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Chinese Name: 维吾尔族
English Name: The Uighur People, The Uygur nationality
Languages: Uyghur language 维吾尔族语, Chinese 汉语
Total population: 1.00*107 (China mainland 2022)
Distribution: Mainly live in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
Brief introduction
The Uighur People 维吾尔族 are one of the ethnic minorities in China, they mainly live in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 新疆维吾尔自治区. The Uyghur national language is Uyghur, which belongs to the Altaic language family 阿尔泰语系.
The history of the Uighur People
The origin of the Uighur People can be traced back to the nomadic peoples who lived in northern China and south of Lake Baikal 贝加尔湖 in the northwest in the 3rd century BC. The nomadic people unified the various tribes and accep ted the canonization of the Tang Dynasty, becoming one of the vassal states of the Tang Dynasty 唐朝. After the 12th century, the tribe migrated westward and merged with the local indigenous people and the ethnic groups who subsequently moved into the area to form the Uighur People in the early 16th century.
The religion of the Uighur People
Historically, the Uyghurs once believed in Shamanism 萨满教, Manichaeism 摩尼教, Zoroastrianism 拜火教and Buddhism 佛教. At the end of the 10th century, the Kara-Khanid Khanate 喀喇汗王朝 began to embrace Islam 伊斯兰. By the 15th century AD, Islam gradually became dominant in the Uyghur region.
The Cultures of the Uighur People
Uighur diets 维吾尔族饮食
The traditional diet of the Uyghurs is mainly pasta, and they like to eat sheep and beef, and eat relatively little vegetables. There are many kinds of staple food, the most commonly eaten are naan 馕, pilaf, steamed buns, ramen and so on. Naan, made from wheat flour or corn flour, is baked in a special fire pit, and it is a round cake of different shapes, sizes and thicknesses. Pilaf is a kind of rice stewed with rice, mutton, suet, cooking oil and carrots. It is delicious. Uyghurs strictly forbid eating pork, donkey, dog and mule meat.
Uighur clothing 维吾尔族服饰
Uyghur traditional men’s coats are characterized by knee length, wide sleeves, no collar, no buttons, and a long belt around the waist. Women generally wear dresses, overcoats or tops. Women and girls alike like to thrush their eyebrows with natural Usmania juice, dye their nails, wear earrings, bracelets, rings, necklaces, etc.
Uyghurs, both men, women and children, like to wear four-lens flower hats, and embroider patterns in various ethnic forms with black and white or colored silk threads. In the past, unmarried girls wore more than a dozen braids, with long hair as their beauty. There are all kinds of headgear on the head, and there are also double braids in a bun. With the development of the times, in addition to traditional clothing and costumes, fashion is generally popular in cities.
Uighur architecture 维吾尔族建筑
The Uyghur traditional courtyard-style residences can be roughly divided into three basic plane combinations: “outer room 外间”, “dining room 餐室” and “back room 后室”. Most of the regions are dominated by one form, but the same form has great differences in the specific layout.
Due to the vast desert, severe wind and sand, hot and little rain in summer, and cold ecological environment in winter, the Uyghurs pay great attention to the transformation and beautification of the environment, so courtyard-style residences often have orchard gardens, poplars, and grape sheds.
The Uyghurs attach great importance to the decoration of houses and present a variety of decorative means. However, each family has tapestries hanging on the walls and carpets on the Tukang, which are its common characteristics.
Uighur manners 维吾尔族礼仪
Uyghur people should put their right hand on their chest when they meet their elders or friends. Men should shake hands when they meet each other, women should hug each other when they meet each other, put their right cheeks together, and finally, put their hands on their knees and bow to say goodbye. The younger generation should first give gifts to the elders, and now the handshake is often used as a greeting.
Uyghurs generally believe that the abundance of guests is enviable. Usually, if guests arrive at the same time, they should enter the door separately, male and female, young and old, and sit on the Kang. Before and after meals, the host will hold the handwashing pot for the guests to wash their hands, usually three times, and the guests are not allowed to throw the water around.
The host first pours a bowl of tea for each person and salutes them with both hands, and then spreads a tablecloth in front of the guests, placing all kinds of snacks, fruits and delicacies. Sometimes the host will play the national musical instruments to add to the fun with singing and dancing. At the end of the meal, under the leadership of the elders, recite prayers.
Uyghur dance 维吾尔族舞蹈
Uyghur dances are known for their fast and varied rotations. “Sainem” is the most common form of folk dance. Improvised dances sometimes dance alone, sometimes in pairs, and sometimes three or five people dance together. Accompanied by the band, the crowd sitting in a circle clapped and sang in harmony. When the rhythm of the music changes from medium to fast, the dance steps will also become fast with the rhythm.
