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Full text release has been delayed at the author's request until December 15, 2029

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The Nature of Multilingualism of Ethnic Miao and Dong Liushou Ertong in Rural China

Jiang, Yizhe
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3100-359X
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1731726044894483

Abstract Details

2024, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, EDU Teaching and Learning.
To address the language shift and potential loss of ethnic languages and regional dialects in China, and to explore the dynamics of multilingualism among ethnic minority students in rural areas, this ethnographic study examined the language use, functions, and ideologies of two Miao students and two Dong students attending a suburban boarding middle school in Jinping County, Guizhou Province. These students, known as Liushou Ertong, live with grandparents and siblings in villages while their parents work in large coastal cities for better job opportunities and higher incomes. The students possess rich linguistic repertoires, being able to speak Putonghua (Mandarin, the medium of instruction at school), Jinpinghua (the regional Han Chinese dialect), Miao or Dong (their ethnic languages), and English (an important subject at school) with varying proficiency. Given the importance of school interactions in shaping the students’ multilingualism, the study investigated their language use and functions at school, as well as their language ideologies toward Putonghua, Jinpinghua, Miao, Dong, and English. Based on participant observations over six months, three rounds of individual interviews, and collected written, painted, and electronic artifacts over two years, the study found the following: (A) The four students predominantly used Putonghua in both formal and informal settings at school, sometimes using Jinpinghua. Ethnic languages were only used informally within small co-ethnic groups, and English was seldom used outside of English class. In addition, the two Dong students occasionally helped their Dong history teacher, Mr. W, by translating his expressions from the Dong language to Putonghua for their classmates. Another noteworthy observation is that the Dong students, despite having limited exposure to Jinpinghua prior to attending middle school, gradually acquired this dialect through interactions with their peers. (B) The students used language varieties other than Putonghua primarily to fulfill communicative, interpersonal, and metalinguistic functions, with subfunctions under each category. (C) The students held consistent ideologies toward Putonghua and English, viewing Putonghua as the formal language most important for their future careers and as a gentle and polite language. They found it easier due to having fewer tones compared to Miao, Dong, and Jinpinghua. English was considered the most difficult due to limited exposure and was seen as irrelevant to their future beyond examinations. They exhibited inconsistency in their language ideologies toward Jinpinghua and ethnic languages, particularly regarding their importance and linguistic variations. The study also involved a cross-group analysis between the Miao and Dong students, identifying that Dong students maintained a higher level of proficiency and confidence in their ethnic language while acknowledging significant linguistic variations within them. Practical implications for policymakers and educators working with ethnic minority children in rural China, as well as research implications for scholars in this field are also provided.
Francis Troyan (Advisor)
Peter Sayer (Committee Member)
Laurie Katz (Committee Member)
277 p.
Asian Studies; Education; Sociolinguistics
Multilingualism, ethnic minority languages, language domains, language functions, language ideologies

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Jiang, Y. (2024). The Nature of Multilingualism of Ethnic Miao and Dong Liushou Ertong in Rural China [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1731726044894483

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Jiang, Yizhe. The Nature of Multilingualism of Ethnic Miao and Dong Liushou Ertong in Rural China. 2024. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1731726044894483.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Jiang, Yizhe. "The Nature of Multilingualism of Ethnic Miao and Dong Liushou Ertong in Rural China." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2024. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1731726044894483

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1731726044894483
© 2024, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License The Nature of Multilingualism of Ethnic Miao and Dong Liushou Ertong in Rural China by Yizhe Jiang is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.
Release 3.2.12