Huazhou people Qingming ancestors of the flower steamed buns
Author: Shi Sanwen Photo: Liu Huanmin
Huazhou District, Weinan City, Shaanxi Province, folk handmade flower bun has a long history of a wide variety, the four seasons of the year follow the seasonal changes, there are animals and birds, fish, insects, flowers and birds, character instruments, etc., not only exquisite shape, ingenious craftsmanship; but also with the progress, far-reaching meaning, many times on the CCTV screen and famous overseas.
Huazhou Qingming flower bun Swallow photo by Liu Huanmin
Huazhou icon handmade flower bun is divided into: marriage and funeral dowry, housewarming, birthday ceremony, celebration sacrifice, etc., the flower bun structure is complex and the shape is very different.
The Qingming Festival sacrifices flowers and buns, which are customs handed down by the ancestors of huazhou people for thousands of years. Every year during the Qingming Festival, in addition to bringing paper money, pastries, and water and wine to the ancestors, every household in Huazhou specially brings their own hand-kneaded flower buns, which are divided into swallows that know the seasonal seasons; there are tigers who expect their children and grandchildren to be strong and healthy, among them, tigers also have the distinction of "running tigers" and "sleeping tigers", "running tigers" are specially prepared for boys in the family, and "crouching tigers" are specially prepared for girls in the family.
Huazhou Qingming tiger photo by Liu Huanmin
There are also steamed "ke forks" that expect boys to become self-reliant and self-reliant as soon as possible, and "live baskets" that look forward to girls' ingenuity when they grow up. "Live lay basket" is a treasure chest where girls used to do needlework, which contains silk thread, floral cloth, scissors, embroidery bandages, embroidery needles, thimble icons, shoe soles, shoe states, insoles, etc.; Qingming Festival Huazhou women use dough to knead into the shape of "live lay basket", which contains small and exquisite scissors made of dough, weaving shuttle icons, thimbles, etc., which can be both watched and eaten to fill their hunger.
Huazhou Qingming flower bun Photo by Liu Huanmin
Huazhou sacrifice flower bun is the Huazhou people's remembrance and remembrance of the ancestors, is the concrete embodiment of Huazhou folk culture, it is pinned on the Huazhou people's expectations and wishes for future generations.
Huazhou folk customs on the grave Liu Huanmin photo
As a Huazhou person, we should be proud of the folk culture of our hometown, and we should have the obligation to pass on and carry forward the Handmade Flower Bun in Huazhou.
Written on April 4, 2022 in Qingdao Jimo, Huazhou: Shi Sanwen.
Source: Author's contribution
Photo: Liu Huanmin
Original author: Shi Sanwen
Compilation and editing: Huazhou Literature and History Collection