An Oral History Study of Tujia Hand-Waving Dance Practitioners in Enshi Prefecture

This paper focuses on the oral history research of inheritors of the Tujia Hand-Waving Dance in Enshi Prefecture. As a national-level intangible cultural heritage, the living transmission of the Hand-Waving Dance relies crucially on its inheritors. The study begins by reviewing the origin and development of oral history methodology and its application in sports intangible cultural heritage research. It then analyzes the structure of Hand-Waving Dance inheritors in Enshi Prefecture (predominantly mid-to-low level) and its diverse modes of transmission, pointing out the current lack of systematic and comprehensive oral history collection efforts targeting these inheritors. The article elaborates on the multiple values of conducting this oral history research: preserving living skills and rituals, excavating deep cultural connotations, reconstructing cultural subjectivity and discourse power, providing unique academic perspectives, and fulfilling the duty of salvage preservation. Finally, strategies for advancing the research are proposed: establishing an ethics-first principle, promoting transcription standardization, constructing a digital humanities archive, and implementing a collaborative talent cultivation plan, aiming to provide support for the sustainable preservation and in-depth study of the Hand-Waving Dance.