Shanxi Province is located in the middle reaches of the Yellow River and in the eastern part of the Loess Plateau.
There are high mountains, crisscrossing hills, mountains and rivers, complex terrain, diverse landforms, moderate climate, and four distinct seasons. The miraculous work of nature has created colorful scenery everywhere.
Shanxi is also one of the birthplaces of Chinese civilization. It has a long history and a long history. It is known as the "Museum of Ancient Chinese Art" and the "Land of Documents" and retains 70% of the country's land. Ancient architecture, the tourism industry therefore says: "Look at Shenzhen in China in ten years, Shanghai in China in hundred years, Xi'an in China in millennium, and Shanxi in China in five thousand years."
Natural beauty, historical civilization, revolutionary historical sites and construction achievements in the new era, together constitute Shanxi’s unique and colorful tourism resources that are both ancient and modern.
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Natural tourism resources
Shanxi’s complex and changeable geology, landforms, hydrology, and meteorological conditions have created many majestic and fascinating famous mountains and rivers, caves and rocks, clear springs and lakes, rapids and waterfalls, magical celestial phenomena, and precious The richness of biological and other natural landscapes and its natural tourism resources rank among the best in the country. Shanxi has almost all natural landscapes except oceans and deserts, but salt ponds, ten thousand year ice caves, and volcanoes are not found in most provinces.
Famous mountains and rivers: Shanxi has many famous mountains and is the only province in the country that has five mountains, five towns and four famous Buddhist mountains.
The most famous ones are Beiyue Hengshan, one of the five mountains, Mount Wutai, one of the four famous Buddhist mountains, the famous Taoist mountains Beiwudang Mountain and Mianshan, the national scenic spot Wulaofeng, and the top ten nature reserves in the country. Luya Mountain, one of the five towns, Huoshan Mountain, Zhongzhen, one of the five towns, Lishan Mountain, which preserves the largest virgin forest in North China, the strange and steep Taihang Grand Canyon in the Taihang Mountains, Wangmangling, Huangyadong, and Lingkong Mountain , Gypsum Mountain, Xiantang Mountain, Guanchuan Mountain, Pangquangou, etc., the mountains have different colors and expressions, and they are surprising for their steepness, elegance and beauty.
Some can be visited and admired, some can be used to escape the heat, some can be visited in ancient times, and some can be admired.
The Yellow River, which precedes Dachuan, is the natural dividing line between Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces. It flows through 19 counties in Shanxi and has a course of 965 kilometers. It has merged into 18 larger tributaries and thousands of streams. There are many beautiful peaks on both sides of the Shaanxi Yellow River Gorge in various shapes. The Yellow River in Fenglingdu area is dozens of miles wide, making it the widest part of the Yellow River.
These famous mountains and rivers are like picturesque scrolls of great beauty, forming many scenic spots and becoming Shanxi’s inexhaustible tourism resources.
Dongshixiongguan: There are many limestone caves in Taihang, Luliang and Zhongtiao Mountains in Shanxi, such as Qinshui Baiyun Cave, Huguan Zituan Cave, Yuxian Wanhua Cave, Yuhua Cave, Taiyuan Tian Most of Longshan Karst Cave, Xinzhou Yuwang Cave, etc. are well preserved, with vast cave bodies and a dazzling array of stalactites in various shapes. Some of them are open to the public for tours.
The province’s topography is peculiar, and strange peaks and rocks can be seen everywhere in the famous mountains. For example, the peak of Luya Mountain is shaped like a reed bud, reaching straight into the sky; The "Long Fan Stone", the huge "Fengdong Stone" in North Wudang Mountain, and the "Lingshi" in Lingshi County are particularly unique.
Many dangerous passes such as Niangzi Pass, Yanmen Pass, Pianguan Pass, Ningwuguan, and Pingxing Pass are formed among the dangerous peaks.
Clear spring lakes: Shanxi is short of water resources, but natural lakes are spread throughout the province. Over the years, many reservoirs and artificial lakes have been built, like pearls embedded in the land of Shanxi.
Shanxi has tens of thousands of springs, divided into three types: cold springs, hot springs and mineral springs.
The larger cold springs include: Shuozhou Shentou Spring, Wutai Prajna Spring, Taiyuan Nanlao Spring, Qingxu Pingquan, Hongdong Huo Spring, Linfen Longzi Temple Spring, etc.; hot springs include Hunyuan Spring Tangtou Spring, Xinzhou Qicun Spring, Yuanping Daying Spring, Dingxiang Hot Spring, Yuxian Hot Spring, Xiaxian Hot Spring, Xinjiang Hot Spring, etc.
