The Yi ethnic group, with a population of 6.6 million, is mainly distributed over the provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou, and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It is the fifth largest minority nationality of China, which has rich culture heritage and long history.

 Genesis

In the old mythology, at the creation of the world, the God of Gezi used the chin of the tiger to support the sky and the feet of the tiger to maintain the ground. The tiger's left eye became the sun and its right eye became the moon. The tiger's teeth turned to the stars, and its blood got to the sea. Then came the whole world and the people. Therefore, the Yi people treat themselves as the offspring of the Black Tiger.

 The Ten-month Solar Calendar

More than 4000 years before, the Yi's ancestor had already created an accurate calendric system which separated one yearsintos10 months. Every two months is a season so there are five seasons a year. Each month has 36 days.

The left 5-6 days will be New Year Festival. Therefore according to the Yi nationality's calendar the time that the earth turns around the sun will be 365.25 days. Considering the time this calendar was born, this system is unbelievable amazing.

 Festival

Yi nationality has many traditional festivals such as the Tenth Month Festival, the Torch Festival, some area festivals and fete ceremonies.

However, the most important festival for Yi people is the Torch Festival.

On the 24th of the sixth lunar month, when the handle of the Big Dipper turns upward, Torch Festival, Yi people's New Year according to Yi calendar begins. Torches are kindled at night to expel evil and pray for prosperity. Many activities are held, including wrestling, bull fighting and horse racing.

The festival originated from the legend about the battle between an ancient Yi hero and a Giant of the God. The hero wrestled and beat him, which irritated the God. Insgroupsto revenge, the God sent evils and pests to damage the crops. The hero taught his people to eliminate evils and pests with torches. From now on, Yi people begin to prosper. The festival is held to commemorate him.

 Custom

 Wedding

The Yi bride's wedding dress must be made by herself and his mother together with her sisters during the month before her wedding. This dress can't be sent or sold to the others .And this dress will also be worn at her funeral.

At the day of wedding, the bridegroom will have to snatch a pair of trousers which is given by the bride from the bridesmaid. Only after the bridegroom gets this trousers, they can hold the ceremony.

When the family of bride's or bridegroom's entertain the guests, all they need to do is to prepare the dishware. The guests will bring the food.

 Style

Yi nationality are very famous for their beautiful silver ornaments. The Finery of nationality differs in different regions. The three sections are: the Yinuo style, Shengzha style, and Suodi style.

Yi costume is great in variety, with different designs for different places. In the Liangshan Mountains and west Guizhou, men wear black jackets with tight sleeves and right-side askew fronts, and pleated wide-bottomed trousers. Men in some other areas wear tight-bottomed trousers. They grow a small patch of hair three or four inches long on the pate, which is named "Zier", and wear a turban made of a long piece of bluish cloth. The end of the cloth is tiedsintosthe shape of a taper jutting out from the right-hand side of the forehead. Women wear laced or embroidered jackets and pleated long skirts hemmed with colorful multi-layer laces. Some women wear black turbans, while middle-aged and young women prefer embroidered square kerchiefs with the front covering the forehead like a rim. They also wear earrings and like to pin silver flowers on the collar. Men and women, when going outdoors, wear a kind of dark cape made of wool and hemmed with long tassels reaching to the knee.

 The Proprieties and Taboos

Usually there is a stove in Yi people's room. Spittingsintosthe stove is forbidden, and it is also forbidden to be naked around the stove.

To urinate facing the sun is considered very rude according to the Yi.

Yi women are prohibited from sunning the clothes at the aisles and near the beehive.

Even if you don't drink or smoke, you should not refuse the smoke and wine from the host which will be treated as very insolent. You should accept the cigarettes and the alcohol but not to smoke or drink insgroupsto show your respect to the host,but you could not smoke or drink.