The Xibe People

China's Xibe live in differing parts of the north. Most live in the Northeast, particularly in Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia. Because of forced migration in the 1700s, many also live in Xinjiang. While the Xibe have their own language and script, many speak Mandarin, Manchu, Uygur and Kazak.

It is believed the Xibe descend from the Xianbei people, a Mongol race with linguistic relations to the Manchu. The Xianbei first appear in the annals of Chinese history at the end of the Han dynasty when they established several states. Though they assimilated into the culture and structure of Chinese society, a remnant remained in the woods and mountains of northeast China.

The Manchus conquered the Xianbei area and eventually China in the 1600s. The Xibe were then brought into the Manchu military system. In 1764, one thousand Xibe soldiers and their families were sent to Xinjiang to pacify the newly conquered land. However, this was not the only purpose. "The Manchu rulers did not trust them. Applying the method of 'divide and rule,' they dispersed the Xibes to different places." Here they have stayed in the area of Ili.

Xibe live in villages with between 100 and 200 households. Houses have between three and five rooms, a courtyard with flowers and fruit trees and gates that face south. Xibe women wear close-fitting gowns that reach the instep and have the front, lower hem and sleeves trimed with lace. Men wear long robes in winter. Xibe eat rice, raise cattle and sheep, drink tea with milk and eat cheese and other dairy products. They hunt and fish when farming is slow. Fish is preserved for use in the winter.

A distinctive of the Xibe is the value they place on education. They are also expert archers who hold archery competitions in every village during the slack season in winter and on festival days.

The Xibe practice shamanism, turning to shamans to cure the sick, communicate with the gods and control events. Their gods include the Insect King, the Dragon King, the Earth Spirit, the Smallpox Spirit and Xilimama and Hairkan. These last two provide domestic tranquility and protect livestock respectively. Ancestor worship is still common. Some Xibe have adopted Lama Buddhism.

"The Xibes - Soldier-Farmers at the Foot of the Tianshan Mountains." In Life Styles of China's Ethnic Minorities. Hong Kong: Peace Book Co. Ltd., 1991.