Repetitive singing, talking and tea brewing ritual by matchmaker involves whole family of bride-to-be sitting around hearth in contemplation
China’s Derung ethnic minority uses a single cup of tea to convey acceptance or rejection when it comes to a proposal of marriage.
This unique ritual takes place during the “Saying the Marriage” custom, or Shuohun in Chinese.
It is practised by the Derung ethnic group, whose population is around 7,000 and which primarily lives in the Derung River Valley of Gongshan Derung-Nu Autonomous County in Yunnan province, southwestern China.
They speak the Derung language, one of the Sino-Tibetan languages.
