Lion dance

{{Short description|Traditional Chinese dance}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox Chinese | pic = high-pole-lion-dance.jpg | caption = A lion dance competition in Dallas, Texas | picsize = 300px | t = 舞獅 | s = 舞狮 | p = wǔshī | j = mou5si1 | t2 = 跳獅 or 弄獅 | poj2 = thiàu-sai or lāng-sai | kanji = 獅子舞 | romaji = shishimai | hangul = 사자춤 | hanja = 獅子춤 | rr = sajachum | mr = sajach'um | qn = múa lân, múa sư tử | chunom = 𢱖麟 | ind = barongsai }} '''Lion dance''' ({{lang-zh|s=舞狮|t=舞獅|p=wǔshī|c=|first=t}}) is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune and to ward off evil. The lion dance is usually performed during the Lunar New Year and other traditional, cultural and religious festivals. It may also be performed at important occasions such as business opening events, special celebrations or wedding ceremonies, or may be used to honor special guests by the Chinese communities.

The Chinese lion dance is normally performed by two dancers, one of whom manipulates the head while the other manipulates the tail of the lion. It is distinguishable from the dragon dance which is performed by many people who hold the long sinuous body of the dragon on poles. Some fundamental movements of the lion dance can be found in Chinese martial arts, and it is commonly performed to a vigorous drumbeat with gongs and cymbals.

There are many forms of lion dance in China, but two main forms of the lion dance are the Northern Lion and the Southern Lion. Around the world, especially in Southeast Asia, the Southern Lion predominates as it was spread by Chinese diaspora communities who are historically mostly of Southern Chinese origin. Versions of lion dance related to the Chinese lion are also found in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Besides the Chinese-based lion dance, other forms of lion dance also exist in India, Indonesia, and East Africa.

==History==

[[File:Lion dance by children in Song Dynasty.jpg|thumb|270px|left|Details of the Song dynasty painting "One Hundred Children Playing in the Spring" (百子嬉春图页) by Su Hanchen showing children performing the Lion dance]] There has been an old tradition in China of dancers wearing masks to resemble animals or mythical beasts since antiquity, and performances described in ancient texts such as ''Shujing'' in which wild beasts and phoenixes danced may have been masked dances.<ref name="shadow theatre">{{cite book |title=Chinese Shadow Theatre: History, Popular Religion, and Women Warriors |author= Fan Pen Li Che |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=aZu9Cje8TfkC&pg=PA64 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |date= 2007 |page=64 |isbn=978-0773531970 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://ctext.org/shang-shu/yi-and-ji#n21105 |title=Shang Shu - Yu Shu - Yi and Ji |work= Chinese Text Project }}</ref> In Qin dynasty sources, dancers performing exorcism rituals were described as wearing bearskin masks,<ref name="shadow theatre"/> and it was also mentioned in Han dynasty texts that "mime people" (象人) performed as fish, dragons, and phoenixes.<ref>{{cite book |title=The History of Chinese Dance |author= Wang Kefen|publisher= China Books & Periodicals |pages=25–27 |year= 1985 |isbn=978-0835111867}}</ref><ref name="faye">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=CiQegTh99-wC&pg=PA24 |title= Chinese Theories of Theater and Performance from Confucius to the Present |pages=24–25 |editor= Faye Chunfang Fei |publisher=University of Michigan Press |year=2002 |isbn= 978-0472089239 }}</ref>

However, the lion is not native to China (a species found in Northeast China, ''Panthera youngi'', had long become extinct),<ref name="behr">{{cite journal |title= Hinc sunt leones — two ancient Eurasian migratory terms in Chinese revisited |url= http://www.iacd.or.kr/pdf/journal/09/9-01.pdf |journal= International Journal of Central Asian Studies |volume= 9 |date= 2004 |issn= 1226-4490 |access-date= 2015-02-21 |archive-date= 2016-12-20 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161220064510/http://www.iacd.or.kr/pdf/journal/09/9-01.pdf |url-status= dead }}</ref> and the lion dance therefore has been suggested to have originated outside of China from countries such as India or Persia,<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=XlPqB4TpZuIC&pg=PA1444 |title=Kleinere Schriften: Publikationen aus der Zeit von 1911 bis 1925. 2 v |author= Berthold Laufer |year=1976 |isbn=978-3515026512 |page=1444 |publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag }}</ref><ref>{{citation |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=bLcWyecDpIcC&pg=PA164 |title=Amdo Tibetans in Transition: Society and Culture in the Post-Mao Era |editor=Toni Huber |author=Mona Schrempf |chapter=chapter 6 - The Earth-Ox and Snowlion |pages=164 |publisher=Brill |year=2002 |isbn=9004125965 |quote= During the Persian New Year of Newruz, a lion dance used to be performed by young boys, some of them naked it seems, who were sprinkled with cold water. They were thus supposed to drive out evil forces and the cold of the winter.}}</ref> and introduced via Central Asia.<ref name="asian" /> According to ethnomusicologist Laurence Picken, the Chinese word for lion itself, ''shi'' (獅, written as 師 in the early periods), may have been derived from the Persian word ''šer''.<ref name="picken">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xy45AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA201 |title=Music for a Lion Dance of the Song Dynasty |series=Musica Asiatica: volume 4 |author=Laurence E. R. Picken |page=201 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1984 |isbn=978-0521278379}}</ref> The earliest use of the word ''shizi'' to mean "lion" was in Han dynasty texts and had strong associations with Central Asia (an even earlier but obsolete term for lion was ''suanni'' (狻麑 or {{linktext|lang=zh|狻猊}}), and lions were presented to the Han court by emissaries from Central Asia and the Parthian Empire.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.iacd.or.kr/pdf/journal/09/9-01.pdf |title=Hinc sunt leones — two ancient Eurasian migratory terms in Chinese revisited |author=Wolfgang Behr |journal=International Journal of Central Asian Studies |volume=9 |year=2004 |access-date=2015-02-21 |archive-date=2016-12-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220064510/http://www.iacd.or.kr/pdf/journal/09/9-01.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Detailed descriptions of lion dance appeared during the Tang dynasty and it was already recognized by writers and poets then as a foreign dance. However, lion dance may have been recorded in China as early as the third century AD where "lion acts" were referred to by a Three Kingdoms scholar Meng Kang in a commentary on ''Hanshu''.<ref name="chu yu-tun">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=-Kg3AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA52 |title=The Dramatic Oeuvre of Chu Yu-Tun: 1379 - 1439 |editor= Wilt L. Idema |page=52 |publisher=Brill |year=1985|isbn=9789004072916 }}</ref><ref name="history" /><ref>{{citation |url= http://www.sidneyluo.net/a/a02/022.htm |title=漢書 卷二十二 ‧ 禮樂志第二 |quote=Original text: 孟康曰：「象人，若今戲蝦魚師子者也。」translation: Xiàngrén (Imitators) are like those [dancers] who act as prawns, fish, or lions today}}</ref> In the early periods, it was associated with Buddhism: it was recorded in a Northern Wei text, ''Description of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang'' (洛陽伽藍記), that a parade for a statue of Buddha of a temple was led by a lion to drive away evil spirits.<ref name="history">{{cite book |title=The History of Chinese Dance |author= Wang Kefen|publisher= China Books & Periodicals |page=53 |year= 1985 |isbn=978-0835111867}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.jcedu.org/dispfile.php?id=909 |title= 伎乐盛境 |work= 佛教文化 |access-date= 2014-01-10 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160305170936/http://jcedu.org/dispfile.php?id=909 |archive-date= 2016-03-05 |url-status= dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/洛陽伽藍記/卷一 |title= 洛陽伽藍記/卷一|quote=四月四日，此像常出，辟邪師子導引其前。吞刀吐火，騰驤一面；彩幢上索，詭譎不常。奇伎異服，冠於都市。}}</ref> An alternative suggestion is therefore that the dance may have developed from a local Chinese tradition that appropriated the Buddhist symbolism of lion.<ref name="behr" />

