From wild songs to intangible cultural heritage: the heritagization of Hua er in China

This study examines the impact of the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) system and policies on a grassroots folksong tradition in Northwestern China called hua er, which was named as an element of Chinese ICH in 2006 and as an element of UNESCO World ICH in 2009. Hua er is a unique case study in that it was, historically, forbidden and regarded as highly shameful or even taboo to be sung in public due to its explicitly erotic lyrics. The designation of hua er as an element of ICH thus transformed it from a taboo or "forbidden" song genre, practiced at the margins of rural society, into a respectable element of world and national heritage. Despite that the ICH process at the national level tends to be a top-down project for the construction of national identity, in which the main goal of ICH recognition and protection is to strengthen a clear Chinese identity and a harmonious society, during my field research on hua er I discovered that singers, scholars and officials have nonetheless used the opportunities afforded by recognition as ICH to negotiate and reimagine the practice of hua er and its associated identities. In doing so, singers overcome the social stigmas they have faced in the past. Once seen only as "wild songs" sung by unruly individuals, hua er is now being reconstructed as a romantic courtship song genre of "naive" ethnic minority groups as well as an iconic music genre that represents ethnic solidarity in the Northwestern region.