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Guizhou

 

Guiyang (貴陽) is the capital of Guizhou Province. Guiyang is located in central Guizhou province, situated on the east of the Yungui Plateau, and on the north bank of the Nanming River, a branch of the Wu River. The city has an elevation of about 1,100 meters. It has an area of 8,034 square kilometers.

Guiyang is populated by 23 different minorities, the most populous of which is the Miao people, in addition to the ethnic Han.

 

 

Tourism

The province has many covered bridges, called Wind and Rain Bridges. These were built by the Dong minority people.

The southeastern corner of the province is known for its unique Dong minority culture. Towns such as Rongjiang, Liping, Diping and Zhaoxing are scattered amongst the hills along the border with Guangxi.

The rich population of minorities in Guizhou allow for a great many ethnic festivals throughout the lunar calendar. During the first lunar month (usually February), the early festival in Kaili (east of Guiyang) celebrates local culture with acts of bullfighting, horse racing, pipe playing, and comedy works.

 

Guizhou

Excerpts from Wikipedia.org

Guizhou (貴州; also spelled Kweichow) is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.

 

History

Guizhou was under Chinese control during the Han Dynasty and well known by the Chinese for thousands of years but it was not until the Ming dynasty that it came under heavy Chinese settlement and domination during which it was made a province. This prompted mass migration from Sichuan, Hunan and its surrounding provinces into Guizhou.

Countless rebellions by its native Miao people occurred throughout the Qing dynasty. It was said in the Qing dynasty that every thirty years there would be minor revolts, while every sixty years there would be major rebellions. All the revolts would be violently suppressed by the government.

 

Geography

Guizhou adjoins Sichuan Province and Chongqing Municipality to the north, Yunnan Province to the west, Guangxi Province to the south and Hunan Province to the east. Overall Guizhou is a mountainous province however it is more hilly in the west while the eastern and southern portions are relatively flat. The western part of the province forms part of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau.

Other cities include: Anshun, Kaili, Zunyi, Duyun, Liupanshui and Qingzhen.

Guizhou has a subtropical humid climate. There are few seasonal changes. Its annual average temperature is roughly 10 to 20 °C, with January temperatures ranging from 1 to 10°C and July temperatures ranging from 17 to 28 °C.

 

Economy

Guizhou is a relatively poor and undeveloped province. Its nominal GDP for 2008 was 333.34 billion yuan (48 billion USD). Its per capita GDP of 8,824 RMB (1,270 USD) ranks last in all of the PRC.

Its natural industry includes timber and forestry. Other important industries in the province include energy (electricity generation) and mining, especially in coal, limestone, arsenic, gypsum, and oil shale. Guizhou's total output of coal was 118 million tons in 2008, a 7% growth from the previous year

 

Culture

Guizhou is the home of the Maotai Distillery, distillers of Maotai liquor, China's most famous alcoholic beverage. The Chinese name of the distillery is Zhongguo Guizhou Maotai Jiuchang (中国贵州茅台酒厂).

 

Demographics

Guizhou is one of the provinces that contains the most minority groups. The minority groups account for more than 37% of the total population and they include Yao, Miao (including Gha-Mu and A-Hmao), Yi, Qiang, Dong, Zhuang, Buyei, Bai, Tujia, Gelao and Shui. 55.5% of the province area is designated as autonomous regions for them. Guizhou is the province with highest TFR in China with 2.19. (Urban-1.31, Rural-2.42).

 

 

Southwest China

Southwest China (西南) is a region of China defined by governmental bureaus that includes the municipality of Chongqing; provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou; and the Tibet Autonomous Region.

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Ethnic Minorities

Yao

The Yao nationality (瑤族; Vietnamese: người Dao) is a government classification for various minorities in China. They form one of the 55 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China, where they reside in the mountainous terrain of the southwest and south. They also form one of the 54 ethnic groups officially recognized by Vietnam. In the last census, they numbered 2,637,421 in China, and roughly 470,000 in Vietnam.

Early History: Origins of the Yao can be traced back 2000 years ago starting in South China.

Emigration: From the 15th to 19th century, the Yao migrated into Thailand, Vietnam and the highlands of Laos. The migration was agitated by the opium trade and as the result of revolts in Southern China during this period.

Laotian Civil War: During the Laotian Civil War, Yao tribes of Laos had a good relationship with U.S. forces and were dubbed to be an “efficient friendly force.” This relationship caused the Laotian government to target Yao tribal groups for revenge once the war was over. This triggered further immigration into Thailand, where the tribes would be put into camps along the Thailand-Laos border.

Immigration to the United States: After obtaining refugee status from the Thai government and with the help of the United Nations, many Yao people were able to obtain sponsorship into the United States (although many remain in Thailand, mostly in impoverished upland settlements in Northern Thailand). Most of the Yao who have immigrated to the United States have settled along the Western part of the U.S., mainly in Northern California such as Oakland, Oroville, Sacramento, but also in parts of Oregon and the state of Washington. See Mien American for those identified as Mien.

Culture: The typical houses of the Yao are rectangular and they have structures made of wood and bamboo. Normally it has three rooms: a room and two dormitories in the lateral side. Each one of these rooms has a small oven to cook.

The men and the women cover their heads with a black or red scarf. Some women substitute this scarf by a turban that can adopt different forms.

The traditional suit of the women is of bright colors. They also decorate their shirts with decorations made out of silver.

In Vietnam, Yao people celebrate many exciting and meaningful festivals such as Nhơn chung lỉnh (literally: Red rice, Green rice"), Nhiang chằm đao (literally: Jumping Festival)...

