OlaChina.Org

Naxi People: Picture Writing, Ancient Music and the Mosuo Question

Customs
Oct 12, 2026
Old Naxi Dongba scripture books with black-ink pictographs on yellowed paper in a museum case

The Naxi people are the reason Lijiang looks the way it does. The canals, the courtyard houses, the odd little pictures on every shop sign — all of it is Naxi. Most visitors walk past those pictures without knowing they are a real script, still read by a handful of priests. So this guide tries to help you read the town. It covers who the Naxi are, how Dongba writing works, what the “ancient music” really is, and why the Mosuo of Lugu Lake are counted as Naxi on paper, even though many of them would not describe themselves that way.

Who the Naxi People Are

The Naxi (纳西族, also spelled Nakhi) are one of China’s officially recognised ethnic groups. China’s 2020 census counted 323,767 of them (Wikipedia, 2026a). That is small by Chinese standards. Most live in northwest Yunnan, around Lijiang and Yulong Naxi Autonomous County, with smaller communities in southwest Sichuan. For the wider picture, see our overview of ethnic groups in China.

Their language belongs to the Tibeto-Burman side of the Sino-Tibetan family. Faith is layered. There is the old Dongba religion, plus Tibetan Buddhism and Taoism, often in the same household (Wikipedia, 2026a). Geography explains a lot of this. Lijiang sat on the old tea-and-horse trade routes between Yunnan and Tibet, so ideas travelled with the caravans. If you have read our guide to the Tibetan people, some of the temple art will look familiar.

The landscape is sacred too. To the Naxi, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is Satseto, home of their protector god Sanduo. Some people still mark his day in spring with temple visits and family outings.

Dongba: How the Naxi People Write in Pictures

Dongba means, roughly, “wise man”. It is the name of the Naxi priests, and by extension of their religion, their rituals and their script (Wikipedia, 2026a; UNESCO, 2003). The script is pictographic. A fish looks like a fish. A mountain is a triangle. Then things get clever, because many glyphs also stand for sounds, a bit like a rebus puzzle.

How many signs, and how old?

Counts differ. One reference puts it at about a thousand glyphs, and notes that the number keeps shifting as priests coin new ones (Wikipedia, 2026b). The UNESCO nomination, on the other hand, speaks of more than two thousand characters (UNESCO, 2003). Dates are just as loose. Chinese records suggest the script was in use by the 7th century, though nobody can pin its birth down exactly (Wikipedia, 2026b).

There is also a second Naxi script, Geba. It is a syllabary, one sign per syllable. Historically it was used to clarify Dongba texts, and for practical things like contracts and letters (Wikipedia, 2026b).

Not quite like Egyptian hieroglyphs

People often compare Dongba to Egyptian hieroglyphs. The look is similar. The use is not, though. Dongba manuscripts were mainly ritual books, chanted aloud by a priest who had largely learned them by heart. Scholars often describe the page as partly a prompt, a little like a medieval European choir book with its neumes. You need the teacher, not just the book. That is exactly why so few people can read the old texts today.

The manuscripts themselves are world heritage of a sort. In 2003, UNESCO added the Ancient Naxi Dongba Literature Manuscripts to its Memory of the World Register. The nomination counts roughly 20,000 volumes in all, kept in Lijiang and Kunming but also in libraries and museums in the USA, the UK, France, Italy, Japan and elsewhere (UNESCO, 2003). Dongba painting, the scroll and wooden-tablet art that goes with the rituals, joined China’s first national heritage list in 2006 (China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network [ihchina], n.d.-a).

Where to see Dongba script

  • Street signs in Lijiang — official names often carry a Dongba line under the Chinese and English. Mostly decorative now, but real glyphs.
  • Black Dragon Pool Park — at the north end of the old town. The Dongba Culture Research Institute, which holds the core manuscript collection, is based here (UNESCO, 2003).
  • Calligraphy stalls and workshops — Dongba writers will paint your name or a blessing. Our guide to the Old Town of Lijiang has more on these.

Naxi Ancient Music: What You Actually Hear

“Naxi ancient music” is a label, not a single tradition. It usually means two things played by the same ensembles (The Paper Yunnan, 2025):

  • Dongjing music — ritual music of Taoist and Confucian scripture societies. It came into Lijiang from Han China and kept tunes that, by local accounts, go back to the Tang, Song and Yuan dynasties.
  • Baisha Xiyue — a Naxi suite of instrumental music, song and dance, often about parting and loss. Tradition says it once had ten tunes; eight survive. It joined the national heritage list in 2011, and the number of players who can perform it is shrinking (ihchina, n.d.-b).