[[File:Lion dance - illustration from Shinzei-kogakuzu.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Japanese illustration of a lion dance that some argue represents the Tang dynasty lion dance described by Bai Juyi.<ref>{{cite book |title=Nihon kamen shi 日本假面史|author=Seiroku Noma|date= 1943 |publisher=Geibun Shoin }}</ref> The original drawing is dated to the Heian period.]] There were different versions of the dance in the Tang dynasty. In the Tang court, the lion dance was called the "Great Peace Music" (太平樂, ''Taiping yue'') or the "Lion dance of the Five Directions" (五方師子舞) where five large lions of different colours and expressing different moods were each led and manipulated on rope by two persons, and accompanied by 140 singers.<ref name="history"/><ref>{{cite web |url = https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/通典/卷146 |title=通典/卷146 |work=Tongdian }} Original text: 太平樂，亦謂之五方師子舞。師子摯獸，出於西南夷天竺、師子等國。綴毛為衣，象其俛仰馴狎之容。二人持繩拂，為習弄之狀。五師子各依其方色，百四十人歌太平樂，舞抃以從之，服飾皆作崑崙象。</ref> In another account, the 5 lions were described as each over 3 metres tall and each had 12 "lion lads", who may tease the lions with red whisks.<ref name="history"/><ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=G0U5DzTBknQC&pg=PA38 |title=Mooncakes and Hungry Ghosts: Festivals of China |author1=Carol Stepanchuk |author2=Charles Choy Wong |page=38 |publisher=China Books & Periodicals |year= 1992 |isbn=978-0835124812 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hant/樂府雜錄 |title=樂府雜錄 |work= Yuefu Zalu |quote=Original text: 戲有五方獅子，高丈餘，各衣五色。每一獅子有十二人，戴紅抹額，衣畫衣，執紅拂子，謂之「獅子郎」，舞《太平樂》曲。}}</ref> Another version of the lion dance was described by the Tang poet Bai Juyi in his poem "Western Liang Arts" (西凉伎), where the dance was performed by two ''hu'' (胡, meaning here non-Han people from Central Asia) dancers who wore a lion costume made of a wooden head, a silk tail and furry body, with eyes gilded with gold and teeth plated with silver as well as ears that moved, a form that resembles today's lion dance.<ref name="history"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.shicimingju.com/baidu/list/63979.html |title=《西凉伎》 |quote=西凉伎，假面胡人假狮子。刻木为头丝作尾，金镀眼睛银贴齿。奋迅毛衣摆双耳，如从流沙来万里。紫髯深目两胡儿，鼓舞跳粱前致辞。 |access-date=2014-01-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219072425/http://www.shicimingju.com/baidu/list/63979.html |archive-date=2014-02-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ky8yCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA144 |title=唐詩趣談 |author= 陳正平 |publisher= Taiwan study published Ltd. |pages= 140 &ndash;145|date= 2000 |isbn= 978-9866318580}}</ref> By the eighth century, this lion dance had reached Japan. During the Song dynasty the lion dance was commonly performed in festivals and it was known as the Northern Lion during the Southern Song.

The Southern Lion is a later development in the south of China originating in the Guangdong province. There are a number of myths associated with the origin of the Southern Lion: one story relates that the dance originated as a celebration in a village where a mythical monster called Nian was successfully driven away;<ref name="asian">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=PcvA373XEJwC&pg=PA112 |title=Asian Material Culture |editor=Marianne Hulsbosch |editor2=Elizabeth Bedford |editor3=Martha Chaiklin |pages=112–118|publisher=Amsterdam University Press |year=2010 |isbn=9789089640901 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=KMQeAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA354 |title=Encyclopedia of China: History and Culture |editor= Dorothy Perkins |page=354 |publisher=Facts On File Inc |year= 1998 |isbn=978-0816026937 }}</ref> another has it that the Qianlong Emperor dreamt of an auspicious animal while on a tour of Southern China, and ordered that the image of the animal be recreated and used during festivals. However it is likely that the Southern Lion of Guangzhou is an adaptation of the Northern Lion to local myths and characteristics, perhaps during the Ming dynasty.<ref name="china daily">{{cite web |url= http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/shanxi/2013-10/18/content_17044270.htm |title=Lion Dance |work=China Daily }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lifeofguangzhou.com/node_10/node_228/node_233/node_238/2009/02/13/123451693260220.shtml |title=South Lion: the Guangzhou Lion Dance |date=13 February 2009 |work=Life of Guangzhou |access-date=11 January 2014 |archive-date=19 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119121331/http://www.lifeofguangzhou.com/node_10/node_228/node_233/node_238/2009/02/13/123451693260220.shtml |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Chinese styles== The two main types of lion dance in China are the Northern and Southern Lions. There are however also a number of local forms of lion dance in different regions of China, and some of these lions may have significant differences in appearance, for example the Green or Hokkien Lion (青獅, ''Qing Shi'') and the Taiwanese or Yutien Lion (明獅, ''Ming Shi''),{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}} popular with the Hokkien and the Taiwanese people.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.lohanlion.com/lionsoftaiwan.htm |title=Taipei (Taiwanese Lion) |work=Shaolin Lohan Pai Dance Troupe |url-status=dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140810043408/http://www.lohanlion.com/lionsoftaiwan.htm |archivedate=2014-08-10 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.rclib.com.cn/gx/fy_qs.htm |title= 狮舞（青狮）项目简介 |access-date= 2014-01-28 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170719164302/http://www.rclib.com.cn/gx/fy_qs.htm |archive-date= 2017-07-19 |url-status= dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RSTaAAAAMAAJ|title=Ritual is Theatre, Theatre is Ritual|first= Margaret |last=Chan|date= 2006|page=159 |publisher=Wee Kim Wee Centre, Singapore Management University |isbn=9789812481153 }}</ref>

Other ethnic minority groups in China also have their own lion dances: for example, the lion dance of the Muslim minority in Shenqiu County in Henan called the Wen Lion,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.henan.gov.cn/10ztzl/system/2011/11/17/010277054.shtml |title=沈丘回族文狮舞 |publisher=The People's Government of Henan Province |access-date=January 28, 2014 |archive-date=March 7, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307034352/http://www.henan.gov.cn/10ztzl/system/2011/11/17/010277054.shtml |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://wenshizi.com/wenshizi/114.html |title=沈丘槐店文狮舞1 |work=回族文狮子文化网 |url-status=dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140204012210/http://wenshizi.com/wenshizi/114.html |archivedate=2014-02-04 }}</ref> the lion dance in Yongdeng County, Gansu,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-12/22/c_138650516.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222182257/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-12/22/c_138650516.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 22, 2019 |title=Folk artists rehearse lion dance for upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year in China's Gansu|work =Xinhua| date=22 December 2019 }}</ref> and others. There are other related forms of dances with mask figures that represent mythical creatures such as the Qilin and the Pixiu.<ref>{{cite web |title=Besides The Lion |url=http://www.thelionarts.com/branch.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107153511/http://www.thelionarts.com/branch.html |archivedate=7 November 2017 |work=The Lion Arts}}</ref> The Qilin dance and the Pixiu dance are most commonly performed by the Hakka people who were originally from Central China, but have largely settled in the south of China and southeast Asia in modern times.<ref>{{cite web |date=10 February 2013 |title=Qilin Dancing During the Lunar New Year and Southern Chinese Martial Culture |url=http://chinesemartialstudies.com/2013/02/10/qilin-dancing-during-the-lunar-new-year-and-southern-chinese-martial-culture/ |work=Kung Fu Tea}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Hakka Chinese: Their Origin, Folk Songs And Nursery Rhymes |url=http://www.poseidonbooks.com/hakkabook.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304064759/http://www.poseidonbooks.com/hakkabook.htm |archive-date=2016-03-04 |access-date=2014-02-03}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Aartsen |first1=Peter van |last2=Tilburg |first2=Jos van |title=Pak Mei Kung Fu 白眉派 |url=https://www.pakmeipai.nl/unicorn.html |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=Pak Mei Kung Fu 白眉派 |language=NL}}</ref>

Chinese lion dances usually involve two dancers but may also be performed by one. The larger lions manipulated by two persons may be referred to as ''great lions'' (太獅), and those manipulated by one person ''little lions'' (少獅). The performances may also be broadly divided into civil (文獅) and martial (武獅) styles. The civil style emphasizes the character and behaviour of the lion, while the martial style is focused on acrobatics and energetic movements.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ky8yCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA146 |title=唐詩趣談 |author= 陳正平 |publisher= Taiwan study published Ltd. |page= 146|date= 2000 |isbn= 978-9866318580}}</ref> Various forms of lion dance are also widely found in East Asian countries such as Japan, Korea, Vietnam, as well as in communities in the Himalayas region.

