Wuligeer

01 · Historical Records

Uliger is a form of quyi storytelling of the Mongolian people. It took shape around the late Ming and early Qing dynasties and has circulated widely in every part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and in the Mongolian-settled areas of the neighbouring provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning. The subjects of Uliger programmes are drawn from an extremely wide range of sources: some come from folk tales, such as The Girl of the Sun; some are the work of literati or of professional performers, such as The Romance of the Green History; some come from folk narrative poems and narrative songs, such as Gada Meilin and Danabala; some are founded on events that actually happened in real life, such as The Red Sun, The Harm of Tobacco and Wine and The Neatly Ordered Forest; and others are transplanted and adapted from comparable Han forms or from literary stories, such as The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Investiture of the Gods and Yang Jinhua Seizing the Seal. Among the best known are Dansennima, Baiyinbaoligao, Chuobang, Sanbula, Saren Mandula, Helitengdugu'er, Baitanqi, Wiritanasitu and Xiennitu of the Qing dynasty; Zhana, Jinbaoshan, Changming, Kuaimang, Menggen Gaolitao, Erdun Zhurihe, Buren Bayar, Wendusu, Zhamusu and Xiribu of the Republican period; and since the founding of the People's Republic of China, Pajie, Maoyihan, Zhana, Daorji, Quejigawa, Laosier, Baoliang, Laixi, Wulijisang, Mengbangzhu, Renqin, Shulin, Tegxibayar, Demuxige, Ganzhu'er, Yuanbao, Temuer Gaole, Menggen Aola and many others — all of them held in high esteem for the excellence of their Uliger performing art. In the long course of development and change, Uliger performance in the different regions where it circulated took on characteristics of its own. From the 1980s onward, many well-known performers died one after another, new successors are seriously insufficient, ways of life have changed and forms of entertainment have become more varied; the survival and development of the Uliger artistic tradition is therefore in crisis, performances are shrinking, there is a want of venues for it, and the ranks are left without successors, so that strong measures of support and protection are urgently needed.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The Chinese meaning of Uliger is “storytelling”; since it is performed in the Mongolian language, it is also called “Mongolian-language storytelling”. Among the Mongolian people, Uliger performed by bare-mouth recitation with no instrumental accompaniment is called “Yabugan Uliger”, also called “Hurui Uliger”; Uliger performed as narrative singing with chaoer accompaniment is called “Chaoren Uliger”; and Uliger performed as narrative singing with four-string fiddle accompaniment is called “Huren Uliger”. Uliger performance with instrumental accompaniment is normally given by a single performer, who plays the huqin himself while narrating and singing. The melodies of the vocal style are rich and flexible, and among those whose functional character is clearly defined are the “battle tune”, the “mate-choice tune”, the “satirical tune”, the “rivers-and-mountains tune”, the “travel tune”, the “court audience tune” and the like. The artistic accumulation of Uliger is exceedingly deep. Programmes are divided into short, medium and long works, the long works being the most compelling; The Story of the Suppression of Mangus, The Five Tang Narratives (that is, The Tale of Weeping Joy, The Whole Family's Happiness, The Tale of the Dead Demon, The Tale of Qibi and The Tale of the Qiang and Hu), Kublai Khan, The Golden History, The Western Han, The Romance of the Yuan History, The Romance of the Green History, Marshal Baiyinna, Spring and Autumn and the Warring States, The Great Western Liang, The Northern Liao, The Romance of the Three Kingdoms and The Dream of the Red Chamber are all classics among them. New programmes written and staged after the founding of the People's Republic of China include The Twenty-Five-Thousand-Li Long March, Liu Hulan, Huang Jiguang, The Heroine Guo Junqing, Sons and Daughters of the Grassland, The Red Detachment of Women, The Red Lantern, Fighting Tigers on the Mountain, The Linked Hearts, The Golden Road, Sons and Daughters of Xisha and Pioneering. The Uliger performers who in former times travelled back and forth between the great grasslands of Inner Mongolia and the various Mongolian settlements of the north-east were like a host of brilliant stars. For the vast majority of the Mongolian people, Uliger is not only the principal form and means of their cultural life but also an important educational means by which they acquire knowledge and nurture the spirit; in their minds Uliger occupies a very important place.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

On the Horqin grasslands “Huren Uliger” was relatively well developed, and in the course of history three schools of differing style formed there, represented by Menggen Gaolitao, Erdun Zhurihe and Buren Bayar; in Fuxin Mongol Autonomous County, Liaoning Province, on the other hand, the transplanting and staging of Han stories is fairly common, and it has brought forth new artistic forms such as “Fuxin Mongol opera”.

Other submitting regions for the same item: Wuligeer · Wuligeer · Wuligeer · Wuligeer.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

Yang Tielong (as recorded in the official archive of the associated inheritor): Male, Mongolian ethnicity, born in 1965, native of Fuxin Mongol Autonomous County, Liaoning Province. A Uliger storyteller of the hurqin rank, a first-class hurqin. In 1987 he went deep into the villages and began telling stories. Over the years he has studied the art of narrative singing assiduously, and has made an outstanding contribution to the inheritance and development of Mongolian Uliger. Yang Tielong (second from the right) performing Mongolian Uliger for the villagers. Representative inheritor of Mongolian Uliger, a project of the second batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage. At the first national Mongolian-language Uliger competition in 2000, the work he narrated, Luo Qingming's Campaign against the West, won third prize; at the second national Mongolian-language Uliger competition in 2001, his narration of The Tale of the Qiang and Hu won second prize; and at the fifth national Mongolian Uliger and Huolaibao competition in 2005, his narration of Boer Out's Clever Capture of Baisha City won third prize. Han Yingfu (as recorded in the official archive of the associated inheritor): Male, Mongolian ethnicity, born in 1963, native of Fuxin Mongol Autonomous County, Liaoning Province. A Uliger storyteller of the hurqin rank, a second-class hurqin. In 1980 he became a disciple of Kang Dianwen, and in 1982 he took storytelling up as his profession. He has created and adapted a large number of folk and fable stories, which are warmly welcomed by the broad masses; he is known as the “king of folk stories” and has made an outstanding contribution to the development and inheritance of Mongolian Uliger. Representative inheritor of Mongolian Uliger, a project of the second batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage. At the third national Mongolian-language Uliger competition in 2002, his narration of Ma Wu's Clever Seizure of Jingzhou won third prize, and in 2002 at the “Pajie Cup” national Uliger and Huolaibao competition his narration of Luo Takes Command won the prize of excellence.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

• Laosier 02-0762
• Yangtielong 02-0763
• Hanyingfu 02-0764
• Baochaogezhu 02-0765
• Daiwode 04-1713
• Ganzhuer 05-2497
• Baizhalizeng 05-2498
• Zhangdeligen

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

1. Wuligeer (Fuxinmengguzuzizhi, Liaoning) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Yangtielong · National Representative Bearer Archive
3. Hanyingfu · National Representative Bearer Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