The Lion Dance

The lion dance is an excellent example of Chinese folk culture, which has spread across the world with Chinese immigration. Overseas Chinese in Europe, America, etc. have established many lion dance clubs, performing on Chinese festivals or big occasions, particularly Chinese New Year.

The origin of lion dancing is believed to begin in the late Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) by most historians. At the time, lions were brought to Northern China from Central Asia as gifts for the emperor and representations of the beast began to be incorporated into existing traditions.

In Chinese culture, the lion symbolizes power, wisdom, and superiority. People perform lion dances at Chinese festivals or big occasions to bring good fortune and chase away evil spirits.

Lion dance has developed into two major genres — Northern Lion Dance and Southern Lion Dance. The northern lion dance has close relations to kungfu — Chinese martial arts. The southern lion dance is a performance based on the study of a lion’s behavior, with an emphasis on actions like scratching, shaking of the body, and licking of fur.

The lion dances performed in the countries outside China are usually the southern lion dance, which is originated from Guangdong. In the celebration of Chinese New Year or the opening ceremony of business, a lot of shoppers will invite the performing of lion dance in front of the shops for the wish of prosperity and good luck. People will see the lion dancer jumping on very high to reach and catch a bunch of lettuce, with the beat of gongs and drums and the sound of crackers. The word “lettuce” sounds similarly ‘getting wealthy’ in Cantonese and Mandarin.

The lion dance is always vivid and entertaining and is also a very good example of Chinese folk culture. Click here to watch the fantastic lion dance performed in a competition.