Fascinating Tradition of Uyghur Paper Making in Hotan, Xinjiang
The tradition of Uyghur paper making in Hotan (Khotan), Xinjiang has been around for more than 2,000 years, and yet somehow it rarely gets a mention in most travel guides or tour packages.
The truth is, if it weren’t for government subsidies, this local tradition of making paper from mulberry trees probably would have died off decades ago.
Despite all this, it has been a dream of mine to visit one of the families that still uphold this ancient tradition. Thankfully, my opportunity came this last summer, and I didn’t dare forget my camera!
Check out the video below for a visual description of this tradition … and don’t forget to give it a thumbs-up if you enjoy!
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Uyghur Paper Making | The Process
The process of making Uyghur paper from the bark of mulberry trees in Xinjiang is both complex and fascinating.
Generations of Uyghur families in and around the Hotan area (aka “Khotan”) have passed down the tradition that makes use of the region’s plentiful mulberry trees as well as the dry heat.
I learned that paper making using the bark of mulberry trees involves an 8-step process that takes a couple of days and at least 4 people to complete.
- Gathering & peeling branches: Branches from mulberry trees are gathered, and the bark is then peeled off, a painstaking task that is done by hand.
- Air drying: The bark that has been peeled away is then dried in the hot desert sun for 24 hours.
- Boiling the bark: Once the bark has been dried, it is boiled in a large iron pan over an open fire–usually one that is fed with what is left of the mulberry branches.
- Pounding the mixture: The soupy mixture that is the result of boiling the bark is then pounded into submission by a wooden mallet.
- Fermenting the mixture: After being pounded to death, this clumpy-looking bark soup is left in water to ferment. This word “ferment” is a direct translation of what I was told, but I’m not 100% sure that it means the same thing.
- Filtering mixture into a mold: What has now become a weird goo is then pressed into a mold that is basically a square wire mesh. The artisan carefully spreads the mixture out and presses it down into the mesh, removing any large clumps along the way.
- Drying in the sun: The wire mesh is placed outside where it will dry in the sun. During most of Khotan’s summer, this drying process doesn’t take long.
- Peeling and preparing for sale: Once dried, the paper is peeled from the wire mesh and prepared for sale.
Meet Abdukadir | Uyghur Paper Maker
Paper making has been a part of Abdukadir’s family for countless generations. Although there are a handful of paper making families around Hotan, for some reason I happened to meet Abdukadir.
As we sat in the small shop outside his courtyard, he explained with the help of photos how his father had taught him to make paper decades ago. Abdukadir pointed to a number of news clippings that had highlighted his father’s apparent skill in the paper-making tradition.
Even now, the tradition is a family affair. Outside, Abdukadir’s mother, wife, and daughter all sit in the shade, peeling away bark from the mulberry branches while chatting away. Just a couple feet away his son proudly holds a wooden mallet that is used to pound the boiled bark down.
Paper making is a family business for Abdukadir, and it’s a Uyghur heritage that he is proud to carry on.
Uyghur Paper | An Undeveloped Souvenir
At the end of my tour of Abdukadir’s shop, he led me into his small souvenir store. Inside, shelves on every wall were lined with stacks and stacks of mulberry bark paper.
I was eager to purchase nice travel journals or simple books to give as gifts. It seemed like the perfect Xinjiang souvenir!
But the development of “souvenirs” isn’t on Abdukadir’s priority list. Loose-leaf booklets and flip books stapled together were the best I could get. Yet somehow they seemed to fit the setting.
I ended up buying a number of small booklets that were easy to transport back home with me. Best of all, everything I bought was relatively inexpensive!
Each little booklet had a red stamp which proudly proclaimed that this was “和田纸” or “Hotan Paper.” Handwritten in both Uyghur script and Mandarin characters is the signature of Abdukadir.
Uyghur Paper Making | Tourist Info
To those interested in viewing this fascinating process of making paper out of mulberry bark, the first thing I suggest is that you pick up a copy of the FarWestChina Xinjiang travel guide.
The small Uyghur village was a good 45-minute drive from the Hotan city center, but it was a worthwhile trip, not just for the paper making but also for the scenic tour of the Hotan countryside.
You’ll need to hire a driver to take you out to the village and back, and this is the information that you’ll need:
- What: Hotan Uyghur Paper-Making Shop
- Where: The Puqiakeqi Village in Hotan’s Moyu county
- Chinese Address: 和田墨玉县普恰克其乡布达村2小队
- Who: Ablimet Abdukadir
- Contact: 132-3981-9347
hello,
would you buy a small booklet for me and send it to France ? :-)
Arnauld
ps : I know it’s kind of mission impossible though.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:19 pm
Ha! I wish I could, Arnauld :)
Arnauld on January 31st, 2016 at 5:52 am
he, that’s ok :-) I asked a friend living in Xinjiang to send me 4 booklets when he has time to do so…
Thanks for your wonderful blog, and pics and articles !
Great video, Josh! All the years that we lived in Xinjiang, and I never knew where the special Uyghur paper came from!
