Local Opera: Taiwanese opera (also known as rural opera) is a representative local opera in southern Fujian. 1662, a large number of Minnan people moved to Taiwan Province with the national hero Zheng Chenggong, bringing folk music and arts such as "Longxi Golden Pavilion", "Anxi Tea Picking" and "Tongan Car Drum", and the "Gezi Pavilion" appeared. Influenced by Liyuan Opera, Gaojia Opera and Peking Opera in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, a unique performing art "Gezai Opera" was gradually formed, which was first popular in Taiwan Province Province and returned to southern Fujian after 1928. After the reform and innovation of folk artists, it was named "xiang opera". This kind of traditional Chinese opera lyrics are simple, lively and beautiful, and are deeply loved by the masses. Butterfly Lovers is a famous drama of Xiamen Gezi Opera Troupe, which is called Romeo and Juliet by China. It was made into a film by Hong Kong Great Wall Film Studio and distributed in Southeast Asia. Other plays, such as Burning the House, Five Girls Offering Birthdays, Killing the Pig, Telling the Mute Girl, The Legend of the White Snake and The True Prince, have also been made into TV dramas and movies.
Traditional custom: China people advocate red, and Xiamen people also regard red as a symbol of happiness and auspiciousness. Door couplets and invitations are all red paper; When giving gifts, you should also stick a red note on the wrapping paper; Vehicles to be married should be hung with red ribbons; Yi Xi and Shou Ping should be made of red satin. If the bereaved live in the same building as others, a red cloth will be hung at the door. Colors such as black, white and blue are regarded as symbols of heaviness and depression.
Planting flowers and plants is a hobby of Xiamen people. I not only have potted plants at home, but also like to buy all kinds of flowers in the market and keep them in the living room and bedroom with clear water. People often weave flower baskets, flower screens, dragons, phoenixes, lights and other shapes of holiday occasions with flowers.
Some folk taboos and polite customs that should be paid attention to are:
Pointing at people with the middle finger is considered to be very impolite;
It is considered the biggest insult to hit people with a broom;
It is considered impolite to sweep the floor when guests are present.
At the wedding banquet, it is considered as an unlucky sign that guests accidentally break plates, spoons and other tableware.
When eating, chopsticks should not be inserted in the rice, because incense is often inserted in the rice when offering sacrifices. This is disrespect for people;
When entertaining guests, it is most taboo to set up six dishes, because according to the old rules of the Qing Dynasty, condemned prisoners only eat six dishes before execution;
Don't say monkeys in front of your baby, thinking that monkeys will make your baby sick and difficult to raise; Don't boast that the baby is obese, say "good-looking" and "easy to raise"
Some of the above taboos are still in use today, but most of them are no longer rigid.
In Xiamen, weddings, birthdays, childbirth and other celebrations are collectively called "red events", while funerals are called "white events".
Get married. Marriage between adult men and women used to be complicated, but now it has been greatly simplified. Ordinary citizens still choose the wedding day as usual, and the elders of both sides will preside over the wedding. The day before the ceremony, the woman handed the "dowry" to the man to decorate the new house; In the early morning of the wedding day, the groom goes to the bride's house to get married, and then holds a banquet in the evening. After the banquet, guests and friends can go to the "bridal chamber" regardless of rank. Three days after marriage, the groom will accompany the bride back to her mother's house, and the latter will prepare a banquet and invite relatives and friends to celebrate with her. Nowadays, more and more young men and women don't get married according to this set, but it is fashionable to travel to get married or have a wedding dance.
birthday birthday Birthdays of Xiamen people are concentrated on teenagers 16 years old and elderly people's 50th and 60th birthdays. Young men and women who have reached the age of 16 are regarded as adults. Relatives of ethnic minorities should send live chickens, noodles, cloth and other gifts to celebrate. The parents of the parties gave a banquet to thank them. The old man's birthday is his father's 60th birthday and his mother's 50th birthday. Married children should prepare four-color gifts for their parents, such as pork legs, noodles, wine and eggs, to repay the kindness of raising. Some people also hold banquets to entertain relatives and friends.
Have a baby. People think this is a great event. Children are called "Three Dynasties" when they are born for three days. The husband's family should prepare "oil rice" and send someone to her family to report the good news. A month later, it will be distributed to relatives, friends and neighbors together with "fried rice", which is called "Mi Yue". Then 4 months, one year old, also want to be lively.
Funeral. I used to emphasize ostentation and extravagance. At present, all waste burials are cremation, and everything is under the control of the funeral management office.
Traditional festivals: Like other places, there are Spring Festival, Tomb-Sweeping Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Double Ninth Festival and Winter Solstice Festival.
Dragon Boat Festival: People are used to washing clothes and cleaning on this day, and keep the custom of eating zongzi and racing dragon boats. The Dragon Boat Pool in jimei district is a place where dragon boat races have been organized over the years, which is very lively.
Compared with other places, in Xiamen, in addition to enjoying the moon and eating moon cakes, there is also a folk activity of "dialing cakes" handed down because Zheng Chenggong expelled the Dutch and recovered Taiwan Province Province, which is very distinctive and full of fun. The rule of this activity is that each person throws six dice into the bowl in turn, and gets the cake according to the number of dice put into the bowl, and finally wins the "first prize". In the activity of "competing for the top prize", it is commonly known as the top prize, Duitang, Sanhong, Jin Si, Erju and Yixiu, which respectively represent the top prize, second prize, flower exploration, scholar, juror and scholar in ancient imperial examinations. For hundreds of years, this fun-filled activity has been circulated among Xiamen people.