The Legend of Butterfly Lovers

The legend, the Butterfly Lovers (梁祝传说) tells the love story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. It is one of the "Four Folk Legends of China" and has a history of over 1600 years since its formation. The legend is based on the life and death love between Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, and was gradually developed into folk beliefs, folk art, literary creations and other comprehensive cultural expressions with a long history and rich forms. Among them, opera presents the most abundant forms. There are more than a hundred types of opera in China, and almost every one of them has a libretto for the "Butterfly Lovers."

Since its formation in the Jin Dynasty, 1600 years ago, the "Butterfly Lovers Legend" has spread mainly in Hangzhou, Ningbo, Shangyu, Yixing, Jining, Ru'nan, and other places, and has spread to all regions and all ethnic groups in China. As the legend spread, people around the world continued to enrich the content of the legend and even built many tombstones and temples with the Butterfly Lovers theme. In addition, it has spread to South Korea, Vietnam, Myanmar, Japan, Singapore, and Indonesia, and its influence is rarely seen in Chinese folklore.

In 2006, it was inscribed on the Representative List of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage.