of their wives were heavy with child for three years already. One day, a white-headed old man advised them to plant a pumpkin in front of the door in order to hasten childbirth. The brothers followed his advice. Subsequently both wives gave birth to a child. The elder brother had a son, the younger a daughter. The pumpkin continued to grow year after year. Then the flood came. The brothers were barely able to put their children inside the huge pumpkin in time to save them from the flood. When they got out of the pumpkin, the flood had already receded, but all the other people had drowned. They made a double-deck bed for the brother and sister. Before long, the sister got pregnant. The god in Heaven angrily cleaved a stone into two and struck a tree down to the ground, saying: "Any brother and sister who marry will be condemned to death." Thereafter, the brother and sister lived separately. The sister bore a fleshy lump, which was cut into three by the brother. One piece was enclosed in a piece of hemp cloth, put on a board, then driven by the current of the Nandu River. Ten months later, it became a Chinese child. That is why the ancestors of the Chinese wore clothing made of hemp. The second piece was wrapped in four smaller pieces of cloth, put on a leaf of a herbaceous plant, and left to drift about on the Wanqian River. Ten months later, it became a Miao child. That is why the Miao women's skirts are made of four pieces of cloth. The last piece was bound up in linen, put on a leaf of coconut, and sent adrift along the Changhua River. Ten months later, it became a Li child. That is why Li women wear linen. After the brother and sister gave birth to the Han, the Miao, and the Li in Hainan Island they became the local gods of the land.

RELIGION

Ancestor worship and belief in ghosts and gods are widespread among the Li. They pay special attention to witchcraft. Witchcraft may cause great harm in the guise of disease or even death. A man practicing witchcraft is called jingtai, and a woman jingpo. There are two kinds of ancestor spirits, one evil and the other good. The good ensure safety and prosperity, while the evil bring about misfortune. On the death of a senior person, a grand funeral with all the trappings of ancestor worship will be held. Whoever falls sick must invite the shaman, daogong, or shamaness, niangmu, to exorcise the ghost; the shamans are also adept in divination and play a role of intermediary with the ghosts and gods. The Li have a number of taboos. For example, it is not auspicious to point one's head toward the door in one's sleep, because that is the position of the body of the dead before a funeral. If a guest lies in that direction, the host will be most unhappy.

MAJOR HOLIDAYS

The Li celebrate the Spring Festival from the last day of the old lunar year to January 15 (Western calendar, between January 21 and March 7). The dinner party on the eve of the lunar New Year is the occasion for the whole family to reunite. Songs of New Year greetings will be sung. On the first and second of lunar January (Western calendar, between January 21 and February 21), the men of a village organize a group hunt. Half of the kill belongs to the hunter who first hits an animal in the hunt. The rest is divided among the villagers. A pregnant woman may have two portions. A traveler who happens to be in the village will also have his share.

RITES OF PASSAGE

Elaborate funeral rites among the Li are related, as mentioned before, to ancestor worship. People announce a death by firing a shot. In areas bordering on Chinese settlements, the Li practice geomancy (divination by means of geographic features) for location of the tomb. In areas of hemu, the coffin is buried underground at a common burial ground. No tumulus or gravestone is set up, nor are there sacrificial offerings or grave sweeping after burial. However, after the funeral the family should receive guests with beef or pork. On the occasion of funerals, family members are allowed to drink and eat as usual, except for rice, which is then taboo. They bury the dead hastily. In general, if a person dies in the morning, the burial will take place in the afternoon; if death occurs in the afternoon, the deceased will be buried the following morning. Because of belief in the "Five Element Theory," burial is never held at noon, lest it lead to disaster. After the date when a person passed away, every twelfth day is celebrated as a commemoration; on "commemorative days" family members are not allowed to work in the field. Such observances last for as long as three years after the death occurred.

INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS

If a guest calls in, the host will serve him areca; if the guest is not accustomed to areca, he should explain to the host. It would be a very impolite behavior simply to refuse.

Formerly, there was a dating custom called fangliao. Reaching adulthood, girls would go in groups to chop wood in the mountain; they carried the wood back to the outskirts of the village or to their family house. Helped by their parents, they built up a house (or an adjacent room) called liaofang, where the girls stayed every night from then on. A young man would sing or blow an instrument to express his affection to the girl. If they found each other congenial, a token showing his affection would be given to her. The young man would then be received by the girl in the fangliao house or room. The fangliao relation did not always lead to marriage. The illegitimate child often born from the fangliao relation was not discriminated against by the Li people. Today, the fangliao custom is waning and is practiced only in remote Li villages. The vast majority of Li youngsters choose more modern ways of social intercourse.

LIVING CONDITIONS

In rural areas Li houses are built in the shape of a short-domed cylinder. The frame is laid out with bamboo or wood and is covered with a thatched roof. The walls are built with bamboo poles or branches of trees covered with mud. The floor is made of bamboo or rattan, about 20 inches above the ground. Some of their houses are two-story, provided with a gable roof. People live upstairs, the ground floor serving for livestock and storage. In urban areas, Li houses are the same as the Chinese.

The cities in Hainan Island are modernized. Highways are well developed. A railway makes a circuit around the island. An integrated bus system links the main towns and villages on the island. Haikou (the capital, in the north) and Sanxia (main tourist resort, in the south) boast fully-equipped international airports.

