Hulin Village Bamboo Lanterns

Hulin Village Bamboo Lanterns

　　During festivals and holidays, people in the Chaoshan region love to hang lanterns at their doorways to pray for good fortune and create a festive atmosphere. In Hulindian, a small village in Longhu Town, Chao’an County, there is a place that specializes in weaving bamboo lanterns.

　　The villagers of Hulin have been making bamboo lanterns for generations—both men and women, young and old. However, this traditional handicraft was interrupted during the Cultural Revolution. Since the 1980s, the craft has regained its vitality, and nearly every household in the village is involved in making bamboo lanterns.

　　Making bamboo lanterns involves several steps, including shaving bamboo strips, forming the socket, and binding the lamp core. Currently, the bamboo lanterns produced in Hulindian mainly include round lanterns and winter melon-shaped lanterns, with over ten different sizes and styles. Thanks to the villagers’ diligence, honesty, and high product quality, the bamboo lanterns from this village have long been popular in markets across Chaozhou, Shantou, Jieyang, Zhao’an, and beyond. Each year, a significant number of these lanterns are also sold to Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand and Singapore through merchants.