Among the mineral springs, Prajna Spring is the representative one.
Shanxi’s natural lakes include Wutai Mountain Beitaiding Tianchi, Ningwu Tianchi, Jinci Fish Pond, Qingxu East Lake, Pingquan East Lake, West Lake, Yuncheng Wuxing Lake, Yanchi, etc.; artificially constructed reservoirs include Yuanqu Xiaolangdi Reservoir, Wanjiazhai Yellow River Diversion Project, Motan Shuanluquan Reservoir, Hengshan Reservoir, Fenhe Reservoir, Wenyu River Reservoir, Weihe Reservoir, Zhanghe Reservoir, Zhangze Reservoir, etc. These water resources have become tourist attractions.
Rapids Waterfalls: The famous waterfalls in Shanxi include Hukou Falls, Niangziguan Falls, Wangguangu Falls, and Manghe Falls.
Hukou Waterfall is famous for its magnificence, and Niangziguan Waterfall is famous for its beauty.
Rapids and rapids can be seen in many places in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, such as the Longcao rapids below Hukou and the "three rapids" of Longmen, which make people feel majestic.
Weather: Shanxi's climate is highly seasonal, complex and changeable. It not only has the scenery of the frozen north, but also has the conditions to carry out a variety of temperate zone tourism activities, and can also enjoy the unique atmospheric landscape.
The "Sunrise in the East China Sea" at the top of Mount Wutai and the Shunwang Ping View in Mount Li is comparable to Mount Tai. The "Moonlight Night" at Mengmen Mountain on the Yellow River is charming, and the "Baoguang" at Mount Wutai is a unique sight.
Rare organisms: Shanxi has established 12 nature reserves.
Ancient and famous trees, rare birds and animals are hidden deep inside. Brown-eared pheasants, macaques and giant salamanders are all rare and exotic animals.
Attached: List of scenic spots in Shanxi Province
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Humanistic Tourism Resources
Shanxi’s long history has left us with numerous ancient buildings—gongguan temples, ancient pagodas, grotto statues, painted murals, ancient city passes, Cultural heritage sites, unearthed cultural relics, handed down treasures, customs, flavored foods, cooking techniques and other cultural heritages.
The title of “Shanxi – the Museum of Ancient Chinese Art” has been recognized by people from all walks of life at home and abroad.
Temples and palaces: The number of existing ancient buildings in Shanxi and their high historical and artistic value rank first in the country.
There are 35 cultural relics units listed as key national-level protection, and 284 cultural relics units under provincial-level key protection.
According to statistics, there were 106 wooden buildings before the Song and Jin Dynasties, accounting for more than 70% of the buildings in the country during the same period.
Among them, those in the Tang Dynasty include the main hall of Wutainan Zen Temple, the east hall of Foguang Temple, and the Guangrenwang Temple in Ruicheng. There are nearly a hundred places in the Jin Dynasty, among which the representative ones are the Jinci Notre Dame Hall in the Song Dynasty, Gaoping Youxian Temple, Chongming Temple, Kaihua Temple, Daxiong Hall, Datong Huayan Temple Complex in Liao and Jin Dynasties, Datong Shanhua Temple, Shuozhou Chongfu Temple, Yingxian Pure Land Temple main hall, Wutai Foguang Temple Manjusri Hall, Jincheng Qinglian Temple Mahavira Hall, Eldest Son Chongqing Temple Ten Thousand Buddhas Hall, Fenyang Taifu Temple and Wenshui Wu Zetian Temple, etc.
Shanxi has preserved more ancient buildings after the Yuan Dynasty.
The buildings and murals of Yongle Palace and Guangsheng Temple in the Yuan Dynasty are art treasures; the Hanging Temple was built in the Northern Wei Dynasty and rebuilt in the Ming Dynasty; it is breathtaking and unique, unique to China and foreign countries; it is also the first of the four famous Buddhist mountains The Wutai Mountain architectural complex, the Xuanzang Temple as the Pure Land Sect's dojo, the Pingyao Shuanglin Temple known as the "Treasure House of Oriental Painted Sculpture Art", and the Jiezhou Guandi Temple, the top martial arts temple in the country, are all artistic masterpieces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
In addition, Mengxian Zangshan Temple, Jiexiu Houtu Temple, Mianshan Huiluan Temple, Wanrong Feiyun Tower, Qiufeng Tower, Lingkong Mountain Shengshou Temple, Linfen Yao Temple, etc., all have their own merits. Sparkling with history and art.
