Lei Qisong

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Lei Qisong, Male, She, from Xiapu, Fujian, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Wedding Customs (Ⅹ-139). The tradition is documented in Xiapu, Fujian. Within the regional tradition and school record of Wedding Customs in Xiapu, Fujian: She marriage customs in eastern Fujian integrate folk song, dance, belief, costume, ritual, and food, and have a rigorous and complete body of marriage and wedding observances; they display the spiritual content of the ethnicity and regional cultural characteristics, and possess considerable socio-cultural value. The genealogies of the various She lineages of Xiapu show that in the early and mid-Ming dynasty, large numbers of She people poured into the eastern Fujian region, including present-day Xiapu County, Lianjiang County, Luoyuan County, and Fu'an City in Fujian Province. The bride's phoenix headdress, the phoenix-style hair ornaments and costume, and the phoenix totem decorations in the bridal chamber all derive from the She people's belief in the legend that their ethnicity originated at Phoenix Mountain in Chaozhou.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Lei Qisong is anchored in the documented technical standards of Wedding Customs in Xiapu, Fujian. Within the documented technical tradition of Wedding Customs in Xiapu, Fujian: The She people have a long history; according to written records, around the time of the Sui and Tang dynasties they already lived in the mountain areas at the junction of Fujian, Guangdong, and Jiangxi provinces. Xiapu She marriage customs mainly comprise the following stages. Betrothal: after the love relationship is established, the auspicious hour and day for the wedding are settled through the procedures of proposing the match (tiqin), visiting the house (kanliao), requesting the birth-date slip (tao gengtie), matching the horoscopes (hehun), the small betrothal, and the grand betrothal. Before her wedding, the bride-to-be goes to her maternal uncle's home to 'act as elder cousin' (zuo biaojie). On the eve of the wedding, the bride sings a weeping-bride song to her parents in farewell. Fetching the bride: the party escorting the bride must pass five trials before it can receive the bride — blocking the road with fir thorns to demand antiphonal singing, drinking the pagoda tea, the shoe-removal rite, making things difficult for the groom's uncle (nanwei qinjiabo), and digging at the stone cave to demand lucky money. Before leaving the house, the bride performs the 'weeping dispersal' (ti fensan), eats the 'thousand-jin rice' and 'divides the chopsticks'; as the sedan chair sets out there is 'detaining the sedan to keep the divided water'; after setting out there are 'splashing water' and 'distributing spending money'. The wedding itself comprises such stages as grabbing the dowry, bowing in the hall, stepping on the red bags, meeting the Eight Immortals, offering tea to beg for silver from a hundred families, searching for the phoenix egg, and the new wife's approach to the stove. Returning to the natal home: the newlyweds go back to the bride's parents' home to be 'first-turn guests' (tou zhuan ke), staying for a few days before returning to the husband's family. Song runs through the entire marriage process: falling in love, making friends, and completing the wedding all rely on singing, reflecting the She people's proficiency in song and dance. The custom that 'the groom bows but the bride does not' reflects the She people's esteem for the status of women and a deep influence of matrilineal clan culture. Special segments such as 'acting as elder cousin' and 'making things difficult for the groom's uncle' display the warm hospitality and plain, unadorned character and culture of the She people. She marriage customs in eastern Fujian run through the entire process by means of song: from falling in love and making friends to completing the wedding, everything depends on singing, so the order of the rites is likewise arranged according to the sections of the singing. The betrothal stage alone has six steps — proposing the match, visiting the house, requesting the birth-date slip, matching the horoscopes, the small betrothal, and the grand betrothal; before her wedding the bride-to-be goes to her maternal uncle's home to act as elder cousin, and the night before she sings a weeping-bride song to her parents in farewell; fetching the bride must pass five trials; the return to the natal home is as a first-turn guest, staying a few days before returning to the husband's family. The whole set of rites runs through with song, using it to pledge love, make friends, and complete the wedding, reflecting the She people's proficiency in song and dance. The custom that the groom bows but the bride does not reflects the She people's esteem for the status of women and a deep influence of matrilineal clan culture; special segments such as acting as elder cousin and making things difficult for the groom's uncle display the warm hospitality and plain, unadorned character and culture of the She people. The phoenix headdress worn by the bride, the phoenix-style hair ornaments and costume, and the phoenix totem decorations in the bridal chamber all derive from the She people's belief in the legend that their ethnicity originated at Phoenix Mountain in Chaozhou; the genealogies of the various She lineages of Xiapu show that in the early and mid-Ming dynasty, large numbers of She people poured into the eastern Fujian region, including present-day Xiapu County, Lianjiang County, Luoyuan County, and Fu'an City in Fujian Province. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The six steps of betrothal": After the courtship is settled, the families go through proposal, seeing the house, exchanging the birth date, divination, small and great betrothal, and pick a day. "Going to the maternal uncle as cousin": Before leaving, the bride goes to her maternal uncle's house to serve as cousin, spending time there before the wedding. "The farewell song": On the eve of the wedding the bride sings farewell with her parents, and the room weeps until late, though morning brings dressing and departure. "Five gates for the groom's party": Five gates in turn: brambles and song, the tower tea, the shoe ceremony, teasing the elder and digging coins from the stone cave.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Lei Qisong was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Wedding Customs, with Xiapu, Fujian as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Wedding Customs in Xiapu, Fujian: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2014 (batch 4), with Xiapu, Fujian as its declared area, and Xiapu County Funing Culture Art Jiaoliu 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. Leiqisong (Xiapu, Fujian) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Leiqisong · China ICH Official Archive