Manchu
Manchu is a brave and hardworking nationality and the Manchu people inhabit and multiplying generations after generations in northeast area endowed with mountains and rivers. Manchu has a long history. The Suzhen in Pre-Qin period; the Mohe in Sui and Tang Dynasty and the Jurchen in Liao, Song, Yuan and Ming Dynasty were all ancestors of the Manchu people. After the middle of the 16 th century, the Chieftain Nurhachi who established the state in Zuowei rose to accomplish the unification of various Jurchen tribes and founded Da Jin (called Post-Jin in history) in 1621 in Hetuala. Nurhachi passed away in 1626, and then Huangtaiji inherited the throne of Khan. Huangtaiji proclaimed him to be an emperor in 1636, and named the title of his reign as Da Qing Dynasty, and named his nationality as Man Zhou, which is currently called Manchu in brief.
Manchu is one of the lifetime nationalities of Qiqihar, which is the minority nationality with the largest population. Manchu people in Qiqihar urban area is mainly distributed 7 administrative districts, and among them the Manchu population in Angangxi District, Tiefeng District, Longsha District and Meilisi District is above 5000. Manchu is the second largest minority nationality of China. Manchu has rich and colorful language and literature, religion, music and dance, wedding and funeral customs.
Customs
In some Manchu areas, the parents consciously make the child to have a Flat Head since the birth of the child, that is make the child lying in sleep after the birth of the child. Fill some stuff similar to millets into the pillow, and as time passes the child's head will gradually become flat and average.
It's said that the Manchu custom of flat head in sleep was formed long time ago; however, the flat head at that time was not formed in sleep but pressed by stones. Of course that story is unauthentic.
The Manchu flat head custom really has a very long history. They considered that the flat head of the baby caused by sleep could make the hindbrain flat and beautiful, and at the same time it could make the baby's temple prominent and could make the shape of the baby's head beautiful and smart. In the opinion's of the Manchu people, if a girl doesn't have a flat hindbrain, the girl will be deemed as ¡°ugly girl¡± and it will be difficult to marry the girl.
A household sacrifice has to be made for the Manchu children before they are 5 years old that is Tiaoxishen. Tiaoxishen generally costs one day, and to kill hen instead of pig and to make some cakes for sacrifice of the ancestors and to repay the god's kindness of sending the children.
On the household sacrifice, there is an activity that is specially for the sacrifice of Fuotuo Mama, which is called Lock Exchange. It's a separated sacrifice activity of each household. The persons out of the household are not allowed to attend. The ceremony is presided by the housewife of the household. All newly-born boys and girls of the household attend the sacrifice led by their parents and each child will get a pair of lock and gird and worship the ancestors to ask for blessings. After the sacrifice, the lock and gird have to be preserved by filling them into the children's pockets. After this ceremony, the boy's name will be written on the pedigree, which is called Superior Pedigree, when the household modifies the pedigree. And from then on, the boy had become an official member of the household. |
