Hua'er Meeting
( 2005-10-17 )

Hua'er, ("flower" in English), is a kind of folksong that Tibetans enjoy very much. It is resonant, exuberant, and very tuneful, full of rich local flavor and the simple pleasures of life. Hua'er is also called Shaonian, because the boys call the girls Hua'er and the girls call the boys Shaonian when they sing in turns.

The Hua'er Meeting takes place at a natural outdoor stage where singers compete and sing together. It is also a carnival for the Tibetan and other ethnic groups like Hui, Tu, Dongxiang, and Bonan that are fond of Hua'er.

Among the many such meetings, two are the most famous. They are held in Northwest China's Ningxia Autonomous Region every year, on Mount Lianhua at the beginning of lunar June and on Mount Songming on lunar April 28.

On the day of the meeting, trees are in covered in green all over the mountain, and bright flowers in full bloom. When people arrive from all around, singing in traditional style merriment, the whole scene is full of happiness and excitement.