Mythologies of the Bai Tribe

The Bai, or Pai (Bai: Baipho, /pɛ̰˦˨xo̰˦/ (白和); Chinese: 白族; pinyin: Báizú; Wade–Giles: Pai-tsu; endonym pronounced [pɛ̀tsī]), are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture of Yunnan Province, Bijie area of Guizhou Province, and Sangzhi area of Hunan Province. They constitute one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by China. They numbered 1,933,510 as of 2010. The Bai people hold the colour white in high esteem and call themselves “Baipzix” (pɛ˦˨ tsi˧, Baizi, 白子), “Bai’ho” (pɛ˦˨ xo˦, Baihuo, 白伙), “Bai yinl” (pɛ˦˨ ji˨˩, Baini, 白尼) or “Miep jiax”. Bai literally means “white” in Chinese. In 1956, the Chinese authorities named them the Bai nationality according to their preference. Historically, the Bai had also been called Minjia (民家) by the Chinese from the 14th century to 1949. The origin of the name Bai is not clear, but scholars believe that it has a strong connection to the first state Bai people built in roughly the 3rd century AD. 

Bai, also spelled Bo, Wade-Giles romanization Pai or Po, also called Minjia, people of northwestern Yunnan province, southwest China. Minjia is the Chinese (Pinyin) name for them; they call themselves Bai or Bo in their own language, which has been classified within the Yi group of Tibeto-Burman languages. Until recently the language was not written. It contains many words borrowed from Chinese but is itself a non-Chinese, tonal, polysyllabic language with a markedly different grammatical structure. Occupying a triangular area from Shigu on the upper Yangtze River down to Dali (Xiaguan) at the foot of Lake Er, the Bai in the early 21st century were estimated to number nearly two million, about half of whom lived on the fertile plain between the Cang Mountains and the lake. Since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, the Bai, in accordance with the Communist Party’s policy toward non-Chinese peoples, have been given status as a national minority. Their principal city, Dali, was from the 6th to the 9th century the capital of the kingdom of Nanzhao. The Bai probably already formed the bulk of the population of the locality at that time.

The ancient Bai were once at the center of a great kingdom in Yunnan. Though life has inevitably changed for the Bai since their incorporation into China, many of their traditions are still alive today. The Bai are a highly visible minority group of roughly two million living primarily in and around Yunnan’s famous Dali region. The name “Bai” means white, a color which the Bai associate with dignity and high social status and one which describes the sheepskin clothing they wore centuries ago. he Bai are blessed with fertile land, having historically been centered around Erhai Lake and the foot of the Blue Mountain in Yunnan province. Because of the accessibility and desirability of their homeland, the Bai have long had interactions with other ethnic groups, most notably the Han.

People of the Bai Ethnic Minority mainly live in Dali, Lijiang, Bijiang, Baoshan, Nanhua, Yuanjiang, Kunming, and Anning of Yunnan Province, Bijie of Guizhou Province, Liangshan of Sichuan Province, and Sanzhi of Hunan Province. The population of the Bai nationality is 185,800. Today’s Bai are descendants of the ancient Ji. During the pre-Qin period (about 2,200 years ago), the Ji inhabited the drainage area of the Huangshui River. However, during the Han and Jin Dynasties, they scattered along the eastern side of the Lanchangjiang River in Yunnan Province and the northern Honghe River area. During this time, they lived with the Qiang people (another nationality in China). Gradually, the Ji concentrated in fewer areas. Since the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Ji have been known as the Bai. Around the second century BC, the forefathers of the Bai settled in Dali. In the year 109 BC, Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty sent troops to Yunnan, conquered it, and established Yizhou County in Yunan. In the late seventh and early eighth centuries, Piluoge, a Bai leader, united the tribes of the Bai nationality around Erhai Lake and set up a regime known as Nanzhao. The people living around Erhai Lake are the ancestors of today’s Bai population.