===Northern Lion=== thumb|A Northern Lion dance The Chinese Northern Lion ({{lang-zh|t=北獅|s=北狮|hp=Běi shī|links=no}}) dance is often performed as a pair of male and female lions in the north of China. Northern lions may have a gold-painted wooden head and shaggy red and yellow hair with a red bow on its head to indicate a male lion, or a green bow (sometimes green hair) to represent a female.<ref name="different lions">{{cite web |url=http://www.thelionarts.com/difference.html |title=The Difference in Lion Dance |work=The Lion Arts |access-date=2014-01-11 |archive-date=2016-03-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304090644/http://www.thelionarts.com/difference.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> There are however regional variations of the lion. Regions with lion dance troupes include Ninghai in Ningbo, Xushui in Hebei province, Dalian in Liaoning province, and Beijing. There are a number of variations of the lion dance performance, for example the Heavenly Tower Lion dance ({{lang-zh|t=天塔獅舞|s=天塔狮舞|hp=Tiān tǎ shī wǔ|links=no}}) from Xiangfen County in Shanxi is a performance whereby a number of lions climb up a tall tower structure constructed out of wooden stools,<ref name="china daily" /> and there are also high-wire acts involving lions.

It is said that the Northern Lion may have originated from Northern Wei, when Hu dancers performed the dance for the emperor, and it was referred to as Northern Lion by the Song dynasty.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PcvA373XEJwC&pg=PA112 |title=Asian Material Culture|date=2009|page=112 |isbn=9789089640901|publisher=Amsterdam University Press |editor1=Elizabeth Bedford|editor2= Marianne Hulsbosch|editor3= Martha Chaiklin|first=Heleanor B.|last=Feltham}}</ref> Northern lions resemble Pekingese or Foo Dogs/Fu Dogs, and their movements are lifelike during a performance. Acrobatics is very common, with stunts like lifts, or balancing on a tiered platform or on a giant ball. Northern lions sometimes appear as a family, with two large "adult" lions and a pair of small "young" lions. There are usually two performers in one adult lion, and one in the young lion. There may also be a "warrior" character who holds a spherical object and leads the lions.<ref>{{cite book |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=3AxIAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT636 |title=Asian Americans: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History |editor=Xiaojian Zhao |editor2=Edward J.W. Park |chapter=Chinese Lion Dance in the United States |author=Benji Chang |publisher=Greenwood Press |date=2013 |isbn=978-1598842395 }}</ref>

===Southern Lion=== thumb|upright|left|A Southern Fut San style lion|alt= The Chinese Southern Lion ({{lang-zh|t=南獅|s=南狮|hp=Nán shī|links=no}}) or Cantonese Lion dance originated from Guangdong and is the best known lion outside of China. The Southern lion has a single horn, and is associated with the legend of a mythical monster called Nian. The lion's head is traditionally constructed using papier-mâché over a bamboo frame covered with gauze, then painted and decorated with fur.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://chineseliondancers.webs.com/makingalionhead.htm |title=Making a Chinese Lion Head |work=The Chinese Art of Lion Dancing |url-status=dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20140222165538/http://chineseliondancers.webs.com/makingalionhead.htm |archivedate=2014-02-22 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.fom.sg/Passage/2013/03liondance.pdf |title=The Lion Dance Costume Maker |author=Lim Chey Cheng|work=Friends of the Museums }}</ref> Its body is made of durable layered cloth also trimmed with fur. Newer lions, however, may be made with modern materials such as aluminium instead of bamboo and are lighter.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1295&dat=19960212&id=34pOAAAAIBAJ&pg=5316,673063&hl=en |title=Lion Dance King |author=Chow Ee-Tan |work=New Straits Times |date= February 12, 1996 }}</ref> Newer versions may also apply shinier modern material over the traditional lacquer such as sequins or laser stickers.

thumb|Cantonese Lion dance troupe holding a ''rui shi'' (瑞獅; "auspicious lion") sign in the late 19th century There are two main styles of Southern Lion: the Fut San or Fo Shan ({{lang-zh|c=佛山|hp=Fóshān|j=|l=Buddha Mountain|links=no}}), and the Hok San or He Shan ({{lang-zh|t=鶴山|s=鹤山|hp=Hèshān|j=|l=Crane Mountain|links=no}}), both named after their place of origin. Other styles include the Fut-Hok (a hybrid of Fut San and Hok San created in Singapore by Kong Chow Wui Koon in the 1960s), and the Jow Ga (performed by practitioners of Jow family style kung fu).<ref name="different lions"/> The different lion types can be identified from the design of the lion head.

==== Fut San (Fo Shan) style ==== Fo Shan is the style adopted by many kung fu schools. It uses kung fu moves and postures to help with its movements and stances, and only the most advanced students are allowed to perform. Traditionally, the Fo Shan lion has bristles instead of fur, and is heavier than the modern ones now popularly used. All traditional Fo Shan lions have pop-up teeth, tongue, and eyes that swivel left and right. On the back are gold-foiled rims and a gilded collar where the troupe's name may be sewn on. It has a very long tail with a white underside, and is often attached with bells. The designs of the tail are also more square and contain a diamond pattern going down the back. It has a high forehead, curved lips and a sharp horn on its head.<ref name="different lions"/> Traditional Fo Shan lions are ornate in appearance, but a number of regional styles have developed around the world. The newer styles of Fo Shan lions replace all the bristles with fur and the tails are shorter. The eyes are fixed in place, and the tongue and teeth do not pop up. The tail is curvier in design, does not have a diamond pattern, and lacks bells.{{Citation needed|date=January 2019}}

==== Hok San (He Shan) style ==== thumb|Lion dance by the Hok San Association in Singapore|border|315x315px The Hok San ({{lang-zh|t=鶴山|s=鹤山|hp=Hèshān|j=|l=Crane Mountain|links=no|first=t, s}}) style was founded by Feng Gengzhang, ({{lang-zh|t=馮庚長|s=冯庚长|hp=Féng Gēngzhǎng|j=|links=no|first=t, s}}). Born in a village in He Shan County, Guangdong, Feng was originally trained in the Fut San style. He aimed to refine his lion dance techniques to more closely resemble the natural movements of a real animal—particularly a cat. To support this vision, he redesigned key features of the lion head, including the mouth, lips, and eyes, to create a more graceful, expressive, and elegant appearance.<ref name="different lions"/> Specific drum patterns were also developed to better synchronize with the lion's movements.

The Hok San style was introduced to Singapore in the 1920s by Li Yi Sheng ({{lang-zh|t=李怡生}}), a disciple of Feng. He played a key role in founding the Singapore Hok San Association Lion Dance Troupe ({{lang-zh|t=新加坡鶴山會館武術醒獅團}}).<ref>{{cite web |title=About Us |url=http://sghoksan.blogspot.com/p/about-us.html |work=Singapore Hok San Association}}</ref> The style gained popularity in Singapore and saw widespread adoption across Malaysia and beyond.

===Green Lion=== thumb|Green Lion performance in Taiwan Green Lion (青狮) is the lion dance form associated with the Hokkien-speaking people of Fujian and Taiwan. It is similar to the Chinese Southern Lion dance, except that the lion is mainly green in color and has a distinct round flat mask. It is believed to have originated in the anti-Manchu movements after the fall of the Ming dynasty in 1644. The word "green lion" in the Hokkien language sounds similar to "Qing army" (清师). During training sessions for fighters, the Green Lion was fitted with blades symbolizing the Manchurian army and would become a moving target for trainees.<ref name="green lion" /> It is said that after the fall of Qing dynasty in 1912, martial arts expert Gan De Yuan (干德源) organized a performance in Quanzhou where the Green Lion was dismembered to represent the overthrow of the Qing dynasty. From that point onwards, the Green Lion has been used without the blades and is performed for cultural and ritual purposes.<ref name="green lion">{{cite web |url= http://www.chinatownology.com/green_lion.html |title=Green Lion 青狮 |work=Chinatownology}}</ref>

== Other styles ==

===Vietnam=== [[File:Múa lân trong lễ hội làng Triều Khúc - panoramio (1).jpg|thumb|left|Lion dance at the Triều Khúc village festival in Hanoi|221x221px]] [[File:Folk Museum - Hoi An (39814113524).jpg|thumb|Lion dance model in a museum in Hoian|302x302px]] In Vietnamese, the term "múa sư tử" refers to the northern style of Chinese lion dance, while "múa lân" is commonly used for the southern style.

The word ''"lân"'' originates from ''"kỳ lân"'' (qilin), making ''"múa lân"'' a general term for the arts. It is believed that various types of lion dance were introduced to Vietnam over time by Chinese traders and migrants, and were gradually adapted into Vietnamese cultural practices.

