Girls sport their ancestors' hair for Lunar New year in China

LONGJIA: Girls with large headpieces made from the hair of their ancestors and wearing intricately patterned dresses danced in isolated villages in southwest China to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

Against a stunning mountain backdrop, dozens of girls and women of the Long Horn Miao ethnicity performed for the annual flower festival or 'Tiaohuajie', held in Guizhou province on Thursday.

Onlookers watched -- smartphones in hand -- as the women swirled across a meadow, wearing dresses and jackets embroidered with pink roses and geometric patterns.



But it was the towering black headdresses of the dancers that really stood out -- made from wool, string and the hair of their ancestors, and wrapped around animal horns with white fabric.

PHOTO: AFP

"It's really special to be at the centre of attention like this. I feel quite proud," said Yang Yunzheng, 16.
"We organise this festival once a year when we wear these headpieces. That doesn't change with modernisation".

Two girls from the Long Horn Miao, a branch of the Miao ethnic minority group, preparing their make-up prior to taking part in the annual flower festival or 'Tiaohuajie' in the village of Longjia in China's Guizhou province. PHOTO: AFP

The Miao ethnic minority is made up of some nine million people, mostly found in China's southwest. Of those, around 5,000 "Long Horn Miao" live in just a dozen isolated villages in Guizhou.



Their headpieces are passed down through generations and worn on a number of occasions to honour their ancestors and preserve their traditions.

People watching the annual flower festival. PHOTO: AFP

The festival is held on the 10th day of the Lunar New Year.