In Nanhai District, except for a few people in Heshun Town (merged into Feishui) and Songgang Town (merged into Shishan Town) who speak Hakka, Cantonese is mainly used.
Guangzhou dialect is spoken in most areas of Sanshui District, Hakka dialect is spoken in most villages of Datang Town of Liuhe District, and Nanshan Town is also a Hakka settlement, accounting for about 3% of the total population of the region. Most of these Hakkas moved to Liuhe Town from Jiaying Prefecture and other places in the Qing Dynasty.
Gaoming District is dominated by Cantonese, with a small amount of Hakka.
Cantonese is widely used in Shunde District.
Foshan is a famous cultural city with a long history. It is the core area of Guangfu culture, and Lingnan culture is full of charm. At the same time, Foshan is also the birthplace of China Cantonese Opera, a famous city of martial arts, folk art, ceramics and food.
Foshan, one of the four famous towns in ancient China, is famous at home and abroad for its developed handicraft industry. The ingenious folk art has a long history, originated in the Tang and Song Dynasties, flourished in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and has strong local characteristics.
Foshan folk art has its own characteristics. It is made by cutting, carving, flapping, molding, binding, casting, painting, gluing, paper-cutting, binding, lanterns, autumn colors (also known as "autumn scenery", "Autumn Night", "Autumn Colors" and "autumn scenery"), pottery and gray plastic (including paper flapping and sculpture). Foshan paper-cut is a famous traditional folk art in China, which originated in Song Dynasty and flourished in Ming and Qing Dynasties. It has a history of over 800 years. At first, Foshan paper-cut was mainly made of scissors, and later it was carved by knife workers. It is unique in Chinese paper-cut art. Its works have been selected into national art exhibitions and national arts and crafts exhibitions for many times and won many awards, and are often sent to foreign exhibitions. The autumn colors in Foshan can be divided into two categories: autumn handicrafts and performing arts. Because of the folk custom in Foshan, a play is called a set of plays, so Shiwan residents call it a "local set".
Foshan woodblock New Year pictures have a long history. According to the description in Guangdong Cultural Relics: "The front door is carved with shrines and cliffs as high as the eaves", which proves that the custom of sticking to the door gods has become popular in Guangzhou and Foshan in Han Dynasty. The production of Foshan woodblock New Year pictures was very popular before Qingganlong, Jiaqing and War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, belonging to local folk crafts.
Foshan is "Tao Dou in the South China" and "Porcelain Capital of China", with a long history of more than 700 years, and has a reputation of "Shiwanwa is the best in the world" since ancient times. Nanfeng ancient stove, built in Zhengde period of Ming Dynasty, is the oldest firewood burning dragon kiln in the world. It has been handed down from generation to generation for more than 500 years and is known as the "living fossil of ceramics".
Foshan is the "hometown of Lingnan medicine". The history of ancient medicine has been more than 400 years, and a number of time-honored and famous medicines such as "Huangxianghua" Ruyi Oil, "Popular" Medicinal Liquor and "Yuanjilin" Ganhe Tea have emerged.
The foundry industry in Foshan began more than 2000 years ago. Pots, pots, bells and towers cast in Foshan in the Song Dynasty were famous all over the country. By the Ming Dynasty, Foshan's casting technology had reached a fairly high level and became the smelting center of South China. During the Opium War, the cannons cast in Foshan played an important role in resisting foreign invasion.
Foshan is the "hometown of delicacies" in the Pearl River Delta and one of the cradles of Cantonese cuisine. The land here is fertile, the water network is vertical and horizontal, and the "land, sea and air" products are quite rich. Whether it's animals flying in the sky, walking on the ground, drilling in the soil, swimming in the water, or lush fruits and vegetables, they can all become delicious food under the careful cooking of chefs.
