In Xunpu Village, Quanzhou, Fujian, the sea breeze carries a salty, humid breath as it sweeps across the mottled walls of the oyster-shell houses. The women here have always loved to adorn their hair with the beauty of all four seasons, weaving blessings into the coiled strands of their tresses. This is the nearly thousand-year-old custom of the Xunpu women known as "Zanhuawei," a national-level intangible cultural heritage. And Qingtian—Huang Liyong, a local girl playfully called "a bit willful" by her fellow villagers—was the first to turn this beauty worn atop the head into a sustainable enterprise.
"Since I was little, the women around me—my mother, my grandmother, my great-grandmother—they all wore flowers in their hair their entire lives." In Qingtian's childhood memories, the curtain tassels in the bedroom were her great-grandmother's most vivid teaching aids; those long, thin tassels were the threads used to simulate Zanhua (flower hairpinning). She watched as this ancient craft, which had continued from the "bone-pin hair-fastening" tradition of the Song and Yuan dynasties, gradually became a habit lingering only in the hair of the elderly. The thought "I want to protect it and pass it on" grew ever more resolute in her heart; for her, this was not merely a livelihood skill, but a way to safeguard the living imprint of her community.
Stepping into Qingtian's studio, a row of colorful "large-front blouses" and "wide-leg pants" greets the eye. She explains that every seam and every color in this traditional attire holds the wisdom of fishing life—the wide pant legs facilitate work, while the festive red embodies the Hokkien people's hopes for good fortune. The entire Zanhua process, in turn, is a blessing-filled journey steeped in ritual. A red cord is used to coil the long hair into three or four circles at the back of the head, each circle carrying a beautiful blessing for life: the first circle symbolizes growth and health, the second represents the courage of youth, the third stands for the striving of middle age, and the fourth signifies the well-being of later years. Then, a bone hairpin secures this complete bun. "Tying up this round bun is also like our family—the family is the backbone. The flowers are like family members; no matter where they come from, they come together in perfect fullness."
Next, a fish-shaped comb is tucked at the forehead—a simple tool that fishing women once used to tidy stray hairs while working by the sea. Then, silk flowers or fresh blooms are carefully pinned into the hair bun. Red roses symbolize passion, carnations represent motherly love, magnolias signify purity... each flower carries its own blessings and hopes. Finally, a golden comb is placed among the flowers, meaning a life of preciousness. This entire process is not merely a display of craftsmanship; it reads like a wordless history book, telling of the Xunpu women's life philosophy—living alongside the sea and thriving in the sunshine.
More than a decade of persistence finally began to pay off in recent years. With the spread of celebrity endorsements and TV media, this once-quiet little fishing village has surged into the spotlight as a red-hot cultural tourism IP. Qingtian's life has become exceedingly busy, but she is even happier to see that this "Zanhua craze" has ignited entrepreneurial passion among countless women, especially the young, and has attracted makeup artists and photographers from across the country to come and learn about and experience this unique craft.
What moves Qingtian the most are the moments when she takes Zanhua abroad. In France, when foreign friends first approached with curiosity and a certain distance, but later, after putting on the flowers and traditional attire themselves, their hugs for her were "very, very firm." "You can truly feel that power—it really needs no words; beauty is a universal language." At that moment, she realized that what she was spreading was not just an ornament, but a universal aesthetic that could cross cultural barriers—a key that ignites people's desire to explore the maritime civilization of the East.
From one person's willfulness to a village's moment in the spotlight, Qingtian has validated the value of perseverance with every solid step she has taken. Today, her daughter has also become a "Zanhua ambassador." Sunny often tells her daughter and all young people, "No matter whether you end up working in this field, wherever you go, you must tell others that your hometown has such a beautiful culture." In her view, living in this age of abundant information, being able to revitalize a thousand-year-old culture is itself an immensely beautiful thing. And she will continue to do everything she can to let this fragrance from a Hokkien fishing village travel farther and bloom ever more brilliantly.
(Reporters: Rainy, Julianne; Cameraman: Julianne, Tom Qian; Video editor: Julianne; English editor: Zheng Xiaoyi, Darius)
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