China is the birthplace of Movable-Type Printing. In the middle of the 11th century, Bisheng invented Movable-Type Printing with clay characters. Later in the mid-12th century, Buddhist Sutra was printed with Wooden Movable-Type Printing in Western Xia Dynasty. Later, characters made of bronze and tin appeared. In the late 13th century, Wooden Movable-Type Printing became prevalent in eastern Zhejiang province and southern Anhui province, with which to print various books and genealogies of families and clans. According to the genealogical records of Wang Chaohui, one of the representative bearers of the Movable-Type Printing technique, as early as in the beginning of the 14th century his ancestor Wang Famao began compiling and printing genealogies for local people. From then on, this printing craftsmanship has been handed down by words of mouth from generations to generations through the family ties. From the relevant historical written records and the genealogies printed with Wooden characters preserved in the family for hundreds of years, we can learn that this printing technique has been inherited in Wang’s family continuously in 25 generations for nearly 700 years. In history, Wenzhou and its neighbouring areas of southeast Zhejiang province and northern Fujian province were typical immigrant society. According to the statistics of ‘Drafts of the General History of Zhejiang Recompiled’ of Republic of China, 141 clans had immigrated to Rui’an since the 10th century A.D. Referring to the 2003 issue of ‘Chronicles of Rui’an’, of presently 209 surnames in modern Rui’an, 178 are immigrated from other places. Wenzhou is also famous for its overseas Chinese population. At present, it has more than 430000 overseas Chinese all over the world. Consequently, whatever the origin, whether they were immigrated in past times, or in modern times, or emigrated abroad in all corners of the world, the people of Rui’an are affectionately attached to their homeland and have a strong traditional feeling of clans to find the roots of the families and ancestors. There is a tradition in families of the same clan living together, i.e., recompiling the genealogy of the clan to ensure that the blood lineage and family attribution can be traced no matter where the family members are. Because Wooden Movable-Type Printing is suitable for people working manually in a family, most importantly, with other factors such as easy to use, low in price, and strong traditional cultural concept, which makes it possible for the technique to be preserved and used till now. The above description demonstrates that even in face of today’s ever-developing modern printing, the traditional hand-operated printing technique can also have a certain market share, which ensures the technique to be passed on in Wang’s family from generations to generations. Up to December 2009, 11 major bearers of the Wooden Movable-Type Printing technique have been confirmed through general investigation. They are: Wang Chaohui, male, 55 (1955-12-28～), Lin Chuyin, male, 72 (1938-04-08～), Wang Chuanqiao, male, 54 (1956-08-12～), Wang Haiqiu, male, 54 (1956-02-25～), Wang Zhiren, male, 53 (1957-12-02～), Wu Kuizhao, male, 48 (1962-01-14～), Zhang Yishuo, male, 57 (1953-07-07～), Wang Chaohua, male, 56 (1954-08-16～), Pan Lijie, male, 53 (1957-07-18～), Pan Chaoliang, male, 57 (1953-09-03～), Wang Chaoxi, male, 52 (1958-08-12～), All of them have possessed a whole set of Wooden engraved Chinese characters. They complete the printing task entrusted by the clans in groups formed by either family members, relatives, or master-apprentices. In the division of labour, the representative bearer is responsible for undertaking orders and managing business. In general, men do the work of engraving characters, typesetting and printing which require higher level of techniques, while women do the work of page separating, binding, etc.

China 2010

The Watertight-Bulkhead Technology of Chinese Junks is an age-old craft for the construction of ocean-going vessels with watertight compartments in South China’s Fujian Province. The vessels are made mainly of camphor, pine and fir timber, and assembled through use of traditional carpenters’ tools. They are built by applying the key technologies of rabbet-jointing planks together and caulking the seams between the planks with ramie, lime and tung oil. A master craftsman designs and directs the whole process. A large number of craftsmen work in close coordination to build solidly rabbeted ocean-going vessels consisting of multiple independently watertight cabins. The core technology for building such vessels is called The Watertight-Bulkhead Technology of Chinese Junks. Watertight bulkheads are the most important step in building Chinese junks. To start with, the craftsmen build an integral hull by joining the vessel’s bilge and sides. The hull is then divided into cabins according to the function and size of the ship. The whole process is manual. Planks are rabbet-jointed together. And then interlocked to the bilge and on to frames or held with crampons. Ramie fibber, lime and tung oil are mixed in the proper proportion to wedge into any gaps between planks and make the cabins waterproof. The tools are largely those used by traditional Chinese carpenters, such as axes, carpenter’s ink markers, hand drills, rulers, maces, pit saws, chisels and planers. Chinese junks are subdivided into multiple watertight cabins. If in the course of navigation one or two cabins are accidentally damaged, seawater will not flood other cabins. The vessel will not sink, but remain afloat. This greatly improves navigation safety. This technology has been widely used over the centuries in fishing vessels, cargo ships, warships, and diplomatic vessels. In particular, Fujian’s ocean-going cargo ships sailing along the Maritime Silk Road during the Song and Yuan dynasties, and the fleets commanded by Ming Dynasty navigator Zheng He in his seven voyages to the West, fully adopted this technology. The technology has served as a bridge and unifier in the exchange between Eastern and Western civilizations. In the late 18th century this technology was finally adopted in the West. Since then Watertight bulkheads have become an important structural element in modern ship design, remain so today and have greatly enhanced navigation safety.

