Hepu ying lao ye
The sixteenth and seventeenth of the first month, at Hepu in Haojiang, Shantou: a daytime session with painted-face skits, and a night session put together by the village’s own young men with LED strings over their bodies and a DJ’s music going round the village. The two could hardly be more different, and seeing one gives the wrong idea of how this village does it. No entry in the heritage lists.
Four photographs of the 2023 session on the sixteenth of the first month, from posts by the Douyin user @是雪梨啊; used only to introduce this session, and withdrawn if the author asks.
1. Two sessions, two ways of doing it
The daytime session goes the traditional way: palanquin, gongs and drums, painted-face skits. The night one is organised by the village’s young men themselves, LED strings over their bodies and a DJ out in front, a circuit of the village. One thing, and two generations each doing it their own way.
That is also the key to judging this one: to see the rules clearly, go by day; to see the atmosphere, go by night.
| Year | Lunar date | Gregorian |
|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 16th and 17th of the 1st month | 21 February, Sunday; 22 February, Monday |
| 2028 | 16th and 17th of the 1st month | 10 February, Thursday; 11 February, Friday |
| 2029 | 16th and 17th of the 1st month | 28 February, Wednesday; 1 March, Thursday |
| 2030 | 16th and 17th of the 1st month | 18 February, Monday; 19 February, Tuesday |
| 2031 | 16th and 17th of the 1st month | 7 February, Friday; 8 February, Saturday |
The Gregorian column is a calendar conversion and does not mean it will be held that way; no announcement for 2027 or later has been seen.
2. Who does it
Hepu is in Haojiang district, in the same district as the old walled town of Dahao. The night session is not put on by any authority: the village’s young men gather the people, supply the lights and run the music themselves; the daytime session follows the old practice.
The lists: no heritage entry found. That means no matching list entry was found, not that the event does not exist.
Getting there: the nearest station is Chaoyang, for Hepu in Haojiang, over Queshi bridge; the night session ends late and most people stay in Shantou city. In festival time village roads often run one way or are closed at short notice, and a navigation estimate excludes parking and the walk in; a night session often ends after nine, and the way back should be checked against the year’s timetable rather than reasoned from past experience.
3. Where to stand
Two layers: how past reporting describes it, and where this site suggests standing.
As past reporting describes it. The night session is loud, with scattered light, and the tightest press is near the speakers and the generator boxes; the report gives no fixed viewing area and no cordon.
An editorial note. With children, stay on the outer ring and away from the speakers and boxes; the light at night is a mess, so turn the flash off; the village lanes are narrow, so leave the car outside. These are suggestions made here from standing at such sessions, not the rules of the organisers or the police.
4. Sources
| Source | Body | Date | What it establishes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Report on Chaoshan new-year custom | Nanfang Plus | 1 March 2024 | the two processions at Hepu; the night session run by young men with light strings; the painted-face skits by day |
There is one source that can be opened, and it goes only as far as the report does; the exact setting-out times of the two sessions are not given.
5. What comes next
In lunar order: on the same days, the Dachanglong lantern greeting, the three mountain kings go out and Xidong, leaping the fire pits; Hepu’s second day is the sixteenth, the same day as Xikou, through the sugarcane lanes. Also in Haojiang is the Fenggang temple fair.
Elsewhere on the site: ying lao ye: its form and the village days, the old walled town of Dahao, Shantou routes.
Back to the Chaoshan procession calendar for all twenty-three sessions.
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Last revised: 4 November 2026