What are the customs, food and clothing of the Dai people?

The Yun Dai people of the Dai ethnic group are closely related to the "Baiyue" people of the ancient Dai ethnic group. Mainly engaged in agriculture, mainly planting rice, and believes in Theravada Buddhism. The population of approximately 1,025,128 is distributed in Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan and other places. The Dai people have their own spoken and written language. The Dai people are not only good at singing and dancing, but also created a splendid culture. They are especially famous for their historical medicine and long narrative poems.

Customs of the Dai people:

It is taboo for outsiders to ride horses, drive cattle, carry burdens and enter the village with unkempt hair; when entering a Dai bamboo house, you must take off your shoes outside the door and keep them inside the house Walk lightly; you cannot sit on or across the firepit, enter the master's inner room, or sit on the threshold; you cannot move the tripod on the firepit, and you cannot step on the fire with your feet; it is taboo to whistle or cut nails at home; it is not allowed to use Use clothes as pillows or sitting pillows; when drying clothes, the tops should be dried at a high place, and the trousers and skirts should be dried at a low place; shoes should be taken off when entering a Buddhist temple, and it is taboo to touch the heads of young monks, Buddha statues, spears, flags and flags, etc. Buddhist sacred objects.

Dai people's wedding custom:

"Putting out braised chicken" is a rumored way for young men and women in Xishuangbanna to court love by eating. That is, the girl sells the braised chicken in the market. If the buyer If the girl happens to be the one she likes, the girl will take the initiative to take out a stool and let him sit next to her. Through conversation, if both parties are in love, they will carry the chicken and the stool to the woods to express their love to each other; if the buyer is not If the girl is interested in the girl, the girl will double the price.

"Eat a small drink". When a man and a woman are engaged, the man goes to the woman's house to entertain guests. After the guests have dispersed, the man is accompanied by three male companions. Let’s set up a table with the woman and her three female companions to eat three dishes: the first dish should be hot; the second dish should be salty; and the third dish should be hot. There are sweets. It means warmth, depth and sweetness. To celebrate the completion of a new house, the young men go upstairs first, carrying the cow's head and singing blessing songs. The middle-aged men carry the boxes, the married women hold the quilts, and the girls come up one by one carrying the meals. , then set up a tripod on the fire pit, set the table with wine and food, sing a song to celebrate the new home, and the villagers will also give the host some auspicious gifts.

On the wedding day, a wedding will be held at both parties’ homes. Most of them are held at the bride's house first. During the wedding banquet, the banquet table is covered with green banana leaves, and the dishes include Xuewang (Baiwang), which symbolizes auspiciousness, rice cakes and various dishes. Before the banquet, the bride and groom perform a thread-tying ceremony. That is, the officiant wraps a white thread around the shoulders of both parties, and ties two white threads to the wrists of the groom and the bride respectively, symbolizing purity. Then the elderly man shapes the glutinous rice into a triangle, dips it in salt, and places it on the wedding ceremony. The top of the tripod on the fire pit is left to fall off naturally after being burned, symbolizing that love is as solid as iron.

The food customs of the Dai people: rice and glutinous rice are the staple foods of Dehong. The Dai people’s staple food is japonica rice, while the Dai people in Xishuangbanna’s staple food is glutinous rice, which is usually freshly pounded and eaten. Folks believe that japonica rice and rice need to be eaten freshly and pounded to retain their original color and flavor, so they do not eat them or rarely eat them. Overnight rice is used to be eaten with hands. All side dishes and snacks are mainly sour, such as sour bamboo shoots, sour pea powder, sour meat and wild sour fruits. They like to eat dried pickled vegetables. It is said that the reason why the Dai people often eat sour dishes is This is because they often eat glutinous rice food that is not easy to digest, and sour food helps digestion.

