Ethnic minortiy plays a very important role in Chinese culture. In the Chinese language, “bǎo ān” means the safe guarder, here it is another nationality. The Baoan nationality mainly lives in the Gansu Province. They speak the Banan language, which belongs to the Altaic language family. It originates from a tribe of Islamic Mongolians in the Yuan and the Ming Dynasties who integrated with some of the Hui, the Tibetan and the Tu nationalities. They mainly engage in agricultural production, and some of them involve in handicraft. The handicraft focuses on knife-making, and “Baoan Knife” has a history of more than 100 years, which, beautiful in shape and exquisite in decoration, is so sharp that a hair on the blade will cut immediately when it is blown gently. Boans are good at dancing and singing and most of them can sing the “Baoan Huaer”, which is unique in its extemporized verse and exquisite beauty.

1. Eating
Baoans mainly take wheaten food like “mantou”, fancy steamed roll, fried cakes, “kangguo mantou”, steamed stuffed bun, noodle soup, noodles with diced meat, cold noodles, “jiangshui” noodles and gluten, among which steamed buns and “kangguo mantou” are their common foods. “kangguo mantou” is made in the following manner. The bread is made with fermented dough and put into “kangguo”, and they might be pinched into different designs like peony and rose. Then the tightly covered wok is buried in the hot ash inside the “kang”. After suitably roasting, the bread is ready, which is crisp outside but soft inside. Baoans like beef and mutton, but they also have chicken, duck and fish. Tea is essential in their daily life. They generally have Fuzhuan tea, brick tea, and bowl-shaped brick tea in winter, and Shaanxi green tea and spring tea in summer. Some people like to have crystal sugar, dried “longan” in tea, which is called three-scented tea, and if dried apricot and raisin are added, the tea is termed as five-scented tea.

2. Wedding
Baoan weddings are usually held in the bride’s maternal home on Sundays on the Hui calendar. The ceremony starts with the imam’s chanting of scriptures amd praying for Allah’s blessing. Then the imam scatters out of the window a plate of red jujubes and walnuts, which, as symbols of happiness, people who have been waiting outside for a long time rush forward to grab. At the wedding banquet, young fellows crowd forward in groups to ask the host parents for lamb. In their hands, these fellows have cotton smeared with black pot soot, and they pull the parents into the courtyard and paint their face with soot when they fail to satisfy their requirements. People pay noisily to convey their congratulations to the newly-weds. At the head of sending procession, an aged woman scatters at each pace a handful of five-color grain, which is a symbol of blessing for maternal family as it means leaving luck and happiness behind. During the first three days after wedding, the bride will take home food brought along from her maternal home instead of food prepared by her husband’s family, which indicates that she will never forget her parents for their love and care.

3. Fire five shots
The traditional sports competition “fire five shots” is quite popular among Baoan folk. The participants, with their home-made guns, must perform the shooting in a succession from installing gunpowder, withholding the percussion cap to the final firing, and it is stipulated that all this succession of movements must be completed on the back of a galloping horse and the participants must fire five shots consecutively over 200 meters; distances. “Fire five shots” is generally held in the farming off-season equestrians mount their horses with guns ready in front of the starting line. At the order to start, they dash forward at lightning speed, while firing. Whoever first finishes five shots consecutively wins the game. The winner brings honor to his village and people come to warmly congratulate him. As magnificent and fierce competition, the activity not only stimulates qualities of bravery, tenacity and quick-wittedness, but also enhances the national sense of honor.