Groups and Languages

There are several distinct groups within the Yao nationality, and they speak several different languages, from different language families:

• Miao-Yao languages
  • The Mien speak Mienic languages (勉語) , including:
    • Mian-Jin languages
      • Iu Mien, 818,685 speakers (383,000 in China, 350,000 in Vietnam, 40,000 in Thailand, 20,250 in Laos, 70,000 in the United States)
      • Kim Mun (also known as Lanten), more than 300,000 Yao people
      • Biao Mon, 20,000 speakers
    • Dzao Min, 60,000 speakers
    • Biao-Jiao Mien, 43,000 speakers
  • Miao or Hmong languages
    • Bunu, 258,000 speakers
    • Wunai Bunu, 18,442 speakers.
    • Younuo Bunu, 9,716 speakers
    • Jiongnai Bunu, 1,078 speakers also known as the 'Flowery Blue Yao'
    • Some linguists group the above languages - with a total of more than 287,000 speakers - together as dialects of a single Bunu language (Bùnǔyǔ 布努语).
• Kradai languages
  • Lakkia (Lājiāyǔ 拉珈語/拉珈语), 12,000 speakers
• Chinese
  • about 500,000 Yao speak Chinese dialects

In addition to China, populations of Yao also live in Northern Vietnam (where they are called Dao), Northern Laos, and Burma. There are around 60,000 Yao in Northern Thailand, where they are one of the six main hill tribes. The lowland-living Lanten of Laos, who speak Kim Mun, and the highland-living Iu Mien of Laos are two different Yao groups. There are also many Yao living in the United States, mainly refugees from the highlands of Laos who speak the Iu Mien language. The Iu Mien do not call themselves "Yao". Not all "Yao" are Iu Mien.

A group of 61,000 people on the island of Hainan speak the Yao language Kim Mun, but see themselves as Miao (Hmong), and they are also officially categorized as Miao by the Chinese Government. 139,000 speakers of Kim Mun live in other parts of China (Yunnan and Guangxi), and 174,500 live in Laos and Vietnam.

The Bunu call themselves Nuox [no13], Buod nuox [po43 no13], Dungb nuox [tuŋ33 no13] or according to their official name Yaof zuf [ʑau21 su21]. Only 258,000 of the 439,000 people categorised as Bunu in the 1982 census speak Bunu; 100,000 speak Zhuang, and 181,000 speak Chinese and Bouyei.

Other Chinas: The Yao and the Politics of National Belonging by Ralph A.Litzinger

 

 

 

A History of Daoism and the Yao People of South China by Eli Alberts

 

 

 

 

 

Miao

The Miao (苗族) are a linguistically and culturally related group of people recognized by the government of the People's Republic of China as one of the 55 official minority groups. Miao is a Chinese term and does not reflect the self-designations of the component sub-groups, which include (with some variant spellings) Hmong/Mong, Hmu, A Hmao,and Kho (Qho) Xiong. The Miao live primarily in southern China, in the provinces of Guizhou, Hunan, Yunnan, Sichuan, Guangxi, Hainan, Guangdong, and Hubei. Some members of the Miao sub-groups, most notably Hmong/Mong people, have migrated out of China into Southeast Asia (northern Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand).

Historically, the term "Miao" had been applied inconsistently to a variety of non-Han peoples often with the connotation of "barbarian." This former meaning has not kept members of the modern nationality from self-identifying as Miao.

Though the Miao themselves use various self-designations, the Chinese traditionally classified them according to the most characteristic colour of the women's clothes. The list below contains the self-designations, the colour designations and the main regions inhabited by the four major groups of Miao in China:

• Ghao Xong; Red Miao; west Hunan.
• Hmu, Gha Ne (Ka Nao); Black Miao; southeast Guizhou.
• A Hmao; Big Flowery Miao; northwest Guizhou and northeast Yunnan.
• Hmong, White Miao, Mong, Green (Blue) Miao, Small Flowery Miao; south Sichuan, west Guizhou and south Yunnan.

According to the 2000 census, the number of Miao in China was estimated to be about 9.6 million. Outside of China, members of Miao sub-groups live in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar due to migrations starting in the 18th century. As a result of recent migrations in the aftermath of the Indochina and Vietnam wars between 1949 and 1975, many Hmong/Mong people now live in the United States, French Guiana, France and Australia. Altogether there are approximately 8 million speakers of Miao languages. This language family, which consists of 6 languages and around 35 dialects (some of which are mutually intelligible) belongs to the Hmong/Miao branch of the Hmong/Mong-Mien (Miao-Yao) language family.

Archaeological Discoveries: Many Miao scholars believe the Dawenkou Culture to be Miao. They cite the pottery designs found in the tombs as examples. The designs are very similar to present day Miao embroideries. Combine this with the presence of Miao in Shangdong suggests the Miao's origin is not the south but the mouth of the Yellow River. It would also support the Miao's claim to the Shang Dynasty since Shangdong is part of Shang.

Lady Dai found in Tomb no. 1 at Mawangdui is believed by many Miao as a Miao woman. They cite the T-shaped banners draped over her coffin as an example of Miao burial practices and beliefs. This dispel the belief that the sinicization of the Miao was by force or even sinicized during the Han Dynasty. Liu Bang is a general under Xiang Yu meaning he commanded Miao troops and they are his base of power. When the dispute with Xiang Yu broke out Xiang Yu's uncle Xiang Bo and Fan Kuai saved Liu Bang's life. This meant Liu Bang's support among the Miao was strong. The Han-Chu contention was not about a struggle between two groups of people but between two individuals. This explains why Miao beliefs and culture flourished during the Western Han. It would also mean that the Han nationality began when the Miao and Huaxia came together as one. The present day Miao may be the remnant of those who fled when Qin conquered Chu. They left before peace came and never returned. It would explain why Chu is acknowledged by the Miao as a Miao Kingdom but not Han given Liu Bang's base of power was former Chu in the South.

* Song: 我是苗家人 on YouTube

 

 

History of the Miao People

Origin: The early history of the Hmong has proven difficult to trace, but theories that place the origin of the Hmong/Mong people in Mesopotamia, Siberia, or Mongolia have been disputed by recent studies. According to Ratliff, there is linguistic evidence to suggest that they have occupied the same areas of southern China for at least the past 2,000 years. Evidence from mitochondrial DNA in Hmong-Mien/Miao-Yao language speaking populations supports the southern origins of maternal lineages even further back in time, although Hmong/Miao speaking populations show more contact with northeast Asians (i.e. northern Han) than Mien/Yao populations. Historical Chinese documents describe that area being inhabited by 'Miao' people, a group with whom Hmong people are often identified.

