Crisis and Challenges in the Inheritance of National Culture (Research on the Endangered Phenomenon of Tujia Language)

Author: Deng Youling
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: This book is divided into seven chapters. Chapter 1 briefly introduces the social and historical background, linguistic background, research significance, main content, and research methods of this study. Chapter 2 first explores the concept of endangered languages from a qualitative perspective, describing the general characteristics of endangered languages. It discusses the systematic, operational, and open principles for establishing a measurement index system for endangered languages. From a quantitative perspective, it proposes six indicators for measuring endangered languages: the absolute number of ethnic language users and their proportion to the total population of the ethnic group, the proportion of adolescent language users in the language community and their age group, language proficiency, language usage scope, the attitude of the language community toward their native language, and the decline in the systemic structure of the language (such as the forgetting, loss rate increase, decline in word-formation ability, and loosening or disorganization of grammatical structures of the native language). Chapter 3 mainly introduces the ethnic and social-historical conditions of the Tujia people closely related to the development of the Tujia language, as well as the basic situation of the Tujia language. It briefly argues the issue of the subfamily affiliation of the Tujia language, providing a macro-level analytical perspective for exploring the endangered phenomenon of the Tujia language. Chapter 4 traces the historical usage of the Tujia language. Chapter 5 focuses on describing and analyzing the current usage status of the Tujia language, as well as the two types of Tujia language usage at present: the Chinese language shift type and the bilingual mixed-use type. Chapter 6 focuses on examining the internal and external causes of the Tujia language evolving into an endangered language. In terms of sociocultural factors: the political Sinicization of the Tujia people by the central dynasty in history promoted the Sinicization process of the Tujia people; the innovation of economic activities increased the demand for the Chinese language among the Tujia people; the migration of Han people and ethnic mixing formed a situation of interaction and integration between Tujia and Han languages; the implementation and popularization of Han language education accelerated the process of the Tujia people shifting to the Chinese language; the active identification with Han language culture shook the sociopsychological foundation of Tujia language inheritance; and cultural influence and adaptation are the process and outcome of the Tujia language shift. Chapter 7 explores the possible consequences of the endangered Tujia language and whether it might be preserved.