The Origin， Characteristics and Adjustment

Genga Wengmu

（School of Tibetology， Southwest University for Nationalities，Chengdu，610041，Sichuan，China）

JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGY， VOL. 7， NO.2， 14-20， 2016 （CN51-1731/C， in Chinese）

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2016.02.02

Abstract：

Daofu Tiebtans are a very old ethnic group within Kangba Tibetans. During the process of linguistic cultural contact with other ethnic groups， Daofu Tibetans were inevitably influenced by the linguistic contact. Especially during recent years， a trend developed where the “Daofu Tibetan

language” shifted to a bilingual culture of “Daofu Tibetan—Chinese language ”. Focusing on an exploration on the types， the history of contact between the Daofu native language and Chinese language， as well as the languages used in different areas of Daofu， this article analyzes the origin， characteristics and adjustment of the Daofu Tibetans bilingual cultural phenomena from various perspectives and aspects in order to discover the characteristics and development rules of the Kangba Tibetans bilingual cultural phenomena.

I. The Origin of the Daofu Tibetans Bilingual Cultural Phenomena

The history of linguistic contact of the Daofu language and Chinese language is also a history of the contact and history of the Daofu Tibetans and Han Chinese. According to the historical cultural background of the formation of the Daofu Tibetans bilingual cultural phenomena， we can summarize it into two types of contact， including cultural contact and geographical contact.It was through these two types of contact that a bilingual cultural pattern—namely， the co-existence of the Daofu language and Chinese， gradually formed in the Daofu area.

1. Cultural Contact

Language is not only a social phenomenon， but it is also a communication tool. Hence， social contact will inevitably bring linguistic contact. In-depth cultural contact will inevitably be followed by a two-way cultural influence. Therefore， within the larger cultural context of the Tibetan area， Han Chinese migrants have lived with Daofu Tibetans for several hundred years， and conducted frequent economic and cultural exchanges with the Daofu Tibetans. While the Daofu Tibetans absorbed and borrowed Han Chinese culture， such as their advanced production techniques， the Han Chinese who migrated to Daofu in early times were also deeply influenced by Tibetan culture. The linguistic contact within the process of cultural exchange is more prominent. Therefore cultural exchange provides a fertile ground for the linguistic contact between the Daofu Tibetan language and Chinese language.

2. Geographical Contact

Geographical contact means that the linguistic contact originated from the fact that two different linguistic ethnic groups lived as neighbors and had frequent communication， or that they lived together for a long time. The geographical contact between the Daofu Tibetans and Han Chinese has a very long history， and it resulted in a complex geographical contact between the Daofu Tibetan language and Chinese language. We can divide the geographical contact of the Daofu language and Chinese language into two sub-types， namely intermingled habitation， and isolated pockets.

The intermingled population kind is the main type of geographical contact between the Daofu language and Chinese language. Seen from the current situation， the contact in different areas is also not the same. In some areas where the two populations co-habit， the Chinese language is dominant， and the Daofu language is relatively less-important.However， in some places， the Daofu language dominant， while the Chinese language is less-important. The isolated pocket type means that a social group who speaks Chinese is surrendered by another language， and， thus， have geographical contact with that other language， or an ethnic language speaking population is surrounded by Chinese speakers， and thus have geographical contact with the Chinese language.

II. Characteristics of the Daofu Tibetans Bilingual Culture

1.The function and Use of the Native Language

Due to the differences in the living environment， transportation， cultural development， and the structure of the population， the Daofu Tibetans use of language also differs. There are two types： one where the native language is used by government institutes， units or enterprises， and one where the native language is used by the people who live in the townships or rural areas where the transportation is not convenient.

Within the government institutes， units or enterprises in urban areas， the Chinese language is mostly used. However， local， older cadres or workers normally use the Daofu Tibetan language as the language for communication. Only when there are people present who do not understand Daofu Tibetan， do they speak in Chinese in order to show their politeness， or do so for the needs of their work. However， young people are an exception. At present， except those residents who work in the governmental institutes， units or enterprises， most of the Daofu Tibetans live in villages， and engage in agricultural production. Within their families， or in specific social activities， such as folk festivals， and religious festivals， they frequently use their native language. The Daofu language is an important communication tool in the Daofu area. However， following the social development， while using the Daofu language， they will also gradually use Chinese. The Daofu language and Chinese will be used in different situations， and each has its own function and role. Thus， in this manner， the phenomenon of bilingual culture will be formed gradually.

2. Function and Use of Concurrent Languages

The Daofu language is mainly used in the Daofu linguistic area， and its function has some limitation. However， it is not possible that Daofu Tibetans stay only in the Daofu linguistic area， or only communicate with the members of their own ethnic group. They will go out and communicate with other ethnic groups.

From the limited records about Daofu Tibetans in Tibetan and Chinese literature， we can see that since very early on， Daofu Tibetans have had contact with other ethnic groups. From the observations on the Daofu language， we can also note that the Daofu language has had various contacts with other ethnic languages.

Although the area of Daofu is not large， it is an area where Tibetan people have had contact with other ethnic groups for a long time， including the ethnic groups who speak the Daofu language， Zhaba language， and Tibetan （including Amdo dialect and Kham dialect）. The external ethnic group with whom they had contact is mainly Han Chinese. With the arrival of an IT-based society， the scope and function of Chinese language use will become more and more significant.

III. Competition and Adjustment of the Daofu Tibetans Bilingual Cultural Phenomena

The Daofu language and Concurrent Language，i.e. the Chinese language—constitute a system which includes aspects of both competition and adjustment， when speaking from the perspective of expression or use .

1. Competitiveness within Expression and Use

The change and development of a language， like other things， includes both contradiction and unity. The contradiction refers to competition， and the unity means mutual adjustment. The contradiction and unity found within linguistic contact is expressed as competition and mutual adjustment. The use of language has a simple economic characteristic. Generally， a concept only needs one kind of form. If many words appear in a multi-form format， it will create an unnecessary burden in learning and using the language. Therefore， the appearance of two or multiple forms of some words in the Daofu language will bring about contradiction and competition within the language. Two different results will follow： one is that all these words will be used simultaneously and become synonyms in the Daofu language； the second is that some forms of the words will be eliminated during the process of competition， and only one form is kept.

2.Mutual Adjustment on Expression and Use

Daofu Tibetans not only have their own language， but also have a concurrent language—Chinese. The two languages are adjusted and complement each other， and a linguistic system of use is formed. Seen from the perspective of the Daofu Tibetans use of Daofu Tibetan， the native language and Chinese language are on different levels concerning social functions. While the native language is mainly used within the family and ethnic group， Chinese is used for cultural entertainment and in communication with the people outside their group. It could be said that the Daofu language and Chinese each has their own functions in different areas and occasions. Thus， a mutual complementary relationship is formed.

In summary， the Daofu Tibetans use of native language and Chinese not only illustrates an aspect of mutual adjustment， but it also shows mutual promotion. With a base of the native language， it proves helpful to gain a concurrent language； and getting a concurrent language is also helpful in maintaining the native language. The Daofu Tibetans use of Chinese remedies the insufficiency of linguistic function of the native language. This kind of complementary relationship provides a necessary condition for the preservation and development of the native language. In the Daofu area， we can see that people use a different language to communicate with each other in different areas or occasions based on their different needs. This reflects the values of different languages， and enables the society to function harmoniously.

Key Words：Daofu Tibetans； bilingual； cause； characteristics

References：

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