Gejia people
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The Gejia (
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
: 𱎼家人 or 革家人;
Hanyu pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
: Géjiārén; also Gedou) is an
ethnic group An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
of
Guizhou Guizhou (; formerly Kweichow) is a landlocked province in the southwest region of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Guiyang, in the center of the province. Guizhou borders the autonomous region of Guangxi to t ...
province, southwestern
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 ...
. They are officially classified by the government as a part of the
Miao Miao may refer to: * Miao people, linguistically and culturally related group of people, recognized as such by the government of the People's Republic of China * Miao script or Pollard script, writing system used for Miao languages * Miao (Unicode ...
, but have separate status in Guizhou. The Gejia live mainly in
Qiandongnan Prefecture Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture (; Hmu language: ''Qeef Dongb Naif Dol Hmub Dol Gud Zid Zid Zeb''; Kam language: ''Qeens Donc Nanc Nyenc Miiul Nyenc Gaeml Zil Zl Zous''), also known as Southeast Qian Autonomous Prefecture of Miao a ...
, in the counties of Huangping, Kaili, and Guanling. They are concentrated in the towns of Chong'an, Chong Xing, Huangpiao in Huangping and Longchang, Wanshui of Kaili. Matang is exclusively inhabited by these people. There are over 400 inhabitants in this village. The total Gejia population is approximately 50,000.


History

The Gejia, according to legend, are the direct descendants of Houyi, a legendary hero who was said to have shot the nine scorching suns in order to salvage his people. They are noted for their war-like nature and their costumes are indications of such warfare passion. In 1953, soon after the
Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...
ran the Chinese government, it initiated classification of the ethnic minorities. Anthropologists were assigned to distinguish China's ethnic groups based on social history, economic life, language and religion. Out of the 400 groups investigated, China officially approved 38 as distinct ethnicities in 1954. Although the official report of the original investigation recommended that they be identified as a separate minority group, the Gejia were excluded from final approval. They are officially recognised as a sub-group of the Miao people. (The number of recognised ethnic minorities in China has risen to 56 since 1954.)


Culture

The major occupation among the Gejia people is farming. They practice slash-and-burn methods of cultivation, with rice, corn, and millet being their major crops. The women are typically focused on embroideries and batik. Their handicraft style dates back to the
Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first Dynasties in Chinese history, dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin (state), ...
(221–207 BCE), the first dynasty of a unified China and the group sells the items to visitors. The people are most noted for their batik products. Girls are taught the technique at a young age. The dress code of the women has a cultural symbol, particularly signifying the warfare of their ancestors. The head dress is a representation of the Sun and the arrow, while the shoulders and back are covered with thick wools like shawls that represent shields. They cover their legs with leggings as leg guards and the clothes are made in white and red patterns, and decorated with silver ornaments. They practice
animism Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
, and make offerings to appease invisible spirits to prevent diseases, calamities and death, and to make a good harvest. A major festival among the Gejia is ''Caiqing''. It involves a dance called ''Caiqing Wu'' (''Wu'' for "dance"), which is a dance of romance. It is held in the first
lunar month In lunar calendars, a lunar month is the time between two successive syzygies of the same type: new moons or full moons. The precise definition varies, especially for the beginning of the month. Variations In Shona, Middle Eastern, and Europ ...
. Gejia women wear colourful festival dresses, including batik scarves, silver necklaces, pleated skirts, aprons and leggings. There is also a ''
lusheng The ''lusheng'' (, ; Vietnamese: ''Khèn Mông''; also spelled ''lu sheng''; spelled ''ghengx'' in standard Hmong and ''qeej'' in Laotian RPA Hmong) is a Hmong musical instrument. It has a long history of 3000 years in China, traced back to the T ...
'' festival (similar to that of Miao) held in November where the boys play a series of bamboo pipes called lusheng. They perform bird fight and antiphonal singing.


Ethnic identity

In spite of their unique customs, religious practices, and dialect variation, scholars generally classify the Gejia as a sub-group of the Miao. However, the Gejia object to this assertion and claim that they are a unique minority group. Based on their similarities in lifestyle, language, and costumes, the government of China officially categorises them as Miao. Fundamentally, their dialect is one of the Miao languages, however, there are subtle differences. For example, Miao people cannot understand every word of Gejia speech. Their insistent demand of reclassification as separate ethnicity has been to no avail. This is apparently because they are largely outnumbered by the main Miao people. They are also sometimes misidentified as Ge people, who live in the southeastern region of Guizhou.


Anthropological study

A study in 2014 by researchers at the Huazhong Normal University indicated that the linguistic root of the Gejia is the same as that of the Miao. They analysed five tongue movement types, including rolling, folding, twisting, pointed tongue, and clover-leaf tongue. They concluded that there are no significant differences in these linguistic properties between the Miao and Gejia.


See also

* Unrecognized ethnic groups in China


References

{{Reflist


External links


Profile at Ethnic China

Photo-documentary
Ethnic groups in China