The Derung (also spelt ''Drung'' or ''Dulong'') people (; endonym: ) are an ethnic group. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by China. Their population of 6,000 is found in the

Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture Nùjiāng Lisu Autonomous Prefecture () is an autonomous prefecture of western/northwestern Yunnan province, People's Republic of China. Name It is named after the Nujiang river (the longest undammed river in Southeast Asia) and the Lisu ethnic ...

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the C ...

in the Derung Valley of

Gongshan Derung and Nu Autonomous County Gongshan Derung and Nu Autonomous County (; Lisu language, Lisu: ꓗꓳꓹ-ꓢ ꓔꓴꓽ-ꓡꓳꓽ ꓫꓵꓽ ꓠꓳꓸ ꓫꓵꓽ ꓚꓲꓸ ꓛꓬꓽ ꓗꓪꓼ ꓫꓵꓽ ꓫꓯꓹ; Derung language, Derung: Koksang, the name has nothing to do with t ...

. Another 600 can be found east of the Dulong valley, living in the mountains above the Nu River (

Salween River , ''Mae Nam Salawin'' ( , name_etymology = , image = Sweet_View_of_Salween_River_in_Tang_Yan_Township,_Shan_State,_Myanmar.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Salween River in Shan State, Myanmar , map ...

) near the village of Binzhongluo in northern

Language

The Derung speak the Derung language, one of the

Sino-Tibetan languages Sino-Tibetan, also cited as Trans-Himalayan in a few sources, is a family of more than 400 languages, second only to Indo-European in number of native speakers. The vast majority of these are the 1.3 billion native speakers of Chinese languages. ...

. Their language is unwritten; in the past the Derung have transmitted messages and have made records by making notches on wooden logs.

History

There are few documents about the origins of the Derung. It is known, nevertheless, that during the period of the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

, the Derung were under the jurisdiction of

Nanzhao Nanzhao (, also spelled Nanchao, ) was a dynastic kingdom that flourished in what is now southern China and northern Southeast Asia during the 8th and 9th centuries. It was centered on present-day Yunnan in China. History Origins Nanzh ...

and the

Dali Kingdom The Dali Kingdom, also known as the Dali State (; Bai: Dablit Guaif), was a state situated in modern Yunnan province, China from 937 until 1253. In 1253, it was conquered by the Mongols but members of its former ruling dynasty continued to a ...

. The Derung Valley area, the southernmost part of Tsawarong, was known by the Tibetans as ''Changyul'' or ''Kiongyul'', meaning the "valley of beer" because Derung people enjoy drinking. From the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fift ...

to the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

, the Derung were governed by the local Tibetan or

Nakhi The Nakhi or Nashi (; Naxi: ; lit.: "Black people") are an East Asian ethnic group inhabiting the foothills of the Himalayas in the northwestern part of Yunnan Province, as well as the southwestern part of Sichuan Province in China. The Nakh ...

rulers. They also paid yearly tribute to China; the local Lama, called Changputong, was in charge of sending it to Weixi. In 1913, the Derung helped to repel a British attack in the area. Prior to 1949 there were several other names used for this ethnic group; they were known as ''Qiao'' during the Yuan and ''Qiu'' and ''Qu'' during the Qing.

Culture

Prior to the formation of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, Derung society was based on a system of clans. A total of 15 clans existed, called ''nile''; each one of them was formed by diverse familiar communities. Each clan divided itself into ''ke'eng'', towns in which the Derung lived in common houses. Marriages between clans were prohibited. The typical dress of the women consists of a dress made of fabric lined with colors black and white. Formerly, the women used to tattoo their faces when they reached the age of twelve or thirteen. The tattoos of some women resembled masculine mustaches. Houses are usually constructed out of wood. They are two stories in height; the second floor is designed as the living quarters for the family whereas the first level serves as a barn and stable. When a male member of the family is married, a new section is added to the family's house where he and his new wife will live in.

Religion

Although some Derung have converted to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, the vast majority continue to believe in their animist native religion. There is a belief that all creatures have their own souls. Usually diverse sacrifices are made in order to calm down the malignant spirits. The role of the shaman is of great importance since they are the ones in charge of the rituals. During the celebrations of the Derung New Year, which is celebrated in the month of December of the lunar calendar, diverse animal sacrifices are celebrated to make an offering to the sky.

Gallery

File:F.slaughter cattle to worship the god.jpg, Animal sacrifice by Derung people in

File:J.share the meat equally.jpg, The meat is equally shared amongst the people File:Manuscripts in the Yunnan Nationalities Museum - DSC04050.JPG, Derung message system on exhibit in the Yunnan Nationalities Museum

References

* Sūn Hóngkāi 孙宏开: Dúlóngyǔ jiǎnzhì 独龙语简志 (''Introduction to the Derung Language''; Běijīng 北京, Mínzú chūbǎnshè 民族出版社 1982). * Tyler, Leisa (July 4, 2005)
"Into the Valley"
''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

''.
People's Daily: The Drung ethnic minority
(Chinese government site)
Asia harvest ethnic profile
*
Centralisation et intégration du système égalitaire Drung sous l’influence des pouvoirs voisins (Yunnan-Chine)
Stéphane GROS, ''Péninsule'' 35, 1997 *
Du politique au pittoresque en Chine. A propos des Dulong, nationalité minoritaire du Yunnan
Stéphane Gros, 2001

External links

Last tattooed women of the Dulong people (China News Wrap, English)
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20111003035435/http://www.paulnoll.com/China/Minorities/min-Drung.html Paul Knoll description with photographs {{authority control Ethnic groups officially recognized by China