Wedding on water : Tanka fisherfolk wedding traditions of Tai O, Hong Kong

Abstract

The author’s interest in this dissertation topic came about as a result of a conversation with a Tai O Water Wedding Carnival volunteer who married to a fisherfolk family in Tai O. She revealed that her son was planning to follow the fisherfolk wedding traditions. Subsequently, the author was invited to attend a Taoist observance that was a pre-component of the traditional wedding ceremony, witnessing the revival of the cultural heritage of Tai O fisherfolk weddings. The traditional wedding ceremony of fisherfolk in Tai O, a remote fishing village on the western coast of Lantau Island, Hong Kong, is an integral part of their folk culture. It establishes a milestone passage from one’s adolescence to adulthood and a memorable moment to bid welfare to one’s family of origin and to welcome new family members. It is a time for social gathering of the community for bonding and cohesion and creating collective memories for the participants. This traditional wedding ceremony is a significant element of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in the Tai O fisherfolk community and gives the community cultural identity. However, this wedding ceremony tradition has lost its vitality as it has not been practised in full for more than half a century. Currently, this wedding ceremony tradition is under the threat of extinction. The dissertation focuses on the traditional wedding ceremony of Tanka fisherfolk in Tai O, documenting the transformation of its manifestation in the post-war. It identifies and examines how these traditions have been transformed and adapted to changing contexts and circumstances, such that reference can be made for future planning of safeguarding measures. The effectiveness of the current inventory system of intangible cultural heritage of Hong Kong is addressed to highlight the need for urgent safeguarding of the Tai O Tanka fisherfolk wedding ceremony and provide recommendations.