As the only autonomous county of She Ethnicity all over the country, Jingning is also the birthplace of She people in Zhejiang Province. She folk songs are oral literature created during the production and life struggles of She people. It is the fruit of their wisdom, as well as an important component of She traditional culture. Most folk songs are preserved in She people's heads, and passed down orally from generation to generation. A portion of the songs are spread among people through manuscripts written in She language (significantly overlapped with Chinese characters).
She people are fond of folk songs. Singing is indispensable to wedding ceremonies, festivals, production and labor, entertaining guests, rest in one's spare time, courtship, and even funerals. People sing, instead of crying, to express their sorrow. Folk songs of She people are usually composed in the form of a four-line verse with four or seven characters to each line. A strict tonal pattern and rhyme scheme are required. There is a variety of She folk songs. In terms of the form, they are categorized into solos, antiphonal songs and unison. In terms of the content, they are divided into narrative songs, custom songs, labor songs, season songs, fictional songs, revolutionary songs, children's songs, and miscellaneous songs.