Conflict between Miao groups and newly arrived settlers increased during the eighteenth-century under repressive economic and cultural reforms imposed by the Qing Dynasty. This led to armed conflict and large-scale migrations continuing into the late nineteenth-century, the period during which most Hmong people emigrated to Southeast Asia. The process began as early as the late-seventeenth-century, before the time of major social unrest, when small groups went in search of better agricultural opportunities.

• Vietnam (1999): 787,600
• Laos (2005): 450,000
• Thailand: 150,000

Contact with the Huaxia: In China, the first recorded Miao kingdom was called Jiuli, and its ruler or rulers, had the title Chiyou (in Chinese) or Txiv Yawg (in White Hmong) or Txiv Yawg (in Mong Leng). Chiyou means grandfather, and is a title equal to, but no less than, emperor. Chiyou's ancestors are thought to be the Liangzhu people. Jiuli was said to have jurisdiction over nine tribes and 81 clans.

History According to Chinese Legend: According to Chinese legend, the people under Chiyou (蚩尤) were defeated at Zhuolu (涿鹿, a defunct prefecture on the border of present provinces of Hebei and Liaoning) by the military unification of Huang Di (黃帝) and Yandi (炎帝), leaders of the Huaxia (華夏) tribe as they struggled for supremacy of the Huang He valley (see Battle of Zhuolu). The compass was believed to be the crucial reason of Huaxia's victory. The battle, believed to have taken place in the 26th century BC, was fought under heavy fog as Huaxia was able to match against the ancestors of the Mong with the compass.

After their defeat, the tribe of Chiyou split into two smaller splinter tribes, the Miao and the Li (黎). The Miao continuously moving southwest and Li southeast as the Huaxia race, later known as Han Chinese, expanded southward. During the course of Chinese history, the Miao were sometimes regarded as "barbarians" by the increasingly technologically and culturally advanced Han Chinese. Some members of the Miao and Li tribes were assimilated into the Han Chinese during the Zhou Dynasty.

Another version of the story says that the tribe split three ways. It is said Chiyou had 3 sons, and after the fall of Jiuli, his eldest son led some people south, his middle son led some people north, and his youngest son remained in Zhuolu and assimilated into the Huaxia culture. Those who were led to the south established the San-Miao nation. Perhaps due to this splitting into multiple groups, many Far Eastern people regard Chiyou as their ancestors, and by the same token, many question the ethnicity of Chiyou as exclusively Mong or otherwise. In some circles of thought, the Koreans also regard Chiyou as an ethnic ancestor. Furthermore, under the present ethnic unification policy of the PRC, Chiyou is now also regarded as one of China's forefathers alongside the ethnic Han ancestors, Huangdi and Yandi. It is believed that during this time the Mong were split into two main dialects: Mong Leng and Hmong Der and referred to as Mong and Hmong. Today, the two names are used interchangeably.

Qin and Han Dynasties: The term "Miao" was first used by the Han Chinese in pre-Qin times, i.e. before 221 BC, for designating non-Han Chinese groups in the south. It was often used in the combinations "nanmiao", "miaomin", "youmiao" and "sanmiao" (三苗). At that time the people lived in the Yangtze River valley, but later they were forced by the antagonistic policing of the Han Chinese to move further southwards and to higher elevations. As most territories of the Six dynasty located south of the river, bringing the Miao into submission was a major concern for stability of those dynasties. With the Wu Hu ravaging areas north of the river, large scale migration of Chinese to the south accelerated the assimilation of Miao into Han Chinese.

Tang Dynasty: Thus beginning in Tang Dynasty, the Miao ceased as a major non-Han Chinese group except in the province of Yunnan where six zhaos (詔 meaning "state") of Miao resided there. Some scholars argued that the six zhaos were groups of the Yi people. The southernmost, known as Meng-she-zhao (蒙舍詔) or Nan-zhao (南詔) united all six zhaos and found an independent state during early 8th century with treacherous help from Tang Dynasty. The title of the head of state was Nan-zhao Wang (南詔王), meaning the King of Nanzhao. Uneasiness of the increasing threat from Tubo (today Tibet) encouraged the Chinese dynasty to establish a friendly regime neighboring both countries. Tang also deployed a military district, Jiannan Jie-Du (劍南節度) located in today southern Sichuan Province and bordering Nanzhao.

Nanzhao: During the first ten peaceful years in 8th century, Nanzhao regularly paid tributes through the head of military district (Jiannan Jie-Du-Shi (劍南節度使)) to the Han Chinese dynasty. As the Tang Dynasty deteriorating during mid 8th century, the district was gaining more independent authority from the Tang dynastic government. They demanded more tributes from Nanzhao to develop sizable forces against the dynasty. Some district heads even intimidated the peoples of Nanzhao. The rulers of Nanzhao were Tibeto-Burman speakers, but it is possible the population included some ancestors of the present-day Hmong. A famous example was a rejected demand to spend a night with the queen, the only wife of the Nanzhao King. All intimidations and unfair tributes led to the outbreak of Nanzhao rebellion during the Tianbao era (742-756) of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang China. Before marching against the district legion, the Nanzhao King ordered a stone inscription of the reasons of rebellion. The monument remained erected and can still be seen today. The Tang Dynasty could have easily defeated Nanzhao troops but struggles of power among generals of the district letting Nanzhao surge deeply into Tang's territory, almost reaching Chengdu, location of the district headquarters. Appointment of incompetent heads was also a factor. The most famous one was Yang Guozhong, brother of Lady Yang, the beloved concubine of the emperor. Although the rebellion was eventually squashed, the dynasty wasted precious resources which could have been used securing the northern border, ushering in the much more disastrous Anshi Rebellion.

During the later years of the Tang dynasty, Nanzhao had the upper hand on its relations with Tang and Tibet as both countries tried to ally with Nanzhao, thus isolating the enemy. Nanzhao fully exploited the situation and rose as a major power in Southeast Asia. During its zenith of power, northern parts of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Burma, Guangxi and eastern portion of Guangdong, southwestern portion of Sichuan, Guizhou and the whole province of Yunnan were all under its control. Chengdu and Hanoi were each sacked twice. After the fall of the latter in late 9th century, Chinese dynasties never recovered the city until Ming Dynasty in the 15th century. Tang Dynasty gradually increased numbers of military district bordering Nanzhao and consequently the insurgences of Pang Xun was the first of the rebellions leading to the fall of Tang.