Ancient pagodas of the past dynasties: There are more than 280 ancient pagodas in the province, including the Buddha Pagoda of Fogong Temple in Ying County, the White Pagoda of Mount Wutai, the Ashoka Pagoda in Dai County, the twin towers of Yongzuo Temple in Taiyuan, The Feihong Pagoda of Guangsheng Temple in Hongdong and the Yingying Pagoda of Pujiu Temple in Yongji are the most famous.
Grotto statues: According to investigation, there are 19 large-scale grottoes in Shanxi during the Northern Dynasties, 21 during the Sui and Tang Dynasties, 2 during the Song Dynasty, 2 during the Yuan Dynasty, and 5 during the Ming Dynasty, plus the Yungang Grottoes. There are 51 Tianlongshan Grottoes.
Taking Datong Yungang Grottoes, one of the three largest grottoes in the country, as the most important, Taiyuan Tianlongshan Grottoes, Longshan Grottoes, Changzhi Yangtoushan Grottoes, and Pingding Kaihe Temple Grottoes also have high artistic value.
City Wall Pass: Shanxi has been a battleground for military strategists of all ages. The Great Wall inside and outside extends to eight places and cities in Shanxi including Datong, Shuozhou, Xinzhou, Jinzhong, Luliang and Yangquan, totaling about 3,500 kilometers.
There are important passes such as Yanmen Pass, Pingxing Pass, Ningwuguan, Niangzi Pass, and Pianguan Pass.
The most complete ancient city walls in Shanxi include Pingyao City and Niangziguan City. In addition to the city wall, Pingyao City's drum tower, Town God's Temple, neighborhoods, shops, and residential buildings all maintain the shape and style of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
Ancient murals: Shanxi has many ancient buildings, most of which are Buddhist temples and Taoist temples.
Almost all of these temples have murals.
According to statistics, there are still 27,000 square meters of murals in Shanxi temples.
Among them, the murals of the Tang Dynasty are 32 square meters, the murals of the Five Dynasties are more than 20 square meters, the murals of the Liao Dynasty are 15 square meters, the murals of the Song Dynasty are 86 square meters, and the murals of the Jin Dynasty are more than 440 square meters. meters, the murals of the Yuan Dynasty are more than 1,430 square meters, the murals of the Ming Dynasty are more than 2,300 square meters, and the murals of the Qing Dynasty are more than 2,910 square meters.
Among these murals, the Yuan Dynasty murals in Yongle Palace in Ruicheng are the most famous.
These palaces are all Yuan Dynasty buildings. The walls and arches of each palace are covered with murals. The total area is more than 100 square meters on a single side.
Ancient painted sculptures: There are nearly 13,000 ancient painted sculptures in Shanxi.
Among them, there are 82 sculptures from the Tang Dynasty, the most famous of which are the colored sculptures of Nanchan Temple in Mount Wutai, the colored sculptures of Foguang Temple, the colored sculptures of the ancient Qinglian Temple in Jincheng, etc.; 11 sculptures of the Five Dynasties period, the most famous of which is Pingyao Zhenguo There are 394 colored temple sculptures in the Song, Liao and Jin dynasties. The most famous ones are the Liao sculptures of Huayan Temple in Datong, Jinci Temple in Taiyuan, Changzi Faxing Temple, Song sculptures of Erxian Temple in Jincheng, Chongfu Temple in Shuoxian County, and Wutai Temple. There are 386 gold sculptures in the Manjusri Hall of Foguang Temple, the most famous of which is the twenty-eight-year-old painted sculpture of Jincheng Yuhuang Temple in the Yuan Dynasty; 5,878 sculptures of the Ming Dynasty, the most famous of which are the painted sculptures of Shuanglin Temple in Pingyao and the Xixian Xiaoxiao Xitian Colored Sculpture; there are more than 6,000 colored sculptures in Shanxi during the Qing Dynasty.
Ancient cultural sites: Shanxi has unearthed many ancient cultural sites with high research value.
