Zhuang Customs

Singing is a favorite activity of the Zhuang people. Singing contests are a part of every festival. There are old songs, which are an important part of the Zhuang oral tradition; there are also new songs, invented on the moment. Much of the point of Zhuang singing contests are to show one’s quickness in composing verses. One person will sing out a greeting or question; the one sung to must frame a response and sing back without delay.

Urban Zhuang are often almost indistinguishable from Chinese. They have intermarried with the Chinese and over several generations have adopted the Chinese language and customs. This is not to say that they have lost all Zhuang identity, for the Chinese in Nanning and other cities of Guangxi have adopted some Zhuang customs as well. Both Zhuang and Chinese celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival on the fifth lunar month. For the holiday’s major event, teams of twenty men sit in pairs in long canoe-like boats and have competitions. Each boat is carved in the shape of a dragon’s head and scaly designs are painted along the sides.