Overview
SUN Jiayue is a PhD candidate at HKIHSS, having commenced in September 2022, under the supervision of David A. Palmer and Angela K. C. Leung. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences from HKU and an MPhil from HKIHSS. His doctoral research investigates the religious traditions of carpenters in contemporary South China.
Sharing and Experiences
Jiayue’s academic training began in Sociology and Counselling during his undergraduate studies, and he has focused on Religion and Anthropology since joining HKIHSS. His MPhil research examined the Lanten Yao 藍靛瑤, an ethnic minority group in China and Southeast Asia, with particular attention to their religious texts and folktales. His MPhil thesis was titled “Many Faces of Woman Huang: Textual Anthropology of a Story in Lanten Yao Culture.”
During his PhD, Jiayue expanded his research to popular religion, examining ritual and magical traditions among craftsmen. His broader interests lie in the intersections of folk literature and popular religion. He has conducted long-term ethnography in Baoshan 保山, Yunnan Province, and has carried out extensive fieldwork across Hunan, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan. Beyond religious studies, he has participated in projects related to mental health, multiculturalism, and AI.
Jiayue has passed his PhD oral examination and currently holds the Dissertation Year Fellowship, allowing him to convert his dissertation into publications.
Research Interests
Popular religion; folk literature; ritual and magic; cultural anthropology; ethnic minority groups in China
Thesis Project
Apprentices of the Immortal Master: Ritual, Magic, and the Carpenters’ Cult of Lu Ban in South China
Publications
Journal articles
- Sun, Jiayue 孫嘉玥. “多面黃氏女：一則漢族佛教故事在藍靛瑤道教文化中的流傳與演變” (Many Faces of Woman Huang: Spread and Change of a Han Chinese Buddhist Story in Lanten Yao Culture). Minsu quyi 民俗曲藝 230 (2025): 129–177.
- Sun, Jiayue 孫嘉玥. “關於雲南保山香童戲楊氏、蘇氏壇班的調查報告” (Research Report on the Xiangtong Ritual Opera of the Yang and Su Troupe in Baoshan, Yunnan). Shanshu jingjuan yu wenxian 善書、經卷與文獻 13 (2025): 1–181.
- Guo Huiwen 郭慧雯, Joseba Estévez 周思博, An Wei 安蔚, Sun Jiayue 孫嘉玥, and David A. Palmer 宗樹人. “《老撾藍靛瑤文庫》：探討文本收集、編目、分類和評估的方法與相關問題” (The Textual Corpus of the Lanten Yao of Laos: Methodological Issues in the Collection, Cataloguing, Classification and Evaluation of Manuscripts). Studies in Chinese Religion 華人宗教研究 19 (2022): 25–64.
Book chapter
- Sun, Jiayue, and David A. Palmer. “Daoism and Spirituality.” In Oxford Handbook of Daoism, edited by James Miller, Robin Wang, and Jingcheng Xu. Oxford: Oxford University Press (forthcoming).
Conference papers and presentations
- Sun, Jiayue. “Textualizing the Teachings: A Preliminary Study of Ceremonial Memos (xingjiao shu) of the Lanten Yao in South Yunnan.” 2025 East Asian Anthropological Association Annual Meeting. Hangzhou: Zhejiang University, 1-2 November 2025.
- Sun, Jiayue 孫嘉玥. “千般都是魯班教——瑤族的魯班信仰、儀式與法術” (All Taught by Lu Ban: Faith, Ritual, and Magic of Lu Ban in Yao Culture). “From Heritage to Innovation: New Frontiers in 30 Years of Studies on Daoism and Chinese Cultural” International Academic Conference 「從傳承到創新：30年道家、道教與中國文化研究的新開拓」國際學術研討會. Chengdu: Sichuan University, 22-24, November 2024.
- Sun, Jiayue 孫嘉玥. “軍事隱喻與邊民認同——雲南保山香童戲與「五郎信仰」初探” (Military Metaphor and Marginal Identity: Xiangtong Ritual Opera and the Cult of Wulang in Baoshan, Yunnan). 2024 Annual Conference of the Chinese Nuo Opera Research Institute. Beijing: Beijing Foreign Studies University, 25-28 October 2024.
- Sun, Jiayue 孫嘉玥. “千般都是魯班教——瑤族的魯班信仰、儀式與法術” (All Taught by Lu Ban: Faith, Ritual, and Magic of Lu Ban in Yao Culture). International Conference on the Diversity and Unity of the Yao People. Yokohama: Kanagawa University, 11-12 November 2024.
- Sun, Jiayue. “Blessed Construction: Carpenter’s Manuals and the Cult to Lu Ban in South China.” 6th Annual Conference of the East Asian Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (EASSSR). Kashiwa: Reitaku University, 6-8 July 2024.
- Sun, Jiayue. “Indigenous Embryo, Daoist Husk: Rice Farming, Myths, and Rituals Among the Lanten Yao.” International Conference on Daoist Ritual and Chinese Society. Hong Kong: The University of Hong Kong, 18 November 2021.
- Sun, Jiayue. “Three Faces of Woman Huang: A Story in Three Genres in Lanten Yao Culture.” 12th International Convention of Asia Scholars (ICAS 12). Kyoto: Kyoto Seika University, 28 August 2021.
Translation
- Joseba Estévez 周思博. “藍靛瑤手抄本：儀式知識傳承中的法器” (The Lanten Manuscripts: Ritual Objects in the Transmission of Ritual Knowledge). Translated by Sun Jiayue 孫嘉玥. Studies in Chinese Religion 華人宗教研究 19 (2022): 65–111.
Thesis Supervisors
- Primary supervisor: Professor David A. Palmer
- Co-supervisor: Professor Angela Ki Che Leung