There are distinct local forms that differ in appearance and performance, for example, the lion dances of the Tày and Nùng minority people.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vietnam-holidays.co.uk/travel-blogs/lion-dance-tay-nung-ethnic-culture |title=Lion Dance in Tay and Nung Ethnic Culture |work=Haivenu Travel Blogs |access-date=2016-05-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624003541/http://www.vietnam-holidays.co.uk/travel-blogs/lion-dance-tay-nung-ethnic-culture |archive-date=2016-06-24 |url-status=dead }}</ref> A court version of the dance is performed at the Duyet Thi Duong Theatre within the grounds of the royal palace in Huế.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vietnamdance.com/2011/04/nha-nhac-of-hue-court/ |title=Nha Nhac of Hue Court |date=April 15, 2011 |work=Vietnamese Dance |access-date=September 29, 2016 |archive-date=October 14, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014024251/https://www.vietnamdance.com/2011/04/nha-nhac-of-hue-court/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Japan=== [[File:Hasedera monzenmachi Sakurai Nara pref Japan06bs.jpg|thumb|left|A Japanese lion dance performed in Sakurai, Nara, by a single person accompanied by flute and drum musicians]] Japan has a long tradition of the lion dance, known as ''{{Transliteration|ja|shishi-mai}}'' ({{lang|ja|獅子舞}}) in Japanese. The dance, believed to have originated in India, may have been introduced to Japan via China and Korea as part of the masked drama-dance ''gigaku'' during the Asuka period.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gov-online.go.jp/hlj/en/january_2025/january_2025-05.html |title=[New Year's issue] 2025 Celebrating A Bright New Year in Japan: Shishi-mai: A Lively Dance Performed in a Lion Costume |work=Public Relation Office, Government of Japan }}</ref> It became associated with the celebration of Buddha's Birthday. The first lion dance recorded in Japan was at the inauguration ceremonies of Tōdai-ji in Nara in 752.<ref name="matsuri">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=7X_7AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA132 |title= Matsuri: The Festivals of Japan: With a Selection from P.G. O'Neill's Photographic Archive of Matsuri|author= Herbert Plutschow |pages=131–132 |publisher=Routledge |date=November 5, 2013 |isbn=9781134246984 }}</ref> The oldest surviving lion mask, made of paulownia wood with an articulated lower jaw, is also preserved in Tōdai-ji.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=PcvA373XEJwC&pg=PA110 |title=Asian Material Culture |editor=Marianne Hulsbosch |editor2=Elizabeth Bedford |editor3=Martha Chaiklin |page=110|publisher=Amsterdam University Press |year=2010 |isbn=9789089640901 }}</ref> The dance is commonly performed during the New Year to bring good luck and drive away evil spirits, and the lion dancers may be accompanied by flute and drum musicians. It is also performed at other festivals and celebrations. In some of these performances, the lions may bite people on the head to bring good luck.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.deepjapan.org/a/2587 |title=Let a Lion Bite Your Head (for Good Luck) |work=Deep Japan |date=15 March 2014 |access-date=May 21, 2016 |archive-date=May 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220529112148/http://www.deepjapan.org/a/2587 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[File:Shishimai - Japanese Lion Dance - Hachijoji matsuri - 2015 8 8.webm|thumb|Shishi-mai dance at a summer festival in Hachiōji, 2015]] The lion dance has been absorbed into Japanese tradition. There are many different lion dances in Japan and the style of dancing and design of the lion may differ by region – it is believed that as many as 9,000 variations of the dance exist in the country.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.oldphotosjapan.com/photos/670/new-year-celebrations-13 |title=Kobe, 1906 New Year Celebrations 13 |work=Old Photos of Japan |date=31 December 2008 }}</ref> The lion dance is also used in religious Shinto festivals as part of a performing art form called ''{{lang|ja|kagura}}''. ''{{lang|ja-Latn|Shishi kagura}}'' may be found in different forms – for example the ''{{lang|ja-Latn|daikagura}}'' which is mainly acrobatic, the ''{{lang|ja-Latn|yamabushi kagura}}'', a type of theatrical performance done by ''yamabushi'', practitioners of Shugendō,<ref name="bocking">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ge8cWl8OT3gC&pg=PA26 |title=The Japanese Theatre: From Shamanistic Ritual to Contemporary Pluralism |author= Benito Ortolani |pages=26–27 |publisher= Princeton University Press |year= 1995 |isbn= 978-0691043333 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title=Music of the Lion Dance in Japanese Tradition|first=János |last=Kárpáti|journal=Studia Musicologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae T. 41, Fasc. 1/3 |date=2000 |pages=107-117 |jstor=902570 }}</ref> and also in ''bangaku'' and others.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ge8cWl8OT3gC&pg=PA16 |title=The Japanese Theatre: From Shamanistic Ritual to Contemporary Pluralism|author= Benito Ortolani|page=16 |publisher=Princeton University Press|year= 1995 |isbn=978-0691043333 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book| title=An Introduction to Japanese Folk Performing Arts|author= Terence Lancashire |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=srwnPCP_oyMC&pg=PA7 |page=7 |publisher=Ashgate|year= 2011|isbn=978-1409431336 }}</ref> Various forms of ''shishi'' dances are also found in ''noh'', ''kabuki'' (where the lion dances form a group of plays termed ''shakkyōmono'', examples include ''Renjishi''),<ref name="shinto encyc" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://kotobank.jp/word/%E7%9F%B3%E6%A9%8B%E7%89%A9-76058|title=石橋物 }}</ref> and ''bunraku'' theatres.<ref name="bocking" />

[[File:蜷城の獅子舞.JPG|thumb|left|Lion dance of Minagi shrine in Asakura, Fukuoka]] The Japanese lion usually consists of a wooden, lacquered head called a ''{{lang|ja-Latn|shishi-gashira}}'' ({{Lit.|lion head}}), often with a characteristic body of green dyed cloth with white designs. It can be manipulated by a single person, or by two or more persons, one of whom manipulates the head. The one-man variety is most often seen in eastern Japan.<ref name="shinto encyc">{{cite encyclopedia |url= http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=1019 |title=Shishi-mai |author=Yonei Teruyoshi |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Shinto }}</ref> As with Chinese lions, the make of the head and designs on the body will differ from region to region, and even from school to school. The mask however may sometimes have horns appearing to be a deer (''{{lang|ja-Latn|shika}}''), and ''{{lang|ja-Latn|shishi}}'' written with different kanji characters can mean beast, deer, or wild boar, for example as in ''{{lang|ja-Latn|shishi-odori}}'' (鹿踊, {{Lit.|deer dance|lk=yes}}). Historically, the word ''shishi'' may refer to any wild four-legged animal, and some of these dances with different beasts may therefore also be referred to as ''shishi-mai''.<ref name="matsuri" /> The dance may also sometimes feature tigers (''{{lang|ja-Latn|tora}}'') or ''qilin'' (''{{lang|ja-Latn|kirin}}'').<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=y0TIfrZuq_YC&pg=PA134 |title=A Popular Dictionary of Shinto |author= Brian Bocking |page=134 |publisher=Routledge |year= 1997 |isbn=978-0700710515 }}</ref>

thumb|Festival of Miyazaki Shrine, Japan In Okinawa, a similar dance exists, though the lion there is considered to be a legendary ''{{lang|ja-Latn|shisa}}''. The heads, bodies, and behavior of the shisa in the dance are quite different from the ''{{lang|ja-Latn|shishi}}'' on mainland Japan. Instead of dancing to the sounds of flutes and drums, the Okinawan ''shisa'' dance is often performed to folk songs played with the ''{{lang|ja|sanshin}}''.

