Intangible Heritage

Deep in the mountains of southeastern China lives a people who call themselves “Shan-ha.” In the She language, “Shan-ha” means “guests of the mountains.” That name alone reveals a way of being—they never claimed to be masters of the land. Just visitors. But these “guests” have been living in Fuzhou’s highlands for nearly 1,300 years—ever since the Tang Dynasty. I opened the Fuzhou She Nationality Records looking for one answer: how does an ethnic group with no written script preserve its language, dress, and beliefs for over a millennium? ...

Shunchang Baoshan Monkey King Belief: Primitive Worship Predating Abstract At the summit of Baoshan in Shunchang County, Fujian, lies an archaeological fact that stunned researchers of Journey to the West: a 1,305-meter-high Yuan Dynasty stone architectural miracle and the well-preserved “Double Sage Tomb” of Qitian Dasheng and Tongtian Dasheng. This discovery traces the origins of Shunchang Baoshan Great Sage culture back to the Yuan Dynasty or earlier monkey deity worship. Combining historical records like the Shunchang County Chronicle, this article reconstructs the reality of the Yuan Dynasty Qitian Dasheng Tomb and explains how Northern Fujian Shamanic Culture birthed this global icon. ...