Nestled deep in the mountains, Danzhai, a county in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, in southwest China's Guizhou Province, is known for its picturesque scenery, and for the splendid cultural heritage of the Miao ethnic group. Miao people are gifted dancers, and dancing is always a feature of their ceremonies and traditional festivals. Jinji Dance, a traditional dance of the Miaos in Danzhai, is widely hailed as "the gem of ethnic Miao dance."
In Chinese, "jinji" literally means golden pheasant. For the Miaos in Danzhai, it is also a symbol of auspiciousness. Jinji Dance originated in Paidiao, a town in Danzhai, more than 1,000 years ago. The millennia-old dance is a form of the Miao's Lusheng Dance, a traditional folk dance named after Lusheng, a traditional musical instrument made of bamboo pipes.
During the dance, Miao women, wearing costumes and resembling beautiful golden pheasants, dance counterclockwise, in a circular pattern, as they follow the Miao men, who are playing the Lusheng. The women's graceful movements mimic the foraging and frolicking of golden pheasants, hence the dance's name.
Precious Heritage
The dance is most prominent in the Ganao branch of the Miao ethnic group. Ganao means "the tribe of birds" in the Miao language. The Ganao branch of Miao people mainly inhabit villages in Danzhai and its neighboring county, Leishan.
According to legend, ancestors of the Ganao Miao people migrated from the vast plain in the eastern region of ancient China, and they settled by a beach, Zhan'aoduishe. Later, they moved upstream, to escape recurring floods. Guided by a beautiful golden pheasant, they finally settled in Danzhai. The beautiful golden pheasant brought seeds of rice and millet to the migrants, and helped them create "flying songs" (Miao folk songs). Hence, the golden pheasant became Ganao Miao people's symbol of good fortune. To commemorate the golden pheasant, the Ganao Miao ancestors dressed in costumes, in the image of the golden pheasant, and they danced to imitate the pheasant's courtship and foraging behavior. According to legend, that is how Jinji Dance was created.
Nowadays, the Miaos mainly perform the dance during traditional festivals, and during wedding and sacrificial ceremonies. While performing the dance, the Miao women wear costumes to reflect beautiful golden pheasants. They usually wear their hair in a high bun, with pheasant-shaped silver headdresses. They also wear a silver necklace, bracelets and embroidered, accordion-pleated miniskirts, with several colorful brocade ribbons, which hang down to their calves, and which resemble beautiful tail feathers. Accompanied by the men playing the Lusheng, the women shake their knees and swing their waists, gently, while their arms sway at their sides. The women move with light steps, causing the ribbons to flutter and the white feathers, at the hemline of their skirts, to flip up and down. Combined, all of the motion resembles pheasants either foraging or frolicking.
In 2006, both Jinji Dance and the Miao people's craft of making Lusheng were among the first group οf items placed on China's list of national intangible cultural heritage. Jinji Dance has since been a calling card of the Miao's ethnic culture.
Companions, Soulmates
Li Jinying and Wang Fangyuan, a couple who live in Yanggao, a village in Paidiao, met and fell in love thanks to Jinji Dance. Li, 60, is a representative national-level inheritor of Jinji Dance while her husband, Wang, 63, is a representative provincial-level inheritor of the Miao people's craft of making Lusheng.
Li learned both Jinji Dance and the craft of making golden-pheasant-style costumes, from her mother, when she was young. As time passed, Li was able to dance with effortless grace. While performing the dance, she was like a golden pheasant, strolling light-footedly through the forest. During a festival ceremony, decades ago, Li performed the dance, while Wang played the Lusheng. The two young people fell in love, and they eventually married.
The couple, united in wedlock by their passion for the dance, have been guardians of the ancient art form throughout the years. Li has dedicated herself to performing the dance, and to imparting its essence to young people, in Yanggao, and to dancers and scholars who visit the village. Meanwhile, Wang has worked diligently to improve his Lusheng-making skills, and he has taught this traditional craftsmanship to subsequent generations.
"My greatest source of pride is I can make Lusheng that produces a clear and bright tone. The sound made by a fine Lusheng is as pure and crystalline as mountain spring water, and as gentle and melodious as the whisper of the wind. Only in this way can it go well with the vivid dance," says Wang.
The couple have performed Jinji Dance in France, Italy and other countries since 2006, to promote the Chinese folk art to overseas audiences. Their performances have earned them high praise.
New Vitality
Li has contributed to the inheritance and innovation of Jinji Dance throughout the years. The traditional dance movements are relatively simple. She has added movements that display the habits of the golden pheasant, and such adaptions have made the dance more vivid. She has also combined the dance with ancient Miao songs, to "tell the stories of the Miao ethnic group through the dance."
Li has set up after-school courses on Jinji Dance in some primary schools in Danzhai, and she has compiled teaching material targeted for primary school students. Today, it is common to see local children performing the dance on campus, and they are breathing new life into this ancient art form.
In Yanggao, an increasing number of children are learning Jinji Dance and/or the craft of making Lusheng from their parents.
Li and Wang are optimistic about the future of the dance. "With the efforts of everyone who cares about this cultural heritage, more people will come to appreciate the dance. This ancient art form will be passed down, from generation to generation," Li says.
Photos from VCG
(Women of China English Monthly January 2026)
Editor: Wang Shasha