Nanzhao, under the influence of Tang for a century (8th century to 9th century), was gradually adopting the Chinese culture and at the same time disintegrated as struggles of power among various rival clans. Eventually the Duan (段) clan won and found the Kingdom of Dali which lasted until the submission to the Mongols. During Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty the term "nanman" (南蠻; meaning the southern non-Chinese people) was used. However, the name "miao" to describe some of these southern people reappeared in Fan Chuo's book on the southern tribes, Manshu (862 A.D.).

Zhong Xang, Yajiaumo of Huang: Zhong Xang Yajiaumo, also known as Tou Long Vaj, was the General of the Huang of the Miao People, today they are known as the Hmong, during the 11th Century through mid-12th Century in Southern China against the Rebellion of the Zhou Dynasty. He was born in the mountains in a Miao village, he grew up hated by many of the villagers because he was poor and did not have parents, likely they've died from illness or were killed. Instead of learning his culture's teachings, he studied swordsmenship and martial arts. He then defended his village from random attacks of the Chinese, (Xhua Liab). When the Emperor ordered a sweep to take out the Miao people, many fled into deeper southern Asia; Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. Those who stayed supported Zhong Xang with the war against the Chinese, the first battle at the northern mountains of Huangshan led Zhong Xang with victory. Stunned by this, the Emperor ordered more men on the attack, the second battle of Qin Xing was victorious by Zhong Xang as well. At Haji Bay, Zhong Xang and his armies were ambushed and Yajiaumo almost died. He managed to survive with the help of the "Green Hmong" (Hmoob Gauws), who later agreed to help him fight. In 1172, the Khong Ming of the Zhou surrendered and they fled into the east. The Miao people then moved to the higher mountains to avoid furture warfare. In 1186, arrows lit with fire and yellings from the distance was heard as Chinese soldiers raged the mountains of Huangshan. once again, the Miao was forced to fight. Zhong Xang was placed as General, and battle continued until 1208, when Zhong Xang's soldiers were less than 150,000. Before the battle, he gave a speech to the Miao People. He asked them to help him battle, instead 66 percent of the population in the entire Southern China region decided to leave. Leaving him with less than 12,000 soldiers. Not surrendering, he plunged an attack on the Chinese. He was outnumbered and his entire army was wiped out in less than 4 hours or five. Zhong Xang was caught and faced the Emperor. Forced to Kneel apon the Emperor, he refused. His back-knees were cut by a knife, forcing him to kneel. Grabing his sword, he plunged the grounds and forced himself to never bow down. The Emperor then grabbed his knife and plunged it into Zhong Xang's neck, he was bled and died. Over almost one thousand years later, his finds where found and a statue was built for the memory of the great Miao Leader.

Ming and Qing Dynasties: During the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368–1911) 'miao' and 'man' were both used, the second possibly to designate the Yao (傜) people. The Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties could neither fully assimilate nor control the aboriginal people. As a result, the policy of "using barbarians to rule barbarians" (yiyi zhiyi) was employed. Furthermore, a counterpart wall to the Great Wall in the south was erected to protect and divide the Chinese from the 'southern barbarians'. Politically and militarily, the Hmong continued to be a stone in the shoe of the Chinese empire. The Hmong were more than a match against the Chinese since the latter's military was stretched across China defending against northern invaders. The Chinese had to fall back on political means to ensnare Hmong people, they created multiple competing positions of substantial prestige for Hmong people to participate and assimilate into the Chinese government system. During the Ming and Qing times, the official position of Kaitong was created in Indochina. The Hmong would employ the use of the Kiatong government structure until the 1900s when they entered into French colonial politics in Indochina.

Muslims in China, along with the Miao people, revolted against the Qing Dynasty, most notably in the Dungan revolt (1862-1877) and the Panthay rebellion (1856-1873) in Yunnan. These little known revolts were suppressed by the Manchu government in a manner that amounts to genocide,killing a million people in the Panthay rebellion, several million in the Dungan revolt and five million in the suppression of Miao people in Guizhou. A "washing off the Muslims"(洗回 (xi Hui)) policy had been long advocated by officials in the Manchu government

* Analysis of mtDNA Polymorphism among Three Mien Population in Guangxi by Hui Li

 

Minority Rules: The Miao and the Feminine in China's Cultural Politics by Louisa Schein

 

 

 

 

Miao Textiles from China (Fabric Folios) by Gina Corrigan

 

 

 

The Art of Ethnography: A Chinese "Miao Album" by Laura Hostetler

 

 

 

 

Haplogroup D (Y-DNA)

Haplogroup D (M174) is a Y-chromosome haplogroup. Both D and E lineages also exhibit the single-nucleotide polymorphism M168 which is present in all Y-chromosome haplogroups except A and B, as well as the YAP unique-event polymorphism, which is unique to Haplogroup DE.

Origins: Haplogroup D is believed to have originated in Asia some 60,000 years before present. While haplogroup D along with haplogroup E contains the distinctive YAP polymorphism (which indicates their common ancestry), no haplogroup D chromosomes have been found anywhere outside of Asia.

Overview: Like haplogroup C, D is believed to represent the Great Coastal Migration along southern Asia, from Arabia to Southeast Asia and thence northward to populate East Asia. It is found today at high frequency among populations in Tibet, the Japanese archipelago, and the Andaman Islands, though curiously not in India. The Ainu of Japan and the Jarawa and Onge of the Andaman Islands are notable for possessing almost exclusively Haplogroup D chromosomes, although Haplogroup C3 chromosomes also occur among the Ainu at a frequency of approximately 15% (3/20). Haplogroup D chromosomes are also found at low to moderate frequencies among populations of Central Asia and northern East Asia as well as the Han and Miao-Yao peoples of China and among several minority populations of Sichuan and Yunnan that speak Tibeto-Burman languages and reside in close proximity to the Tibetans.

Unlike haplogroup C, Hg D did not travel from Asia to the New World; it is found in no modern Native American (North, Central or South) populations. There is the possibility it traveled to the New World, like Hg C, but those lineages died out.