Belonging to the Old and Neolithic Ages, there are Ruicheng Xihoudu Site, Hehe Site, Xiangfen Dingcun Site, Qinshui Xiachuan Site, etc. Important ancient sites and tombs after the Xia Dynasty include the Spring and Autumn Tombs in Luocheng, Taiyuan , the ruins of the ancient capital of the Jin Dynasty in Houma, the Han tombs in Shuozhou, the ruins of the Battle of Gaoping and Changping, the ruins of the ancient city of Jinyang, etc.
The cultural relics and archeology departments have unearthed a large number of coins, pottery, stone tools, wooden tools and other precious cultural relics from ancient tombs in these ancient sites, and new discoveries are constantly being made.
Revolutionary Historical Memorial Site: The modern and modern people’s national and democratic revolutionary struggles have left many precious revolutionary cultural relics and hometowns in Shanxi.
Listed as national key cultural relics protection units are the former site of the Eighth Route Army Headquarters in Wuxiang County, the Taihang Memorial Hall of the Eighth Route Army in Wangjiayu, Wuxiang, the former site of the Battle of Pingxingguan, the former site of the Bethune Model Ward in Songyankou, Wutai County, and the martyr Liu Hulan Memorial Hall, etc. Others include the Huangyadong Defense Battle Site, the Memorial Site of General Zuo Quan’s Sacrifice, the Anti-Japanese Overseas Chinese Heroine Li Lin Memorial Hall, Changzhi Taihang Taiyue Martyrs Cemetery, the Former Residence of ***, etc. They truly record from different aspects such as The historical achievements of the revolutionary struggle of Huo Rucha.
Attached: List of historical places of interest in Shanxi Province
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A national historical and cultural city
Datong City: It was called Pingcheng in ancient times. It was the capital of the early Northern Wei Dynasty. It was the companion capital in the Liao and Jin Dynasties and was called Xijing.
It has always been the political, economic and cultural center of northern Shanxi.
There are many cultural relics and historic sites, including the Yungang Grottoes excavated from 453 to 495 AD (Northern Wei Dynasty), as well as national key cultural relics protection units such as Shangxia Huayan Temple, Puhua Temple, and Nine Dragon Wall.
Pingyao County: Pingyao, the Yangshao painted pottery culture discovered in the ancient city proves that people lived here as far back as the Neolithic period.
In the Spring and Autumn Period, it was the central capital of the Jin Kingdom, and in the Han Dynasty, it was Jingling County.
During the Northern Wei Dynasty, Pingtao County was governed. It was changed to Pingyao County because Emperor Taiwu's name was taboo.
There are many cultural relics and sites in Pingyao City.
The existing ancient city wall is one of the only four relatively complete ancient cities in my country. It was first built in the Western Zhou Dynasty and expanded in the third year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty. It has a history of more than 2,000 years.
The streets, alleys and residential houses in the city are full of ethnic characteristics, as well as the style of residential buildings in northern China during the Ming Dynasty.
Shuanglin Temple and Zhenguo Temple outside the city are famous both at home and abroad for their exquisite colorful sculptures.
Dai County: Dai County, an ancient state, is an important political, military, cultural and economic town in northern Shanxi. It has scenic spots and historic sites such as Yanmen Pass, Bianjing Tower, Ashoka Pagoda, Yang Family Ancestral Hall, Zhao Gao Temple, etc.
In history, Chen Ziang, Li Bai, Wang Changling, Wang Wei, Li He, Fan Zhongyan, Yuan Haowen, etc. all left masterpieces about the scenic spots and historic sites in Dai County.
In addition, Dai County’s ingenious paper-cutting art, lifelike dough sculpture making, exquisite and gorgeous embroidery crafts and other folk culture and arts are all dazzling, especially the folk paintings that are even more amazing.
Qixian County: A treasured land in Jinzhong, where ancestors settled as early as the Neolithic Age of the Yangshao Culture 6,000 years ago.
The current county seat of Qi County was built during the Taihe period of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty and has a history of more than 1,500 years.
There are many celebrities in Qi County, including Qi Huangyang, Wang Yun, Wen Qiao, Wen Tingyun, Dai Tingshi, etc.
The famous Qiao Family Courtyard and Qu Family Courtyard in Qi County are exquisite residential buildings in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China.
The ancient city of Qixian County is full of ancient shops and temples. The city is full of brick carvings, stone carvings, paints and paintings, which are antique.
The collection of ancient books, historical relics, and folk art is rich and colorful.
Qixian Yangge has a long history, and the Lantern Festival is popular. The lifelike wax sculptures, dough sculptures, and paper-cuts fully reflect the profound accumulation of the ancient Yellow River culture in Qixian.