China 2010

Meshrep, which in modern Uygur language means ‘get-together’ or ‘venue,’ is the developed version of the Uygur sacrificial offerings, blessings and ceremonial events of antiquity. Early records of Meshrep appear in the Chinese source The Biography of Gao Che in the Book of Wei (553 AD) and in the Arabic classic The Grand Dictionary of Turkic Language (1073 AD). The Meshrep is an organized folkloric event that follows certain procedures and is often held in a spacious outdoor venue on seasonal and traditional holidays, or according to the needs of the people’s life and work. There are mainly three types of participants: a) the host of Meshrep, viz, the yigetbixi who, elected by the local people, has to preside over the rituals, ballads and dances, games, mock court proceedings and other events taking place in the Meshrep; usually he is aided by several assistants that ensure the orderly progress of the activities; b) the folk artists invited to perform and c) the general public. The event is normally attended by hundreds of people and all of them participate in the activities. Meshrep contains a rich collection of traditions. A complete Meshrep event includes performances like the Uygur muqam, folk songs and dances, story-singing and drama, as well as other activities such as oral literature, tournaments and games, which people enjoy and actively take part in. Meshrep has both relation and difference with Uygur muqam. Usually, some songs and dance music from it will be sung, played in Meshrep event, for the public to enjoy it and dance by self-entertainment with the rhythm of the songs and dance music. In the Uygur “twelve muqam”, each set of muqam has such songs and dance music in its third part, therefore this part is also called “Meshrep”. Uygur muqam is the large comprehensive art form integrating song, dance and entertainment, while Meshrep is just one of the cultural space of Uygur Muqam. Meshrep is rather like a big stage for various arts or a carnival party, with the public freely participating in various activities, who are not only auditors, also players, even the participants and judge of the moral forum; there is no boundary between the spectator seats and the stage, while Uygur muqam artists are just a small portion of the mass participants of Meshrep. In conclusion, Uygur muqam is the art for the public to enjoy, while Meshrep is the important space accommodating various traditional cultural expression forms. Therefore, we can say that Meshrep is not only an important ‘moral forum’ and ‘stage’ for folk artists of various kind to display their brilliant skills, but also a ‘court’ where the host mediates conflicts and ensure the preservation of moral standards. Moreover, it is a ‘classroom’ where people learn about their traditional customs, nature, and different experience of economic production. It is a ‘playground’ where to entertain body and soul. Meshrep is the most important cultural venue carrier of Uygur traditions. There are dozen varieties of Meshrep known so far, this is evidence of the diversity of its social and cultural functions. For example: the ‘Kok (Young crops) Meshrep’ is held in Springtime; the ‘Huoxalik (Festivity) Meshrep’ takes place at weddings, adulthood rites, harvest and festivals; the ‘Namakul (Apology) Meshrep’ is held to mediate conflicts or settle disputes; the ‘Keiyet (Disciplinary) Meshrep’ is performed with the aim of criticizing immoral behaviours or educating the public; the ‘Dolan Meshrep’ is meant to show admiration for the hunting life and ravery of the ancestors; and the ‘Ketaphan (storytelling) Meshrep’ serves as a sort of review of literature. Thus, the word put in front of ‘Meshrep’ indicates the social and cultural function it is meant to perform. Meshrep is mainly transmitted and inherited by the hosts who know well its rules, sequence and cultural connotation, and by the virtuoso folk artists who frequently participate in Meshrep. They learn the tradition either from older hosts and skilled folk artists, or by frequently attending the Meshrep events. They become hosts of the Meshrep only after obtaining the appreciation and recognition of the local masses. At the same time, the transmission of Meshrep cannot dispense with the majority of Uygur people who participate in its actual practice. Being a cultural space for the practice of Uygur people’s traditions, Meshrep has already become a part of their culture and folk customs. It provides the Uygur people with abundant knowledge about their traditions and sustains their cultural identity. Hence, it is considered one of the most important cultural heritages of the Uygur nation. To rescue and safeguard Meshrep not only meets the demands for mutual respect among communities, groups and individuals, but it also answers to the need for improving its viabilityand achieving its sustainable development.

China 2010

Quan họ is a form of alternate singing between males and females, once only popular in 49 villages of the ancient Kinh Bắc region, presently in Bắc Ninh and Bắc Giang provinces. The singing tradition is an intergral part of tục kết chạ (friendship custom) between villages, tục kết bạn (friend-making custom) between groups of singers, as well as tục ngủ bọn (sleepover custom). During these twining occasions, groups of quan họ singers from two villages sing throughout day and night. Quan họ songs are sung in harmony as alternating verses by two females (liền chị) from one village, and two males (liền anh) from the twined village sing with similar melodies and responding lyrics. The twining relationship allows singers maintain as artistic and intimate friendship, marriage is not allowed. Quan họ singing has three main types: hát canh (the singing at a host’s house), hát thi lấy giải (singing for prizes), and hát hội (singing at festivals). Lim Festival, taking place on the 13th of the First Lunar month every year, is the most significant event to celebrate and commemorate the founding father of this singing tradition. Music accompaniment was introduced into quan họ singing several decades ago, giving ways to new forms of performance, such as on stage and in celebrations such as wedding, anniversaries and ceremonies.

Viet Nam 2009