Tajik customs and taboos
Tajiks are a minority in China and belong to the Europa Indian Pamir type. "Tajik" is a national self-proclaimed name, meaning "crown". The Tajik people have simple and honest customs, and have high social morality. Anyone who has been to Tashkurgan will be amazed by the fact that there are no relics left on the road, no doors closed at night, ethnic harmony, and social stability here. In today's society, it is indeed a miracle!
The ethnic origin of the Tajik people can be traced back to the Iranian-speaking ethnic groups distributed in the eastern Pamirs several centuries BC. China Tajiks (plateau Tajiks) and Tajiks (plains Tajiks) from Tajikistan, Afghanistan and other countries both call themselves Tajiks. It is mainly distributed in Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in the southwest of Xinjiang Province, and the rest are distributed in Shacha, Zepu, Yecheng and Pishan counties.
The Tajik language is divided into Selkur and Wahan, both of which belong to the Pamir branch of the Indo-European Iranian family. The Tajik is the only ethnic group in China that speaks the Iranian language. Selakur is mainly used by residents of Taskur County, while residents of Shacha, Zepu, Aktao and Pishan mainly use Wahan. Since the Tajik people have long had close contacts with the Han, Uyghur and other people, many Chinese and Uyghur loanwords have been absorbed in Tajik. The Tajik people in China have no native script. They used Persian before the 1930s and later changed to Uyghur. Today's young people are generally proficient in Uyghur and Chinese.
Tajik people are hospitable and pay attention to etiquette. Its etiquette is simple and cordial. When men meet, they shake hands or kiss each other's hands. When women meet, the elders kiss the eyes or forehead of their young, the young kiss the palms of their elders, and the peers kiss each other's cheeks and lips. When men and women meet at the same time, the woman kisses the man's palm or shakes hands. When children meet their parents, they must kiss the palms of their parents to show respect. The most enthusiastic etiquette in the family is hugging.
The favorite foods of the Tajik people are hand-grabbed meat, rice boiled with milk and scones boiled with milk. The content and production methods of Tajik diet reflect their economic situation, living needs and ethnic characteristics. The diet in pastoral areas is dominated by dairy products, pasta and meat; in agricultural areas, pasta is dominated by pasta, supplemented by milk and meat. Pasta food is mainly naan made from wheat, barley, corn, beans and other noodles. They have many varieties of diet, and their distinctive foods include: milk porridge, milk dough noodles, milk batter, butter paste, butter milk paste, butter highland barley naan, butter poured naan, hand-grabbed meat, pilaf, cheese, dried milk, milk tea, etc.
Tajiks eat three meals per day, the main foods being meat, noodles and milk. Tajiks in agricultural and pastoral areas have slightly different food structures. The agricultural area is dominated by pasta, and the pastoral area is dominated by meat. I like to make noodles and milk or rice and milk together into staple food. For example, Xian Kerruqi (milk porridge, porridge made by mixing washed rice and milk), or Sirteriti (milk dough noodles, dough dough is mixed with milk, then rolled into thin slices, and then cooked with milk). Milk boiled scones are inseparable from milk. The unique foods of the Tajik folk people, such as Bramak (milk batter), Hax (oil batter), Teleti (butter soaked naan), etc., are all made from milk and flour, or butter and flour. Many other daily foods are influenced by Uyghurs, and their practices are largely the same as Uyghurs. Such as roasted naan made of flour, pilaf made of rice and mutton, sheep oil, carrots, etc.
In their daily diet, the Tajik people pay great attention to staple foods, less attention to non-staple foods, and rarely eat vegetables. Three meals a day. Breakfast is milk tea and naan, lunch is noodles and milk batter, and dinner is mostly noodles, broth and butter products. In terms of meat, the Tajik people most like to cook larger pieces of meat with clear water and then dip them in salt. They believe that it is the original flavor of the original soup. Folk people call this method of meat eating "Sierwu"(hand-grabbed mutton). In addition, Naren (meat slices added to dough sheets or milk and broth mixed to add dough sheets),"Arezik"(oily sweets), oil cakes, dried milk, milk dumplings, and milk skins are also indispensable for daily life. food. Tajik people are accustomed to drinking milk tea as daily drinks.
