The ethnic name "water" is a transliteration of the ethnic group. In the language of water, "water" means "perforated strainer" and "smooth combing". Historically, they were called Liao, Yi, Shui Miao and Shuijia.

Population and distribution

By the end of 1990, the population was 344,990, mainly distributed in

Sandu County, Guizhou Province, some of them live in Duyun, Libo, Huanjiang and Nandan Hechi counties. Some of them are scattered in Guangxi.

Historical origin

The Shui nationality has a historical origin with the ancient "Luoyue" clan developed by one of the tribes. Before Qin and Han Dynasties, many tribes lived in Lingnan area and southeast coastal area. In 2 14 BC, the Qin dynasty unified Lingnan, and the ancestors of Shui people gradually moved northward to the border of Guizhou and Guangxi. Sui and Tang dynasties were collectively called "Xi Dongman"; In the Song Dynasty, a "water-rich country" was established here, which was called "water-rich people" in history. Zhou's place name implies that people who call themselves "water" have formed. /kloc-in the middle of the 0/3rd century, a large number of Han people moved here; 13-17th century, a large number of Han soldiers were transferred here to guard and settle down, and their descendants gradually merged into the Shui nationality.

Lang.

Shui people speak water language, which belongs to the Dong water language branch of Zhuang-Dong language family of Sino-Tibetan language family. He also knows Buyi, Miao, Han and Han. There is a saying called "Shui Shu". It is an ancient Chinese character with a history of 2000 years, but there are only more than 300 commonly used characters, which are only used in religious activities. These words are copied, and there is no block printing, but the calligraphy is basically the same everywhere. Most people in the aquarium don't know each other. They use Chinese in their daily life.

Religious culture

In the past, people believed in animism and worshipped many gods. It is believed that ancient trees, boulders and Jing Quan all have gods. Life and death, disease, famine, etc. They all invite wizards to recite scriptures and sacrifice ghosts and gods, especially fish sacrifices. At the end of 19 and the beginning of 2 10, Catholicism was introduced, but there were not many believers. There is a wealth of oral literature, dance, embroidery and sculpture.

Customs and society

Monogamy, young men and women are more free to fall in love and get married, and there is a custom of "keeping marriage". It used to be popular to "turn around and kiss", that is, my aunt's daughter married my uncle's son. Contrary to the Han nationality. Han people think that "returning to relatives" is a kind of blood flow, which is not good for future generations. Funerals are complicated. When a person dies, it is necessary to set up a memorial hall for the deceased, open a crane, set up a karaoke hall, sing songs and dances, sing lanterns, slaughter livestock, and bury them on another day. It's simplified now. Men wear big-breasted robes and green cloth. Women's clothes are mostly blue and green. Women wear blue long-sleeved collarless dresses, blue trousers with lace around them, and skirts on holidays. Live in a dry house. "Gan Lan" means "architecture" in Water Margin. The whole house is made of wood. It doesn't need a nail, but it is very strong. The main festival is Duanjie, which is similar to the Spring Festival of the Han nationality. This is a grand festival to celebrate the harvest and sacrifice ancestors. Every year, the water calendar begins on the first day of December, and it is celebrated by regional stages and batches. There was no unified date until February of the following year. This is the most grand festival in the aquarium.

Aquarium is mainly engaged in agriculture, and is rich in rice, wheat, cotton and various fruits. Rich peppers are exported to all parts of Southeast Asia. The traditional famous wine "Jiuqian Liquor" is mellow and delicious. Rich in forestry resources, rich in high-quality Chinese fir. After the founding of New China, Sandu County was established.