Chaping Yao Village is the only ethnic minority village in Tangdong Subdistrict, with the Yao population accounting for 80%. Formerly located on the Chaping Mountain at an altitude of 640 meters, it was a coal mining subsidence area with no roads, no water, and no electricity.

 

In recent years, more than 600 Yao people from 371 households in Chaping Yao village relocated to a new Yao village covering an area of 33,000 square meters. 

 

 

With the support of Zixing City, funds were raised to build a Panwang Hall of 400 square meters, a Yao Culture and Leisure Square of 1,000 square meters, a village-level cultural activity room of 300 square meters, an illuminated basketball court of 600 square meters, a new Yao leisure walkway of 300 meters, an outdoor cultural publicity corridor of 200 meters, renovate an outdoor activity venue of 1,000 square meters, and install fitness equipment, fitness paths, landscape lights, etc.

 

At the same time, based on its profound cultural heritage, the village holds celebrations for the three traditional festivals of the Yao ethnic group (the Qichun Festival on March 11 in the lunar calendar, the Reunion Festival on July 15, and the Panwang Festival on October 16) and intangible cultural heritage exhibitions every year to inherit the traditional culture such as Yao songs, Yao martial arts, and hunting.

 

 

The event started with “Evocation of Five Cereals”, a representative project of the intangible cultural heritage of Yao ethnic minority in Zixing, where Yao people dressed in ethnic costumes held a solemn “Panwang Festival” event to pray for good weather, abundant grains, and prosperous industries in the coming year.

 

Subsequently, the authentic Yao songs, dragon and lion dance, and the Yao flower stick dance were staged to express the joy and solidarity of the Yao people in Chaping. 

 

On that day, there were also activities such as the Chaping Yao achievement exhibition, the special agricultural products exhibition and sales, the long-table banquet, and the Yao culture seminar.

 

 

“The good policies of the Party have made our lives better and better, and it is our duty to protect and inherit excellent traditional ethnic culture,” said Zhao Guangshun, an inheritor of the provincial-level intangible cultural heritage in Chaping Yao Village.

 

Because of the traditional festivals held for a long time, Chaping Yao Village and Panwang Hall have been awarded the titles of “Chenzhou Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritance Base” and “Hunan Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection and Inheritance Base”. The “Panwang Festival” of Yao ethnic minority in Zixing City has been selected among the fifth batch of national intangible cultural heritage representative projects (folk customs).

 

 

Next, Tangdong Subdistrict will further tap into the “Panwang Festival” celebrations and the essence of Yao intangible cultural heritage to develop the ethnic characteristic industries like leisure tourism, Yao embroidery, handicrafts, local specialties, making Yao culture a new engine for the development of tourism industry in Zixing City.