Liánnán

Liannan lies among the mountains of northern Guangdong, home to the Pai Yao. Their settlements, known as pai, stand in rows up the slopes, with houses clustered together above the valleys. Nangang is one of the great villages traditionally counted among the Eight Pai. By the early Ming, the region was known for its eight large settlements and smaller villages. At Nangang, villagers built gates, walls, stone paths and bridges. The mountain settlement grew particularly large around the transition from Ming to Qing, and families from it later founded communities elsewhere in the surrounding hills.