The Maguai Festival of the Zhuang People

The Maguai Festival of the Zhuang people literally means “worshipping frog to pray for peace, harmony and a good harvest for the upcoming year” in the Zhuang language. This book introduces the cultural background of the Zhuang people, the origin, development, dissemination of the Maguai Festival and its customs.

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The Maguai Festival of the Zhuang people literally means ‘worshipping frog to pray for peace, harmony and a good harvest for the upcoming year’ in the Zhuang language since the frog is deemed as an incarnation of gods. The book introduces the cultural background of the Zhuang people, the origin, development, dissemination of the Maguai Festival and its customs including attire, the singing of ballads, performing dances, special food and exquisite Zhuang handicrafts.

The ethnic minority of Zhuang has a comparably large population in China and Zhuang culture is an important part of Chinese civilization. Zhuang people have a unique lifestyles including ethnic costumes, folk singing and dancing, special cuisine and indigenous religions. All these cultural elements can be observed in the Maguai Festival and hence this book.

This book almost covers all aspects of the characteristic culture of Zhuang people, which is less known to the rest of the world but should not be neglected. The book aims to offer a panoramic view of Zhuang culture to a global audience.