Located in a remote, mountainous region of Guizhou Province in southwest China, Kongbai Village is known as the "village of silversmiths." The village, sitting at an altitude of nearly 1,000 meters, is home to members of China's Miao ethnicity. It is made up almost entirely of wooden houses on stilts and is surrounded by terraced fields.
Kongbai is a transliteration from a Miao word that means "pig neck." It's said the ancestors of today's residents settled in the area because of its pristine environment and fertile land, calling it "pig neck" because it had "lots of meat and few bones."
Silver items have been made in the village for over 600 years. It is one of the areas where the Miao style of silversmithing developed. Improved infrastructure has brought tourism and commerce to the village, and local Miao families can now continue to pass this national intangible cultural heritage from generation to generation as a viable source of income.
According to China Statistical Yearbook 2021, six of China's 56 ethnic groups have more than 10 million members. The Miao ethnic group ranks fifth, with a population of 11 million.
(Photos by Xinhua News Agency)