The main distribution of the Bai people is in the Dali Bai Autonomous County of Yunnan Province, together with Lijiang, Kunming, Yuanjiang, Guizhou and so on. According to the census taken in 2000, there were some 1,858,063 individuals. Their language  language derives from the Zang-Mian Austronesian family of Sino-Tibetan Phylum but with the character set of the Han people as their written form of language. lthough the Bai people believe in Buddhism, they also respectively worship their village god (‘Benzhu’), Nature god, the Prince of the Nanzhao regime, or even a hero of folklore. The grandest festival of the Bai people is the March Fair, held annually at the foot of Mt. Cangshan in Dali between the fifteenth and the twentieth day of the third lunar month. Originally it was religious activity to rally and pay homage, but it gradually evolved into a fair including performances of traditional sports and dance, as well as the trade of merchandise from different regions. Another important festival is the Torch Festival, held on the 25th day of the sixth lunar month to wish both health and a good harvest. On that evening, the countryside will be decorated with banners with auspicious words written upon them. Villagers will then light torches in front of their gates, then walk around the fields while holding yet more torches in order to catch pests.

The Bai people are native to Dali, once the seat of the Nanzhao and Dali Kingdoms, which together spanned a period of roughly 800 years, beginning in the Tang Dynasty. These kingdoms were destroyed by the Mongol invaders of the Yuan dynasty, at which point these minority kingdoms joined China. Most Bai people are Mahayana Buddhists, although the Bai also have a native religion which is a mixture of shamanism and ancestor worship. The most well known Bai tradition is the san dao cha 三道茶, or three course tea ceremony. The courses in the ceremony consist of a bitter tea, a sweet tea, and a third tea that is both bitter, sweet, and a bit spicy. This ceremony is often presented to honored guests and used on special occasions such as weddings.

The Bai partly established the powerful, far-reaching Nanzhao Kingdom which was centered south of Dali. The kingdom grew so strong that they were able to defeat the Tang armies in the mid-700s. The kingdom flourished for 400 years until it collapsed in the tenth century and was replaced by the Kingdom of Dali. Dali, in turn, lasted until AD 1252 when it was overrun and destroyed by the all-conquering Mongol armies. The Bai are one of the most heavily Sinicized of China’s 55 official minorities. Although the Chinese acknowledge two separate branches of Bai — the Lemo and Nama — the Bai scarcely qualify as an ethnic minority. “During the 1940s… the Bai people denied their non-Chinese origin and would show offense if regarded as a minority.” Various experts have commented, “The Bai like to be called Chinese.” “The Bai nationality as an ethnic label was unknown to the Bai themselves until late 1958,” and were “not quite a minority, but not quite Chinese either.”

Bai people’s traditional dress

The Bai people is a minority group that live mostly in Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture of southwest China’s Yunnan Province. The word “bai” means “white” in Chinese. For the Bai people, white signifies dignity and high social status and often wear them in clothes. Younger Bai women predominantly wear white clothes embroidered with rich and colorful patterns while the older women mainly dress in blue and black. Yunnan Province in southwestern China boasts of spectacular natural landscapes, biodiversity and diverse ethnic groups. Among China’s 56 recognized ethnic groups, 25 are found in Yunnan. This livestream series will take you on tour to six cities or autonomous prefectures in Yunnan and learn about the little-known food, scenery and folk customs. 

One of the 25 or so minority groups in Yunnan Province is the Bai people. The history of this small minority is very interesting. The little town of Xizhou (the name means ‘Happy Town’), once a trade/academic hub, is a now a quiet town with a population of about 32,000 people. It is 18 kilometers (11 miles) north of the ancient city of Dali. Before 1949, Xizhou Town was the main center for Bai commerce, and many families were extremely rich. The best examples of Qing Dynasty era (1644–1912) Bai architecture can be found there. By visiting this small town, you gain a better understanding of the history of this ingenious people and an appreciation of a culture that has been important in Chinese history. Many of the houses in Xizhou Town are beautifully constructed and decorated and are some of the best examples of traditional Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) architecture in China. They have a distinctive Bai touch, with more decorations including colorful pictures, gardens, more use of marble decorations, upturned eaves, and brighter colors.

