8 Fierce Facts About the Lion Dance 关于舞狮的八个猛料

玛丽娜·王 译/狄沐祺

Each winter at the turn of the lunar calendar， the lion dancers put on a lively performance， gamboling1 about to the beat of pounding drums and crashing cymbals2. It’s a dazzling spectacle meant to draw in luck and prosperity， and as such， graces celebrations like the Lunar New Year， birthdays， or weddings where Chinese diasporas3 have landed around the world. Here are eight things you might not know about the ancient tradition.

1. The prevalence of lions in Chinese culture stems from Central Asia and Persia.

Lions never historically inhabited China， so how did the felines4 come to be such a common cultural fixture？ Their origin in Chinese culture begins in the Han dynasty （202 BCE–220 CE）， when the Silk Road was established to connect China with Europe. Along the way， emissaries5 from Persian and Central Asian states would gift lions to the Chinese emperor. The popularity of this imperial beast then percolated6 from the high courts onto the masses. Lions also play an important role in Buddhist mythology， which began spreading throughout China in the late Han Dynasty.

2. The lion dance is over 1000 years old.

After lions were introduced to the popular imagination， the animal may have been incorporated into the existing traditions of animal pantomimes7. Historical records from the Three Kingdoms period （220–280 CE） describe people dressing in lion costumes for Buddhist festivities， and later in the Tang dynasty （618–907 CE）， the lion dance became a well-documented court festivity.

3. There are different styles of lion dance that vary regionally.

Although rooted in China， the lion dance has spread across East Asia， with each region adding their own local variations. An array of styles abounds in Japan and Korea. In Indonesia， the lion dancers wear huge fur coats with hefty8 heads.

Within China， the lion dance can be broadly divided in Northern and Southern styles. The Northern lion is red and yellow with a shaggy9 fringe10， and is usually performed with a male and female and sometimes little cubs. The Southern lion， originating from the Guangdong province， is the most common type seen on the international stage. They usually come with a fur trim and an array of flamboyant colors， and are further subdivided into the futsan and hoksan styles. The former is meant to look more aggressive and the latter more cat-like and playful.

4. The lion dance features prominently in several Jet Li films.

If you want to see the lion dance and martial arts in action， check out Jet Li’s Once Upon a Time in China III （1992） and Once Upon a Time in China IV （1993）， where the Southern Chinese style of lion dance is central to the plot. To check out the Northern style， watch Shaolin Temple II （1984） and Martial Arts of Shaolin （1986）. If you’re more of a Jackie Chan fan， his early film The Young Master （1980） opens with an iconic lion dance battle.

5. Women were barred from doing the lion dance.

Martial arts academies were historically fraternities11， so women were generally excluded from practicing the lion dance. Since the martial art fraternity paradigm has largely dissolved， dance troupes have gradually warmed to women joining their ranks. Now， there are several women-led lion dance troupes around the world.

6. The lion dance makes appearances in the Guinness World Records.

In January 2011， the Hong Kong Dragon and Lion Festival Preparatory12 Committee organized a bonanza13 with 1，111 lions—a total of 2，222 performers—dancing in the streets of Hong Kong for the Lunar New Year. It became the largest paired lion dance in history.

Later that year， another record was set when 3，971 schoolchildren in Taiwan， China， each donned14 a lion costume and performed the world’s largest singly operated lion dance show.

7. Chinese Malaysians invented the extreme sport of high pole lion dancing.

The lion dance has historically been performed on the ground or in small obstacle courses， with lions leaping up onto chairs， balance beams， or upturned vases in a spectacle of balance and athleticism. This show of acrobatics was turned up a notch when Chinese Malaysians began performing routines on high wooden stilts. In the early ’90s， this became a standardized arena of metal poles ranging from 4 to 8 feet in height， and the high pole lion dance as a competitive sport was born.

Performances are scored out of 10. To impress the judges， teams must   choreograph a 7-to-10-minute long routine where they leap between poles while performing acrobatic stunts. The most prestigious international competition has been held every other year in Malaysia’s Resorts World Genting since 1994. During the 2018 games， 36 different teams competed from 16 countries.

8. The lion dance is getting a modern makeover15.

Chinese Malaysians aren’t the only performers revamping16 an ancient tradition. Teams in Singapore and Hong Kong， China have incorporated LED lights， EDM17， and hip hop into their routines. Kwok’s Kung Fu and Dragon Lion Dance Team in Hong Kong puts on a show with hip hop dancers clad in Tron-like suits bopping alongside flashy Chinese lions synchronized to EDM.

