In Yunan China, the Naxi people or the "Yi Hehe" play a bamboo variation of this jaw harp, a single piece of bamboo with a carved lamellaphone. Under the Mandarin-Chinese name [Koukin = a generic name for jaw-harps], sometimes a varient name is also found [kouxian = which, in English translates as "mouth-string"]. There are 3 or 4 piece versions of these jaw-harps being being the most common.

The brass variation or version of this instrument is played by many minority ethnic groups both in China and in Vietnam; the minority groups are "Lahu Ata", the "Yi Hehe", the "Hani aye", and the "Jinuo qikui". The bamboo variation is mainly played by the Naxi peoples in Yunan, China.