Learning Bai
Bai 白族话 is the language spoken by the Bai people 白族 in the Dali area. While Chinese has become the lingua franca, Bai is still actively spoken by many, particularly older people, but it does not have a native written form and comes in many dialects. Here we list the available resources for learning this difficult language.
The temple in Mangdao 芒岛, built in 1899, is one of few surviving examples of Dai Buddhist temples having survived the Cultural Revolution by being converted into grain storage.
Fei Hsiao-Tung and Chang Chih-I: Earthbound China: A Study of Rural Economy in Yunnan
Fei is the father of modern sociology in China: western-trained, he came to Yunnan at the end of the 1930s when China's eastern universities relocated west. In "Earthbound China" he applied modern empirical techniques that he had pioneered around Shanghai to the Chinese hinterland. The economical development, and subsequent societal changes, of three un-named, but typical villages in Yunnan is analyzed in great detail in this fascinating study.
A number of Chinese historic texts covering life and politics in Yunnan have survived over the centuries. I have translated a few of them.
Sculpture making in the Dali region.
An unspoilt Tibetan area along the Zhibaluo River.
C. Patterson Giersch: Asian Borderlands: The Transformation of Qing China's Yunnan Frontier
Yunnan was not always China: indeed not so long ago large parts of Yunnan were only nominally part of the empire. To make Yunnan, outside the main Han cities, a Chinese province required significant effort. Here Giersch's study on Yunnan's hinterland makes an interesting if academic read.
Locally important temple.
Upcoming Festivals
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
| Litang Horse Racing | 01 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship (Jianchuan Area) | 08 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship (Fengyu Area) | 08 Aug |
| Caobing Festival | 08 Aug |
| Swallow Nest Festival | 08 Aug |
| Gaofeng Torch Festival | 09 Aug |
| Mushroom Festival | 09 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 10 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship (Jianchuan Area) | 10 Aug |
| Perseid Meteor Shower | 12 Aug |
| Wumulong Torch Festival | 12 Aug |
| Yinongwu | 13 Aug |
Markets this Sunday
| Dali | 大理 |
|---|---|
| Jiuzhou | 旧州 |
| Sanying | 三营 |
| Xintun | 辛屯 |
| Songgui | 松桂 |
| Yunlong | 云龙县 |
| Liantie | 炼铁 |
| Binchuan | 宾川县 |
| Beitou | 北头 |
| Lawu | 拉乌 |
| Jianchuan | 剑川县 |
| Changxin | 长新 |
| Eryuan | 洱源县 |
| Huangping | 黄平镇 |
| Pingpo | 平坡 |
| Hongyan | 红岩镇 |
| Hedian | 禾甸镇 |
| Minjian | 民建乡 |
| 青苗 | |
| Niujie | 牛街彝族乡 |
| Honghe | 红河 |
|---|---|
| Pingbian | 屏边苗族自治县 |
| Shengcun | 生村 |
| Diema | 垤玛 |
| Mengzi | 蒙自县 |
| Sancun | 三村 |
| Shalatuo | 沙拉托 |
| Liangdi | 浪堤 |
| Chake | 岔科 |
| Jiayin | 甲寅 |
| Azhahe | 阿扎河 |
| Baohua | 宝华 |
| Luoen | 洛恩 |
| Yongning | 永宁乡 |
| Zhemi | 者米拉祜族乡 |
| Tongchang | 铜厂 |
| Laomeng | 老勐 |
| Panzihua | 攀枝花 |
| Wenshan | 文山 |
|---|---|
| Babu | 八布乡 |
| Tiechang | 铁厂镇 |
| Guangnan | 广南县 |
| Zhuanjiao | 篆角乡 |
| Pingyuan | 平远 |
| Zhesang | 者桑乡 |
| Babao | 八宝镇 |
| Mulun | 睦伦乡 |
| Baoshan | 保山市 |
|---|---|
| Manglong | 芒龙 |
| Lincang | 临沧 |
|---|---|
| Cangyuan | 沧源佤族自治县 |
| Wumulong | 乌木龙乡 |
| Quannei | 圈内 |
| Shuangjiang | 双江拉祜族佤族布朗族傣族自治县 |
| Zhenkang | 镇康县 |
| Junsai | 军赛乡 |
| Qujing | 曲靖市 |
|---|---|
| Fenghuang | 凤凰 |
| 干海子 | |
| Laochang | 老厂乡 |
| Sandao | 三道 |
| Wuxing | 五星乡 |
| Xinjie | 新街回族乡 |
| Yangmeishan | 杨梅山 |
| Yema | 野马林场 |
| Puer | 普洱 |
|---|---|
| Lancang | 澜沧拉祜族自治县 |
| Nanling | 南岭乡 |
| Jiangcheng | 江城哈尼族彝族自治县 |
| Jiahe | 嘉禾乡 |
| Fuyan | 富岩 |