Ｆｉｖｅ Ｕｎｉｑｕｅ Ｃｕｓｔｏｍｓ ｏｆ Ｔａｊｉｋ Ｐｅｏｐｌｅ

The Tajik ethnic people living on the mountainous Pamirs plateau in the far west of China are described poetically as “folks living in iridescent clouds”. The ethnic group has some unique customs.

Small Gifts

The Tajiks express friendship or love through small gifts. A young Tajik girl indicates her love to a young man by giving him a small pouch with a burnt matchstick inside， meaning that my heart is burnt by my love for you. If the man accepts the love， he returns her favor with a small yellow-fabric bag sewn with red thread， with an apricot inside indicating that my heart is given to you. The trophy goat grabbed through a competition can be thrown onto the ground in front of a girl the winner loves. If the girl consents， she will ask a senior woman to wrap the winner’s horse head with an embroidered handkerchief. A dance gala is also a good occasion for indicating love for each other. Young men try hard to show off their dancing skills to win girls’ hearts. If a girl finds a man attractive， she can put her red scarf on the left shoulder of the wooer， indicating her intention.

Eagle Dance

The Tajik people love dancing and singing. Festivals are always big celebrations characterized by dancing and singing. Eagle is the theme of the Tajik dancing， for it is their totem. Dancers imitate the movements of a flying eagle to the accompaniment of an eagle flute played by a man and a hand-held drum played by a woman. The dancing steps are beautiful. In a typical eagle dancing， men show steps that embody buoyancy and energy while women display suavity and tenderness in their hands turning over their heads. The young perform many dazzling changes while the old dance with steady moves. The mixed dancing of men and women is most exciting. People whistle， clap their hands and shout in excitement. A cigarette is handed or mailed to express condolence for the death of a beloved person. A red silk pouch sent with a small pebble and an apricot inside indicates solid friendship with the recipient.

Eagle Flutes

It is said that the flute is most characteristic of the Tajik people. There are legends about who made the first eagle-bone flute and why. Folk stories vary， but the eagle flute is regarded invariably as a blessing. The musical instrument is made of the wing-bone of the eagle. The three-holed flute measures about 20 centimeters in length and is played vertically. The sound is high-pitched with a very distinct charm. At Tajik wedding celebrations and festivals， a small band of an eagle-bone flute and a drum is a common sight.

Caps

Tajik women traditionally wear an embroidered cap. It is said that the word Tajik originally referred to the hat of a Tajik king. The king was pleased when he found that his subordinates liked the hat very much so that he allowed his people to call themselves Tajik and wear hats copied in the fashion of his hat. The pillbox-like hat features a crisscross pattern， with the earmuff on either side to protect ears in the winter. The hat also sports a tail part that covers the back of the neck in winter. The hat is a display of elaborate embroidery. The embroidery work is one of the most important things Tajik girls learn at a young age. They have to master the craft as a preparation for making themselves marriageable. It is a common sight to see Tajik women sit together working on a cap.

Kissing

The Tajik people observe a set of rites. Kissing is one of them. When one Tajik man meets a fellow Tajik， they shake hands and then the hands that are shaking are jointly lifted to be kissed by each other. The old people kiss the forehead of the young and the young kiss the palm of the hand of the old. If two women are to kiss each other， the younger needs touch the face of the old with her old face and hands. If two women at about the same age meet each other， they kiss faces. If relatives meet， they kiss the lips of each other. When a junior female meets an elderly man， the man extends his right hand， the palm upward. The woman holds the fingers of the extending hand and kisses the palm. Tajik children kiss their parents and grandparents every morning. Women are highly respected in Tajik families. The matriarch in the family at a banquet is always kissed by her family before food is served.#8194;□