===Korea=== [[File:Korean mask dance-Eunyul talchum-07.jpg|left|thumb|Korean lion dance from ''Eunyul talchum'']]

Lion dance was recorded as "''{{lang|ko-Latn|sanye}}''" ({{linktext|lang=zh|狻猊}}, the old word for ''lion'') in the Korean historical work ''Samguk Sagi'', one of the five poems on the dances of the Silla kingdom written by Ch'oe Ch'i-wŏn. It may have been recorded as early as King Jinheung's reign in the 6th century, during which a tune titled "The Lion's Talent" was composed that could be a reference to a lion dance.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/program/program_tmusic_detail.htm?no=107489 |title=Sounds of Korea > Lion Dance |date=April 7, 2013 |work=KBS World Radio |access-date=June 5, 2016 |archive-date=June 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624183907/http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/program/program_tmusic_detail.htm?no=107489 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Two main traditions of lion dance survive in Korea: the ''{{lang|ko-Latn|saja-noreum}}'', which is performed as an exorcism drama, and the ''{{lang|ko-Latn|sajach'um}}'' performed in association with masked dramas.<ref name="korea">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=r15cAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA271 |title=Korea: A Historical and Cultural Dictionary |editor1=Keith Pratt |editor2=Richard Rutt |page=271 |publisher=Routledge |year= 1999|isbn=978-0700704637 }}</ref> In many of the traditional masked dance dramas, the lion dance appears as one part of a number of acts. Examples of these dramas are ''Ŭnyul t'alch'um'',<ref>{{cite web|url= http://english.cha.go.kr/english/search_plaza_new/ECulresult_Db_View.jsp?VdkVgwKey=17,00610000,23&queryText=*&requery=0 |title=Eunyul Talchum (Mask Dance Drama of Eunyul)|work=Cultural Heritage Administration }}</ref> ''Pongsan t'alch'um'' (봉산탈춤), ''Suyong Yayu'' (수영야류), and ''T'ongyong Ogwangdae'' (통영오광대).<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/perform/mask_dances.htm |title=Korean Mask Dances |work=Asianinfo.org }}</ref> There was also once a court version of the lion dance.<ref name="korea" />

[[File:Korean dance-Bukcheong Saja Noreum-01.jpg|thumb|Lions of Bukcheong sajanoreum]] Lion dance as an exorcism ritual began to be performed in the New Year in Korea during the Goryeo dynasty.<ref name="talchum">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=GE1vBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA27 |title=Tal and Talchum |author= National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage |publisher=Gil-Job-Ie Media |date=25 December 2015 |isbn=9788963257358 |page=27 }}</ref> The best known of the Korean ''saja-noreum'' lion dances is the ''Bukcheong sajanoreum'' or lion mask play from Bukcheong. In this lion dance, the lion with a large but comic lion mask and brown costume may be performed together with performers wearing other masks.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.koreaherald.com/common_prog/newsprint.php?ud=20080202000005&dt=2 |title=Traditions revived during Seollal holidays |date=2010-04-04 |work=Korean Herald }}</ref> The dancers may be accompanied by musicians playing a double-headed drum, an hourglass-shaped drum, a large gong, and a six-holed bamboo flute.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Culture/view?articleId=121717 |title=Masks & the Mask Dance |date=September 16, 2014 |work=Korea.net }}</ref> The dance was originally performed every night of the first fifteen nights of the Lunar New Year, where the dance troupe in lion masks and costumes visited every house in the villages of the Bukcheong region to expel evil spirits and attract good luck for the coming year.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.accu.or.jp/ich/en/arts/A_KOR3.html |title=Bukcheong Saja-nori |work=Asia-Pacific Database on Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) }}</ref> The eyes of the lion mask may be painted gold to expel negative spirits. The lion masks of Pongsan and Gangnyeong may feature rolling eyes and bells meant to frighten demons when they make a sound as the lion moves.<ref name="talchum" /> It is also believed that children who sat on the back of the lion during such performances would enjoy good health and a long life.<ref name="talchum" />

===Tibet=== {{further|Snow Lion}}

[[File:Snow Lion Dance at the "Karma Temple" Bodhgaya 2 trimmed.jpg|thumb|Tibetan Snow Lion dance, Bodhgaya, India]] In the Himalayan and Tibetan area, there is also a lion dance called the Snow Lion dance. This dance may be found in Tibet and also among Tibetan diaspora communities where it is called ''{{lang|bo-Latn|Senggeh Garcham}}'',<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tibetviews.com/?p=2431 |title=Tibetan Snow Lion Dance |work=Tibet Views |access-date=2014-01-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181128210632/http://tibetviews.com/?p=2431 |archive-date=2018-11-28 |url-status=usurped }}</ref> Nepal, Bhutan, and parts of Northeastern India – among the Monpa people in Arunachal Pradesh,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.indiatravelite.com/discoverindia/tawangfestival.htm |title=Tawang Festival |work=India Travel |url-status=dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20130125013331/http://indiatravelite.com/discoverindia/tawangfestival.htm |archivedate=2013-01-25 }}</ref> in Sikkim where it is called ''Singhi Chham'',<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=7KeAES9dsUcC&pg=PA76 |title=Dances of India |author= Shobhna Gupta |page=76 |publisher=Har-Anand |date=2007 |isbn=978-8124108666 }}</ref> and in some parts of Uttar Pradesh and Ladakh. The name ''seng ge'' and its related forms come from Sanskrit for lion, {{Transliteration|sa|siṅha}},<ref name="snow lion"/> and ''cham'' is a Buddhist ritual dance.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://tibetanmaterialhistory.wikischolars.columbia.edu/cham+dances |title=Cham dances |work=Material Tibet }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://samyedharma.org/wisdom/gar-cham-meditative-dance-lama-dance/ |title=Gar Cham – Meditative Dance – "Lama Dance" |work=Samye }}</ref> The snow lion has white fur, and in Tibet, it may also have a green mane or green fringes, while in Sikkim, the mane may be blue.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Loh |first=Pauline |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/on1367231258 |title=Lion and dragon dance in Singapore |date=2023 |publisher=World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd |isbn=978-981-12-6098-8 |location=Singapore |pages=102 |oclc=on1367231258}}</ref>

The snow lion is regarded as an emblem of Tibet, and the Snow Lion dance is popularly performed in Tibetan communities during festivals such as the ritual dance (cham) festival and the New Year. The snow lion represents the snowy mountain ranges and glaciers of Tibet and is considered highly auspicious, and it may also symbolize a number of characteristics, such as power and strength,<ref name="snow lion"/> and fearlessness and joy.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://snowliontours.com/welcome/legend_of_the_snowlion |title=Legend of the SnowLion |work= Snow Lion Tour|date=21 March 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://viewonbuddhism.org/symbols_tibet_buddhism.htm |title= Tibetan Buddhist Symbols |work= A view on Buddhism}}</ref> Some local versions of the Snow Lion dance may also have been influenced by Chinese lion dance in the Sino-Tibetan borderland – for example, it was recorded that the local chief in Songpan, Sichuan, gave a lion costume to the Jamyang Zhépa II of the Amdo region in the 18th century.<ref name="snow lion">{{citation |url= http://www.case.edu/affil/tibet/tibetanSociety/documents/Theearth-oxandthesnowlion.pdf |title=Amdo Tibetans in Transition: Society and Culture in the Post-Mao Era |editor=Toni Huber |author=Mona Schrempf |pages=147–169 |publisher=Brill |year=2002 |isbn=9004125965 }}</ref> The Snow Lion dance may be performed as a secular dance or as a ritual dance performed by bon po monks.<ref name="snow lion"/>

===India=== [[File:Shiva Parvati Chhau Dance 23.jpg|thumb|Purulia Chhau dance]] Excluding the Snow Lion dances found in the Himalayan regions, lion costumes may be used in various forms of dances in other parts of India. In West Bengal's Purulia district, a version of the Chhau dance is the only one to incorporate lion costumes. In this dance, the lions are associated with the Hindu goddess Durga as her mount. The lion Chhau masks are made of papier-mâché with dried grass as fur.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chhau Mask |url=https://indianculture.gov.in/artefacts-museums/chhau-mask-1 |website=INDIAN CULTURE |publisher=Ministry of Culture (India) |access-date=27 August 2023 |language=en}}</ref>

In Songi Mukhawate or Songi Mukhota dance, a masked folk dance from Maharastra performed during Chaitra Purnima, Navaratri, and other special occasions,<ref>{{cite web |title=600 school students to perform dance on Republic Day {{!}} India.com |url=https://www.india.com/news/india/600-school-students-to-perform-dance-on-republic-day-862623/ |website=www.india.com |publisher=Zee Media Corporation |access-date=27 August 2023 |language=en}}</ref> the lion costumes may also be used. The lion costumes represent Narasimha.<ref>{{cite web |title=Artists from various States depict culture |url=https://www.thehitavada.com/Encyc/2022/11/3/Artists-from-various-States-depict-culture.html |website=The Hitavada |publisher=Progressive Writers and Publishers |access-date=27 August 2023 |language=en}}</ref> In Honnavar Taluk in Uttara Kannada, a lion dance called ''simha nrutya'' may be performed in Yakshagana plays. The dancers wear a cotton mask that resembles a lion with two silver fangs, and dance in imitation of the movements and behaviour of lions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gajrani |first1=Shiv |title=History, Religion and Culture of India |date=2004 |publisher=Gyan Publishing House |location=Delhi |isbn=978-81-8205-061-7 |pages=101–103 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zh6z0nuIjAgC&dq=simha%20nrutya&pg=PA102 |access-date=19 August 2023 |language=en}}</ref>

