Rexiti Tuerxun
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Rexiti Tuerxun, Male, Uyghur, from Tulufan, Xinjiang, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Nazikumu (Ⅲ-131). The tradition is documented in Tulufan, Xinjiang. Within the regional tradition and school record of Nazikumu in Tulufan, Xinjiang: It is transmitted mainly in Turpan City, Shanshan County and Toksun County around the Turpan Basin in Xinjiang, as well as in Hami City, Kuqa City and Hotan City, and is also found in other Uyghur settlements north and south of the Tianshan Mountains. Nazikum music also holds a fairly important position in the local folk music: after every “Turpan Muqam” a piece of Nazikum follows. The term “Nazikum” derives from the Persian “Nazuke” or “Nazukum”; in modern Uyghur it carries meanings such as “delicate”, “kind” and “beautiful”.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Rexiti Tuerxun is anchored in the documented technical standards of Nazikumu in Tulufan, Xinjiang. Within the documented technical tradition of Nazikumu in Tulufan, Xinjiang: Nazikum is a Uyghur men’s dance, most often performed at weddings, on festive holidays and at entertainments such as the meshrep. There is no limit on the number of Nazikum dancers: one person, two people or many people are all possible. The musicians and the audience sit in a circle. The accompaniment consists of four pieces. Usually the first two are danced as the sainaim, and Nazikum begins with the third piece, “Ashun Bagda”. In this section the dancers move freely, often making movements that amuse the audience, such as walking with a limp or a duck walk, or movements depicting labour, such as stitching shoes, pulling noodles, twisting thread, rolling up sleeves and holding up a hat. When the band plays the fourth piece, “Alitai Kanfudai”, the dance reaches its climax and the competitive atmosphere intensifies; movements such as “pausing the step and shrugging the shoulders”, “supporting the knee and jumping in a squat”, “pausing the step and shifting position” and “moving the shoulders while leaning together” are performed. In their excitement the dancers improvise, each showing off a special skill, such as “jumping down onto the knees and striking the ground with the elbow”, “half-squat spin to the side” and “inserting the arm and stamping the foot in a turn”. At this point the onlookers throw flowers, coins, handkerchiefs and the like into the middle of the circle, shouting loudly to cheer the dancers on. This raises their spirits still further, and they perform difficult technical movements such as “bending forward to snatch a flower in the mouth” and “arching the waist and taking up a flower”, pushing the festive atmosphere to its climax. The performance formats and expressive content of Nazikum are extremely rich, with marked local colour and high recognisability. Performance by two people is in particular competitive in nature: when A produces a new movement, B answers with an even newer one; when A then produces a new movement that outdoes B, B answers in turn with something newer and harder. This kind of intense give-and-take competitive dance has produced generation after generation of “Nazikumchi” in the Turpan region — that is, experts and virtuosos at performing Nazikum. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "From sanam to Ashubagdah": Four pieces make the suite: the first two accompany sanam dancing, and only with the third does the nazirkom itself begin. "Limping, waddling, stitching and noodle-pulling": The comic vocabulary of the third piece, mocking limps and duck walks or portraying shoemaking, noodle-pulling and thread-twisting. "Jumping shoulder shrugs and crouching hops": With the fourth piece the contest peaks, with jumping shoulder shrugs, crouching hops and shifting jumps. "Taking the flower": When the crowd throws flowers, coins and kerchiefs into the ring, the dancers bend low or arch back to seize them.
From sanam to Ashubagdah
Four pieces make the suite: the first two accompany sanam dancing, and only with the third does the nazirkom itself begin.
Limping, waddling, stitching and noodle-pulling
The comic vocabulary of the third piece, mocking limps and duck walks or portraying shoemaking, noodle-pulling and thread-twisting.
Jumping shoulder shrugs and crouching hops
With the fourth piece the contest peaks, with jumping shoulder shrugs, crouching hops and shifting jumps.
Taking the flower
When the crowd throws flowers, coins and kerchiefs into the ring, the dancers bend low or arch back to seize them.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Rexiti Tuerxun was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Nazikumu, with Tulufan, Xinjiang as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Nazikumu in Tulufan, Xinjiang: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2014 (batch 4), with Tulufan, Xinjiang as its declared area, and Tulufan Gaochang District Cultural Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
The term “Nazikum” derives from the Persian “Nazuke” or “Nazukum”; in modern Uyghur it carries meanings such as “delicate”, “kind” and “beautiful”.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rexiti Tuerxun | Tulufan, Xinjiang | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。