Xinjiang County: Jinnan Shangcheng, a prefecture and county has been established since the Northern Wei Dynasty. It is a famous ancient city and merchant place in southern Shanxi. It collects cultural relics from Sui, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties in one city , mainly including Jiangshouju Garden, Jiangzhou Hall, Longxing Temple inner tower, etc.
The well-preserved "Jiang Tie" is one of the four most famous paintings in the country.
In addition, there are murals in Jiangzhou Drum Tower, Bell Tower, Music Tower and Jiyi Temple.
Xinjiang is home to outstanding people, including Xunzi, Wang Zhihuan, Gao Keming, Li Yuxiu, etc., who were also born here.
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Folk customs and tourism resources
p>Taigu, Qixian, Linfen, Yangcheng, Jincheng, Hunyuan, Shuozhou, Xiangfen, Dingxiang and other places have preserved a large number of residential buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
Xiangfen Ding Village Folk Museum, Qixian Folk Museum, and Dingxiang Folk Museum reflect the traditional folk customs of the year, weddings and funerals, etiquette customs, and folk crafts in southern Shanxi, Jinzhong, and Xinzhou areas. and agricultural production, cultural and entertainment activities and other typical northern folk customs.
For details, please refer to Shanxi Folk Customs on this website
Famous specialties and snacks: Xinghuacun Fenjiu, Shanxi noodles, Pingyao Tuguang lacquerware, Xinjiang cloud carvings, lacquerware, Datong Bronze ware and other products have a long history and are famous at home and abroad.
Folk song art: Shanxi is known as the “Ocean of Folk Songs”.
It has a long history and has made great achievements as early as the Spring and Autumn Period. The "Tang Feng" and "Wei Feng" in the "Book of Songs", including "Cutting Sandalwood" and "Shuo Rat" are all Shanxi folk songs.
There are more than 100 counties in Shanxi, and almost every county has its own folk songs.
According to relevant statistics, more than 20,000 folk songs have been collected.
There are not only many folk songs in Shanxi, but also very distinctive local colors.
Folk songs from various parts of Shanxi are very different in artistic style.
The folk songs in the Hequ, Baode and Pianguan areas have high-pitched tones and large jumps in sound lines, so they sound like the unique sense of vastness and majesty of the Saishang Plateau, and they are also lyrically honest and straightforward. Pungent, simple and bright, it is also filled with humorous and lingering beauty.
Xinzhou and Dingxiang folk songs, as well as Datong, Yanggao and Shuo County folk songs, each have their own characteristics compared to Hequ folk songs.
Zuo Quan’s folk songs are fresh and charming.
There are many "three-beat" love songs among them, which are not found in other folk songs.
Qixian and Taigu folk songs, as well as Shouyang and Taiyuan folk songs, are relatively flexible, free and full of changes in content and form.
The folk songs in Huguan, Jincheng, Yangcheng and Qinshui in southeastern Shanxi have old-fashioned tunes and strong local customs.
The folk songs of Qinyuan County are good at expressing the passionate feelings of local farmers in real life, and have a strong flavor of the times.
Folk dance: Many experts also call Shanxi the "hometown of folk dance".
According to "The Romance of the Su Family" written by Su E of the Tang Dynasty, as far back as the pre-Qin Dynasty, a relatively beautiful dance with the content of "Battle against Chi You" was popular among the people in the Taiyuan area.
In the Han tombs excavated in Houcun, Yuncheng, a model of the "Baixi Tower" engraved with male and female dancers dancing opposite each other was also found.
In ancient tombs of the Tang Dynasty excavated elsewhere in Shanxi, there are also many images of dancing children with beautiful appearance.
There are many types of folk dances in Shanxi. Up to now, there are still about 200 types.
For example: "Drum Dance" includes "Flower Drum", "Turn Around Drum", "Huaqing Drum", "Fan Drum", "Five Tigers Climbing the Mountain", "Passing Box Gong and Drum", "Waist Drum" ", "flower drum in mouth", "tooth drum", etc., nearly twenty kinds.
Shanxi "flower drum" has various forms, including high drum (drum hung on the chest), low drum (drum hung on the waist), multi-gu (drum hung on the waist, chest and shoulders), etc.
Shanxi "Flower Drum Dance" is most popular in Yuncheng and Linfen areas.
For example, 13 of the 17 townships in Wanrong County have flower dance teams.