Listen for the instruments. There is a bent-neck pipa, a reed pipe close to an old Tang-era instrument, a set of ten small gongs that keeps time, and bamboo flutes (The Paper Yunnan, 2025). The closest Western parallel might be an early-music consort playing Renaissance dances on period instruments. The difference? Here the repertoire was never really lost and rebuilt; it was handed down, teacher to pupil, mostly by ear and from old notation.

In Lijiang, the Dayan Naxi Ancient Music Association plays in a courtyard hall inside the old town, usually in the evening (The Paper Yunnan, 2025). Many of the musicians are elderly, which is part of the point. Schedules and ticket prices change, so check locally on the day rather than trusting an old guidebook.

Lijiang: The Heartland of the Naxi People

The Old Town of Lijiang has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997 (UNESCO World Heritage Centre, n.d.). The listing covers three places, not one:

  • Dayan — the main old town, with its canals and stone bridges. It is busy, yes. Early morning is the time to walk it.
  • Shuhe — a smaller, calmer market village a few kilometres north.
  • Baisha — a farming village below the mountain, with Ming-era murals and a slower pace. Baisha Xiyue takes its name from here.

One practical cost to know. Lijiang charges an Ancient Town maintenance fee covering all three areas. Under rules in force since 1 August 2025, it is 50 yuan per person, and one payment is valid for 365 days of unlimited entry, down from 80 yuan for a week under the old rules (Guangming Online, 2025). Local residents and some other groups are exempt. Check the current terms through official channels before you go, since the fee has been revised before.

From Lijiang, day trips reach Blue Moon Valley at the foot of the snow mountain, and Tiger Leaping Gorge on the edge of the Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan. Our Yunnan travel guide covers flights and trains into the region.

The Mosuo of Lugu Lake: Naxi or Not?

Here is where the official map gets interesting. Lugu Lake sits high up on the border between Ninglang County in Yunnan and Yanyuan County in Sichuan (Xinhua, 2023). Around it live the Mosuo, who call themselves Na. In Yunnan, the state counts them as a branch of the Naxi people. Across the provincial line, some Na communities are officially registered as Mongol instead, for historical reasons (Lidz, 2006). Many Mosuo prefer to be seen as their own people. So if you meet someone at the lake, “Mosuo” is the safer word.

The language is related to Naxi but distinct, with an estimated 40,000 speakers (Lidz, 2006). The culture is distinct too. Mosuo households are traditionally matrilineal: property passes through the female line, and the extended family under one roof is the core unit. Couples may practise what is called “walking marriage” — partners stay in their own family homes, and the man visits at night (Wikipedia, 2026c). Children grow up in the mother’s household, with her brothers as key male figures.

Tourism has sold this as a “Kingdom of Women”, which is a bit misleading. Women often head the house, but village politics has tended to rest with men (Wikipedia, 2026c). It is a family system, not a novelty. Treat it that way.

Practical notes, briefly. Xinhua reported in 2023 that the full ticket was 70 yuan, valid on both the Yunnan and Sichuan sides (Xinhua, 2023). Booking methods have reportedly moved online since then, so confirm the current price and rules on official channels. The lake is a long road trip from Lijiang, so plan at least one night.

Festivals and Food of the Naxi People

  • Sanduo Festival — honours the protector god of the snow mountain, in the second lunar month, usually March or April.
  • Torch Festival — in midsummer by the lunar calendar. The Yi hold the biggest celebrations, but Naxi villages keep it too; see our guide to the China Torch Festival.
  • Cured-rib hotpot — salty, slow-cooked and very Lijiang.
  • Baba — layered Naxi flatbread, sweet or savoury, sold hot in the mornings.
  • Chickpea jelly — a street snack, served hot or cold.

Lunar dates move every year in the Western calendar. So check before you build a trip around a festival.

Etiquette Among the Naxi People and the Mosuo

  • Ask before photographing people, especially elders in traditional dress.
  • Buy Dongba calligraphy or prints from the people who make them where you can.
  • Treat Dongba ritual objects as religious items, not props.
  • At Lugu Lake, skip the jokes about walking marriage. Locals have heard them all.
  • In a Mosuo home, the hearth is traditionally the sacred centre. Follow your host’s lead on where to sit.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Is Dongba still a living script? Partly. A small number of priests and scholars still read and write it, and it appears on signs and art. Everyday Naxi life, however, runs in spoken Naxi and written Chinese.
  2. Are the Mosuo part of the Naxi? Officially in Yunnan, yes. Linguistically and culturally they are distinct, and many Mosuo see themselves as a separate people.
  3. Can I learn to write a few Dongba glyphs? Yes. Calligraphy stalls and workshops in Lijiang old town often offer short sessions on basic glyphs.
  4. When is the best time to visit Lijiang? Spring and autumn are clearest. Summer is green but rainy, and Chinese public holidays are very crowded.
  5. Do I need a permit? No special permit applies to Lijiang or Lugu Lake; normal entry rules for China apply.

References