The Research Of Cattail Planting And Traditional Cattail Weaving Skills In Leizhou

The straw technology is a special branch of Chinese folk traditional craft. According to archaeological discoveries, the earliest Chinese straw relics——some reed mat pieces weaved by warp and weft, were unearthed in the ruins of Hemudu in Yuyao Country, Zhejiang Province in 1973, that was 7000 years ago. As well as the straw relics which unearthed during the period of Liangzhu Culture, more than 5000 years ago, shows that its weaving techniques become more comlicated that has produced more different crafts.The cattail weaving is an important component of local folk culture in Leizhou, and has many of the characteristics like quite long history, exquisite workmanship, fine products, and full of meanings with local conditions and traditional customs. Firstly, from the perspective of the handicraft techniques, the cattail weaving is a kind of creation, which made by ecological materials, hand fabrication, traditional model andfolkloric patterns. Although the raw material is cheap, the final productions are the most closed things for our lives, that could be directly reflected the desire and taste of the working people. Secondly, in the view of social custom, the cattail weaving has carried the folk custom and culture between the local production and living people. Nowadays, the folk straw crafts market is becoming increasingly internationalized, its production technology is also developing towards standard, and using the production line. While this can creat huge economic interes, at the same time, it may also put the folk custom and culture into a crisis for the fragmentation. Accordingly, taking the investigation and research of the Leizhou cattail weaving, would be played a positive role for inheriting and protecting the folk technology. Furthermore, from the perspective of industrial economy, the industry of cattail weaving in Leizhou has created an extremely brilliant history. Today, with the implement of the five concepts for development and the advocacy of ecological view of sustainable development, the folk straw technology, which has its own unique characteristics, will have great potential economically in the future. Finally, in the view of ‘intangible cultural heritage’, the Leizhou cattail weaving had been placed on Guangdong province ‘intangible cultural heritage’protection list in 2012, and gradually enter into vision of the public by the media campaigns. It is, however, regrettable that its value not yet have been attended by experts and scholars.This paper is divided into the following sections: briefly discusses the planting environment of the Leizhou cattail and reviews its history of cultivation techniques; makes analysis of the historical sources and lineage of the cattail weaving skills; and summarizes the development of the weaving trade. This article is focused on the study of the traditional process of cattail weaving production, including its materials, production tools, process, weaving techniques, product features and so on. And then probes into the meaning and value, the main problems, the protection and sustainable utilization of the Leizhou cattail weaving skills from the perspective of ‘intangible cultural heritage’. So as to explore a new development way, and finally achieving ‘win-win’ between the preservation of traditional cultures and modern economic utilization.