Haplogroup D is also remarkable for its rather extreme geographic differentiation, with a distinct subset of Haplogroup D chromosomes being found exclusively in each of the populations that contains a large percentage of individuals whose Y-chromosomes belong to Haplogroup D: Haplogroup D1 among the Tibetans (as well as among the mainland East Asian populations that display very low frequencies of Haplogroup D Y-chromosomes), Haplogroup D2 among the various populations of the Japanese Archipelago, Haplogroup D3 among the inhabitants of Tibet, Tajikistan and other parts of mountainous southern Central Asia, and paragroup D* (probably another monophyletic branch of Haplogroup D) among the Andaman Islanders. Another type (or types) of paragroup D* is found at a very low frequency among the Turkic and Mongolic populations of Central Asia, amounting to no more than 1% in total. This apparently ancient diversification of Haplogroup D suggests that it may perhaps be better characterized as a "super-haplogroup" or "macro-haplogroup." In one study, the frequency of haplogroup D* found among Thais was 10%.

The Haplogroup D Y-chromosomes that are found among populations of the Japanese Archipelago are particularly distinctive, bearing a complex of at least five individual mutations along an internal branch of the Haplogroup D phylogeny, thus distinguishing them clearly from the Haplogroup D chromosomes that are found among the Tibetans and Andaman Islanders and providing evidence that Y-chromosome Haplogroup D2 was the modal haplogroup in the ancestral population that developed the prehistoric Jōmon culture in the Japanese islands.

 

 

Tujia

The Tujia (土家族; endonym: Bizika 毕兹卡), with a total population of over 8 million, is the 6th largest ethnic minority in People's Republic of China. They live in Wuling Mountains, straddling the common borders of Hunan, Hubei and Guizhou Provinces, and Chongqing Municipality.

Their endonym Bizika means "native dwellers" in the Tujia language.

The Origins of the Tujia: Although there are different accounts of their origins, the Tujia may trace their history back over twelve centuries, and possibly beyond, to the ancient Ba people who occupied the area around modern-day Chongqing some 2,500 years ago. The Ba Kingdom reached the zenith of its power between 600 BC and 400 BC but was destroyed by the Qin in 316 BC. After being referred to by a long succession of different names in ancient documents, they appear in historical records as the Tujia from about 1300s onwards.

The Tujia under the Ming and Qing Dynasties: The Tujia tusi chieftains reached the zenith of their power under the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), when they were accorded comparatively high status by the imperial court. They achieved this through their reputation as providers of fierce, highly-disciplined fighting men, who were employed by the emperor to suppress revolts by other minorities. On numerous occasions, they also helped defend China against outside invaders, such as Japanese pirates who ravaged the coast during the 16th century.

The Manchus conquered China in 1644 and established the Qing Dynasty. Ever suspicious of local rulers, the Qing emperors always tried to replace Chinese officials with Manchu officials wherever they could. In the early 1700s, the Qing court finally felt secure enough to establish direct control over minority areas as well. This process, known as gaituguiliu (literally 'replace the local [ruler], return to mainstream [central rule]'), was carried out throughout south-west China gradually and, in general, peacefully. The court adopted a carrot-and-stick approach of lavish pensions for compliant chieftains, coupled with a huge show of military force on the borders of their territories.

Most of the Tujia areas returned to central control during the period 1728-1735. Whilst the Tujia peasantry probably preferred the measured rule of Qing officials to the arbitrary despotism of the Tujia chieftains whom they had replaced, many resented the attempts of the Qing court to impose national culture and customs on them. With the weakening of central Qing rule, numerous large-scale uprisings occurred. The Taiping Rebellion affected the area badly, and western imperialist aggression caused great economic hardship as cheap foreign goods flooded the region, with local products being bought up at rock-bottom prices.

Recent History: Following the collapse of the Qing Dynasty, the Tujia found themselves caught between various competing warlords. More and more land was given over to the cultivation of high-earning opium at the insistence of wealthy landlords, and banditry was rife. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Tujia areas came under Communist control, and banditry was rapidly eradicated. Subsequent land reform meant that the spectre of starvation ceased to be the ever-present companion of the peasant farmer.

The Tujia were officially recognised as one of the 55 ethnic minorities in January 1957, and a number of autonomous prefectures and counties were subsequently established.

Culture: Today, traditional Tujia customs can only be found in the most remote areas.

The Tujia are renowned for their singing and song composing abilities and for their tradition of the Baishou Dance (摆手舞), a 500 year old collective dance which uses 70 ritual gestures to represent war, farming, hunting, courtship and other aspects of traditional life. They are also famous for their richly-patterned brocade, known as xilankapu, a product that in earlier days regularly figured in their tribute payments to the Chinese court.

Regarding religion, most of the Tujia worship a white tiger totem, although some Tujia in western Hunan worship a turtle totem.

Language: Tujia is a Tibeto-Burman language and is usually considered an isolate within this group, although it has grammatical and phonological similarities with Yi (though its vocabulary is very different).

Today there are at most 70 thousand speakers of the Tujia language, most of whom live in the northern parts Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in north-western Hunan Province and in Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in south Hubei Province.

The vast majority of the Tujia use a dialect of Chinese; a few speak Miao. Few monolingual Tujia speakers remain; nearly all are bilingual in some dialect of Chinese. Children now learn Chinese from childhood and many young Tujia prefer to use Chinese when communicating among themselves. Among fluent Tujia speakers, Chinese borrowings, and even sentence structures, are common.

Possible Tujia Script: The Tujia have been known as an ethnic minority without a written language. Yet a succession of ancient undeciphred books with glosses presented in Chinese characters have been found in the Youyang Tujia habitation straddling the borders of Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou Province, and Chongqing City.

 

 

Yi

photo by yi.peoples.org

The Yi people (彝族) are a modern ethnic group in China, Vietnam, and Thailand. Numbering 8 million, they are the seventh largest of the 55 minor ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. . They live primarily in rural areas of Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi, usually in mountainous regions.  

The Yi speak Yi, a Tibeto-Burman language closely related to Burmese. The Chinese government has grouped the Nisu, Nasu, Sani, Axi, Lolopo, Pu, and tens of dozens of other peoples speaking more than six completely distinct languages with dozens of dialects into a single group called the Yi. Because of this, a Yi from one area may not be able to communicate with a Yi from another area; and may or may not even agree that they both are Yi.

