The Bijiang, Fugong, Gongshan, and Lushui counties of the Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province are home to the Lisu with others scattered in Lijiang, Baoshan, Diqing, Dehong, Dali, and Chuxiong prefectures. Some also live in Sichuan's Xichang and Yanbian counties. Lisu areas are mountainous: the Gaolingong Mountain flanks them on the west, the Biluo on the east.

The Lisu are a conquered people. The Wudeng and Lianglin peoples ruled the Lisu's ancestors who lived by the banks of the Jinsha River. Later, the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties conquered them and strengthened Chinese control over them. During the Qing dynasty, as well as under the Kuomintang, landlords ruled the area. In the early 40s, officials and chieftains tortured to death 237 of Eduoluo Village's 1,000 people.

As of 1992, the Chinese government has recognized the "Fraser script," the simple script developed by J. O. Fraser for the Lisu, as the official Lisu script and encourages them to use it. Lisu language has six tones and Lisu men are remarkable linguists with some speaking as many as four other languages.

Lisu raise maize, rice, wheat, buckwheat, sorghum, and beans. They sell ramie, lacquer trees, and sugarcane. Because Lisu live on mountain slopes, their houses have a "thousand legs." These two-story structures of bamboo and wood with several rows of woodpiles driven into the foundation are built in a single day. The second story is made of wooden planks paving the top of the piles. Each room has a fire pit for cooking and heating that remains lit the year round. The family sleeps around this.

Lisu practice monogamy. In courtship Lisu have a custom of "burying the loved one in sand" during the New Year Festival (the Heshi Festival). Young Lisu gather in groups at the banks of the Nujiang River where they sing, dance, and seek out partners. If either a boy or girl is attracted to a member of the opposite sex, that person will ask friends to fetch, carry and bury the loved one in a sandpit with only the head free. The suitor will then dig out the loved one while singing songs of love.

Lisu bury their dead. The entire village ceases work for two or three days and turns out for the death of an elderly person. Men are buried with their knives, bows and quivers; women are buried with their weaving tools, hemp-woven bags and cooking utensils. Lisu used to believe a man had a body and a soul and that after death the soul remained to bring blessing or disaster to the people.

Most Lisu wear homemade clothes. The women use short dresses and long skirts; the men, short dresses and pants down to the knees. At times, the men wear black turbans. Women's clothes are colorful; men's are simple and in good taste.

Lisu used to be animists and worshipped many gods; sorcerers divined and exorcised spirits. However, in the early 20th century, Christianity transformed the fabric of Lisu society.