There are many snacks in Foshan, such as Foshan Tieti, Foshan Gong Sesame Cake, Daliang Pheasant Roll, Daliang Dung, Daliang Ginger Juice, Fried Milk, Double Skin Milk, Xiaofeng Cake, Nanhai Fish Raw, Dafu Cake, Jiujiang Fried Dumplings, Sanshui Paparazzi Duck, Crystal jiaozi, Steamed Cake, Xiqiao Cake, Foshan Nine-layer Cake, Shiwan Fish Preserved and Jiujiang Fried Dumplings.
Foshan people have created many delicious dishes with different styles according to local specialties and tastes. Foshan's Zhuhou cuisine and Shunde's "Fengcheng (Daliang) Fried" are all famous. There are many snacks in Foshan, such as Foshan Blind Kung Cake, Daliang Tiaosha, Tieti, Daliang Pheasant Roll, Fried Milk, Tiaosha, Nanhai Fish Raw, Dafu Cake, Jiujiang Pot Sticker, etc. , are well known.
Lunar New Year's Eve Flower Market: "Walking the Flower Street" is a long-standing folk custom of the people in the Pearl River Delta. The flower market is held three days before the Spring Festival, and New Year's Eve is the climax of the flower market. The crowd was packed, and tourists bought flowers to show their good luck and great ambition.
Lion King for hegemony: Lion King for hegemony is one of the cultural activities of "One City, One Special" in Guangdong Province during the Spring Festival. In Foshan, there is no Spring Festival without lion awakening. During the Spring Festival, lion dance performances can be seen all over Foshan, and some towns and streets will organize large-scale "Lion King Competition". Nowadays, lion dance can be seen in many places, but it can become a special activity of Foshan Spring Festival because it has a different history and culture in Foshan, and its cultural atmosphere and technology are unique in China. Foshan lion dance is a southern lion skill, which combines Foshan Kung Fu. So when you watch the lion dance in Foshan, you can also see the figure of Foshan Kung Fu. If you like Kung Fu and lion dance, don't miss it.
Every year on the 16th day of the first month, Foshan people have a custom of "giving financial aid". It is said that there used to be a river near Nanpu Park in the south of Foshan, and there was a bridge on the river called Tongji Bridge. Foshan people believe that "doing good is harmful" (Foshan dialect, which means doing good without sorrow). Now the river is gone, but the bridge is still there. Every year on the 15th day of the first month, the government organizes people to cross the bridge, burn incense, throw lettuce and spin windmills here. The crowd was endless and very lively.
Dragon Boat Race: Every year during the Dragon Boat Festival, there are folk dragon boat races all over Foshan, and all towns and villages send dragon boat teams with a prosperous lineup to participate. The beautiful and eye-catching dragon boat strives for the upper reaches of the river network in the water town. Both sides are full of spectators, and the sound of gongs and drums and shouts come and go, which is very lively.
Autumn colors in Foshan: Autumn colors, also known as "Autumn Night" and "autumn scenery", are large-scale folk cultural entertainment activities unique to Foshan. In the past, autumn colors were mostly held in the evening of the autumn harvest season, and the forms of expression were divided into seven categories: light color, car color, horse color, ground color, water color, floating color and scenery. During the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty, various exquisite handicrafts were exhibited in the form of parades, and dragon dances, lion dances, ten fans, gongs and drums cabinets were performed to entertain the public.
Foshan is the "hometown of lion art", the birthplace of Southern Lion, the first "Dragon and Lion Dragon Boat Sports City", Chancheng District is the "hometown of dragon and lion sports", and Xiqiao Town in Nanhai District is the only "hometown of dragon and lion" in China.
Foshan is the birthplace of Cantonese opera Southern Red Bean. The nickname of Cantonese opera artists-"Children of the Red Boat", the earliest organization of Cantonese opera-Qionghua Guild Hall was born. It is a major feature of Foshan culture that folk spontaneously organize Cantonese opera to sing Private Bureau, which lasts for a long time. The Qionghua Cantonese Opera Art Festival, held every year, makes Foshan present a grand occasion of "red boats moored in the evening gauze, and thousands of people see Qionghua".