Fashioning oil-paper umbrellas is a unique cultural practice of the Hakka people.
With Hakka people comprising more than 90 percent of its 40,000 population, Meinong District in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City is a focal point for the ethnic group’s culture. The district is most famous for handmade oil-paper umbrellas. Lee Ming-hsiang (李明祥), a second-generation craftsperson from Lee Umbrellas, who now runs Yuanxiangyuan Paper Umbrella Culture Village, said there are different stories about how and when the craft was brought to Meinong, yet there is little information on why it is rarely found in other Hakka communities.
In addition to offering protection from the rain and the sun, oil-paper umbrellas embody special meanings in the Hakka language. For example, because the words “oil paper” and “have son” are homonyms, the umbrellas have traditionally been given as wedding gifts expressing a wish for the newlyweds to have a son. Also, as the Chinese character for “umbrella” (傘) contains five copies of the character for “person” (人), they also represent a blessing for the couple to have many children and grandchildren.
Oil-paper umbrellas are still fashioned from natural materials. Bamboo is used for the ribs and the pole; the canopy is made from cotton paper; persimmon juice serves as an adhesive; and tung tree oil is painted on as a waterproof coating. According to Lee, when the industry was at its peak in the early 1960s, there were about 20 manufacturers in Meinong producing more than 20,000 oil-paper umbrellas annually. In the following years, however, only a handful of shops survived the challenge posed by factory production as the country’s manufacturing sector grew. It was not until the 1980s, when Meinong became a tourist destination, that the umbrellas regained their popularity.
Today, Meinong artisans decorate the canopies with calligraphy, art and other designs to appeal to tourists searching for a souvenir. Despite these aesthetic touches, in all other respects they remain faithful to tradition, using only original materials and techniques, so that the umbrellas retain their cultural significance for the Hakka people.
—by Jim Hwang
Meinong’s oil-paper umbrellas are made from natural materials such as bamboo and cotton paper.
Before a canopy is painted, it is coated in persimmon juice to make it more colorfast.
Although a symbol of Hakka culture, the traditional practice of making oil-paper umbrellas is rarely seen outside of Meinong.
Craftspeople create many different designs to cater to souvenir hunters.
By staying faithful to the traditional methods of making oil-paper umbrellas, Meinong artisans are keeping an important aspect of Hakka heritage alive.