ZHANG Hongmei
(School of Fine Arts, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571127, Hainan, China)

Abstract: The primitive pottery craft of the Li people on Hainan Island is a national non-material cultural heritage of China. This paper discusses the reasons about how the Li people can preserve this ancient craft for the past thousands of years. There are four main reasons:firstly, the long-standing primitive society restricted the development of the earliest pottery technique among Li people; secondly, the unique groups of Li people provided makers and consumers of the primitive pottery products; thirdly, the "Barter" transaction mode provided trading opportunities for Li pottery; finally, easy to make offers possibilities for Li families to make simple pottery objects as a family sideline. So,this primitive craft of Hainan’s Li tribe can be well preserved from generation to generation.

Key words: Hainan Province; the Li tribe; the primitive pottery craft; preserved alive; reason.