Daily meats include pigs, cows, chickens and ducks, and they do not eat or eat less mutton. The Dai people living in the mainland like to eat dog meat. They are good at grilled chicken and grilled chicken, and are very fond of fish, shrimp, crab, snails, moss and other aquatic products. Using moss as a dish is a unique flavor of the Dai people, and they often cook fish into sour fish or grilled lemongrass grass carp. When eating crabs, the crabs with shells and meat are usually chopped into crab sauce. Eaten with rice, the Dai people call this crab sauce "Crab Nanmibu"

Bitter melon is the most commonly eaten vegetable in addition to bitter melon, and there is also a kind of bitter bamboo shoots in Xishuangbanna, so it has a Dai flavor. There is also a bitter flavor in it, and the most representative bitter dish is the cold dish platter of beef skin cooked with ox bile and other ingredients.

The Dai area is humid and hot, and there are many kinds of insects. Flavored dishes and snacks made with insects as raw materials are an important part of the Dai food. Commonly eaten insects include cicadas, bamboo insects, giant spiders, field turtles, ant eggs, etc. The Dai people are addicted to alcohol, but the alcohol content is not high. They are home-brewed and have a sweet taste. Tea is a local specialty, but the Dai people only drink large-leaf tea without spices. When drinking, just fry it on the fire until it is charred, brew it and drink it with a slightly pasty taste. Chewing betel nut, mixed with tobacco and lime, all day long. Typical foods include dog meat soup pot, dried pork, pickled eggs, dried eel, etc.

Dai clothing:

The clothing of Dai women is the most beautiful in the world. It is like a peacock spreading its tail, colorful, beautiful and breathtaking. Anyone who knows the situation feels that this is not an exaggeration at all. Dai women are generally slender, with pure and delicate faces. They look graceful and graceful, so they are known as the "Golden Peacock". Not only are they beautiful, but they are also good at dressing up, using unique costumes to make themselves look like flowers. Dai women generally like to wear narrow-sleeved shorts and skirts to fully display their slender figures. Wear a white or crimson underwear on top, and a tight-fitting jacket on the outside, with a garden collar and narrow sleeves, with a large placket or a double placket, in various colors such as water red, light yellow, light green, snow white, sky blue and so on.

Nowadays, they are mostly sewn with materials such as georgette, silk, and Liang. Narrow-sleeved blouses fit tightly around the arms, leaving almost no gaps. Many people also like to sew them with flesh-colored fabrics. If you don't look carefully, you can't see the sleeves. The front and back plackets are just waist-length, tightly wrapping the body. , and then use a silver belt to tie the short-sleeved shirt and skirt, and wear a skirt that is as long as the ankles. The waist is slender and the hem is wide. This kind of attire of Dai women fully demonstrates the beauty of women's "measurements" of chest, waist and hips. In addition, the fabrics used are soft and the colors are bright and bright. No matter walking or doing things, they give people a graceful, free and elegant look. Feel.

Dai men generally wear collarless shirts with double lapels or large lapels and small sleeves, long trousers, and wrap their heads with white, green or scarlet cloth. Some wear woolen hats, which make them look smart and generous.

Both men and women of the Dai people always like to carry a satchel (tongpa) made of woven cotton on their shoulders when going out. The satchel has bright colors and simple style, with strong color of life and national characteristics. The patterns include rare birds and animals, trees, flowers or geometric figures, the images are realistic and lifelike. Each pattern contains specific content, such as: red and green are to commemorate the ancestors; the peacock pattern represents good luck; the elephant pattern symbolizes a bumper harvest and a better life; it fully expresses the Dai people's yearning and pursuit of a better life.

Dai Nationality Festival:

It is a celebration of the Dai New Year and is one of the most famous ethnic festivals in my country. Generally between April 13th and 15th in the Gregorian calendar. At that time, people first go to a nearby Buddhist temple to bathe the Buddha, and then splash water on each other to express their sincere blessings. About the origin of the Water Splashing Festival. There is an ancient myth and legend passed down, which you will hear introduced by the tour guide during the tour. During the Water Splashing Festival, various ethnic cultural and entertainment activities such as cockfighting, peacock dance, purse throwing, dragon boat racing, and Kongming lantern lighting are also held. Its main location is Jinghong City.