The ancestors of the Bai people were called Bo and were descendants of the ancient Qiang (Tibeto-Burman group), who lived around present-day Sichuan more than 2,000 years ago. After unifying China, the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC) planned to carve out a way to India through the area inhabited by the Bo. For this reason the Bo gradually migrated to Yunnan and joined the other Bo already living there. In 109 BC, the King of Yunnan pledged allegiance to the Han Dynasty (206 BC–AD 220), placing the Bo under the latter’s authority. From the 1st century AD the Bo oscillated between submission and rebellion. Gradually the Chinese character that was in ancient times pronounced “Bo” came to be pronounced “Bai,” both pronunciations meaning “white.” This is an example of the different pronunciations of the same character in north (Bai) and south (Bo) China. In the 8th century, following the unification of six small principalities, the powerful kingdom of Nanzhao was established with Dali (in northwest Yunnan) as its capital and ruled Yunnan for 247 years. Ten of the 13 successive kings received titles granted by the Tang Dynasty (618–907). Later, Nanzhao was replaced by Dali, which acknowledged allegiance to the Song Dynasty (960–1279) and ruled Yunnan for more than 300 years. In 1253, the Mongolian aristocrats conquered Dali. Before long, the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368) set up a system appointing Bai headmen under the jurisdiction of the former royal court of the Dali Kingdom. In the following centuries, hundreds of thousands of Chinese, Mongolians, and Manchus moved from the central provinces into the areas of Yunnan inhabited by the Bai. There was much cross-cultural exchange and intermarriage. Chinese culture exerted a strong influence on the Bai.

The art of tie dye originated in Zhoucheng Village, Xizhou County in Dali, Yunnan, which is also known as the “Bai Village of Tie Dye.” The Bai people have lived in Yunnan for more than 2,000 years. Their complex culture blends influences of Taoism, Buddhism, local deity worship and Confucianism. They are highly creative and are admired for the grace with which they incorporate the beauty of nature into their artistic creations. One of the Bai people’s favorite art forms is tie dye. The craft has been handed down from one generation to the next for centuries. The creation of tie dye fabrics is a complex process that reflects the enduring principles of the ancient Bai culture.

Of the 1,858,063 Bai people, 80 percent live in concentrated communities in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province, southwest China. The rest are scattered in Xichang and Bijie in neighboring Sichuan and Guizhou provinces respectively. The Bais speak a language related to the Yi branch of the Tibetan-Myanmese roup of the Chinese-Tibetan language family. The language contains a large number of Chinese words due to the Bais’ long contact with the majority Chinese ethnic group – Han. Situated on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, the Bai area is crisscrossed with rivers, of which the major ones are the Lancang, the Nujiang and the Jinsha. The river valleys, dense forests and vast tracts of land form a beautiful landscape and provide an abundance of crops and fruits. The area round Lake Erhai in the autonomous prefecture is blessed with a mild climate and fertile land yielding two crops a year. Here, the main crops are rice, winter wheat, beans, millet, cotton, rape, sugar-cane and tobacco. The forests have valuable stocks of timber, herbs of medicinal value and rare animals. Mt. Diancang by Lake Erhai contains a rich deposit of the famous Yunnan marble, which is basically pure white with veins of red, light blue, green and milky yellow. It is treasured as building material as well as for carving.

Dali China has existed since the 8th century, born first as a capital to the Bai people and later as the Kingdom of Dali. Located in the northwest region of China’s Yunnan province, Dali is a 40-minute flight from Kunming, the capital of Yunnan. The city is renowned for producing marble, used in both construction and adornment, with most commerce revolving around marble sales. Dali is most interesting for its history but also its urban planning; Dali Old Town and the new city are distinctly separate; traveling between the two presents a feeling of traveling back and forth in time. About 4,000 years back in Chinese history, the Bai people settled Dali. It became a part of the Han Dynasty central government’s territory in the second century AD and was a gateway to southwest China’s Silk Road. Dali Old Town, built during the reign of Emperor Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty, is north of the new city. City walls and gates, an old moat, ancient homes with darkly tiled roofs, and other centuries-old buildings line paved roads creating a scene right out of a poem. Bai folk houses reflect the uniqueness of the cultural and add major appeal for tourists. Arts and crafts are a big part of Bai culture, evident in the many neatly lined stalls within Old Town selling all kinds of hand-made paraphernalia.

