Academic Consensus Refutes Claims of Yi People's Middle Eastern Origins

A recent tweet from social media user 广百宋斋 @ 道非常 𓇌𓉔𓍯𓄿 has sparked discussion by asserting that the Yi ethnic group's origins lie in the "Israel Central Mountains" (Retjenu) and even Sudan, directly contradicting established historical and anthropological research. The tweet claims that the Yi "Zhilu Jing" (指路经), a traditional scripture, records "real topography" guiding the deceased to these distant ancestral lands.

The "Zhilu Jing," or "Scripture of Guiding the Way," is a pivotal epic poem recited by Bimo (Yi shamans or priests) during funeral ceremonies. Its purpose is to guide the soul of the deceased back to their ancestral homeland. However, scholarly interpretations widely understand the geographical references within the text as symbolic or pertaining to locations within the Yi people's traditional territories in Southwest China, not as literal maps to regions outside of Asia.

Mainstream academic consensus firmly places the historical development and migrations of the Yi people within the southwestern parts of present-day China. The prevailing theory, supported by archaeological and linguistic evidence, suggests the Yi are descendants of the ancient Qiang people, who migrated southward from northwestern China over many centuries into the mountainous regions of Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi.

Claims connecting Yi ancestry to ancient Egyptian or Near Eastern geographical terms like "Retjenu" (an ancient Egyptian term for the Levant) or locations in Sudan lack historical or archaeological support. Experts state there is no widely accepted academic evidence linking the Yi people's origins to Israel, the Middle East, or Africa. The "六祖陵" (Six Ancestors' Mausoleum), mentioned in the tweet as "Retjenu," is a significant cultural and ancestral site for some Yi subgroups, but it is situated within their traditional homelands in China.