===Indonesia=== {{main|Reog|Barong dance|Sisingaan|Singo Ulung}} [[File:Barong, Batubulan Village, Bali 1601.jpg|thumb|left|Barong of Bali, Indonesia]] The Chinese lion dance is referred to as ''barongsai'' in Indonesia, often performed by Chinese Indonesians during ''Imlek''. The majority of lion dance troupes in Medan perform the Southern Lion dance brought by the Chinese immigrants in the nineteenth century. They are divided into the ''Fo Shan Shi'' and the ''He Shan Shi'' types.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Beng Tan |first=Sooi |title=The Lion Dances to the Fore: Articulating Chinese Identities in Penang and Medan |date=2007}}</ref> Indonesians, however, have developed their own style of lion dances. The lion dance (Indonesian: ''{{lang|id|barong}}'') in Indonesia has different forms that are distinct to the local cultures in Indonesia, and it is not known if these have any relation to the Chinese lion.<ref name="picken"/>

[[File:Atraksi Sembur Api Reog Ponorogo.jpg|thumb|Reog Ponorogo, Indonesia]] In Hindu Balinese culture, the Barong is the king of good spirits and the enemy of the demon queen Rangda. The Javanese Reog typically involves two dancers called Juru Saluk.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-06-29 |title=Barong dance - The good and bad side story in dance using mask |url=https://ubud.id/barong-dance/ |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=Ubud |language=English}}</ref> In Ponorogo in Java, the Reog dance involves a lion figure known as the ''{{lang|id|singa barong}}''. A single dancer, or ''{{lang|id|warok}}'',<ref name="LR">{{Cite web |date=2023-09-10 |title=Lion's Roar: Reog Ponorogo and the Dance of Resistance |url=https://eyeinthemiddle.com/2023/09/10/lions-roar-reog-ponorogo-and-the-dance-of-resistance/ |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=Eye In The Middle |language=en}}</ref> carries the heavy lion mask, about 30–40&nbsp;kg in weight, with their teeth, and may also carry an adolescent boy or girl on its head.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Reog Tengger |url=https://www.indonesia.travel/id/en/destinations/java/bromo-tengger-semeru-national-park/reog-tengger.html |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=www.indonesia.travel |language=en}}</ref> The mask, which may span over 2.5 meters, has gained recognition as the world's largest mask.<ref name="LR"/>

[[File:2018 Asian Games opening ceremony 22 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Sisingaan lion dance performance during 2018 Asian Games opening ceremony]] Another form of Indonesian lion dance is called Sisingaan from West Java.<ref name="Indonesia.go.id">{{Cite web|date=23 December 2019|title=Sisingaan, Sindiran Ala Orang Sunda|url=https://indonesia.go.id/ragam/budaya/sosial/sisingaan-sindiran-ala-orang-sunda|website=Indonesia.go.id|language=id}}</ref> Sisingaan is marked by a form of a lion-shaped effigy palanquin that is carried by a group of dancers who perform various attractions accompanied by traditional music.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Dipa|first=Arya |title=Preserving hamlets via art in Sekejolang|url=https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/06/03/preserving-hamlets-art-sekejolang.html|date=3 June 2014|access-date=2021-02-25|website=The Jakarta Post|language=en}}</ref> The dance is usually performed to celebrate the circumcision ceremony, where the circumcised child is carried on a lion around the ''kampung'' (village).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sisingaan|url=https://www.kompas.id/label/sisingaan/|access-date=2021-02-25|website=kompas.id}}</ref>

===Africa=== Around Africa there are various lion dances that are original to their local area and unrelated to the Chinese dance. For example, various tribes in East Africa, such as the Maasai and Samburu people of Kenya, used to perform a lion dance to celebrate a successful lion hunt, considered by these tribes to be a prestigious act and a sign of bravery. The dancers may also reenact a lion hunt. Some of them make a headdress out of the mane of the slain lion (or out of other animals) and wear the headdress in the dance.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nUZtAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA83 |title=Animism and the Question of Life|author= Istvan Praet|date=15 August 2013|page=83 |isbn=9781134500598 |publisher=Routledge}}</ref> Young men may also wear the lion-mane headdress and dance in a coming-of-age ceremony.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B49_AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 |title=The Maasai of Matapato: A Study of Rituals of Rebellion |author= Paul Spencer |date=March 2004 |isbn=9781134371662 |publisher=Routledge |page=147 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://artsandculture.google.com/story/warriors-of-the-maasai-national-museums-of-kenya/VAXROaOyMUDY4A?hl=en |title=Warriors of the Maasai}}</ref> However, as lion hunting has now been made illegal, the dance is seldom performed in a real scenario nowadays, but they may continue to perform the dance for tourists.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gfUbHXT2dloC&pg=PA205 |title=Culture and Customs of Kenya |author= N. W. Sobania|page=205 |isbn=978-0313314865 |publisher= Praeger Publishers |date= 2000}}</ref> In the Gambia, a mask dance called Simba or Zimba, meaning "lion dancer" in the Wolof language, is performed in festivals and on the streets by the Wolof people.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.accessgambia.com/information/simba-mask.html |title=Simba Masquerade of Gambia |work=Gambia information Site }}</ref>

==During Chinese New Years and festivals== thumb|Chinese lion dancers performing a "cai qing" where the "greens" are hung high above for the lion to pluck

During the Chinese New Year, lion dance troupes may visit the houses and shops of the Asian community to perform the traditional custom of "''cai qing''" (採青), literally meaning "plucking the greens", whereby the lion takes an auspicious green lettuce either hung on a pole or placed on a table in front of the premises. The "greens" (''qing'') are tied together with a "red envelope" containing money, and the offering may also include auspicious fruits such as oranges. In Chinese, ''cǎi'' (採, pluck) also sounds like ''cài'' (菜, meaning vegetable) and ''cái'' (财, meaning fortune).<ref>{{cite web |last=Lee |first=Jonathan |date=April 4, 2024 |title=Why Lion Dancers Throw Lettuce Everywhere – A Guide to Choy Cheng |url=https://www.vancouverliondance.com/post/choy-cheng-lion-dance |publisher=Vancouver Lion Dance by Chau Luen Athletics}}</ref> The lion will dance and approach the "greens" and "red envelope" like a curious cat to "eat the green" and "spit" it out. In the process, they will keep the "red envelope", which is the reward for the lion troupe.

The lion dance is believed to bring good luck and fortune to any business that receives one. During the Qing dynasty, there may be additional hidden meanings in the performances. For example, the green vegetables (''qing'') eaten by the lion may represent the Qing Manchus.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=PcvA373XEJwC&pg=PA117 |title=Asian Material Culture |editor=Marianne Hulsbosch |editor2=Elizabeth Bedford |editor3=Martha Chaiklin |page=117|publisher=Amsterdam University Press |year=2010 |isbn=9789089640901 }}</ref> The lion dance troupes are sometimes accompanied by various characters such as the Big Head Buddha who teases the lion with a fan.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IKdJDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA105 |title=The Art of Lion Dance|first= Joey |last=Yap |date=January 2017 |pages=102, 105 |publisher=Joey Yap Research | isbn=9789671303870 }}</ref>

==Evolution and competition== thumb|Lion dance in competition may be performed on a series of small circular platforms on poles. Lion dance has spread across the world due to the worldwide presence of the diaspora Chinese communities and immigrant settlers in many countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, Pacific Polynesia, and in particular, in Southeast Asia, where there is a large overseas Chinese presence.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2026-03-03 |title=我们的宝藏非遗 {{!}} 中国狮舞，圈粉世界 _光明网 |url=https://culture.gmw.cn/2026-03/03/content_38625681.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260303165422/https://culture.gmw.cn/2026-03/03/content_38625681.htm |archive-date=March 3, 2026 |access-date=2026-03-21 |website=culture.gmw.cn |quote=随着移民的脚步，狮舞文化在海外传播并落地生根 |trans-quote=Lion dance culture spread overseas along with Chinese migration and took root in local communities. |trans-title=Our treasure trove of intangible cultural heritage: Chinese lion dance, captivating the world. (Source: Guangming.com) |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== High pole lion dance (jongs) === High pole lion dance ({{lang-zh|t=高樁|first=t|l=high pole}}), also known as “jongs”, takes its name from the Cantonese pronunciation of 樁 ({{lang-zh|first=t|j=zong1}}), stylized in English. This acrobatic style of lion dance is performed on metal poles reaching up to 2.8 meters (~8&nbsp;ft) in height with gaps as wide as 1.8 meters (~5&nbsp;ft).<ref name="ID">{{Cite book |title=国际舞龙舞狮北狮竞赛规则与,裁判法 |publisher=国际龙狮运动联合会 |year=2011 |trans-title=International Dragon and Lion Dance Competition Rules and Refereeing Methods}}</ref> A standard competition setup includes at least 21 poles,<ref name="ID"/> though larger sets are used in major events such as the Genting World Lion Dance Championship and the Malaysian National Lion Dance Championship.

