Bai
See also: Bai (homonymy)
The Bai (literally “white ethnos group”, because of their clothing to dominant white), formerly also called Minjia (, “house/family of the people”), are people of the Yunnan in the south-west of the China and one of the 56 ethnos groups officially recognized by the Popular republic of China. In their own language, they name themselves Bairt ‧ zix tsz̩}}, Bairt ‧ zix ‧ Bairt ‧ yvnx tsz̩ pɛ jṽ̩}}, or Bairt ‧ horx xo}}, or Bairt ‧ ngvrt ‧ zix ‧ horx ŋv̩ tsz̩ xo}}, or Bairt ‧ yin ĩ}}. Bai, which is less than two million, have officially the statute of ethnic minority. One also finds them in Bijie in the province of the Guizhou and in Sangzhi in the province of the Hunan.
History
Several assumptions were formulated on the origin of Bai (autochtonie, migration of Han, fusion of people), but none definitively carried the conviction.
The political history of Bai is well-known starting from the Tang. The territory of Bai is initially divided into zhao 詔 independent. Piluoge links six of these zhaos to form the Royaume of Nanzhao (737 - 902), which includes/understands at the same time of Bai and the Yi. This kingdom three short dynasties succeed before Duan Siping, in 937, does not seize the power and does not establish the Royaume of Dali. Twenty-two kings follow one another until in 1253, date on which a Mongolian invasion destroys the Kingdom. In 1274, the province of the Yunnan is created, putting an end to five centuries of independence bai. Since this date, Yunnan is constantly remained a Chinese province.
Today, Dali is an autonomous prefecture of Bai.
Language
See also: Bai (language), Language bai
Traditionally, it is considered that Bai speak a language about the branch tibéto-Burmese of the Langues sino-Tibetans.
However, its membership is not obvious. Indeed, this language borrowed a considerable part of its lexicon (more than 70%) from the Mandarin. Thanks to the phonetic and tonal transformations different according to the time from the loan, it is possible to distinguish funds old from loans and funds more recent. Once this carried out work, the words properly bai remain very few. This is why certain linguists see today in this language more the close relative of Mandarin and exclude it from the tibéto-Burmese group. The bai has a syntactic order basic subject-verb-object like Chinese.
The language bai is divided into three principal dialects around the towns of Dali, Jianchuan and Bijiang. The dialect of Bijiang is most antiquated and contains, just like that of Jianchuan, the nasal vowels which disappeared in the speech from Dali. The bai does not have a clean writing, but it is possible to note it by means of the Chinese characters. More recently, Zhao Yansun and Xu Lin, of the linguists of origin bai, invented a mode of transcription alphabetical and published a grammar and a dictionary the language bai. The bai of Jianchuan comprises 8 tons, that of Bijiang one moreover. Four of these let us tons comprise a laryngalisation.
Culture
The culture of Bai includes/understands songs and dances, often very old.
On the Shibaoshan mount, located at the North-East of the town of Jianchuan, a festival of songs proceeds each autumn, in August according to the lunar calendar. It is about a great festival which lasts several days, at the time of which Bai of the villages around, or even from the close areas, come to sing. The songs often appear as questions and answers between two people, generally accompanied by a special instrument by the name by san2 xian3 (litt. " three cordes"). At the end of the festival, one proceeds to the election of the best singer. According to the tradition, this festival is often an occasion of meeting for young people.
The songs of Bai consist of words improvised, rimées and rythmées, which agree to pre-modelled melodies. In this field, there exist considered Masters, who live especially in the villages. In Jianchuan, a culture section deals with organizing the festivals, the contests and the spectacles, but also recording the songs of the Master-singers to preserve them. Under the influence of the culture Han and because of the urbanization, the Bai young people can less and less sing with the traditional manner.
The sculpture is an art developed enough at Bai. The craftsmen of Jianchuan are thus considered for their woodcarving, in particular for the manufacture of the shutters which carry carved reasons and which are used as door with the interior parts of a house.
There exists with Jianchuan an important whole of Buddhist sculptures of the time of the Tang in the caves of Shibaoshan. During last century, the statues were seriously damaged by local gangsters. Today, they are classified and protected by the State like historic buildings. Like the three pagodas of Dali, they as testify to the influence of Buddhism as the Yunnan underwent under the dynasties of the Tang and of the Song. But, compared to the three pagodas which were strongly restored, the statues of Jianchuan are remarkable by their old and original state.
The costume of Bai varies from one area to another. In the neighborhoods of Dali, the costume of the women is characterized by the port from an apron and a cap representing the four beauties from Dali (wind, the flower, snow and the moon). In north, in Jianchuan, clothing is darker colors and the cap of more sober style.
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