Research On The Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance

In Egong Town,Dingnan County,Jiangxi Province,at the junction of Jiangxi and Guangdong,a traditional dragon dance folk culture called Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance has been passed down to this day.The Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance was created and inherited by the local Hakka people in their long-term production and living practices,with a history of over 400 years.The Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon is inherited by the Ye and Peng clans in Tianxin Village and Shuibang Village in Egong Town.Both of these clans migrated from Guangdong to this place in the mid and late Ming Dynasty and grew stronger,becoming the two most powerful clans in Egong Town.Through more than a year of interviews,participation,observation and field research,this study has gained a deep understanding of the "things","substances" and "people" related to the Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance.And combined with relevant literature,this paper analyzes and discusses the folk culture of the Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance from six aspects: its generation environment,its production techniques and artistic culture connotation,its organization and performance process,clan competition and integration behind it,local folk beliefs behind it,and the modern inheritance and development of it.The Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance has rich cultural connotations and traditional ways of expression.Both the production of the yellow dragon and the organization and development of dragon dancing activities fully demonstrate the values,cultural awareness,artistic aesthetics,public psychology,and folk beliefs of the village people.In addition,the Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance also contains profound clan cultural traditions.The production and activities of the Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance are conducted under the organization of the clan,and gradually become the carrier of clan competition between the two clans.During the successive dragon dance events,the "unity of events" formed by clan folk activities has constantly awakened the historical memory of the common ancestors of the clan,and also made the blood ties of the clan closer.For the honor of the clan,almost all families within the clan will participate in it,and individuals will consciously participate in the clan’s roles and play their own role in clan activities.From the organization and performance process of dragon dance activities,we can deeply understand the social organization,social structure,social life,and other deep connotations of rural clan society.The development of the relationship between the two clans has both historical and practical reasons.The two clans in Egong experienced a process from competition to cooperation,from conflict to reconciliation,and from separation to integration.Today,both clans have laid down past grievances and developed together,which is also a highlight in the development process of local rural society.The experience of these two clans can also be used for reference in rural social governance.As a traditional folk culture in the village,various forces have jointly promoted the inheritance and development of the Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance.The promotion of official forces,the cultural consciousness of the village people,and the application for cultural heritage under the influence of the driving force of the times have all played a promoting role in the inheritance and development of the Egong Hakka Yellow Dragon Dance.However,there are still some problems that need to be solved in the process of inheritance and development.Based on the problems found,inheritance and development strategies are proposed as a reference.