Yao Ethnic Folk Village

　　Jinxiu is a homeland of the Yao people, boasting a long history and rich Yao culture, lifestyle customs, and ethnic charm. The Yao’s clothing, homes, folk songs, and traditional agrarian life are colorful, distinctive in local flavor, elegant yet unique, preserving ancient frontier customs. As the renowned anthropologist Fei Xiaotong once said, “The world’s center for Yao studies is in China, and China’s center for Yao studies is in Jinxiu.”

　　Currently, several Yao Ethnic Folk Villages have been established, including the Mengcun Folk Village (8 km from the county town), the Shiba Family Folk Village (28 km from the county), the Renlai Village (in the county town), and the Guyong Village (14 km from the county). These villages are located at the foot of high-altitude mountains, beside county roads, with towering, cloud-piercing peaks nearby, mirror-like streams flowing behind the houses, and ancient thousand-year-old trees around the villages. The villages mainly showcase their unique ethnic architecture, diverse Yao costumes, lifestyle customs, languages, as well as primitive and simple folk ways of life to visitors. They also present the colorful festivals, dances, and unique marriage customs of the five Yao subgroups. In particular, when young Yao men and women perform Yao song and dance spectacles, tourists are specially invited to join in group dances. After the revelry, they may receive small tokens from the hospitable villagers, experience the authentic Yao way of life, taste homemade Yao meals with fragrant dishes that leave an unforgettable aftertaste.