Most Yi are farmers; herders of cattle, sheep and goats; and nomadic hunters. Only about one third of the Yi are literate. Most have no written language.

Of the over 8 million Yi people, over 4.5 million live in Yunnan Province, 2.5 million live in southern Sichuan Province, and 1 million live in the northwest corner of Guizhou Province. Nearly all the Yi live in mountainous areas, often carving out their existence on the sides of steep mountain slopes far from the cities of China.

Legend has it that the Yi are descended from the ancient Qiang people of today's Western China, who are also said to be the ancestors of the Tibetan, Naxi and Qiang peoples. They migrated from Southeastern Tibet through Sichuan and into Yunnan Province, where their largest populations can be found today.

The Yi language belongs to the Tibeto-Burman Language Group of the Sino-Tibetan Language Family, and the Yis speak six dialects. Many Yis in Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi know the Han (standard Chinese or Mandarin) language. The Yis used to have a syllabic script called the old Yi language, which was formed in the 13th century. It is estimated that the extant old Yi script has about 10,000 words, of which 1,000 are words of everyday use. A number of works of history, literature and medicine as well as genealogies of the ruling families written in the old Yi script are still seen in most Yi areas. Many stone tablets and steles carved in the old Yi script remain intact. Since the old Yi language is not consistent in word form and pronunciation, it was reformed after liberation for use in books and newspapers.

Perspectives on the Yi of Southwest China by Stevan Harrell

 

 

 

 

Sui

Photo from China Daily

The Sui people (水族) are an ethnic group living in the Guangxi, Guizhou, and Yunnan areas of southwestern China. They are counted as one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China.

It is believed that the Shui are descended from the Luo-Yue that inhabited the southeast coast of China before the Han dynasty. Their name of Shui, which means "water", was adopted during the Ming dynasty.

The Shui are organized around family clans. Their houses usually have one story, although some have two stories. In the latter, the second floor is used for the living quarters whereas the first floor is used primarily as a stable and food storage. If a woman is widowed, she covers her hair with a fabric of white color for three years. The Shui possess a lunar calendar that is initiated in the ninth lunar month. Their funeral services are elaborate and long ceremonies where animal sacrifices are carried out in honor of the dead.

The Shui are mainly polytheists and practice ancestor worship as well. Shamans were traditionally hired to carry out prayers and sacrifices in the houses of those that were sick or close to death.

Language: The Shui speak the Sui language of the Kradai family. Their language has eight tones, fewer than the Dong language which has 13. However, it does have a large number of consonants with forty-two.

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Genetic Studies

 

* Genetic Distances Between Chinese Populations Ccalculated on Gene Frequencies of 38 Loci by DU Ruofu, et al.

Phylogenic Tree of Han Subpopulations in 30 Provinces, Cities and Autonomous Regions

(Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan)

 

Phylogenic Tree of 10 Han Subpopulations and 14 Ethnic Minorities

(Han Guizhou, Han Hunan, Han Sichuan, Yi, Tujia)

Han subpopulations: GS, Gansu; HLJ, Heilongjiang; JL, Jilin; NM, Inner Mongolia; ShX, Shaanxi; GD, Guangdong; GX, Guangxi; GZ Guizhou; H ~ N , Hunan; SC, Sichuan.

 

 

* Mitochondrial DNA Polymorphism in the Han, Miao, Buyi, and Shui Ethnic Groups from Guizhou Province by H. Jin, et al.

Abstract: Sixteen restriction endonucleases were used to assay the mtDNA polymorphism in the Han, Miao, Buyi and Shui ethnic groups from Guizhou province. Thirty-one restriction patterns were observed in a total of 150 subjects studied, out of which HacII-13, EcoRV-3 and PstI-4 are first reported by this paper. From all restriction patterns disclosed by 16 enzymes, twenty-eight mtDNA types were obtained. UPG method and parsimony networks were employed to analyze the clustering relationships between types or populations. Following conclusions are obtained: the mt-DNA from the Shui nationality possesses the highest polymorphism; the Han and the Miao are most closely related; and the genetic relation between the Buyi and the Shui is somewhat distant.

 

 

* Polymorphism of Mitochondrial DNA Region Ⅴ in Four Ethnic Populations from Guizhou

Abstract: 目的研究世居贵州的侗族、仡佬族、土家族和彝族人群线粒体DNA Region Ⅴ的遗传多态性.方法采用PCR-PAGE和克隆测序法对4个群体108份样本的mtDNA Region Ⅴ进行序列分析.结果只检测到标准型和短型(即9-bp缺失)两种多态.贵州四个民族人群的平均9-bp缺失频率为22.2%,在侗族、仡佬族、土家族和彝族人群中依次为32.1%、22.6%、17.2%和15.0%.结论贵州四个民族mtDNA 9-bp缺失频率均较高,这与其地域分布相一致;贵州彝族和土家族显示了相似的缺失频率,提示两者可能有共同的祖先.

 

 

* The Genetic Relation of Four Ethnic Populations in China's Guizhou Is Revealed by Sequence Variations of mtDNA D-loop by BB Li, et al.

OBJECTIVE: Through maternal inheritance, to explore the genetic structures and relationships of Dong, Gelao, Tujia and Yi ethnic population in Guizhou of China. METHODS: The mtDNA D-loop hypervariable segment I (HVS I ) in 108 samples of four ethnic populations were sequenced. Then, the nucleotide diversity was estimated and a phylogenetic tree was constructed by Neighbor-Joining method. RESULTS: In the detected 497 bp fragments, 86 polymorphic sites were found, and 82 different haplotypes were identified. The phylogenetic tree of four ethnic populations showed: Yi, Tujia and Gelao clustered more closely than Dong did. CONCLUSION: Yi and Tujia population are very closely related, the reason may be that they either originate from a common ancestry or frequently undergo the gene exchanges and admixtures. The genetic relationship between Tujia and Gelao population is nearer, perhaps because they have settled in the adjacent regions. Dong and Yi population show the farthest genetic relationship, this is probably due to their different historical origins and geographic segregation.

 

 

* Genetic Polymorphism ofMmitochondrial DNA in Dong, Gelao, Tujia, and Yi Ethnic Populations from Guizhou, China by B. Li, et al.

