第十二章 油茶承俗 岁岁年年

恭城油茶从来不止是一杯饮品，更是瑶族世代相传的民俗图腾，是刻在恭城人骨血里的节日仪式与乡情记忆。在瑶乡，逢年过节、婚丧嫁娶、待客迎客，皆离不开一碗热气腾腾的油茶，它贯穿了当地人的一生烟火，见证着岁岁年年的人间团圆。

新春佳节，是油茶香气最浓郁的时节。除夕守岁、大年初一拜年，家家户户早早架起铁锅、备好食材，全家老少一起动手捶茶。鞭炮声此起彼伏，油茶香萦绕庭院，晚辈端碗敬长辈，一碗热茶敬岁月，寓意岁岁安康、岁岁温热。走亲访友之时，主人必先端上油茶搭配各类粑粑小吃，以最热忱的乡土礼数款待宾客，没有奢华菜肴，却满是最真诚的心意。

瑶族婚嫁礼仪中，油茶更是不可或缺的重头戏。婚嫁当日，男方迎亲、女方送嫁，席间必备油茶连环宴，一碗碗热茶穿梭在宾客之间，象征着圆满顺遂、喜乐绵长。老一辈瑶族人常说，无油茶不成礼，在这片土地上，所有盛大的欢喜、郑重的仪式，都有油茶相伴见证。

除了节庆喜事，寻常岁月的民俗里，油茶亦是主角。春耕之时，农人晨起一碗油茶，暖身出力，奔赴山野田间耕耘劳作；秋收之际，阖家熬煮油茶，庆贺五谷丰登，感恩山河馈赠；逢上庙会赶集、村寨集会，邻里共聚捶茶品茗，闲话农事、畅谈生活，让乡土温情代代传递。

千百年以来，瑶山风雨更迭，街巷新旧交替，高楼取代老屋，时代更迭浪潮滚滚，但恭城人爱油茶、煮油茶、饮油茶的习惯从未改变。这碗山野孕育的本土咖啡，守住了瑶乡的民俗根脉，留住了一方水土的烟火底色，让古老的非遗文化，在岁岁年年的熬煮与品味中，生生不息、代代相传。

English

Gongcheng Oil Tea is never just a drink, but a folk totem passed down from generation to generation of Yao people, a festival ritual and hometown memory engraved in the blood of Gongcheng people. In Yao villages, steaming oil tea is indispensable for festivals, weddings, funerals and hospitality. It runs through the mortal life of local people and witnesses family reunion year after year.

The Spring Festival is the season with the strongest aroma of oil tea. On New Year’s Eve and Lunar New Year’s Day, every family sets up iron pots and prepares ingredients early, with the whole family joining in pounding tea. Firecrackers ring out continuously, and the fragrance of oil tea lingers in the courtyard. Younger generations serve tea to elders, paying tribute to years with hot tea, implying peace and warmth all year round. When visiting relatives and friends, hosts will first serve oil tea with various cakes and snacks, entertaining guests with the most enthusiastic local etiquette. Without luxurious dishes, it is full of sincere intentions.

Oil tea is an indispensable highlight in Yao wedding customs. On the wedding day, during the groom’s wedding reception and the bride’s send‑off, successive oil tea banquets are prepared. Bowls of hot tea circulate among guests, symbolizing perfection, smoothness and lasting joy. Elder Yao people often say that no ritual is complete without oil tea. On this land, all grand joys and solemn ceremonies are witnessed by oil tea.

Besides festivals and happy occasions, oil tea also plays a leading role in folk customs of ordinary days. In spring plowing, farmers drink a bowl of oil tea in the morning to warm up and work hard in the fields; in autumn harvest, families brew oil tea to celebrate bumper harvests and thank the gifts of mountains and rivers; during temple fairs and village gatherings, neighbors gather to pound and taste tea, chatting about farming and life, passing down local warmth from generation to generation.

For thousands of years, storms have changed in Yao mountains, streets have been renewed, old houses replaced by high buildings, and times have changed rapidly. However, Gongcheng people’s habit of loving, boiling and drinking oil tea has never changed. This native coffee nurtured by mountains and fields preserves the folk root of Yao villages and the mortal background of this land, making the ancient intangible cultural heritage thrive and pass down forever through annual brewing and tasting.