Dongshan, a county in East China's Fujian Province, is famous for "Dongshan Gece," or Dongshan Songbooks, lyrics of traditional local songs that have been handed down for centuries.

Starting as early as the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Dongshan Songs evolved from the Chaozhou songs of neighboring Guangdong Province. Dongshan Songs integrate traditional local music, such as Nanyin, which originated in Quanzhou, and has developed into a unique art form in its own right.

The art form itself

The art form is called a "Singing Songbook," because one person intonates a long poem. Verses are plain and rhythmic, with smooth beats in the vocals. Some examples from the art form's repertoire include Wanhua Lou, Cui Mingfeng, Chen Shimei, Fengjiao and Lee Dan, The Legend of Sui and Tang Dyansties, Xu Gang Revolts against Tang, Fishing Girl, and the Net Weaving Song.

Dongshan Talking and Singing was popular among women before the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. The art form taught women about history, society and polite behavior in a time when education for women was otherwise limited.

Singing from the songbook is considered an honor, and it has become a custom to give the songbook as a dowry to brides, and sing from it at wedding ceremonies.