Chinese and Foreign Intangible Cultural Heritage Take Center Stage in Wenchuan

From November 19 to 20, the “Beautiful Aba · Happy Qiang New Year” 2025 Qiang New Year Celebration Series was successfully held in Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province. The event was not only a grand feast of Qiang ethnic culture but also an international platform for intangible cultural heritage (ICH) exchange, where visitors from home and abroad experienced the charm of cultural interaction through immersive experiences.

The celebration opened with the inauguration of the Qiang Embroidery Museum. On the afternoon of the 19th, a spectacular ICH Parade filled the streets of Wenchuan County with scenes of traditional Qiang life and craft demonstrations, setting the stage for the festivities to follow.

As night fell, the highlight event — the Immersive Night Tour — unfolded along the Yingxiu Bay waterfront. ICH performance troupes from New Zealand, Mexico, Uzbekistan, Slovakia, and Thailand joined local artists performing Qiang flute music, flower lantern displays, Shalang dance, and multi-part folk singing. Along the route, guests witnessed the ancient Qiang legend of hero Ran Biwa, whose mythic act of “striking fire from white stones” ignited the symbolic firepit — a gesture representing the passing of civilization’s torch. The entire performance turned the riverside into a living stage of multicultural and cross-border ICH brilliance.

That evening, the “Beautiful Aba · Happy Qiang New Year” Gala brought the atmosphere to a climax. Local performance groups from Wenchuan and Li County shared the stage with international ensembles including the New Zealand Māori Arts Troupe, Inner Mongolia Ulan Muqir, and other overseas ICH teams. Programs such as the thematic dance drama “Magnificent Aba ICH”, Qiang performances “Cloud Robe” and “On the Red Beam”, and the foreign showcase “Wonderful World” illuminated the night with a vibrant fusion of cultures. After the gala, the immersive night tour continued through the streets of Yingxiu Town, where Yingge Dance, Baiye Dragon, fire-breathing, and face-changing flash performances integrated intangible heritage into everyday life.

The following day, guests took part in the solemn Qiang New Year Blessing Ceremony, where representatives of Tibetan, Qiang, Hui, and Han communities jointly offered prayers to the mountains — a vivid expression of ethnic unity. As a beloved Qiang New Year tradition, the “Ba Ba Banquet” in Zhongtanbao Village invited visitors to share local delicacies such as Baotang soup and Za jiu (barley wine), joining in the warm spirit of reunion. The celebration concluded with a collective rendition of “My Motherland and I,” closing the event on a heartfelt note.

The 2025 Qiang New Year Celebration successfully revitalized millennia-old Qiang traditions through living heritage practices, while its international exchanges provided a vivid example of how ICH can serve as a bridge of mutual learning among civilizations.