Explainer | China Bao’an ethnic group’s ritual playfully whips bride’s dad for not disciplining daughter
Ritual ‘punishment’ carried out as woman’s father kneels in courtyard of groom’s family; 3-day wedding also involves soot smearing custom
A unique wedding ritual among China’s Bao’an ethnic group known as “flogging the father-in-law” sees the family of the groom symbolically whip the bride’s father 20 times.
As he endures his “punishment”, the bride’s father kneels to apologise for “failing to properly discipline his daughter”.
The Bao’an ethnic group primarily lives in Gansu province in northwestern China and has a population of around 24,000. They practise Islam and speak Banan, which belongs to the Altaic language family.
They observe several traditional Muslim festivals and their marriage customs, which are rooted in Islamic beliefs and predominantly follow monogamy.
Before the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, the traditional marriage age was 17 for males and 15 for females, with wedding procedures and important dates typically based on the Islamic calendar.
A typical Bao’an wedding involves four main stages: matchmaking, engagement confirmation, bride price delivery and the wedding ceremony.
For instance, when the groom’s family proposes marriage, they present a gift called songdingcha, which literally means “betrothal tea”, which includes rock sugar, dried longan, tea leaves and walnuts, all wrapped in four different-coloured papers.