Yongzhou was called Lingling County in ancient times, and it was named after Shun Di's southern tour collapsed in Jiuyi Mountain in Ningyuan. In the early years of Sui Dynasty, Yongzhou General Administration was established. Yongzhou has been called "Xiaoxiang" since ancient times because of the intersection of Xiaoshui and Xiangjiang River in the urban area. 1995 1 1 With the approval of the State Council, the Lingling area was abolished and Yongzhou City was established. Yongzhou has jurisdiction over nine counties and two districts, and the whole city has jurisdiction over Lengshuitan District, Lingling District (formerly Shan Zhi District), Qiyang County, Dong 'an County, Lanshan County, Shuangpai County, ningyuan county County, Xintian County, Daoxian County, Jianghua County and Jiangyong County. The municipal government is located in Lengshuitan City. With a total area of 22,400 square kilometers and a total population of 5.8 million (2009); Among them, Yongzhou covers an area of 3,200 square kilometers, with a total population of 165438+ 10,000 (in 2009) and an urban population of more than 400,000. Yongzhou has been a traffic fortress from Central China and East China to Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan and Southwest China since ancient times. It is also an important gateway to Hunan's opening to the outside world, and is known as the "Nanshan thoroughfare". "Away from land and water, with Chu and Guangdong as the center, remote control is connected with Wuling, with Geng Mei in front and Heng Yue Town behind". The northeast of the town can enter the hinterland of the Central Plains and control the throat of the southwest Guangxi border. According to the southeast, it guards the Guangdong seaside passage, so it is a battleground for military strategists in past dynasties. It is the only area in Hunan bordering Guangdong and Guangxi, with the urban area only over 500 kilometers away from Guangzhou and the six counties in the south only over 400 kilometers away from Guangzhou. It is a "coastal inland, inland frontier".
Yongzhou is a book with profound historical and cultural connotations. According to the latest research results of authoritative experts, Yongzhou is the source of rice cultivation in the world, the source of ceramic industry in China and the source of Chinese civilization and morality. Shun's enlightened governance, meritocracy, Liu Zongyuan's profound thought of loving the people and the people, Zhou Dunyi's simple materialistic thought and lofty morality of "removing mud and not staining", the mysterious and colorful Yao culture of "Nvshu", the excavation of Yuchanyan cultural relics in Daoxian County and the appearance of Yongzhou ancient culture have all enriched the treasure house of Chinese culture. The landscape of Yongzhou is a combination of "strangeness, uniqueness, danger and beauty" and beautiful legends, as well as a combination of natural interest and historical culture. Wuxi Forest of Steles, Shundi Mausoleum in Jiuyi Mountain, Wenchang Tower in Qiyang, Sansheng Lake, Liuzi Temple, Yangmingshan, Huang Shun, Jianghua Medicine City and Xiangyuan Hot Springs have become new tourist hotspots.
Yongzhou is a coastal inland, the frontier of inland, and the main channel from Hunan to Guangdong, Guangxi, South China (Hainan, Southwest China) and Hong Kong and Macao. Xiang-Gui Railway runs through the east and west, with National Highway 322, 207 national highway and 9 provincial highways criss-crossing. Yongzhou Airport has opened flights to Changsha, Haikou and Guangzhou. Hengkun Expressway, Erguang Expressway, Luozhan Railway and Gui Xiang Railway form a new railway hub in the urban area. The planned Guiyang-Fuzhou railway will cross the central part of Yongzhou. People of all ethnic groups in Yongzhou have gradually evolved, developed and formed customs with local characteristics in their long-term life, labor and contacts with foreigners. These customs and habits are an important part of Yongzhou's history and culture, and also an important aspect of studying Yongzhou's history and present situation and serving the current and future economic and cultural construction.