=== Lion dance competitions === A lion dance competition, World Lion Dance Championship, was initiated in Malaysia in 1984.<ref name=1Malaysia>{{cite journal |title=Dramatizing 1Malaysia in Contemporary Chinese Lion Dance |first1=Fung Ying|last1=Loo|first2= Fung Chiat|last2=Loo |journal=Asian Theatre Journal|volume= 33|number= 1 |date=Spring 2016|pages= 130-150 |jstor=24737159 }}</ref> Held biennially around July at Resorts World Genting, north of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the Genting World Lion Dance Championship (雲頂世界獅王爭霸賽) is widely regarded as the pinnacle of lion dance competition, drawing elite teams from Asia, Europe, Australia, and North America. The event was not held in 2020 and 2022, resuming in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 22, 2023 |title=2023 年《第 14 届云顶世界狮王争霸战》国际舞狮精英将于今年 8 月齐聚云顶世界争夺世界狮王最高荣耀！ |url=https://www.rwgenting.com/content/dam/approved/rw-genting/web/images/press-releases/2023/CHI_Press-Release-Worlds-best-lion-dance-troupes-to-battle-for-glory-at-Resorts-World-Genting-this-August.pdf }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=July 2025}} Due to the need to perform difficult stunts in this competitions, Malaysian teams are believed to be the first to merge southern-style lion head with a shorter northern-style tail, and this trend has spread to Hong Kong and southern China.<ref name=1Malaysia />

The Ngee Ann City National Lion Dance Championships are an annual competition in Singapore, launched in the 1990s, held at Ngee Ann City on Orchard Road.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/who-will-be-the-lion-dance-king |title=Who will be The Lion (dance) King? |work=Straits Times |date= 10 September 2019}}</ref>

==In politics== The lion dance is seen as a representative part of Chinese culture in many overseas Chinese communities,<ref name="malaysia">{{cite book |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=0DfhMs0tD8IC&pg=PA167 |title=Histories, Cultures, Identities: Studies in Malaysian Chinese Worlds|author= Sharon A. Carstens |chapter =Chapter 8, Dancing Lions and Disappearing History: The National Culture Debates and Chinese Malaysian Culture |pages=144–169 |publisher=NUS Press |year= 2012 |isbn=978-9971693121 }}</ref> and in some Southeast Asian countries, there were attempts to ban or discourage the dance in order to suppress Chinese cultural identity in those countries.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=HAsB54UlQE8C&pg=PA10 |title=Media and the Chinese Diaspora: Community, Communications and Commerce |editor= Wanning Sun |page=10 |publisher=Routledge |year= 2006 |isbn=978-0415352048 }}</ref> For example, in Malaysia, lion dance was criticized by a Malay politician in the 1970s as not Malaysian in style, and the politician suggested that it be changed to a tiger dance.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Th2LQXthyrsC&pg=PA222 |title=Chinese Populations in Contemporary Southeast Asian Societies: Identities, Interdependence and International Influence |editor1=by M. Jocelyn Armstrong |editor2=R. Warwick Armstrong |editor3=K. Mulliner |page=222 |publisher= Routledge |year= 2001 |isbn=978-0700713981 }}</ref> Permits to perform it were not given by the government, except at Chinese New Year, after the National Cultural Policy (''Dasar Kebudayaan Negara'') was implemented from 1981 until 1990.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=JWP1m-nCghgC&pg=PA255 |title=Penang: Rites of Belonging in a Malaysian Chinese Community |author= Jean Elizabeth DeBernardi |page=255 |publisher=Stanford University Press |year= 2004 |isbn=978-0804744867 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Chee |first=Ang Ming |date=2011 |title=Institutions and Social Mobilization: The Chinese Education Movement in Malaysia |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/48645589.pdf |publisher=National University of Singapore |page=160}}</ref> Lion dance became a matter of political and public debate about the national culture of the country.<ref name="malaysia" /> Attempts were made to integrate the lion dance into a Malaysian national culture by incorporating Malay and Indian instruments during the 1Malaysia campaign launched in 2008.<ref name=1Malaysia />

During the Suharto era in Indonesia, public expression of Chinese culture was also banned in accord with anti-communism sentiment, and the ''barongsai'' (lion dance) procession was considered "provocative" and "an affront to Indonesian nationalism".<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=UFNKQcvGNSAC&pg=PA124 |title=Ethnic Chinese in Contemporary Indonesia |author= Leo Suryadinata |publisher= Institute of Southeast Asian Studies |year= 2008 |isbn=978-981-230-835-1 }}</ref> This ban was however overturned after the collapse of the Suharto regime in 1998, with then-president Abdurrahman Wahid lifting the ban.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rayda |first=Nivell |date=21 January 2023 |title='Tradition worth preserving': Lion dance sees revival after decades-old ban in Indonesia |url=https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/indonesia-lion-dance-barongsai-revival-performances-3217201 |access-date=2025-01-26 |website=CNA |language=en}}</ref> Nevertheless, the occasional local banning of the lion dance still occurred.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/archive/chinese-lion-dance-banned-in-indonesias-aceh/ |title=Chinese Lion Dance Banned in Indonesia's Aceh |date=December 21, 2009 |work=Jakarta Globe |access-date=February 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223002626/http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/archive/chinese-lion-dance-banned-in-indonesias-aceh/ |archive-date=February 23, 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

During the 1950s–60s, in some areas with high populations of Chinese and Asian communities (especially Chinatowns in many foreign countries outside of China), people who joined lion dance troupes were considered "gangster-like". This caused a lot of fighting between lion dance troupes and kung fu schools. A few performers hid daggers in their shoes and clothes, which could be used to injure other lion dancers' legs.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-03-20 |title=Lion Dance |url=https://wushushaolin.wordpress.com/lion-dance-booking/ |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=Wushu Shaolin Entertainment |language=en}}</ref> At one point, the Hong Kong government banned lion dances completely. More recently, lion dance troupes must attain a permit from the government in order to perform lion dance.<ref name="CR">{{Cite web |last=Ho |first=Kelly |date=17 November 2022 |title=Criminal records checks of lion dance performers necessary, Hong Kong security chief says |url=https://hongkongfp.com/2022/11/17/criminal-records-checks-of-lion-dance-performers-necessary-hong-kong-security-chief-says/ |website=Hong Kong Free Press}}</ref> It has been argued that the regulation was implemented to prevent lawbreakers from being involved.<ref name="CR"/> The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) stated that lion dances involving the "cai qing" ritual are not allowed to take place in condominiums and inside units during Chinese New Year. BCA also urged the Management Corporation Strata Titles (MCSTs) to increase surveillance at common areas during the festivities.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Soh |first=Gena |date=January 26, 2022 |title=Lion dance with 'good luck' ritual not allowed in condominiums during Chinese New Year |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/community/lion-dance-with-cai-qing-not-allowed-in-condominiums-during-chinese-new-year |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127070727/https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/community/lion-dance-with-cai-qing-not-allowed-in-condominiums-during-chinese-new-year |archive-date=November 27, 2022 |access-date=2025-01-25 |work=The Straits Times |language=en |url-status=live }}</ref>

