y() SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42 



they migrated from more central parts of China westward through 

 northern Yunnan. They do not Hke to be called Man-tzu or Lolo, but 

 prefer the name I-jen, Noso or Nosu. 



There are two castes of Lolos, the "blackbones" and the "white- 

 bones." The blackbones are the purest Lolos and are the rulers and 

 slaveholders. The whitebones, who are the slaves, are Chinese, Miao, 

 Tibetans, and others who have been captured and enslaved. The 

 blackbone Lolos are tall and brown in color. Their hair is black, their 

 eyes dark brown or black, and their noses are generally higher and 

 thinner than those of the Chinese. They belong to the Burma- 

 Tibetan branch of the yellow race. 



Their language, which is monosyllabic and tonal, with five tones, 

 is classified with the Burma-Tibetan group. Owing to long separa- 

 tion between different "tribes," there is considerable variation in 

 language between different ethnic groups. The language of the Lolos 

 is said by those who have studied it to resemble that of the Moso or 

 Nashi. I have noted a number of close resemblances in the vocabu- 

 laries of the Lolos and the Ch'iang, which is confirmed by Prof. Wen 

 Chai-yu, who has studied both languages. For instance, the Ch'iang 

 say sei for god and the Lolos say sii. Both the Ch'iang priest and the 

 Lolo priest are called hi mu or bi mo. 



The walls of their houses are generally made of beaten clay, but 

 sometimes of wood, bamboo, or stone. The roofs are often covered 

 with shakes or long, thick shingles held in place by large stones. Some- 

 times the roofs are covered with tiles or straw. There are generally 

 three rooms and often no windows. People sleep on mats of bamboo 

 on the ground around the fireplace, which is sometimes simply a hole 

 in the ground in the center of the room. Where Chinese influence is 

 strong, the stove is made of clay and stones or bricks. Generally the 

 only covering used when sleeping is the thick felt cloak worn by most 

 men and women. Many of the houses arc on mountainsides, but some 

 are on level places or plains. Small villages have as many as 20 or 

 30 houses. 



Of almost any ethnic group in West China it can be said that the 

 principal occupation is farming. Of the Lolos in the Liang Shan 

 region it is said that their main occupation is the pasturing of flocks, 

 particularly of sheep. There is some cultivation of wheat, maize, 

 buckwheat, oats, barley, rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and other 

 vegetables, and the domestic animals are cows, sheep, horses, donkeys, 

 water buffaloes, dogs and cats, and chickens, ducks, pigeons, and 

 geese. Next to pasturing and farming the main occupation is hunt- 



