It is a rare phenomenon that different social groups exist at the same time in the same colony of people.

In the Yi-populated areas, this phenomenon is a reality.

This is the reason why anthropologists, sociologists, economists and scholars from around the world want to study the Yi people, one of the oldest ethnic groups in southwestern China.

"From studying the Yi communities, one seems to enter a miniaturized human society at different stages," said Huang Jianming from the Centre for Chinese Ethnic Studies under the Central University of Nationalities.

According to Huang, the Yi populated areas saw slavery, feudalism and early stages of capitalism all at the same time in the early 1950s.

Although slavery and feudal systems were abolished after the founding of New China in 1949, many social aspects, old traditions and vestiges of the old society still remain now.

The Yis are ranked into four classes, Huang says.

The Black Yi is the most noble class and the White Yi the second. The third class refers to those who intermarry with the White Yis. All people of other ethnicity fall into the fourth class.

"The Yis still stick to their old marriage customs and intermarriage among different classes is forbidden," Huang said.

The Yis, with a population of 6.5 million, mainly live in Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

The Yis have a long history going back more than 4,000 years. An ancient tribe of the Qiang people, who primarily resided in today's Shaanxi, Gansu and Qinghai provinces, migrated to Southwest China and gradually mingled with the local aboriginals, evolving into the Yis.

Records show some of the Yi ancestors were a major family living in the Warring States period (475-221 BC). According to legend, the family had six sons. Today, many Yi people can still trace their family origins back to the six sons.

As the area was suitable for farming, the Yis were divided. Some started to engage in agriculture by the time of the Han Dynasty (206 BC - AD 220), while others clung to the life of the nomads.

The Yi's ancestors lived in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau and along the Jinsha River and the Lancang River as early as 2,000 years ago.

In the eighth century, a slave kingdom Nanzhao with Yi and Bai people was established which lasted until the 10th century.

The regime played an important role in economic and cultural development in Southwest China.

The Liangshan Mountains in Sichuan Province is the biggest Yi-populated area. Three autonomous prefectures and 18 autonomous counties were set up in the area after the founding of New China.

The mountains and rivers around the areas make transportation difficult and thus have lessened the impact of modern civilization.

"Besides, ideas are another reason for slow social development," Huang said.

Some anthropologists who have focused their study on the Han people also show an interest in the Yi.

They often come up with puzzles when researching the history of the Han people.

They often get their answers from the present Yi community.

"It is because the social system of the Yis develops at a slow pace," Huang said.

It is also an interesting subject for scholars to study how this ancient ethnic group adapt to modern society.

The backwardness has hindered social development but helps to preserve many fine cultural traditions.

The ancient Yis developed a script for their language which has remained in use. Some people say the writing is more like expressive characters while others argue that the writing is phonetic.

The Yi people have created a great deal of work on astronomy, the calendar, meteorology, medicine, agriculture and animal husbandry.

Today, the Yis still use their special calendar with 10 months each year and 36 days for each month.

Traditional crafts include embroidery, silverware, sculpture and painting.

Yi costumes are great in variety and Yis in different places usually wear different designs.

From the 1980s, the study of the Yi people became an independent branch of learning with a growing number of specialists involved and the founding of a series of institutes and organizations around the world.

About 200 scholars in China and more than 10 foreign countries and regions attended the Third International Symposium of Yi Study in Shilin, a Yi-populated area in Yunnan Province, in September.

Stevan Harrell, an anthropologist from Washington University and the founder of the symposium said he developed an interest in the Yi people in the late 1980s after he travelled in some remote areas in Sichuan Province to carry out research.

Harrell said that only 20 people from a few countries participated in the first symposium, which was held in Seattle in the United States in 1995.

"I am the one who planted the seed which has now grown into a big tree," Harrell said with pride.

The third international symposium on studying Yis explored a wide range of subjects such as the history, origin, development of the Yi people, their language, literature, folklore, costumes and religious beliefs.

"The study of the Yi people is a must for those who study ethnic people in southwestern China," Huang said.

(China Daily 11/20/2000)