The story of Xu Wenchang

The name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: the story of Xu Wenchang

Applicant: Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province

Item No.: 541

Project No.: i-54

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: Folk Literature

Region: Zhejiang Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province

Protection units: Shaoxing cultural center, Shaoxing Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center

Brief introduction to Xu Wenchang's story:

Applicant: Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province

The story of Xu Wenchang is one of the most important witty stories of the Han nationality. It was born in the middle and late Ming Dynasty and has been lasting ever since. As a folk oral creation, the story of Xu Wenchang is based on the anecdotes of Xu Wei, a historical figure, and also absorbs a large number of witty characters. It is widely spread in Shaoxing and other areas in the south of the Yangtze River.

The story of Xu Wenchang is based on the history of the middle and late Ming Dynasty. It starts from the legend of Xu Wenchang's youth "taking things from the pole" and goes all the way to his deathbed legend "turning thousands into thousands of treasures". The legend is widely spread in various ways and rich in content. It shows Xu Wenchang's intelligence, humor, patriotism, love of the country, close to the common people, contempt for the powerful and so on. It has strong Shaoxing characteristics and local flavor.

Xu Wenchang's stories have important value in folk literature, and provide useful materials for biographical literature and historical research. With the acceleration of the pace of social life and the change of life style, the spread of Xu Wenchang's story has been greatly impacted, so we need to strengthen the protection to make it continue.