The annual Liangshan Yi Ethnic Minority Torch Festival will be celebrated from 4th, August to 10th,August in Xichang City this year. As one of China's top ten folk festivals, the Torch Festival has become a popular tourist festival. According to the government of Xichang city, in fact, the related activities will held from 16th,July.

As the nation's largest Yi minority colony, Xichang has strong ethnic customs. Among them, the Torch Festival is the most important festival for Yi people. It is held during the 24th to 26th of the sixth month in the lunar calendar,celebrated to warship the god of fire. On the first day of the festival, every village kills oxen and sheep, eat the Tuotuo meat (a local dish) and drink Baogu wine (wine brewed with corns).

The second and the third day are the climax of the festival. Both the young and old wearing their best suits come to Du Ge Duo (Torch Festival meeting place), where people can enjoy Beauty contest, bull fighting, ram fighting, horse racing, wrestling,rooster fighting and other traditional sport events, while women are holding an umbrella, forming a circle by holding hands, and singing local songs and dancing traditional dance and playing mouth harps. In the night, people get together, each holding a torch and dancing around the campfire. So it is also known as the 'Oriental Carnival'. 

• 2010-07-15 20:00:38