In some towns, there is a stack of flower drums on every street, so they are called "the hometown of flower drums".
Shanxi’s “Yangko Dance” spreads throughout the three Jin Dynasties.
It can be roughly divided into North Road's "Kicking Drum Yangko Dance", "Fen Xiaodi Yangko Dance", "Yuan Pingfeng Yangko Dance", "Zuo Quan Xiaohua Opera Dance", "Hou Ma Baidian Yangko Dance" "Dance", "Linfen Umbrella Yangko Dance" and other types.
In addition, there are "lion dance", "dragon dance", "stilts", "land boat", "back stick", "lifting pavilion". ", "Singing and dancing" and various "lantern dances", etc.
Shanxi's folk dance has three obvious characteristics.
First, it reflects the implication of social life It is profound, expresses emotions delicately and realistically, and the combination of form and content is very tacit.
Secondly, it is highly dramatic.
No matter what kind of dance, they all wear dramatic costumes and facial makeup. , are also all drama-style.
The performance content also relies on dramatic plots.
The third one is a mixture of drama, song and dance, such as Hequ's "Two-person Stage". , it is both a folk song and a folk dance.
Others are a combination of acrobatics, dance, and drama.
Such as "Stilts", "Land Boat", "Lion Dance", "Dragon Dance", "Back Stick", "Iron Stick", etc.
Folk music: Shanxi has a rich folk music heritage and a unique soil for the development of folk music.
For example, it is the only place for Chinese national music. One of the earliest and most famous musicians recorded in historical records, Shi Kuang, was from Hongdong, Shanxi Province.
He was a musician of the Jin Dynasty during the Spring and Autumn Period, and famous songs such as "Yangchun" and "White Snow" in ancient my country came from.
There are many precious "classical music" in Shanxi, and many of them are still popular among the people.
Most of the Shanxi folk instruments we see today are handed down from ancient times.
These musical instruments are mainly silk and bamboo, such as sheng, pipe, flute, huqin, banhu, sanxian, suona, pipa, zither, bawu, various drums, cymbals, gongs, and cymbals. etc. Shanxi's folk music can be roughly divided into three categories.
The first type is "instrumental music" performed by groups of drummers from various places. Shanxi's drum music can be found throughout the province, and Xinzhou and Jinzhong are the largest and most famous.
For example, "Great Victory" and "Eight Great Sets" in Yuanping, Fanzhi, and Daixian areas.
The first type is tunes played by people from all over the country on a variety of musical instruments during popular events. The most famous ones are Changzhi's "Bayin Hui" and Hongdong's "Wei Feng Gong and Drum".
The first type is "temple music" or monks and Taoists' miscellaneous music handed down by monks and Taoists.
The most influential is the temple music played by monks from Mount Wutai.
Shanxi’s folk instrumental art is often combined with the art of rap.
Like "Lu'an Drum Book", "Xiangyuan Drum Book", "North Shanxi Daoqing", "Yongji Daoqing", "Yangcheng Daoqing", "Yicheng Qinshu", "Wuxiang Daoqing" "Qinshu" and so on, have such characteristics.
Opera art: Shanxi is one of the birthplaces of Chinese opera art. As early as the Han Dynasty, opera sprouts appeared in Shanxi.
During the Northern Song Dynasty, various local operas such as comedy, shadow plays, song and dance operas, hundred operas, and skill operas were active all over Shanxi. These local operas were already the prototype of Chinese opera at that time.
Later, Kong Sanchuan, a rapper from Zezhou (today's Jincheng), changed the single-gong tune to the Zhugong tune, which raised Shanxi's and indeed the country's opera to a new stage.
In the Yuan Dynasty, the art of opera became more and more prosperous, and Shanxi not only produced "famous actors in large numbers", but also became the center of opera art in the country.
Taking the Yuan Dynasty stages as a whole, basically all of the Yuan Dynasty stages discovered across the country are in southern Shanxi, Shanxi.
For example, the "Le Pavilion" was built at the Niuwang Temple in Weicun, Linfen in the 20th year of the Yuan Dynasty, the stage was built in the 5th year of the Yuan Dynasty in Dongguan Village, Linfen, and the Qiaoze Temple in Wuchi Village, Yicheng was built in the 9th year of the Yuan Dynasty. The music building and so on.