Yongzhou is rich in customs and customs. Local language, national costumes, general etiquette for treating people, important etiquette for weddings, funerals and celebrations, traditional festivals and cultural and sports activities all have their unique local colors. For example, dialects, each county has a common "official dialect" in the county, and there are different types of "dialects", with very different pronunciations. Most people speak both "dialect" and "Putonghua", which is bilingual. Another example is how to treat people, from meeting to giving up their seats, from pouring wine to eating vegetables. At the same time, because Yongzhou is inhabited by different nationalities such as Han, Yao and Zhuang, the customs and habits of different nationalities are also very different. Nevertheless, in general, the customs and habits of Yongzhou still have the following characteristics:
Diligence and simplicity are the essential characteristics of Yongzhou customs. Yongzhou has overlapping mountains, dense streams, mild climate and rich products. People in Yongzhou have been "ploughing water" and "fishing, hunting and logging" here since ancient times, and gradually formed the temperament characteristics of diligence, courage, kindness, purity and simplicity. Therefore, the history of Yongzhou is called "many people are simple" (the history of Song Dynasty, geography) and "there are shun relics in the land" (Taiping Universe, edited by Song Dynasty).
Hospitality is a prominent feature of Yongzhou customs and habits, and it is also a traditional virtue of Yongzhou people. Liu Yuxi's preface to seeing Zhou off says that Yongzhou people are "wise and literate". Yu Fang and Guan Sheng in Song Dynasty said that Yongzhou was "nurtured by the people". In Qing Dynasty, Li said in Preface to Dong 'an County that Dong 'an was "graceful and polite". People who have been to Yongzhou feel at home. Enthusiasts from all over Yongzhou, although different in hospitality etiquette, often do their best to entertain guests. This traditional virtue has been passed down to this day.
Being good at singing and dancing is another feature of Yongzhou. As early as the pre-Qin and Han dynasties, Yongzhou folk songs and dances had been widely popular. By the Tang and Song Dynasties, Yongzhou folk songs and dances had become a common phenomenon. Yan Shu Lei Yao in the Song Dynasty said that Yongzhou was "full of wind and water, but still full of songs and dances". This also shows that Yongzhou people have always loved the enjoyment of beauty. Nowadays, people in Han and ethnic minority areas are singing and dancing during the Spring Festival. In particular, the "Long Drum Dance" and Yao songs of Jianghua Yao nationality, and the local minor of Qiyang, etc. It is very famous both inside and outside the province.
Of course, as in other places, the customs and habits of Yongzhou have their negative side. For example, "believing in ghosts and witches, paying more attention to obscenity and worship" (Hanshu Geography), respecting family status in marriage, attaching importance to bride price and clan fighting are all negative and useless things. These negative things were strongly opposed by people of insight in ancient times. For example, in the Qing Dynasty, people in the county often opposed the bad habits at that time, such as "Marriage is more important than money, and every time I return to my sister, I am responsible for the bride price and betrothal", "Burying people is cool, believing in geomantic omen, and even crossing the line to find dragons, and I can't stop for a long time", "Mourning the pagoda, Sang Men Brahma miscellaneous. If you are sick, you just want to be sick, but Wu Zhu's sacrifice is twice as good as Shen Ling's, and the economy is attributed to God. If it is not good, it will be entrusted for life ",etc. (Qing Daoguang's Yongzhou government records, customs records, always talking about customs). Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, negative factors such as superstitious elements and feudal patriarchal ideology in Yongzhou's customs and habits have been greatly reduced, but their influence cannot completely disappear in a short time, and some bad habits have resurfaced.
The emergence and formation of customs and habits is basically the result of local social activities, but it also has external influences that cannot be ignored. It has its own process of emergence, development and perfection, which is restricted by many factors, especially the local economy and culture. With the in-depth development of socialist material civilization and spiritual civilization construction, the positive factors in Yongzhou customs will further develop, and its negative factors will gradually decrease or even disappear.
Yongzhou is a relatively developed area of traditional opera culture in China. Since the Ming Dynasty, theatrical performances have appeared in China. Since then, after long-term development, a large-scale local opera with local characteristics-Qi Opera has been formed. At the same time, there are some local operas in Yongzhou, such as Lingling ancient painting opera, Qiyang minor and puppet show.