In the mountains at the junction of Liuzhi Special District and Zhijin County in central Guizhou, there lives a branch of the Miao ethnic group with a unique culture. They are mainly distributed in the Suoga Miao, Yi and Hui Ethnic Township of Liuzhi Special District, usually called Suogaqing Miao Community. Liuzhi Special District is located in the central part of Guizhou Province. It is the eastern gate of Liupanshui City. It is located on the watershed of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and the Pearl River. There are Han, Yi, Miao, Buyi, Gelao, Hui, Mongolian and other ethnic groups. It has 19 townships, including 9 ethnic minority townships, with a total population of 628,900, of which 191,900 are ethnic minorities, accounting for 30%. Suogaqing Miao Community has a total of 12 villages and villages, covering an area of more than 120 square kilometers. They are Anzhu Village, Anzhu Village, Longga Village, Xiaobatian Village, Gaoxing Village and Bukong Village in Gaoxing Village, Dawan New Village in Xinzhai Village, Xinhua Township, and Xinfa Village in Shuangtun Village. Houzhai of Changdi Village, Agong Town, Zhijin County; Miaozhai and Xiaoxinzhai of Guanzhai Village; Huadongzhai and Yizhongdizhai of Huadong Village. The Miao people have a long history. More than 5,000 years ago, their ancestors formed the "Jiuli" tribal alliance in the lower reaches of the Yellow River and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Later, they gradually evolved into "Sanmiao", "Nanman (also known as 'Jingchu')", "Jingman", etc. According to the recollections of the elderly, the Miao people in Suoga Community, who call themselves Qingmiao, moved to the mountains and ridges of Suoga and settled there until now in the early Qing Dynasty. Due to the impact of war, the Qingmiao had to seek a living in the deep mountains and dense forests. Later, the Qingmiao gradually settled together according to their surnames, forming 12 villages today, most of which are located on the mountainside or on the top of the mountain. The population of the village ranges from more than 100 households to only more than 30 households. Before the 1980s, due to the extremely inconvenient transportation here, they did not have much communication with the outside world, and generally only intermarried within their own community, ethnic group, and branch. It was not until the past 10 years that they began to interact with the outside world in large numbers, and the community culture was increasingly influenced by foreign cultures. The most distinctive clothing of the Suogaqing Miao is the women's clothing. The top is a cross-collared and double-breasted style, with the front lapel reaching the abdomen, the back piece longer than the knee bend, and narrow sleeves. The skirt is a pleated tube style, about two feet and five inches long, with batik on the upper part and embroidery patterns on the lower part. When wearing a skirt, a hundred-color embroidery hand towel is worn on the waist. Wear a black sheep felt waistband, which is shaped like a round handbag and can be used to hold things or insert hands for warmth. The leggings are made of felt, and the shoes are boat-shaped leather-soled embroidered shoes. The headdress is the most unique, with a wooden crescent-shaped "long comb" and the hair of the deceased ancestors mixed with black hemp wool to make a huge bun as the headdress symbol. At the same time, this headdress is used as a symbol of identity to distinguish from other branches of the ethnic group. The Qing Miao have lived in deep mountains and dense forests for generations. Their houses are simple, mostly three-bay, wooden-structured thatched houses, earth-walled thatched houses, stone-walled thatched houses, and wooden-structured stone-roofed houses. The ridges of all thatched houses are thickened and piled high with thatch, which is unique in style. In the Suoga Qing Miao community, when holding weddings and happy events, they use knotted ropes to record events. When handling funerals, simple counting symbols are engraved on bamboo poles according to certain regulations, mainly used to record gifts and money during funerals. "Ghost Masters" also have special wooden sacrificial symbols. Music and dance have a long history, which are simple and concise. The tunes of its instruments are sad and low. Lusheng, long-tube three-eye Xiao, and mouth string instruments are homemade and unique, and the music played is low and lingering. The dance is concise and has its own system. The most distinctive Suoga ethnic festivals are Tiaohuapo, Tree Sacrifice Festival, Mountain Sacrifice Festival, and Mouse Cake Festival. The tenth day of the first lunar month is the grand flower slope dance day. A flower tree is planted in the center of the flower slope. Young men and women play reed pipes and dance around the tree. They sing songs on the slope, with songs as the matchmaker and dances as the love. The tree sacrifice festival is held on the first dragon day of the second lunar month. A lush forest is found near the village. The oldest and tallest tree is found as the object of sacrifice. All the villagers gather pigs, chickens and grains. After the ghost master or the family master chants a spell, 45 earthen jars filled with water are dug under the ancient tree and covered with stone slabs. First, sacrifices are made under the tree, and red-haired roosters are killed for the ancestors to enjoy and pray for the ancestors' blessings. The mountain sacrifice festival in the first month of the third lunar month is held on the first dragon day of March. The procedure is the same as the tree sacrifice festival, except that the ghost master or the family master must open the buried water jar to observe the expansion and contraction of the water to predict the harvest and fortune of the year. The mouse cake festival in the eleventh lunar month is to make mouse cakes on any dragon day in the winter month to worship the ancestors. When offering sacrifices, a family gathers in a certain house. The items and complexity of each family are different, but they do not burn "money" or incense. Families belonging to the "three limits" (sacrificing three generations of ancestors) use 33 bowls, and families belonging to the "five limits" (sacrificing five generations of ancestors) use 55 bowls to hold various offerings to sacrifice to their ancestors. The Suoga Qing Miao use "long horns" as headdresses as a representative symbol of the ethnic group, preserving the custom of "hair bun" of ancient ancestors. National musical instruments such as reed pipes, three-eyed flutes, and mouth strings are homemade and unique. The music and dance, solemn and thoughtful, reflect the migration and life scenes of this branch of the Miao people. At the same time, because the Suoga Qing Miao only have language but no writing, and lack of means of recording and inheritance, the cultural elements that replace and make up for socialization methods such as utensils, costumes, and customs are relatively developed, creating many unique community cultural elements. In the process of economic globalization and modernization, the Qing Miao culture is facing unprecedented rapid changes in history. The mountain farming civilization on which the Qingmiao culture depends for its survival and development has gradually weakened. The impact of foreign culture has greatly affected the Qingmiao culture, which has always been passed down through oral transmission and heart-to-heart teaching, and has gradually lost the soil for its survival and prosperity. Many cultural heritages with historical value have been damaged to varying degrees, and are even on the verge of extinction due to the death of the inheritors. Many precious objects with historical value have also been gradually abandoned and lost. For example, the unique attire of men's "long comb" headdress and embroidered straw shoes gradually disappeared in the 1970s, and the lively beating ceremony has also been lost. Poverty has caused a large number of young people to leave the land where they were born and raised and go out to work. Many cultural activities do not involve young people, and the mysterious tree and mountain worship ceremonies are also facing the risk of being lost. (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)