In the Ming Dynasty, folk artists in Puzhou, Shanxi, Tongzhou, Shaanxi, and Shaanzhou, Henan boldly reformed the singing style of Northern Zaju and incorporated huqin, gongs, drums, suona, etc. into the opera, especially the In order to change the board style, a pair of jujube wooden clappers was added, so the "Puzhou clapper" opera appeared in Shanxi.
Later, Puzhou Bangzi was combined with local operas and customs in central Shanxi, northern Shanxi, southeastern Shanxi and other places, and gradually formed Zhonglu Bangzi, North Road Bangzi and Shangdang Bangzi.
In addition, there are many types of operas in Shanxi. There are more than 300 types of operas in the country, and Shanxi has 54, accounting for one-sixth.
There are now more than 200 professional theater troupes in Shanxi, employing 15,000 people.
Among the fifty-four opera types, Zhonglu Bangzi draws on the strengths of others, and due to geographical, historical and other reasons, it gradually develops into a representative opera in Shanxi. Therefore, people also call Zhonglu Bangzi "Shanxi Bangzi" and "Jin Opera" ".
Paper-cut art: Shanxi's paper-cut art, in terms of style, is basically divided into two categories: rough and simple monochrome paper-cut and graceful and soft colored dot-dyed and carved paper.
The former is spread throughout southern Shanxi, southeastern Shanxi, central Shanxi, and northwestern Shanxi, while the latter is concentrated in the Yanbei area, among which Guangling is the most popular.
In Shanxi folk paper-cutting, there are many patterns designed with homophonic techniques.
For example, the images of "chicken", "xin" and "ruyi" are used to express "good luck"; the images of "lotus" and "fish" are used to express "more than one year after year"; the images of "lotus" and "osmanthus" are used " and other images represent "continuous birth of a noble son" and so on.
There are also patterns that represent legendary symbols, such as "deer" and "crane" which represent longevity, and "dragon" and "phoenix" combined to represent wedding joy, that is, "dragon and phoenix present". Xiang".
Among the large number of paper-cut works, it can be seen that the patterns with "dragon", "snake", "fish" and "frog" as the content are the most. This is the Chinese nation with dragon and snake as totem. The biggest characteristic of culture.
Shanxi folk paper-cutting is not only realistic and vivid, but also has rich artistic imagination.
Shanxi's folk paper-cutting is also closely connected with various folk activities of people from all over the country, including traditional festivals, etiquette and customs throughout the year, births, weddings, birthdays, and funerals.
Shadow puppet art: The shadow puppet art of Shanxi has been widely spread as early as the Song Dynasty in my country.
Shadow puppets are mostly carved from cowhide and have extremely rich shapes, ranging from heaven to earth, from characters to animals and birds.
The shadow puppets are composed of flat curves, and the characters are all frontal and profile, with various roles of raw, dan, net, mo, and ugly, similar to the facial makeup and costumes of dramas.
During the performance, the picker uses three small sticks to control the body and limbs of the shadow puppet, and uses light to project the image on the "paper window" or "sand window", which looks very interesting.
New Year picture art: Shanxi’s woodblock New Year pictures began in the Song and Jin dynasties.
Among them, the woodblock New Year paintings of southern Shanxi are as famous as the Wuqiang New Year paintings of Hebei, Yangliuqing New Year paintings of Tianjin and Taohuawu New Year paintings of Suzhou.
Shanxi’s woodblock New Year pictures are mostly auspicious and festive in content. Common forms include lantern paintings, nave paintings, strip screens, tribute paper, window paintings, door paintings, kitchen niche paintings, shadow murals, and door headers. Paintings, table skirt paintings, etc.
Shanxi's woodblock New Year pictures have full compositions, bright colors, concise lines, rough styles, and are highly decorative.
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Current Situation of Shanxi Tourism
In a comprehensive evaluation of national tourism resources in the past few years, Shanxi unexpectedly ranked first. However, the tourism revenue of Shanxi Province is currently at the bottom of the country. The main reason is that the development intensity is insufficient, which is different from Shanxi Province. The current overall economic situation is inseparable; the second is the lack of publicity, which is mainly due to the lack of attention of the government departments and backward concepts.
In addition, Shanxi's tourism resources themselves have some weaknesses that also restrict the development of Shanxi's tourism industry.
1. Shanxi’s scenic spots are mainly historical places.
This determines that those who are interested in this are often tourists with a certain cultural level, and they only account for a small part of the tourists, and many of them are visiting, visiting, and inspecting rather than paying their own expenses. travel.
