Filling-up-the-Storehouse Festival

Name: Filling-up-the-Storehouse Festival for the Manchus

Date: the 25~" day of the first lunar month

     The Manchu, with a population of 10.7 million, are the second largest minority in China. They are mainly distributed in Liaoning Province and scattered in the rest of the country.

    The Manchu has its own language and letters, which belong to the Manchu-Tungusic group of the Altaic language family. Manchu letters were created in the 16'h century on the base of Mongolian letters.

    China's last feudal dynasty, Qing Dynasty, was built in 1644 by the Manchu. As masses of Manchu people came to settled in the Central Plains since the Qing Dynasty, the Manchu became increasingly assimilated by the Han people through frequent exchanges of trade, culture and life styles. The Manchu gradually adopted the Han language.

    Most of the Manchus believe in Shamanism, which holds the view that there are many gods commanding the world. Manchu and Han basically share the same festivals and holidays, such as the Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival, etc.

    On the 25th of the first lunar month, the Manchus celebrate the Fill-up-the-Storehouse Festival. According to the Manchu, at this time of the year, the storehouses went empty. In order to fill up the storehouses, people have to go to the fields and work. On this day, every family is cooking broomcorn which will be put in a bowl and symbolically placed in the storehouse.

    Meanwhile, a toy horse made of broomcorn straws is stuck into the broomcorn. The horse, traditional carrier of corns for the Manchu, is meant to pray for a good harvest in the coming years. Some family will instead make two hoes at the occasion. These rituals are still kept in some villages in Northeastern China.