Perpetuation of the Heritage

Ever since the 1960s, young people have been leaving the villages to work in urban areas or even overseas. Some villages hence lack young people to continue the unicorn dance tradition. In view of this, apart from passing on martial arts skills and the unicorn dance within the family, some villages have hired martial arts masters to train and nurture new blood. In recent years, a number of villagers have volunteered on their own initiative to train the younger generation, and scheduled a unicorn dance assembly for the first month of every lunar year to revive villagers’ interest in the tradition. On the other hand, for those who have emigrated to Europe, they make a point of taking the unicorn dance culture overseas. Currently, there are seven main groups for preserving the unicorn dance heritage in the Hang Hau district in Sai Kung. In 2013, they formed the “Joint Association of Traditional Hakka Unicorn in Sai Kung and Hang Hau, Hong Kong”. Apart from maintaining and promoting Hakka unicorn dance activities within the district, it also introduces the history of Hakka communities and their unicorn dance heritage to the general public.

While the Hakka villages in Hang Hau, Sai Kung have undergone several hundred years of transformation, the unicorn dance has served different functions in different periods. In earlier times, the unicorn dance served the all-in-one purpose of exercise, entertainment, protection of one’s home, and religious ceremony. Today, the unicorn dance, still an indispensable item in traditional ceremonies, remains a traditional activity that unites the villages, connects the villagers, and gives shape to the identity of Hakka communities at home and abroad.

The Hakka unicorn dance in Hang Hau, Sai Kung was inscribed onto the fourth national list of intangible cultural heritage in 2014.