FAMILY LIFE

Most families in a village are of the same surname. The family is patrilineal and small. Reaching adulthood, the son or daughter moves to the fangliao room beside the house or in the common house. As soon as they marry, they cook separately from their parents. Since the women do a lot of fieldwork with the men, they have a rather high position in their family. According to traditional custom, women mediated conflicts in or among the villages. Even in cases of armed fighting among villages, women intervened in the dispute and helped negotiate a settlement.

CLOTHING

In mountainous areas, men wear a kerchief over the head, an edge-to-edge buttonless linen top and, instead of pants or shorts, two pieces of linen front and back below the waist (as a skirt). Fewer and fewer men still wear this traditional garment, the majority having adopted Chinese-style dress. Women wear an embroidered kerchief on the head, an edge-to-edge buttonless trimmed top with underwear, and a tight straight skirt woven with multicolored cotton threads and adorned with figures and designs. Some of their straight white skirts may reach down to the ankles. Almost all women like to wear earrings— sometimes a wide and heavy array—as well as bracelets and necklaces. Tattoos also serve as feminine ornaments. Some women have designs tattooed on their faces, others over their hands, feet, neck, and chest. The designs vary in different areas, ranging from rather simple figures to very intricate ones. A growing number of Li women now wear Chinese clothes and ornamentation. Urban Li women are not different in outward appearance from those of other nationalities. The men are not tattooed, but they like to wear earrings.

FOOD

Rice, corn, and yams are the staple foods of the Li. They eat three meals a day. Pottery is used for rice cooking. Meat is roasted or preserved in salt with ground rice and edible wild herbs. Vegetables are rare. Men have a passion for hunting, and meat is an important source of dietary protein. Men like drinking and smoking, while women are fond of chewing areca. The eating habits of the urban Li are the same as those of the Chinese.

EDUCATION

Nearly 1,000 primary schools have been set up in Li areas. Over 90% of children reaching school age are enrolled. Besides formal schooling, literary classes, reading groups, and cultural rooms in the villages contribute to the elimination of illiteracy. Middle school students and college students are quite common. Their cultural and educational level is higher than average for the minorities, but it is still below average for the whole country.

CULTURAL HERITAGE

The Li are well known for their natural talent for singing. In fact, folk songs are their principal means of expressing their emotions. Lyrics spontaneously flow from their mouths when they are touched by feelings. Folk songs may be performed as solos, as antiphonal singing, in unison, or in chorus. There are quite a few traditional musical instruments. The "Mouth Bow" is made of a thin piece of bamboo or copper, which is played by flicking the fingers. There are at least four kinds of vertical bamboo flutes particular to the Li, one of which is played by nose-blowing. The Li also have a wide array of dances accompanied by music and song, the most popular being the "Cutting Firewood Dance," the "Rice Husking Dance," and the "Double Sword Dance," all of which are colorful and have a rich flavor of life.

Li literature is mainly oral and includes lengthy epics handed down through many generations, all praising their heroes and founders; among the most popular are "Brave God of Unusual Strength," "Legend of the Five-Finger Mountain," and "Brother's Constellation."

WORK

The Li mainly engage in rice planting, gathering, and hunting to complement their main economic activity. Li women excel in weaving textiles, especially silk cotton. Early in the Song Dynasty (1127-1279), Li brocade was already famous and was sought after by the Chinese. Tradition has it that the legendary expert of textiles, Lady Huang Daopo, lived in Li areas for 46 years. She dedicated herself to the improvement of textiles. Li women benefited considerably from her teaching.

SPORTS

"Bamboo Dancing" is very popular among the Li. People sit on the ground in two rows, face to face, in pairs. Each pair holds two bamboo sticks by the ends. They rhythmically separate the bamboos and bring them back together. The dancers, following the rhythm, must jump in and out of the gap before the bamboo sticks are brought back together, or the foot will be caught between the bamboos; it is then almost impossible for the dancer to find his rhythm again and his feet get caught at almost every beat. The competition is open to all participants, young and old, and always attracts large crowds.

"Shooting a buffalo's leg" is another traditional sport. Each village selects a good archer. The buffalo leg is hung beneath a tree, about 30 m (100 ft) away from the shooters. Whoever hits the leg is allowed to take it back to his village and share it with the villagers.

ENTERTAINMENT AND RECREATION

Although available, movies and television are not yet popularized among the rural Li. Their entertainment and recreation gravitate toward singing and dancing. In urban areas, however, a wide array of recreation and entertainment is available. Beach activities, especially on the southern shores of the island, have recently begun to attract more and more Li youngsters.

FOLK ART, CRAFTS, AND HOBBIES

Li brocade is an important craft. Ornaments made of silver and animal bones have a unique style. Some women wear a few earrings in different patterns and also bracelets in different styles.

SOCIAL PROBLEMS

Since Hainan Province is now the largest special economic zone of China, the social economy has developed rapidly in an integrated way. The current problem among the rural Li is the intense conflict between their traditional agricultural and rural culture and the modern industrial urban culture. The process of modernization seems inevitable, but there is no way to ensure a smooth and peaceful transition between traditional and modern values.

GENDER ISSUES

The Chinese constitution states that women have equal rights with men in all areas of life, and most legislation is gender neutral. Li women, in traditional household, have a relatively high position. Women were the traditional mediators of community conflicts. As the Li become more urbanized, this tradition is changing somewhat, with men taking stronger roles.

China has strict family planning laws. It is illegal for women to marry before 20 years of age (22 for men), and it is illegal for single women to give birth. Though minority populations were previously exempt from family planning regulations, policy has changed in recent years to limit minority population growth. Today, urban minority couples may have two children while rural couples may have three or four.