From Xinjiang to the world, why has Manas been sung for generations?

On the western frontier of China, between the snow-capped Tianshan and Kunlun mountains lie oases and valleys that have nurtured horses, eagles and the Kirgiz people who have been singing for generations. Over the centuries, they have incorporated their ethnic history into their songs, resulting in the eight-part epic song of Manas, totaling over 230,000 lines long.

Manas is the legendary hero of the Kirgiz, and the epic song named after him tells the story of him and seven generations of his descendants, who led the Kirgiz people in their quest for a happy life against foreign invasion. Manas is renowned as the “Encyclopaedia of the Kyrgyz” and has been passed down orally for thousands of years, influencing generations of the Kyrgyz people.

It is the aspiration of all the Kirgiz to sing and pass on Manas from generation to generation. For them, it is not only to sing Manas to the mountains and waters of their homeland, but also to sing it for the whole world, so that this epic ethnic song can touch more audience.

Producer: Yang Gu

Chief Supervisor: Chen Jiandong, Song Leyong

Chief Planner: Che Jingwen, Jin Linghan

Script Writer: Yue Pei

Coordinator: Zhou Shuodi, Tao Yanyan, Yang Jingyi

Co-produced by: China Internet Development Foundation and GMW.cn