Uygur Dawaz

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Uygur Dawaz

Applicant: Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Project No.: 287

Project No.: VI - 5

Time of publication: 2006 (the first batch)

Category: traditional sports, recreation and acrobatics

Region: Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Type: new item

Applicant: Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Protection unit: Acrobatic Troupe of Xinjiang Art Theatre

Introduction to Uygur Dawaz

Applicant: Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Uygur Dawaz, which means "walking in the sky" in Uygur language, is a form of acrobatic art performance of Uygur people for thousands of years. The Turkic language dictionary, which was completed in 1072-1074, has a written record of "walking the soft rope and playing Dawaz". For more than a thousand years, Dawaz's performance style has basically maintained its traditional style.

Dawaz shows are mostly performed in the open air, which is characterized by moving a variety of juggling skills to a rope or steel wire tens of meters high. The performers hold a 6-meter-long balance bar, do not wear any safety belt, and perform a series of soul stirring skills on the rope, such as walking back and forth, sitting cross legged, walking blindfolded, walking on a plate, jumping and so on. Accompanied by Uyghur folk music, the high-altitude walkers dance and sing to the beat, quickly replacing the difficult skills, performing humorous, lively and characteristic scenes.

Dawaz was popular in Hotan, Shache, Yingjisha and Kashgar, then spread to Kuqa, Turpan, Hami, Ili and Urumqi. In January 1990, the Xinjiang acrobatic troupe absorbed the only remaining Yingjisha County Dawaz troupe and established a Dawaz team composed of Adili wushouer and other five main actors. In addition, there is the Dawaz regiment of aishanjiang wushouer. At present, both regiments are in Urumqi.

Today's star performing Dawaz is Adili wushouer, the air Prince of Xinjiang acrobatic troupe. He is the sixth generation of Dawaz's performing family. His family has performed this skill for at least 400 years. Adili wushouer not only created innovative and difficult skills such as small top handstand, split, riding a unicycle, bending to pick lotus on high-altitude steel wire, but also set a new Guinness record of high-altitude steel wire walking in 1997 and 2000, becoming the air warrior loved by all.

Dawaz has a long history and unique skills. It is unique in high-altitude acrobatic programs and is very popular with the audience. It is also well known in Central Asia, Japan, France and other places and has far-reaching influence. However, at present, there are difficulties in the inheritance of Dawaz skills. High difficulty and high-risk performances require performers to have strong physical balance ability and good psychological quality. Therefore, even those who are interested in learning are often difficult to meet the established requirements of the project, resulting in the situation that Dawaz successors are hard to find. Combined with the impact of modern entertainment activities, the performance market of Dawaz is shrinking, and this ancient acrobatic art is increasingly endangered, which needs to be protected in an organized and planned way.