Niujunqi
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Niujunqi, Male, Han, from Bazhou, Hebei, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Lantern Fair (Ⅹ-81). The tradition is documented in Bazhou, Hebei. Within the regional tradition and school record of Lantern Fair in Bazhou, Hebei: The flower lanterns of Shengfang have a long history and were already known in the Beijing-Tianjin and North China region in the early Ming dynasty. The annual Lantern Festival fair fully displays the intelligence, wisdom and creative spirit of the people of Shengfang. It enriches and enlivens the cultural life of the local people during the Spring Festival and has made no small contribution to social stability and harmony and to the transmission and development of traditional folk culture. The Lantern Festival is also known as the Festival of Lights. The custom of lighting lanterns at Yuanxiao (the fifteenth night of the first lunar month) originated in the Han dynasty, developed further during the Tang and Song dynasties, and by the Ming and Qing periods lantern fairs across the country had reached their peak.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Niujunqi is anchored in the documented technical standards of Lantern Fair in Bazhou, Hebei. Within the documented technical tradition of Lantern Fair in Bazhou, Hebei: The lantern fair is a traditional popular festive celebration of the Chinese people. It is widespread throughout the country and is also quite prevalent in overseas Chinese communities. Lantern fairs are mostly held during the Lantern Festival period, though some places hold them on the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month; the character of the fairs differs from region to region. According to traditional custom, on the night of the full moon on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, people hang and light colorful lanterns of every kind, while holding celebrations such as viewing, admiring and competing with lanterns, in prayers for family reunion, longevity and abundant harvests. Centered on the lantern fair, localities have developed a series of distinctive Yuanxiao Festival customs, such as guessing lantern riddles, eating yuanxiao (sweet rice dumplings) and walking off the hundred ailments. Over time, Lantern Festival activities have grown ever richer, and in many places traditional folk performances such as dragon lantern dances, lion dances, stilt walking, land-boat dancing and yangge (rice-sprout song) dancing, Taiping drum playing and taige (carried platforms) have been added to the festivities, making the lantern fairs still more lively and exuberant. It is composed of three parts — the Ullambana lantern fair, the Lantern Festival ice lanterns and the Lantern Festival flower lanterns — and is mainly handed down in the Bazhou area of Hebei. The Ullambana lantern fair, also called the Zhongyuan lantern fair, is held on the evening of the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month each year, when fishermen release river lanterns onto the water to mourn the deceased and pray for the souls of the departed. The ice lantern and flower lantern activities are both held during the Lantern Festival period; the entire festival runs five days, from the thirteenth to the eighteenth of the first lunar month. At its earliest, the fair set up in the central square in front of the Laoye Temple at the heart of the street a lamp platform about 2 meters high and roughly 60 square meters in area, popularly known as the 'Ao Mountain' (Aoshan), which was hung with several hundred kinds of selected homemade lanterns. During the Lantern Festival fair, by day more than seventy old folk fair troupes parade through the streets in performance, while theaters, storytelling houses, taverns and teahouses give free performances all day long. At nightfall, the people gather in clouds around the Ao Mountain to view the lanterns and listen to singing, folk artists perform in turn, and everywhere is a hubbub of noise in a scene of bustling prosperity. Since the reform and opening-up, with changes in the local environment and urban construction, the Shengfang lantern fair has added some new forms of performance. The traditional flower lanterns of Shengfang number more than two thousand kinds, with works mainly on subjects such as animals, plants, human figures, utensils, architecture and Buddhist and Daoist deities. These colorful lanterns were produced within a particular regional environment, mode of production and way of life, and set of folk customs. They are made with rigorous technique, fine workmanship and handsome, dignified forms, and their style constitutes a system of its own; some lantern forms are unique and found only in Shengfang — for example, the Zhu Bajie (Pigsy) lantern has several dozen mouths that can open and close at the same time. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The Ullambana lantern meeting": Held on the fifteenth of the seventh month, this part of the fair releases river lanterns for the dead, giving the three-part lantern calendar a funerary register distinct from the New Year parts. "The ao-shan lantern platform": The fair began by raising an ao-shan platform about two metres high and sixty square metres in the square before the old temple, hung with hundreds of locally made lanterns. "Five days of lantern light": The New Year lantern fair runs five days from the thirteenth to the eighteenth of the first month, long enough to develop a full sequence of raising, viewing and closing the lanterns. "Seventy-odd flower societies in the street parade": By day more than seventy folk flower societies parade, with theatres and teahouses performing all through the daylight hours; by night the crowds circle the lantern platform listening to turn-by-turn performers.
The Ullambana lantern meeting
Held on the fifteenth of the seventh month, this part of the fair releases river lanterns for the dead, giving the three-part lantern calendar a funerary register distinct from the New Year parts.
The ao-shan lantern platform
The fair began by raising an ao-shan platform about two metres high and sixty square metres in the square before the old temple, hung with hundreds of locally made lanterns.
Five days of lantern light
The New Year lantern fair runs five days from the thirteenth to the eighteenth of the first month, long enough to develop a full sequence of raising, viewing and closing the lanterns.
Seventy-odd flower societies in the street parade
By day more than seventy folk flower societies parade, with theatres and teahouses performing all through the daylight hours; by night the crowds circle the lantern platform listening to turn-by-turn performers.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Niujunqi was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Lantern Fair, with Bazhou, Hebei as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Lantern Fair in Bazhou, Hebei: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Bazhou, Hebei as its declared area, and Bazhou 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 Lantern Festival is also known as the Festival of Lights. The custom of lighting lanterns at Yuanxiao (the fifteenth night of the first lunar month) originated in the Han dynasty, developed further during the Tang and Song dynasties, and by the Ming and Qing periods lantern fairs across the country had reached their peak.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lin Wenyi | Handan, Hebei | 03-1474 | Other regional school |
| Shao Chuanfu | Feidong, Anhui | 03-1475 | Other regional school |
| Kuang Huofa | Kaiping, Guangdong | — | Other regional school |
| Niujunqi | Bazhou, Hebei | — | 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。