A brief discussion on ethnic minority paper-cutting
It can be seen that although the paper-cutting history of many ethnic minorities is not as long as that of the Han people, mutual influence does exist. Some ethnic minorities who live together with the Han people or are close neighbors have many reflections in their paper-cutting culture. Jiyang cultural imprint of the Han nationality. On the other hand, the origin of paper-cutting by ethnic minorities is also quite obvious, among which the influence of primitive religion is particularly obvious. They have inherited the witchcraft tradition when paper-cutting originated, whether it is the shamans of the Manchu, Oroqen, and Ewenki primitive polytheistic beliefs. Paper-cutting, or the witchcraft ceremony paper-cutting of the Zhuang people, whether it is the Tujia "Tima" paper-cutting or the Miao peoples "Huantanyuan" paper-cutting, etc., have inherited and internalized the origin of paper-cutting to varying degrees. From this From a perspective, it can be said that ethnic minority paper-cutting is primitive and ancient.
The functional use of ethnic minority paper-cuts is not much different from that of Han paper-cuts in nearby areas, but there are differences in the frequency and proportion of use. Most of the ethnic minority paper-cuts are not decorative paper-cuts used alone, but multiple The designs appear in the form of embroidery, appliqué, cutting and engraving, so they have a wide range of materials to choose from, often using local materials. The colors and hollowing techniques are also different. They mostly adopt the principle of "conformity" according to needs, which is very different from Han paper-cutting. In the cultural changes, ethnic minority paper-cutting has been greatly impacted, because although ethnic minorities have not modernized as quickly as the Central Plains, government actions such as the Western Development Project and Housing Project in recent years have included modern media, childrens Going out for education, working, etc., has caused tremendous changes in the production and lifestyle of ethnic minorities. The most prominent is that the colorful ethnic costumes as national identification symbols are rarely used in daily life, and the patterns that are also dependent on them are Paper-cutting is on the verge of extinction, and paper-cutting used in other folk life is also facing the same situation. Therefore, the work of rescuing ethnic minority paper-cutting is urgent, especially the inheritance model of inheritors, oral and personal teaching, and the cultural ecology for the survival of national paper-cutting art. Environmental protection.