每年冬天农历年初，舞狮人就会上演一场生动的表演，随着锣鼓的节奏腾、闪、扑、跃。这项活动既壮观又炫目，寓意着吉祥与兴旺。因此，全球各地的华人会在春节、生日、婚礼等喜庆活动中用舞狮表演助兴。有关这项古老的传统，以下八个方面的知识你可能并不了解。

1.中国文化中对狮子的推崇起源于中亚与波斯

从历史上看，中国没有狮子。那么，这种猫科动物为什么成为中国文化中如此常见的符号呢？中国的狮子文化起源于汉朝（公元前202—公元220），那时朝廷为连接中国与欧洲开辟了丝绸之路。当时，丝路沿线的波斯和中亚国家派遣使者，将狮子作为礼物进献给中国皇帝。中国人对这一象征着皇权威严的野兽十分喜爱，这种喜爱从宫廷蔓延到了民间。汉朝晚期佛教逐渐传入中国，狮子在佛教典故中也扮演着重要角色。

2.舞狮活动已有1000多年的历史

狮子这一形象走进大众的脑海后，就可能被纳入了当时流行的动物哑剧传统。三国时期（220—280）的史料记载了人们身着狮子样式的服装参加佛教庆典活动。后来在唐朝时期（618—907），舞狮成为一项有大量文献记载的宫廷庆典活动。

3.舞狮的风格有地域之分

舞狮植根于中国，但传遍了东亚，并且每个地区都将本土特色融入其中。日本与韩国的舞狮风格丰富多样。在印度尼西亚，表演者往往穿着毛茸茸的肥大道具服装，戴着硕大的狮子头套。

在中国，舞狮大致可分为南狮、北狮两种舞法。北狮的造型通常为红黄两色，带有浓密的鬃毛，并且往往是公狮与母狮共同表演，有时会带着小狮子。南狮则起源于广东省，是世界舞台上最常见的舞狮种类。南狮的造型往往有皮毛镶边，色彩丰富艳丽，可以细分为佛山狮和鹤山狮。前者更好斗，后者则更像猫，更爱嬉戏。

4.舞狮在李连杰主演的几部影片中占有重要地位

如果你想在武打片中看到舞狮与武术表演，那就去看看李连杰主演的《黄飞鸿之三：狮王争霸》（1992）或《黄飞鸿之四：王者之风》（1993）。在这两部影片中，南狮对推动情节发展至关重要。带有北狮情节的影片则有《少林小子》（1984）与《南北少林》（1986）。如果你更喜欢成龙，他早期主演的影片《师弟出马》（1980），开片就是一场颇具代表性的舞狮打斗。

5.女人在过去是不能参加舞狮的

在历史上，武术界是男性的天下，因此女性一般被舞狮表演排除在外。自武术界的唯男性思想大大地淡化后，舞狮团体才逐渐欢迎女性加入他们的行列。现在，世界各地也有一些女性带领的舞狮团体。

6.舞狮也创造了一些吉尼斯世界纪录

2011年1月，香港龙狮节筹备委员会组织了一场由1111头狮子（也就是2222名表演者）组成的醒狮队，在香港街头表演，庆祝春节。这场舞狮活动成为史上最大型的双人舞狮狮阵表演。

当年晚些时候，中国台湾3971名学生每人穿上一套舞狮行头，进行了世界上最大型的单人舞狮狮阵表演，创造了又一项吉尼斯世界纪录。

7.马来西亚华人创造了高桩舞狮这项极限运动

舞狮历来都是在平地上，或者设有障碍的小型场地中进行的。狮子一般是跳上椅子、平衡木或者倒立的花瓶，展示自己出色的平衡和运动能力。而当马来西亚华人开始在木头高跷上进行常规的舞狮表演时，这项杂技对技巧的要求又上升了一個等级。在20世纪90年代早期，这项活动的表演模式演变为在4到8英尺高的金属桩上进行，于是高桩舞狮变成了一项竞技运动。

裁判以1至10分来评判选手的表现。为了赢得裁判的肯定，舞狮团队需要设计7到10分钟的舞蹈套路，在高桩之间跳跃的同时表演高难度杂技。自1994年起，马来西亚的云顶名胜世界，每两年都会举办一场这一领域中声望最高的国际性赛事。在2018年的比赛中，来自16个国家的36个不同团队参加了比赛。

8.舞狮正在焕发新的面貌

马来西亚华人并不是唯一在这项古老传统上进行创新的群体。新加坡、中国香港的舞狮团队在舞狮常规套路中加入了LED灯光、EDM电子舞曲以及嘻哈文化的元素。香港的郭氏功夫金龙醒狮团曾举办了一场别开生面的表演，嘻哈舞者身着类似于《电子世界争霸战》中的服饰，伴随着电子舞曲，与炫目的中国狮子共同起舞。

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖者;单位：首都经济贸易大学外国语学院）