Rebala Tujia Villages 惹巴拉

About Rebala Tujia Villages

The name is Tujia and translates roughly as a beautiful place; local tradition attaches it to the seat of a Five Dynasties chieftain called Reba Chong. What is on the ground is three settlements, Laoche, Liuhe and Shubi, all on the national register of traditional villages, about 75 kilometres from the Longshan county seat. Local shorthand describes the layout as three hills enclosing three rivers, three rivers circling three villages, and one bridge joining the three, which is a fair description of a site where the crossing matters as much as the houses.

The buildings are the vernacular of the Tujia uplands rather than grand monuments: stilt houses standing on posts above sloping ground, the corner-wing house form, the chongtianlou with its raised ventilating tower, a covered pavilion bridge over the water, and the hall known as Rebagong. The living traditions represented here include the baishou communal dance, the maogusi masked performance and the dongdongkui reed pipe, together with Tujia language, dress and working customs. Tujia brocade is woven in the villages as well: a recognised inheritor of the craft, Liu Dai'e, has run a hand-weaving workshop at Rebala and trained a large number of apprentices.

What to look for

• The three registered traditional villages of Laoche, Liuhe and Shubi, separated by the river confluence
• The covered pavilion bridge linking the settlements across the water
• Chongtianlou tower houses and stilt houses, the characteristic Tujia building forms of the area
• Rebagong, the hall named among the area's distinctive structures
• Tujia brocade woven on hand looms, a craft with a recognised intangible-heritage inheritor working in the village

Location & getting there

Getting to Rebala Tujia Villages

Identify the main visitor approach and any separately managed houses, museums or performances. Ask before entering residential spaces or photographing residents.

• Search for 惹巴拉 with 湘西土家族苗族自治州 and 龙山县.