Yang Yuxing

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Yang Yuxing, Male, Han, from Laizhou, Shandong, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Straw Weaving (Ⅶ-54). The tradition is documented in Laizhou, Shandong. Within the regional tradition and school record of Straw Weaving in Laizhou, Shandong: China is rich in herbaceous plant resources, and both north and south have many raw materials suitable for knotting and weaving, so straw weaving exists in a great variety of types from place to place, each with its own local characteristics. From the 1840s onward, straw weaving began to be exported abroad. Since the mid-20th century, because it has met the needs of modern life, straw weaving has developed rapidly, with an ever-growing variety of patterns and designs. Laizhou straw braiding is a traditional knotting and weaving craft popular in Laizhou City, Shandong Province; it originated earliest in the countryside around Shahe Town, Laizhou, and is said to have a history of 1,500 years. According to the Laizhou City Gazetteer, during the Ming dynasty straw braiding from the Shahe area spread within the country through Zhili, Yuzhou, and other places. Since the mid-20th century, Laizhou straw braiding has developed rapidly; the two specialized factories Yixin and Yuxin were established in succession, the patterns and varieties of straw braiding increased to more than two thousand, and people from all over the country came to Shahe to learn the straw braiding craft.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Yang Yuxing is anchored in the documented technical standards of Straw Weaving in Laizhou, Shandong. Within the documented technical tradition of Straw Weaving in Laizhou, Shandong: Straw weaving is a traditional knotting and weaving handicraft that uses grasses and other herbaceous plants as its principal raw material. As one of the oldest crafts of humankind, knotting and weaving became an important means for the early people of China to make practical articles as far back as remote antiquity. Straw weaving techniques have circulated among the Chinese people for several thousand years and have been continually carried forward and developed in the process. Folk artisans across the country adapted their work to local conditions and to the qualities of their materials, making full use of the tough stalks, skins, pith, leaves, and roots of herbaceous plants, and creating and distilling a rich repertoire of weaving and knotting techniques — weaving, knotting, braiding, looping, binding, twisting, wrapping, netting, stringing, and coiling — making straw weaving an important source of everyday articles for the common people. Straw-woven products are mainly practical goods such as straw mats, straw curtains, straw cushions, straw baskets, straw fans, straw hats, and straw sandals, though some are ornamental pieces made for display. As a traditional handicraft very widespread among the Chinese people, straw weaving has a broad popular base and strong qualities of both practicality and artistry. After the Opium War, Laizhou straw braiding became one of the earliest Chinese commodities to enter Western markets; it won a special award at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition held in San Francisco, United States, and was praised as 'the finest straw braiding in the world'. Laizhou straw braiding techniques are divided into the three-straw pinch method, the five-straw pinch method, and the seven-straw pinch method; different pinch methods produce different patterns. In general, however, all the pinch methods work on the same principle: the thumb pinches the front face and the index finger the back, after which pressing and picking motions are applied. A few wheat stalks fly and change this way and that in the artisan's hands, swiftly transformed into an elegant work of art; the refinement of the technique is truly in a class of its own. In Laizhou, straw braiding became the main source of income for many farm households, making a major contribution to the development of the rural economy. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Three, five and seven stalk twists": Leizhou straw braid uses three-, five- and seven-stalk twists, the thumb working the face and the forefinger the reverse. "Shahe town and the county gazetteer": The braid originated in Shahe town, said to be fifteen centuries old; the Leizhou gazetteer records its spread inland in the Ming. "A Panama Exposition prize": After the Opium War Leizhou straw braid was among China's earliest exports to the West and won a special prize at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Yang Yuxing was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Straw Weaving, with Laizhou, Shandong as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Straw Weaving in Laizhou, Shandong: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Laizhou, Shandong as its declared area, and Laizhou 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

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.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Yangyuxing (Laizhou, Shandong) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Yangyuxing · China ICH Official Archive