Of the 1,858,063 Bai people, 80 per cent live in concentrated communities in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province, southwest China. The rest are scattered in Xichang and Bijie in neighboring Sichuan and Guizhou provinces respectively. The Bais speak a language related to the Yi branch of the Tibetan-Myanmese roup of the Chinese-Tibetan language family. The language contains a large number of Chinese words due to the Bais’ long contact with the majority Chinese ethnic group–Han. Situated on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, the Bai area is crisscrossed with rivers, of which the major ones are the Lancang, the Nujiang and the Jinsha. The river valleys, dense forests and vast tracts of land form a beautiful landscape and provide an abundance of crops and fruits. The area round Lake Erhai in the autonomous prefecture is blessed with a mild climate and fertile land yielding two crops a year. Here, the main crops are rice, winter wheat, beans, millet, cotton, rape, sugar-cane and tobacco. The forests have valuable stocks of timber, herbs of medicinal value and rare animals. Mt. Diancang by Lake Erhai contains a rich deposit of the famous Yunnan marble, which is basically pure white with veins of red, light blue, green and milky yellow. It is treasured as building material as well as for carving.

The Bai, or Pai (Bai: Baipho, /pɛ̰˦˨xo̰˦/ (白和); Chinese: 白族; pinyin: Báizú; Wade–Giles: Pai-tsu; endonym pronounced [pɛ̀tsī]), are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture of Yunnan Province, Bijie area of Guizhou Province, and Sangzhi area of Hunan Province. They constitute one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by China. They numbered 1,933,510 as of 2010. The Bai people hold the colour white in high esteem and call themselves “Baipzix” (pɛ˦˨ tsi˧, Baizi, 白子), “Bai’ho” (pɛ˦˨ xo˦, Baihuo, 白伙), “Bai yinl” (pɛ˦˨ ji˨˩, Baini, 白尼) or “Miep jiax”. Bai literally means “white” in Chinese. In 1956, the Chinese authorities named them the Bai nationality according to their preference. Historically, the Bai had also been called Minjia (民家) by the Chinese from the 14th century to 1949.

Bai nationality is the 15th largest ethnic minority in China, mainly distributed in Yunnan, Guizhou, Hunan, and other provinces, among which Yunnan Province has the largest population of Bai nationality, mainly living in Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture. Also, it is distributed in Sichuan Province and Chongqing city. Bai nationality has its own language, and Bai language belongs to Yi branch of Tibeto Burmese language family of Sino Tibetan language family. Chinese has been used by Bai people since ancient times. Bai nationality is unique in art, and its architecture, sculpture and painting art are famous all over the world. In the process of its formation and development, it interacted with the surrounding nationalities and created a splendid economic culture. Bai nationality is a nationality with a high degree of settlement. It has three branches: Minjia, Lemo, and Nama. It is deeply influenced by Han culture.

Over the centuries, the Bais have created a science and culture of their own. Agriculture was dominant in the Erhai area as early as the Neolithic Age. People then knew how to dig ditches for irrigation. During the Nanzhao regime, they began the cultivation of rice, wheat, broomcorn, millet and several other crops, and built the Cangshan water-conservancy project which could bring water to tens of thousands of hectares of land. To their credit are inventions and advances in meteorology, astronomy, calendar, architecture, medical science, literature, music, dancing, carving and painting. Among the representative works of the Bai people are Transit Star Catalogue for Time Determination by the Ming Dynasty scholar Zhou Silian, Collection of Secret Prescriptions by Chen Dongtian and Tested Prescriptions by Li Xingwei. These classics recorded and summarized in detail the valuable experience of the Bai people in astronomy and medicine. The Bai people are good singers and dancers. The “Lion Dance,” created during the Nanzhao regime, was appreciated in the central plains during the Tang Dynasty. Bai opera, known as chuichui, is an art form combining folk music and dancing. It has also absorbed some of the characteristics of Han operas.

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