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The Pumi nationality has a population of only
31,000. They live mainly in Lanping County of Nujiagn Prefecture,
Ninglang , Lijiang, Yongshen counties of Lijniang Prefecture and
weixi County of diqing Prefecture. Their ancestors were the
Guqiang, a nomadic tribe on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. In the 13th
century, they fought southwards to Yunnan with Kublai Khan. They
were called "Xifan" or "Baju" in ancient times, and they addressed
themselves as "Pumiying", "Pumi", and "Peimi", which all mean
white people in the Han language. This is because they worship the
color white. In 1960, they were collectively named the Pumi
nationality. The Pumi people have their own language that belongs
to the Tibeto-Burman Branch of the Sino-Tibetan Language family,
but the branch has not been decided yet .Most of them can speak
Mandarin, the Bai and the Naxi languages. They have adopted the
Han and the Tibetan writing systems. They believe in primitive
religion and regard the white-fronted tiger as their totem.
Their principal festivals are the Da Guonian Festival. the
Zhuanshanhui festival and the Changxinjie (New Rice Tasting
festival). the Da Guonian Festival is celebrated during the Spring
Festival. It lasts for three to fifteen days. On the New Year's
Eve, a solemn adult initiation ceremony called "Putting on
Trousers "or "Putting on Skirts" is held in those families with a
thirteen -year-old child. |
