New Year Festival of Dong Ethnic People

New Year Festival of Dong Ethnic People, also called winter festival or Yang festival, is a traditional and celebration festival of the Dong nationality in the southeast of Guizhou Province. It’s held in celebration of a bumper grain harvest and thriving domestic animals. Dong ethnic people in different areas hold their New Year Festival in different times, mainly from the 1st day to the 11th day of the 11th lunar month. In the year 2007, New Year Festival of Dong Ethnic People was included in Guizhou Province’s second batch of intangible cultural heritage list.

Celebrating New Year Festival

It's a great experiance to celebrating their local festival

Sharing the food

Before the New Year Festival, Dong ethnic people do house cleaning and kill pigs, ship, chicken and ducks, preparing for the festival. They also make “freeze dishes” by cooking bean curd, fish and shrimps in acid water and making them cooling after one night. On the New Year Festival, Dong ethnic people in new festive clothes entertain friends and relatives with the tasty dishes they prepared, such as pickled Chinese cabbages, frozen fish and glutinous rice cakes. In some areas, Dong ethnic people hold large-scale Lusheng dancing and bullfighting activities. Some young people hold wedding ceremonies during the New Year Festival.

Dong New Year in Dong Villages in 72 Villages Area of Rongjiang Region

Date: between the late tenth month to the early eleventh month 
Celebrations: Lushen show and Bull Fighting