Korean Nongle Dance
01 · Historical Records
The 'nongle dance', colloquially called 'nongle', is transmitted in the Korean-inhabited areas of Jilin, Heilongjiang, Liaoning and other provinces. Its history can be traced back to the 'stepping on the earth god' in the rite of sacrificing to heaven at the time of spring sowing and autumn harvest in the ancient Korean period. The 'nongle dance', the representative folk traditional activity of the Korean ethnic group, originated in agricultural labour and contains elements of ancient sacrifice; it generally takes two forms, one being a plot-based performance presented in the form of dance and pantomime, and the other being a mass performance activity centred on vigorous and rich traditional dances at the beginning of the new year and at times of celebrating the harvest. The elephant hat dance is the representative dance of the Korean ethnic group in China, and should be properly protected and put to good use.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The 'nongle dance' is a comprehensive ethnic folk art that integrates music, dance and singing. The performance of the 'nongle dance' comprises twelve parts in all. These include the 'small drum dance' performed by young men, the 'human pyramid' performed by young dancers, the traditional 'flat drum dance' performed by several people, the 'long drum dance' performed by men and women alike, the 'fan dance' performed by several people holding large floral fans and originating in the ancient 'shaman dance', the disguise dance 'crane dance', and finally the men's 'elephant hat dance' that brings up the rear. The elephant hat dance has always been the most eye-catching and stirring of the dances; the highly difficult technique of the young male dancers whirling ribbons up to 20 metres long from their heads dazzles the eye, and it has become one of the most prominent symbols of the 'nongle dance'. At the very front of the dance procession are the command flag and an agricultural banner inscribed with the words 'agriculture is the foundation of the world'; behind them comes a man who strikes a small gong at the head of the procession and serves as the general commander. Under his lead, the ceremonial part of the procession is formed by the band, carrying taiping xiao, horns and various kinds of drums, together with various costumed characters. Next comes the troupe of performers presenting the small drum dance, the flat drum dance, the long drum dance, the fan dance, the crane dance, the elephant hat dance, the mask dance and the pantomime; the number of participants is unlimited. The elephant hat dance is an important form within the nongle dance; it is many and varied in kind, with diverse dance techniques, and is divided into types such as 'long elephant hat', 'medium elephant hat', 'short elephant hat', 'thread elephant hat', 'feather elephant hat', 'tail elephant hat' and 'spark elephant hat'. Its technique of flinging the elephant tail includes flinging to the left and right and setting the tail forward and back; there are single flings, double flings, or even triple flings; and there are standing flings, squatting flings, kneeling flings and flings from a prone position, among many others. Some elephant tails are several chi long, and some are several zhang long.
Seven kinds of ribbon hats
The hat dance comes in long, medium, short, thread, feather, tail and spark varieties, with ribbons from a few feet to several yards long.
Whirling the ribbons
Techniques include side, forward and upright whirling, single, double and triple flicks, and standing, crouching, kneeling or prone spins.
Banner, farm flag and gong leader
A command banner and a farm flag reading agriculture is the foundation of all lead, followed by a small-gong leader, the band and assorted costumed figures.
Twelve parts, crane dance included
The twelve-part suite includes small-drum and fan dances and the masked crane dance, ending with the men's hat dance for any number of performers.
Jin Mingchun's new feats
The second-batch inheritor Jin Mingchun, born in 1958, devised the ring, whirl, belly-roll and step feats that earned him the title king of the hat dance.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
When the nongle dance is performed, every village sends out its own large dance troupe to take part in the local celebrations.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Korean Nongle Dance · Korean Nongle Dance.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Kim Myung-chun (associated inheritor, as recorded in the official file): Male, Korean ethnicity, born in 1958, native of Yanji, Jilin. Kim Myung-chun invented and innovated high-difficulty movements such as 'drilling through the hoop', 'the spin', 'turning the body in mid-air' and 'stepping up onto the platform', which raised the visual appeal of the elephant hat dance; the people praised him as 'King of the Elephant Hat Dance'. Representative inheritor of the Korean Nongle Dance (Elephant Hat Dance), a national-level intangible cultural heritage project in the second national batch.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Jin Mingchun 02-0382
- Jin Minghuan 03-0923
- Han Kuisheng 03-0924
- Li Yonghao 05-2235
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。