The 18 tunes of Buyi folk songs are popular in the Buyi ethnic group settlements in Guiding County, Guizhou Province. They are also called "nine boards, thirteen tunes and eighteen tunes" of Buyi folk songs, which means that the same lyrics can be sung in 18 different tunes. Guiding County is located in the eastern part of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, on the northern slope of Miaoling Mountain, and the middle section of the Miaoling Mountain Range spans the southern part of the county. There are many ethnic groups living together in the territory, and the Buyi people are one of the main ethnic minorities. They are an indigenous ethnic group and have lived and multiplied here for thousands of years and have a rich history. The Buyi people have a language but no writing. As a branch of the ancient "Baiyue" tribe, they have lived and multiplied on the Guizhou Plateau very early. As a cultural symbol of this indigenous ethnic group, the Buyi folk songs were produced and developed along with production labor and social life. According to the "Draft of Guiding County Chronicles" compiled in the late Qing Dynasty, "In the first year of Kaihuang in the Sui Dynasty (581 AD), Guiding first built Binhua County in today's Daping Fachangguansi (now in Baoguan Township) and other major celebrations or sacrificial activities, the Yi people (now the Buyi people) folk songs were performed with their rich and diverse tunes." It can be seen that Buyi folk songs (Yi folk songs) were formed at least before the first year of the Sui Dynasty. The sentence "with its rich and diverse tunes, it is performed to the fullest" shows that Buyi folk songs that were formed before the first year of the Sui Dynasty had more than one tune. It can be inferred that the 18 tunes of Buyi folk songs in Guiding should have originated in the present Baoguan Township and spread in various Buyi villages centered on Baoguan Township. Yunwu Mountain, the birthplace of the 18 tunes of Buyi folk songs, is the production place of Yunwu tea, a tribute of the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Since ancient times, merchants have gathered here. The farming culture, historical culture and national culture are easily organically integrated with foreign cultures after a strong collision here. As an indigenous ethnic group, Buyi folk songs are gradually formed in production labor and social life. Due to the needs of life, this ethnic group has to migrate and branch constantly. The folk song tunes gradually vary and innovate in such a continuous migration and branching process. The "nine boards, thirteen tunes and eighteen tunes" are slowly formed and passed down in such variations and innovations. The "Nine Boards, Thirteen Tunes and Eighteen Adjustments" of Buyi folk songs are as follows: Nine Boards refers to straight board, returning board, single board, double board, flat board, winding board, rising board, falling board and flower board; Thirteen Adjustments include Pingfa tune, Yangchang tune, Yaoshang tune, Jiangzhou tune, Baimang tune, Bendi tune, Changming tune, Jiuzhi tune, Yanshan tune, Dingnan tune, Xinba tune, Luobeihe tune and Machanghe tune; Eighteen Adjustments include Hua tune, Ge (Mei) Lele tune, Ge (Mei) Yo tune, Shui tune, Dengluo tune, Miyanghua tune, Datu tune, Bendi tune, Liuliu tune, Yinghe tune, Jianliuliu tune, Liujuhua tune, Yohayi tune, Yowei tune, Yanshanhua tune, Yayai tune, Liang Zhu tune and Honghuakai tune. The known inheritance genealogy is: Luo Liu (7th generation), Luo Gao (8th generation), Luo Tan (9th generation), Geng Wenfu (10th generation), Geng Wenren, Ye Fanghui, Hu Minjuan, Luo Youyu, Luo Xianxian, Luo Chengqun, etc. (11th generation). When singing some ritual songs, the 18 tunes of Buyi folk songs require several tunes to be sung alternately. Each "tune" is not very simple and mechanically belongs to only one "tune" and one "board", but according to the attributes and characteristics of the tune itself, it belongs to multiple "tunes" and multiple "boards". In this way, it not only enlivens and sets off the atmosphere of the scene, but also shows the singer's skills. It is a cultural expression form for the Buyi people to communicate feelings, express their feelings to each other, and entertain themselves in their long-term production labor and social life. As a unique national cultural symbol, it has been inherited and developed for thousands of years. Whether it is the tune or the lyrics, they are deeply engraved with the cultural imprint of each era. It has important reference value for the study of ancient moral ethics, literature and music. Since the Buyi people have only spoken language but no written language since ancient times, the inheritance depends solely on oral transmission and the folk singers generally have the wrong idea of "keeping one hand". Therefore, to this day, there are very few folk singers who can sing all the "eighteen tunes" and can correctly tell which nine boards are the "nine boards", which thirteen tunes are the "thirteen tunes", which eighteen tunes are the "eighteen tunes", and which "tune" belongs to which tune and which board. At the same time, influenced by the media and modern culture of the times, the cultural and entertainment interests of the majority of rural youth have shifted. Even Buyi folk songs are rarely willing to learn and sing, let alone sing the "eighteen tunes", know the "thirteen tunes", and understand the "nine boards". (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)