On Songs of Etiquette and Custom of the Buyi People in Central Guizhou

Songs of etiquette and custom of the Buyi people in Central Guizhou refer to those and rhythms sung in occasions such as ceremonies for wedding,funeral,and setting up new houses.People who sing these and rhythms speak the second vernacular of the Buyi language.The are mainly used by the hosts and the guests for mutual greeting,praising,blessing,as well as reviewing the forming of something related to the customs.Songs of etiquette and custom of the Buyi people in Central Guizhou have both songs for singing and rhythms for chanting.Some of them are in the native Buyi language,others are in the Han language.Bestowing(fu),comparison(bi),promotion(xing) and duplication(futa) are commonly used for composing of this kind,and people usually give performances while singing.These are of important cultural value for understanding the characteristics and features of the Buyi culture,and provide valuable materials for the study of dissemination of the Han culture among the ethnic minorities in Guizhou,and the cultural changes of the Buyi people in Central Guizhou.