With a history spanning over a thousand years, the Yao people are one of China’s oldest ethnic minorities, tracing their origins to the ancient "Jiuli" and "Sanmiao" tribes . As of the 2020 census, their population in China reaches 3.31 million, primarily residing in the mountainous regions of Guangxi, Hunan, Yunnan, Guangdong, and Guizhou provinces, forming a "widely scattered yet locally concentrated" settlement pattern . Beyond China, communities of Yao people also live in Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and even the United States, maintaining their unique cultural heritage across borders .​ The Yao people have a rich cultural tapestry shaped by centuries of migration and mountain living. They speak languages belonging to the Hmong-Mien language family, with some branches adopting Chinese characters for written communication . Their traditions are deeply intertwined with nature, from slash-and-burn farming and hunting to intricate crafts like batik and embroidery . Festivals such as the Panwang Festival (commemorating their mythical ancestor Panhu) and Yaonian (Yao New Year) are central to their communal life, reflecting a profound respect for ancestors and the natural world .

Known as "one of the world’s three great bathing cultures" alongside Finnish saunas and Turkish hammams , the Traditional Yao Medicinal Bath is a cornerstone of the Yao people’s health philosophy. Its origins date back to the Yao ancestors’ arduous migrations, during which they faced scarcity of medical resources, harsh mountain climates, and prevalent diseases like rheumatism and typhoid fever . To survive, they developed a profound understanding of local flora, creating herbal bathing formulas that have been refined and passed down through generations.​ The Yao herbal bath is a masterpiece of natural healing, crafted from over 30 wild medicinal herbs such as zhuifengsan (wind-chasing umbrella), banbianfeng (half-side maple), jiulongteng (nine-dragon vine), and xueteng (blood vine) . These herbs, sourced sustainably from the mist-shrouded Jiuzhou Mountains, are combined into 188 distinct prescriptions targeting 47 categories of illnesses . The preparation follows strict traditions: herbs are collected at specific times (e.g., mugwort harvested at dawn on Dragon Boat Festival for maximum potency), soaked for hours, boiled slowly, and filtered into cedarwood tubs .