2. Scenic spots are scattered and transportation is inconvenient.
Shanxi’s special terrain makes tourism a relatively arduous exercise. The poor road conditions and passenger transportation economy make most Shanxi scenic spots suitable only for self-driving or group tours and not for self-guided travel. The author I felt this deeply during my self-guided trip.
3. The natural environment is harsh.
Shanxi itself has a lot of sand and coal dust, and industrial pollution has exacerbated the deterioration of the ecological environment, making foreign tourists extremely disappointed.
The distribution of tourism resources in Shanxi can be divided into eleven cities: Taiyuan, Datong, Shuozhou, Xinzhou, Jinzhong, Luliang, Yangquan, Yuncheng, Linfen, Changzhi and Jincheng according to administrative divisions. According to tourist routes There is no unified standard according to the distribution of tourist attractions. There have been many forms of division. This site divides it as follows:
1. Datong Tourist Area.
The main attractions include Yungang Grottoes, Huayan Temple, Shanhua Temple and Nine Dragon Wall in Datong City, Hengshan Mountain and Xuankong Temple in Hunyuan County, Wooden Pagoda in Ying County, Yanmen Pass and Yangzhong Wu Temple in Dai County , Bian Jinglou, Zhao Gaoguan, etc.
2. Wutai Tourist Area.
The main attractions are the temple complex of Mount Wutai and the natural scenery of Mount Wutai.
3. Hukou Tourist Area.
The main attractions are Hukou Waterfall and Guangsheng Temple, Yao Temple, Big Sophora Tree, Susan Prison, etc. along the route.
4. Jinzhong Tourist Area.
The main attractions are Jinci Temple in Taiyuan City, Pingyao Ancient City and Shuanglin Temple in Pingyao County, Wang Family Courtyard and Mianshan in Lingshi County, Qiao Family Courtyard and Qu Family Courtyard in Qi County, Taigu The Cao Family Courtyard in the county, etc.
5. Yuncheng Tourist Area.
The main attractions include Jiezhou Guandi Temple, Changping Guandi Temple, Yanchi, Pujiu Temple, Yellow River Tieniu, Yongle Palace, Feiyun Tower, Qiufeng Tower, Wulaofeng, Wangguan Valley, Xiaolangdi, etc.
6. Taihang Tourist Area.
It is the tourist area of ??Changzhi and Jincheng. The main attractions are Lishan and Liu's residences in Qinshui County, Manghe, Huangcheng Xiangfu and Motan in Yangcheng County, and Taihang in Huguan County. Grand Canyon, Huangyadong in Licheng County, Wangmangling, Xiyagou, Wujiawan in Lingchuan County, etc.
7. Other tourist attractions.
Mainly include Luya Mountain, Pangquangou, Niangziguan, Lingkong Mountain and other scenic spots.
Shanxi has many tourist attractions, which can be roughly divided into five categories.
1. Traditional ace attractions.
These scenic spots have long been famous and have great influence across the country. They are the trump cards of Shanxi tourism. They mainly include: Yungang Grottoes, Xuankong Temple, Yingxian Wooden Pagoda, Wutai Mountain, and Jinci Temple.
2. Emerging tourist attractions.
Although these scenic spots are well-known throughout the country, most of them were actually developed and spread nationwide only after the mid-1980s. They mainly include: Hukou Waterfall, Pingyao Ancient City, Shuanglin Temple, Wang Family Courtyard, Qiao Family Courtyard Courtyard.
3. Traditional outstanding scenic spots.
These scenic spots have long been tourist attractions and are not inferior to the first two types of scenic spots in many aspects. However, due to various reasons, their influence in the country is not large, including: Guangsheng Temple, Yao Temple, Dahuaishu, Susan Prison, Guandi Temple, Pujiu Temple, Yellow River Tieniu, Yongle Palace, Hengshan, Niangziguan, Pangquangou, etc.
4. Emerging outstanding attractions.
After vigorous development and publicity in recent years, these scenic spots have become tourist hotspots in the province, including Mianshan, Luya Mountain, Yuwang Cave, Xinzhou Hot Spring, Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion, Taihang Grand Canyon, etc.
5. Attractions under development or to be developed.
These scenic spots have beautiful scenery, but are in a state of development or have not yet been developed due to economic and other reasons. They mainly include Lishan, Liu's Residences, Wulaofeng, Manghe, Motan, Xiaolangdi, and Lingkong Mountain. , Wangmangling, Xiyagou, Wujiawan, etc.