The People
The people of Hunan speaks mainly mandarin chinese, but hunanese is also a thing. Currently the population is about 68.5 million (2016). The Hunan population has grew 6.14% since the 1990s. The religions in Hunan may vary, but majority of beliefs include Chinese Folk Religions, Taoist Traditions, and Chinese Buddhism.
The Arts & Traditions
You might have seen many traditional chinese operas with people dressed up in extraordinary outfits and heavy makeup. A tradition from Hunan originated from that, called the Xiang Opera. The Xiang Opera, is a major local way of recreating the history. The Xiang Opera was formed during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It is very popular in southern parts of China like Guangdong and Hunan. The opera was based in the capital Changsha and in Xiangtan, which makes people also call it the, Changsha Xiang Opera.
Another tradition would be the Hunan Xiang Embroidery, the largest xiang embroidery would be the one made in Changsha, Hunan. The embroidery style was in elegant black, white and gray tones, resembling Chinese ink paintings. The artwork created in the memory of the 118th anniversary for Chairman Mao's birthday, and it was made part of the Guinness records in 2013. One holiday celebrated by the Hunan would be LuSheng Jie (LuSheng Holiday) which is inspired by the lusheng instrument played during this holiday. Food FactsTraditional type of dishes made in Hunan would be the Xiang Dishes. They are also known was Hunan Cuisine or Xiang Cuisine. Majority of food from Hunan would be spicy, and sour. Ways of cooking these dishes would usually be favored with dried chilies, stir-frying, steaming, and smoking. Even Chairman Mao Zedong, came from spice-loving Hunan province. The reason why people of Hunan eat such hot and sour food even in the summer is because they think the spiciness of things balances out with the cold and wet. A food custom from Hunan is making kippers (salted fish) during the Cold Dew period.
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Dried Chilies
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