==In popular culture== In the 1960s and 1970s, kung fu movies including Jet Li's ''Wong Fei Hung'' indirectly showed how lion dance was practiced in close connection with kung fu during that time, e.g., ''Dreadnaught'' and ''Martial Club''. In those days, the lion dance was mostly practised and performed as one aspect of wushu or kung fu skills, with challenge courses for the "lion" built of chairs and tables stacked up together for the "lion" to perform its stunts.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}} In the 1976 musical ''Pacific Overtures'' by Stephen Sondheim, the first act ends with a musical number titled "Lion Dance".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sondheimguide.com/pacific.html |title=Pacific Overtures |work=The Stephen Sondheim Reference Guide }}</ref> The Commodore Perry character performs a mixture of a kabuki version of lion dance and a cakewalk wearing an Uncle Sam costume and the long white wig and makeup of a kabuki lion, here used to express his feelings of success at having met with Japanese officials and opened Japan to trade for the first time in 250 years.<ref name="sheppard">{{cite book |url={{Google Books |GJOqDwAAQBAJ|page=373|plain-url=yes}}|page=373 |title=Extreme Exoticism |first= William Anthony |last=Sheppard |date= 2019 |isbn=9780190072704 }}</ref> The kabuki lion dance also appeared in the 1957 film ''Sayonara'' with Ricardo Montalbán.<ref name="sheppard" />

Several 1990s movies, including a remade version of ''Wong Fei Hung'', and the sequels of ''Once Upon a Time in China'', involve plots centered on lion dancing, especially ''Once Upon a Time in China III'' and ''Once Upon a Time in China IV''. The series' main actor, Jet Li, has performed as a lion dancer in several of his films, including Northern Lion dancing in ''Shaolin Temple'', ''Shaolin Temple 2: Kids from Shaolin'', ''Shaolin Temple 3: North and South Shaolin'', and Southern Lion dancing in ''Once Upon a Time in China III'' and ''Once Upon a Time in China and America''.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}}

Other films include ''The Young Master'', ''Dancing Lion'', ''The Lion Men'', ''The Lion Men: Ultimate Showdown'', ''I Am What I Am'' and ''I Am What I Am 2''.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}} Northern Lion dancing appears in Disney's 1998 film ''Mulan'', when the Hun villains sneak into the imperial city disguised as a large imperial lion. Lion dance has also appeared in popular music videos, such as Chinese hip hop group Higher Brothers music video for their single "Open It Up", Adam Lambert's music video "If I Had You", and Zayn Malik featuring Sia's music video "Dusk Till Dawn". It has also appeared in a music video "True To Your Heart" by 98 Degrees featuring Stevie Wonder, which was used to advertise the 1998 film ''Mulan''.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}}

In 2014, the film ''The Great Lion: Kun Seng Keng'' ({{lang-zh|t=大舞獅-關聖官|first=t}})<ref>{{Cite web |title=Revolutionising the lion dance: Kun Seng Keng Lion & Dragon Dance Association on keeping our cultural heritage alive |url=https://www.optionstheedge.com/topic/culture/revolutionising-lion-dance-kun-seng-keng-lion-dragon-dance-association-keeping-our |access-date=2025-06-12 |website=www.optionstheedge.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Lai |first=Matt |title=The Great Lion Kun Seng Keng |date=2014-05-29 |type=Action |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5335034/ |access-date=2025-06-12 |others=Su Ee, Henley Hii, Alan Ko |publisher=Asia Tropical Films}}</ref> was released, based on the true story of Muar's Kun Seng Keng lion dance troupe and its members, including multi-time world champion Chong Kok Fu.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-04-28 |title=Dances with lions |url=https://www.rage.com.my/dances-with-lions/ |access-date=2025-06-12 |website=R.AGE |language=en-US}}</ref>

The version 4.4 of the video game ''Genshin Impact'' introduced the playable character Yip Gaming, a "Wushou Dance" performer, which is Liyue's version of the lion dance.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sattler |first=Aydan |date=2024-06-04 |title=Genshin Impact: Ways Chinese Lion Dancing Influenced Yip Gaming's Design |url=https://www.thegamer.com/genshin-impact-ways-chinese-lion-dancing-influenced-gamings-design/ |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=TheGamer |language=en}}</ref> In ''Honkai Star Rail'', Diting is a type of Ingenium lion-dog created by the Xianzhou Artisanship Commission, which resembles the type of lion-dogs seen in the Lion dance. Another video game, ''Wuthering Waves'', features the character Lingyang, a "Liondancer" from the city of Jinzhou.

The ''Elden Ring'' downloadable content ''Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree'' introduces a new boss type known as the "Divine Beast Dancing Lion". Its appearance is akin to that of the Chinese Northern Lion. During the second phase of the battle, the Lion jumps into the sky and enters three elemental forms: lightning, ice, and wind.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/games/action/shadow-of-the-erdtree-divine-beast-dancing-lion/ |title=How to beat the Divine Beast Dancing Lion in Shadow of the Erdtree |date=4 June 2024}}</ref>

=== Romance of the Three Kingdoms === As a romanticized novel based on the history of the Three Kingdoms period, the historical novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' refers to Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Huang Zhong, Ma Chao and Zhao Yun as the "Five Tiger Generals" which served under Liu Bei. Many of the prominent characters from the novel are the namesakes of particular styles of lion dance costumes.<ref name="lion dancers"/>

[[Image:New York lion dance lion.jpg|right|thumb|A Cantonese Guan Gong (Kwan Kung) lion ushers in the Chinese New Year in Chinatown, Manhattan, New York City (US)]]

==== Liu Bei ==== The ''Liu Bei'' (Cantonese: ''Lau Pei'') lion is the eldest of the three brothers and has a yellow face with a white beard and fur (to denote his wisdom) and a multicolored tail signifying the colors of the five elements. There are three coins on the collar.

==== Guan Gong ==== The ''Guan Gong'' lion has a red face, black bristles, and a long black beard (as he was also known as the "Duke with the Beautiful Beard"). The tail is red and trimmed with black. He is known as the second brother and sports two coins on the collar.

==== Zhang Fei ==== The ''Zhang Fei'' lion has a black face with a short black beard, small ears, and black bristles. The tail is black and white. Traditionally this lion also has bells attached to the body as well as various designs. Being the youngest of the three brothers, there is only a single coin on the collar.

==== Zhao Yun ==== The ''Zhao Yun'' lion has a green face, a green tail, black beard and fur, and an iron horn. Often called the fourth brother, this lion is also called the Heroic Lion because Zhao is said to have ridden through Cao Cao's million-man army to rescue Liu Bei's infant and fought his way back out.

==== Huang Zhong ==== The ''Huang Zhong'' lion is a yellow lion with a yellow or orange face and body with white or silver beard and fur.

==== Ma Chao ==== The white lion is known as ''Ma Chao'' because Ma always wore a white armband in his battle against the ruler of Wei, Cao Cao, to signify that he was in mourning for his father and brother, who had been murdered by Cao Cao. This lion is therefore also known as the funeral lion, and is never used except for the funeral of an important leader. In such cases the lion is usually burned right after use as it is considered symbolically inauspicious or ill-fated to be kept around.<ref name="lion dancers">{{cite web |title=Hidden Meanings In the Southern Cantonese Lion Dance Costume |url=http://chineseliondancers.webs.com:80/Hidden_Meanings.htm |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828021348/http://chineseliondancers.webs.com/Hidden_Meanings.htm |archivedate=28 August 2011 |work=Chinese Lion Dancers}}</ref> This lion is sometimes confused with the silver lion, which sometimes has a whitish coloring.

==See also== {{Portal|China}} *Chinese New Year *Japanese New Year *Vietnamese New Year (Tết) *Korean New Year *Culture of China *Chinese guardian lions *Dance in China *Pantomime horse *Dragon dance *Tiger dance *Qilin dance *Shisa

==References== {{Reflist|2}}

==External links== {{Commons category}} *[https://www.china-cart.com/faq/lion-dance-complete-faq.html Lion Dance Complete FAQ] *[http://thelionarts.com/history.html The Genuine History Of Lion dance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160323000732/http://www.thelionarts.com/history.html |date=2016-03-23 }} *[https://sheng-wai.com/what-is-chinese-lion-dance/ The Beginner’s Guide to Chinese Lion dance] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110813132603/http://chineseliondancers.webs.com/Chinese_Art_of_Lion_Dancing.htm An in-depth article on the Chinese Lion dance] *[https://chinatownology.com/green_lion.html Information about Green Lions] *[https://chinatownology.com/lion_dance.html Additional information about Lion dance] *[http://www.shaolinway.com/shaolinway/shaolin-lion.htm The Chinese Lion dance] *[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1309&dat=19940211&id=he8VAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1xMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4101,189769 Malaysia Muar Lion dance Troupe is World Champion, ''New Straits Times'' 11 February 1994] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20160304031802/http://203.252.231.26/kukak_information/KoreaInsight/madangguk.pdf Korean Insights – Madangguk: Mask Dance-Drama]

{{Chinese New Year}} {{Authority control}}

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