1061, 3164 CHINA (Guangdong / Guangxi / Guizhou / Hainan / Hubei / Hunan / Sichuan / Yunnan) - Miao people

3164 Miao people

Posted on 21.04.2014, 08.10.2017

Miao is an ethnic group who live primarily in southern China, in the provinces of Guizhou, Hunan, Yunnan, Sichuan, Guangxi, Hainan, Guangdong, and Hubei, but also, in smaller numbers, in northern Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand. Miao is actually the official Chinese term for four distinct groups of people who are only distantly related through language or culture (and doesn't reflect the self-designations of the component nations of people): the Hmu people of southeast Guizhou, the Kho (Qho) Xiong people of west Hunan, the A-Hmao people of Yunnan, and the Hmong people of Guizhou, Sichuan, Guangxi, and Yunnan.

1061 Long Skirt Miao women in Guizhou

There are some nine million Miao in China, of whom the Hmong constitute probably one-third. The Miao are related in language and some other cultural features to the Yao; among these peoples the two groups with the closest degree of relatedness are the Hmong (Miao) and the Iu Mien (Yao). Much of the Miao area is hilly or mountainous, and is drained by several big rivers. The weather is mild with a generous rainfall, and the area is rich in natural resources. Major crops include paddy rice, maize, potatoes, Chinese sorghum, beans, rape, peanuts, tobacco, ramie, sugar cane, cotton, oil-tea camellia and tung tree.

1691 CHINA (Guizhou / Guangxi / Yunnan / Sichuan) - A Gelao women

The Gelao people (also spelled Gelo) are an ethnic group of China and northern Vietnam. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by China. However, many Gelao are also variously classified as Yi, Miao, and Zhuang by the Chinese government. They number approximately 500,000 and are mainly located in the western part of Guizhou, being often considered the aboriginal inhabitants of this province. Some live in western Guangxi, southeastern Yunnan, and southern Sichuan. The main religion practiced is  Taoism with a small but significant Buddhist minority. The Gelao language is a dialect cluster of  Kra languages in the Tai-Kadai language family. Today, only a small minority of the Gelao still speak this language.

0949 CHINA (Sichuan) - A teahouse in Chengdu

A teahouse is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments, and, even if its function varies widely depending on the culture, it often serves also as center of social interaction. In China, a teahouse is traditionally similar to the American cafe. People gather at teahouses to chat, socialize, and enjoy tea, and young people often meet at teahouses for dates. Tea culture in China differs from that of Europe, Britain or Japan in such things as preparation methods, tasting methods and the occasions for which it is consumed. Even now, in both casual and formal Chinese occasions, tea is consumed regularly.

0757 CHINA (Sichuan) - Two men from the Sichuan province

This postcard captures an image from an ancient town in the Sichuan province, located in the southwest of the country, between Himalayas, Qinling Range and mountainous areas of Yunnan, and crossed by Yangtze River. Historically known as the "Province of Abundance", because is one of the major agricultural production bases of China, it was also the base for numerous amphibious military forces and served as the ideal hiding frontier for political refugees.