Aroudouqu
01 · Historical Records
The Aruo tribe is one of the major Tibetan tribes of the area around Qinghai Lake. Aruo Township in Qilian County stands at an elevation of about 3,000 metres; to the east it borders Ebao Town, to the south Mole Town and Duolong Township, to the west Babao Town, and to the north it meets Minle County of Gansu Province across the Corridor Nanshan range. Pastoral production and the settled pattern of tribal habitation gave the antiphonal singing tradition of douqu a stable social soil.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
'Douqu', known in Tibetan as 'Xihe', is a Tibetan folk song form of great antiquity, with a distinctive melody, a slow rhythm flowing like water and a strong flavour of everyday life. Aruo douqu circulates mainly in Aruo Township of Qilian County, Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, and in the villages and settlements of the surrounding townships. Aruo Township lies at an elevation of 3,000 metres in the southeastern part of the county, 25 kilometres west of the county seat. To the east it borders Ebao Town, to the south Mole Town and Duolong Township, to the west Babao Town, and to the north it meets Minle County of Gansu Province across the Corridor Nanshan range. The term 'douqu' means singing in antiphon; it is a form of self-entertainment which the Tibetan masses developed over long periods of nomadic life in order to relieve the tedium of herding. In the leisure of herding, men and women gather in threes and fives, sit facing one another, answer and challenge each other, and sing song against song in vivid, exaggerated language: they pit wit against wit with song, befriend one another with song, express their feelings in song and take their pleasure in song. The lyrics make frequent use of metaphor and exaggeration, which throw into relief simple folk character and the beauty of the natural scenery and reveal the kind, warm, forthright and optimistic temperament of the Tibetan people. Aruo douqu is plural yet unified: it shares common traits while also showing local differences. The performing form is either one melody with different words or the same words set to different melodies, and antiphonal singing is normally the principal form. Its subject matter ranges from praise of nature and of fine horses, cattle and sheep, through celebration of heroic deeds and description of ethnic customs, to expressions of feeling and wishes for good fortune — all-encompassing, with nothing left unsung. Aruo douqu is mostly sung by two people; in the antiphonal singing one party holds a khata or a wine tray, singing and dancing to the melody as it comes before the other party, and offers the khata or the wine, and they alternate in this way. Aruo douqu is an indispensable part of the life of the Aruo people, and folk circles contain many highly skilled artists. The item relies above all on daily production and life and on festivals and ritual observances, and is transmitted orally through social practice and through master-apprentice teaching.
Praise of nature and livestock
One of the subject matters of Aruo douqu, praising nature and fine horses, cattle and sheep.
Songs praising heroes
One of the subject matters of Aruo douqu.
Songs on customs
One of the subject matters of Aruo douqu.
Songs of feeling and blessing
One of the subject matters of Aruo douqu, all-encompassing and with nothing left unsung.
Scarf-and-cup antiphonal custom
Aruo douqu is mostly sung by two people; in the antiphonal singing one party holds a khata or a wine tray, singing and dancing to the melody as it comes before the other party and presents the khata or the wine. The performing form is one melody with different words or the same words with different melodies, antiphonal singing being the principal form.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Aruo douqu is indispensable entertainment at local Tibetan weddings, banquets and festivals, and is the best way of creating an atmosphere of celebration.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
In recent years the protecting unit has advanced protection work by supporting inheritors in singing Aruo douqu at festivals and weddings, at Spring Festival galas and culture weeks, and at the Hua'er festivals, by running training classes, by collecting, editing and publishing relevant books, and by increasing publicity; the succession team has grown year by year and its popular base has gradually become solid. Aruo douqu condenses the wisdom and creativity of generation upon generation of Tibetan people. It is highly intellectual and artistic, is dearly loved by the public, and has considerable academic value for the study of Tibetan life customs and the history and culture of the Aruo tribe; it also plays a positive role in enriching the lives of the people and promoting social harmony.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript; it mirrors the bilingual dossier. 阅读中文版，或返回 英文名录。