According to traditional customs, the dietary arrangements for three meals a day and the preparation of various foods are all borne by housewives, and ordinary men do not need to interfere. During meals, lay a rice list (cloth napkin) on the carpet, surround it by diners, elders sit on the seat, and the rice is delivered according to the seat order.
Among Tajik people, marriage for their children is regarded as the sacred duty of parents, and their traditional family form is a patriarchal extended family style. When his father was alive, his sons rarely separated and lived alone, otherwise they would be condemned by public opinion. Many families live under three generations or four generations under the same roof. In addition, families implement a strict patriarchal system, advocating respect for the elderly and love for the young, filial piety to parents, loyalty to husband and wife, and harmony between brothers. Divorce, repudiation, and separation from a husband are regarded as shameful in Tajik society. Therefore, Tajik couples 'marriages are relatively stable and most can grow old together.
Most households are large patriarchal families. Monogamy is practiced. In the past, marriages between cousins and cousins were common, and early marriage was prevalent. Most of them implement the provisions of the Marriage Law.
Tajik children have hair-cutting ceremonies, which are held when they reach the age of one. The boy was circumcised after he was 7 years old.
Due to religious relations, there are some taboos in terms of Tajik diet. Fake animals that die without being slaughtered, and the meat of animals such as pigs, horses, donkeys, bears, wolves, foxes, dogs, cats, rabbits and marmots, as well as the blood of all animals. Avoid watching sheep give birth to lambs. Never take off your hat when talking.
They particularly cherish food and salt, and are regarded as sinners who step on salt and food. When you see salt and food falling on the ground, you should pick them up and place them at a high place where you can't easily step on.
They take special care of livestock and prohibit kicking or beating sheep, cattle and other livestock. They are not allowed to ride through sheep or approach sheepfolds. They are also forbidden to watch sheep when lambing. Livestock is not sold on Wednesdays and Sundays, and other people's debts are not repaid on these two days, so they do not collect debts on these two days, and others do not come to buy livestock or repay debts.
If you ride a horse to a Tajik house as a guest, you cannot get off your horse at the door. It is even more taboo to get off your horse at the door. This means announcing a funeral or having some other unlucky news. You should walk slowly around the back of the yurt and get off the horse.
站图片位置Tajik ethnic and religious festivals include Chitoqi Diraito (Spring Festival), Tehmuzwamut Festival (Sowing Festival), Zwanr Festival (Water Diversion Festival), Baroti Festival, Ruz Festival and Goulbang Festival. Tajik festivals all have strong national characteristics. For example, the Chitochidieraito Festival (Spring Festival) is held in March of the Gregorian calendar every year, when grass is about to sprout. Every family is doing sanitation and cleaning work. Early in the morning, a child led a scalper into the house to make a detour. The owner sprinkled flour on the back of the cow, fed a little cake, and took it out. Then, the whole family entered. Then visit and congratulate each other. The women will sprinkle flour on the left shoulder of the guests as a sign of good luck.
Under the influence of their ancestors 'Zoroastrianism, the Tajik people celebrate the "Barati Festival", which is usually held on the first two days of August every year in the Islamic calendar. Because every family lights a special lantern on festival nights, it is called the Lantern Festival. On the eve of the Lantern Festival, every family must make multiple small lanterns and one extra large candle. It is made of a kind of "Kauri" grass stem unique to the plateau as the core, wrapped with cotton, tied into a torch shape, and dipped in butter or sheep oil. On the night of the festival, the whole family sat around the kang, with a sand table for placing lights and candles in the middle. At this time, the parents called everyone's name according to seniority and age, each one agreed, and placed a lit candle in front of the person who responded to it to show good luck. After the lights of the whole family were lit, each stretched out his hands and baked them on the candle under his name, and then prayed, wishing God blessings and peace. At the end of the ceremony, the whole family shared the sumptuous delicacies under the light. Then, he lit the largest candle and torch in the home and inserted it on the roof. It was called the "sky lantern". The whole family should come out and stand in front of the house, look up at the "sky lantern" and pray silently. At the same time, light a fire in front of each house to exorcise evil spirits. The fire is of great significance during the Baroti Festival. The teenagers sang and danced under the candlelight and in front of the fire, played and stayed up all night.