Abstract: To reveal the genetic structures and relationships of the four ethnic populations from the maternal inheritance and explore the origins and migrations of nationalities, the genetic polymorphism of mtDNA in Dong, Gelao, Tujia, and Yi populations from Guizhou was studied by direct sequencing of hypervariable segment I(HVS I) and PCR-RFLP of coding region. Thirty-seven (sub-) haplogroups were identified in the classification tree of mtDNA haplogroups. Haplogroup distributions and principal component (PC) analysis showed that the Dong has high frequencies of south-prevalent haplogroups, which indicates that it is a typically southern population. The Yi harbors high frequencies of the south-prevalent and northern-prevalent haplogroups, which demonstrates that it inherits the maternal characteristics from both southern and northern populations. The Yi and Gelao cluster together, the reason for which might be that their ancestries frequently underwent gene exchanges and mixtures.

 

 

* Analysis of Polymorphisms in Y-DNA Haplotypes and mtDNA Haplogroups in Yao Ethnic Group from Guizhou by Chu Xun, et al.

Abstract: 采用PCR-RFLP技术,通过观察由12个单核苷酸多态位点(SNPs)组成的Y染色体单倍型及由9个多态位点组成的线粒体DNA单倍型在贵州瑶族中的分布,分析贵州瑶族父系及母系遗传结构,探讨其起源及迁徙.结果显示,97份男性样本分别属于H7、H8、H9、H114种Y-DNA单倍型,苗瑶语系特异Y-DNA单倍型H7的平均频率为92.4%;通过对线粒体DNA基因分型,得到8种单倍型,可归入B4、B5、D4、D5和N*单倍型类群中,CoⅡ/tRNALys区域间的9 bp缺失平均频率为58.2%.结果提示贵州瑶族父系遗传结构单一,具有典型的苗瑶族群特征,又存在与其他族群的融合.母系遗传结构相对复杂,9bp缺失是贵州瑶族的母系遗传结构特征.

 

 

* The GM Genetic Polymorphism in Taiwan Aborigines: New data revealing remarkable differentiation patterns
by Alicia Sanchez-Mazas, et al.

Multidimensional Scaling Analysis among 63 Populations from Southeast Asia
Excluding all Sino-Tibetans but the Southern Chinese (grouped)

(Guiyang, Guizhou)

The ‘mixed’ sample is composed of individuals from Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Hunan. ST-SC: Sino-Tibetan, Southern Chinese (Min, Xiang, Gan, Hakka, Yue); AA: Austroasiatic; KA: Tai-Kadai; AN-EF: Extra-Formosan Austronesian; AN-TW: Autronesian from Taiwan; HM: Hmong-Mien.

 

 

* Y-SNP Analysis of Bouyei, Gelao, Mulao, Maonan, and Zhuang Populations in Guizhou by Liu Xuan, et al.

Abstract: To understand the patrilineal genetic structure of Baiyue ethnic group in Guizhou province, we studied the frequencies of Y-chromosome haplotypes which consisted of 10 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) by using the PCR-RFLP method. Five haplotypes were found in Baiyue ethnic group in Guizhou, among which H8 was the most common, whereas that of Miao in Guizhou tended to be H8, H11 and H12 haplotypes. Compared with Miao in Guizhou, the Guizhou Baiyue (excluding Sui and Dong) was significantly different and could be regarded as an independent ethnic group. Differences were also found in the same ethnic group among different areas.

 

 

* The ADH1B Arg47His Polymorphism in East Asian Populations and Expansion of Rice Domestication in History by Yi Peng, et al.

The Distribution of the ADH1B*47His Allele and the Sites of Early Rice Relics

 

The Distribution of the ADH1B*47His Allele in the 38 East Asian Populations

 

 

* ADH1B Arg47His Polymorphism Is Associated with Esophageal Cancer Risk in High-Incidence Asian Population: Evidence from a Meta-Analysis by Guohong Zhang, et al.

Excerpt: Some alleles that increase the risk of complex diseases like cancers, are ancestral. Both historical records of migration and genetic fingerprints of East Asians and ancient population in Central China suggested there were some common ancestries in populations along the ‘‘Asian esophageal cancer belt’’. The ADH1B*47His allele is highly prevalent in Asian populations, particularly in northeast Asians (i.e., Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans). It was proposed the ADH1B*47His allele may serve better as an ancestral marker for understanding expansions and migrations of ancient Central China populations, and is related to disease susceptibility and natural selection as well. Except for in East Asia, a high frequency of the ADH1B*47His allele is also found in West Asian countries such as Iran and Turkey, where high-incidence regions of ESCC exist, too. Such a worldwide double-peak pattern of frequency distribution of the ADH1B* 47His allele was argued to be the result of independent increase of the derived allele in both western and eastern Asia after humans had spread across Eurasia. Based on these facts and findings, we propose that ADH1B*47Arg is a risk factor for ESCC in Asian populations that stems from recent common ancestralness of them.

 

 

* Gene Frequency of 5 Genetic Characters in 6 Nationalities in Southern Guizhou by Zhang X, et al.

Abstract: The gene frequency of 5 characters was reported in Buyi, Miao, Shui, Maonan, Dong, and Han nationalities in southern Guizhou, and analyzed for statistical significance among these nationalities. The results showed that: (1) For Hair forms and Nasal profile, the frequency of the dominant gene was lower than that of theirs recessive gene, but the opposite was true for Nostril forms. (2) Among different nationalities, the difference of gene frequency of Mongoloid fold, Nasal profile, Hair forms and Eye fold of the upper eyelid was quite significant, which was followed by that of Nostril forms.

 

 

Southern Mongoloid

Map of the Yangtze River (Chang Jiang)

Southern Mongoloid populations are a subgroup of Mongoloid populations, distinguished by older criteria like appearance and craniology, or dental patterns. Genetically Northern Mongoloids are very unrelated to Southern Mongoloids.

In Cavalli-Sforza's genetic clustering work (1988) South Chinese join Southeast Asians in genetic clustering while the North Chinese associate with Koreans, Japanese, Ainu, Bhutanese and Tibetans in genetic clustering. Other Southeast Asians include Malaysian, Viet Muong, Thai, Western Indonesian and Philippine.

