In early April, “the 2022 Tujia Sayerhe inheritors training program” applied by School of Further Education of SCMZU has been approved as “China Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritance Group Study and Training Program” by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Known as funeral dancing or funeral drum, Tujia Sayerhe, which is a popular funeral ceremony custom among Tujia people in Qingjiang area of Hubei Province, reveals not only their optimistic view towards life and death but also their culture and tradition. Tujia Sayerhe, one of the fourth batch of National Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative List of Traditional Dance Projects, is popular in Badong county with its center in Shuibuya town, Jinguoping township, Qingtaiping town and Yesanguan town.

It is said that the program aims at providing academic and instructional resources in colleges and universities to help inheritors consolidate their foundation, expand their horizon, better their quality and improve their professional skills, their ability to protect and pass down intangible cultural heritage to make sure sustainable development and thus enhance their cultural confidence. All those are achieved in this program by sending the intangible heritage holders, practitioners and other inheritors to colleges and universities to learn professional knowledge, craftsmanship and technology, to attend conference and workshop. Meanwhile, through this program, colleges and universities involved can play a more important role in cultural inheritance and innovation by academic research and discipline construction.

To ensure the successful launch of the program, from April 18 to 21, a team from School of Further Education was sent to carry out investigation in several places in Enshi, including the Badong Cultural Center, Badong Intangible Heritage Protection Center, Sayerhe heritage base in Three Miles City in Shuibuya county, Cultural center in Yesanguan county, Enshi Tujia Girls town  Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritance and Exhibition base and so on. During the investigation, a symposium was held with the leaders of cultural and tourism departments in Badong at different levels and the inheritors of Sayerhe to discuss details of the program, including curriculum, forms, time and place. In the symposium, suggestions and opinions were collected and cooperation intention was preliminarily reached.

Edited: Liu Qiong; Source: School of Further Education