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:20 pm
Thank you, Mike! Glad you enjoyed…wish you could have visited with us :)
Thanks for the video. Ever since I took Chinese Brush painting lessons in China in 1981, I’ve been wanting to see how the xuan paper is made. Looking forward to visiting Hotan and will contact you when the planning starts. So glad you are there.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:20 pm
My pleasure, Joanne! Hope you’re able to come out here soon.
Hey Josh and all travellers,
I appreciate how you let us discover this fascinating counrty and specially with this short video.
If you have no time to drive outside Hotan to see a paper making factory, there is a small “family factory” near the center of Hotan at 37°7’24″N 79°55’9″E which I visited in 2012. Very nice family. I hope they still produce this superb mulberry-paper.
Jean-Louis
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:21 pm
Wow…I didn’t know that. Thanks for sharing, Jean-Louis. I’ll have to check that out!
Another splendid video … I ‘ve recommneded so many of your ‘postings’ to friends. I visited Xinjiang about 5 years ago and your blog has inspired me to return. Thanks for the stimuli.
Richard (on the west coast of canada)
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:21 pm
Thank you so much, Richard! I’m so glad to hear it’s been an inspiration.
Your video and blog entry are excellent! They clearly and beautifully show the paper making process. I’ve seen paper made similarly in Southeast Asia, but your description and pictures bring it to life. Thanks!
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:22 pm
Thank you, Jean Ash! I’m glad I was able to bring it to life for you ;)
Wonderful story and video of prideful workmanship passed from one generation to the next. Thanks so much for preserving this ancient art in pictures and prose.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:22 pm
I appreciate the comment, Dr. Besser! I’m glad to know that you enjoyed it so much.
Wow, what another great video about the Uyghur culture and Xinjiang. Super interesting. I want to on the list to have a booklet sent to the US. Keep up the great videos on your travels. We look forward to your book being released in print on Amazon.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:23 pm
Thank you so much, William!
I saw something similar in Laos, where they also put flowers in the mix. It makes beautiful paper. it’s not often any more you can get locally made souvenirs like that. I’m impressed the government supports it.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:24 pm
I agree – I’m glad that the government subsidizes his work, otherwise I think he would have to close up shop. I’ve never been to Laos but that flower paper sounds amazing as well!
enjoyed the video – saw this same process on the outskirts of Samarkand and found it fascinating – yes we too bought some paper
keep me on your email link – appreciate the insights
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:24 pm
Much appreciated, Elizabeth!
Very beautiful!
Love the video, thanks Josh
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:25 pm
Thank you, Yunus! Glad you loved it ;)
Great video, Josh and your book is also very good but I’ll be pleased if you can get it published in print too.
I liked Xinjiang very much when I visited a couple of years ago; I passed through Khotan and wish I’d seen the paper making. But Xinjiang is a magical place. Everyone I met – Uyghur and Han Chinese, were all incredibly friendly and welcoming.
I might be in Urumqi again this year.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:25 pm
I’m working on it, Robbo. It’s a lot more work than I first imagined! :)
Thanks for the specific information. I am incorporating into my Hotan itinerary for mid June.
Josh Summers on January 30th, 2016 at 3:26 pm
Great! I hope you have an awesome trip, Eric :)
Hi Josh. Heard that Xinjiang has just hosted the national winter games. Could you write an article about this and the general enthusiasm of residents here toward the games especially ice hockey? Thanks
Beautiful video. Thanks for all your hard work!
Josh Summers on February 1st, 2016 at 2:42 pm
Thank you, Chris!
The papermaking video was wonderful! I particularly liked the sounds of the town in the background. Hard to believe that three people amassed so many sheets of paper!
Josh Summers on February 3rd, 2016 at 8:58 am
Thank you, Carol! I agree – the sounds of Hotan are very enjoyable. :)
Hi Josh, did you upload an equivalent video somewhere so that can be viewed without climbing the wall?
Josh Summers on February 17th, 2016 at 3:21 pm
Hi David! Unfortunately I haven’t been able to do that yet. Youku (the Chinese equivalent of YouTube) tends to block all of my videos, presumably because they’re about Xinjiang :(
hi Josh,
I m planning to visit Xinjiang province soon especially Urumqi and Kashgar. Appreciate your travel advice and tips. Love to travel the ancient Silk Road cities and explore the culture, heritage, food and of course the great people.
Anyway, I m Nik from Malaysia.
Josh Summers on March 23rd, 2016 at 1:27 pm
Glad it’s been helpful! Hope you’ve been able to check out the FarWestChina Xinjiang travel guide that has extensive chapters on both Urumqi and Kashgar.
Great video and write-up!
What does he charge for those pads, or other souvenirs, if you remember?
Josh Summers on January 17th, 2018 at 9:26 pm
Thanks, Michael! They were super cheap, I think something like US$1-2 for a pad. I bought a ton of them ;)
Unfortunately, I’ve heard he’s no longer able to do business out there. I don’t know for sure.
Hi my name is msangi from Tanzania l,like this business of making paper sorry can you help me what kind of chemical needed in bleaching old news paper and old magazine, occ( fibres )
Josh Summers on February 28th, 2018 at 11:31 pm
Unfortunately, I don’t know! I don’t think there were any chemicals being used in this case.