Xiao and Cavalli-Sforza (2000) find the boundary between Northern and Southern Mongoloids to approximate the Yangtze River, and suggest that their ancestors arrived from Africa via separate routes. Principal component analysis of gene frequencies of Chinese populations

Other scientists have suggested that the finding of sharp genetic differences between North and South China is an artifact of using an insufficient number of samples. However, Xiao and Cavalli-Sforza (2000) has a larger number of samples than previous studies.

Modern biological evidence from the anthropological textbook Human Species (2003) contradicts earlier theories of which groups were more genetically related to other groups. The Human Species(2003) and Physical Anthropology used the genetic clustering of Cavalli-Sforza (2000) in their publication. Humans are all related. Humanity divided itself into the African and the Eurasian/Oceanic branch. The Eurasian and Oceanic branches are the products of this common origin. The Eurasian branch split into the Amerindian and major East Asian branch. The major East Asian branch divided itself into eastern Russian and the East Asian. The Oceanic branch divided itself into the Southeast Asians and Pacific Islanders. According to the Human Species (2003), East Asians generally are more genetically similar to the South Asians than to Southeast Asians, because the Far East and the Indian Subcontinent are members of the Eurasian branch while Southeast Asians (including south Chinese) are members of the Oceanic branch. More interestingly, Asians have very local genetic clusters inside these regions, implying different Asian ethnic groups have not historically intermarried with each other. Examples of localized genetic clusters include Japan, Korea, Mongolia and China which form separate genetic clusters from each other.

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Tai-Kadai Languages

The Tai-Kadai languages, also known as Daic, Kadai, Kradai, or Kra-Dai, are a language family of highly tonal languages found in southern China and Southeast Asia. They include Thai and Lao, the national languages of Thailand and Laos respectively. There are nearly 100 million speakers of these languages in the world. Ethnologue lists 92 languages in this family, with 76 of these languages being in the Kam-Tai branch.

The diversity of the Tai-Kadai languages in southeastern China, especially in Guizhou and Hainan, suggests that this is close to their homeland. The Tai branch moved south into Southeast Asia only about a thousand years ago, founding the nations that later became Thailand and Laos in what had been Austroasiatic territory.

The name "Tai-Kadai" comes from an obsolete bifurcation of the family into two branches, Tai and Kadai (all else). Since this Kadai can only be a valid group if it includes Tai, it is sometimes used to refer to the entire family; on the other hand, some references narrow its usage to the Kra branch of the family.

 

* The Higher Phyolgeny of Austronesian and the Position of Tai-Kadaii by Laurent Sagart

The An Settlement of Taiwan With the MP and TK Migrations

[a]: The pre-Austronesians, from NE China, expand southward along the SE China seaboard in the 5th and early 4th millennia BC: they cultivate rice, foxtail millet, exploit marine resources, practice tooth evulsion. [b]: the Nanri and Pingtan islands, from which the top of Mt Xueshan (3884 m., at center of 200-km radius visibility circle) can be seen, are reached. From there one group crosses to Taiwan c. 3500 BC, while [c] the rest continues expanding in a SW direction towards the Pearl River Delta. [1]: location of earliest An (PAnspeaking) settlements on Taiwan. [2]: location of Pituish, [3] location of Enemish, [4] location of Walu-Siwaish, [5] location of Muish, [6] Tai-Kadai migration, [7] Malayo-Polynesian migration, c. 2000 BC.

 

Enriched Higher An Phylogeny Based on Basic-Lexical and Morphological Innovations (gray area at bottom)

Taxon names are in bold type. To the exception of the NE-Formosan languages Kavalan and Ketagalan, no claim is made that the languages whose names are in the same column (for instance Luilang, Pazeh and Saisiat) form a taxon. Dotted arrows indicate an oversea migration. 'FATK' = Formosan Ancestor of Tai-Kadai; 'FAMP' = 'Formosan Ancestor of Malayo-Polynesian'.

 

Excerpt: The position of Tai-Kadai: The observant reader will have noticed that Table 4 includes two languages named 'FATK' and 'FAMP'. These acronyms means 'Formosan Ancestor of Tai-Kadai' and 'Formosan Ancestor of Malayo-Polynesian' respectively. With respect to the former, the claim is being made that, contrary to common sense, the Tai-Kadai languages are descended from an East Formosan language: in effect, that they are a branch of Austronesian, and specifically, a subgroup of Muic.

The modern Tai-Kadai languages are spoken in parts of south China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Burma and Assam. Ostapirat (2000)21 distinguishes three branches: Hlai in Hainan, and on the mainland Kam-Tai and Kra, but in a more recent paper (in press), he suggests a different classification, with a northern branch (Kra and Kam-Sui) and a southern branch (Hlai and Tai). The Tai-Kadai languages outside of south-east China and adjacent areas of Vietnam are all within the Tai subgroup, and are very homogeneous. This is due to the historically well-attested expansion of Tai speakers in the late first and early second millennia AD. The area of highest diversity is in the northeast part of the Tai-Kadai domain: in Hainan Island, in northern Vietnam, and in the Chinese provinces of Guangxi and Guizhou. This is presumably where the TK homeland was located (although some of the original diversity must have been lost to Chinese in Guangdong province).

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郭冠英

郭冠英（1949年－），筆名「范蘭欽」、「郭才子」，祖籍貴州清鎮，生於新竹市，曾經擔任記者、行政院新聞局派駐多倫多台北經濟文化代表處新聞組長，因為言行不當遭免職。

郭冠英生長於新竹空軍眷村，畢業於新竹中學、國立政治大學政治系。1974年在政治大學匪情研究所（今東亞研究所）完成碩士論文《論職業革命家黨》。曾任中國電視公司新聞部編譯、製作人、《聯合報》專欄組記者，1984年入行政院新聞局。2009年3月，職任行政院新聞局派駐多倫多台北經濟文化代表處新聞組長的郭冠英，因言行不當、蓄意欺瞞等因素，遭直屬公務機關核計兩大過並免除其職務暨公務員身份。

辱台爭議文摘

2009年3月，郭冠英被發現以筆名「范蘭欽」、「郭才子」發表多篇文章，內容包含許多被認為是對部分台灣人不友善的言論，如：