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Listening across Southwest China

Oral histories, language surveys, and field encounters with the Geyang Language Branch Research Team.

FocusResearch
Place / contextGuizhou · Yunnan · Guangxi
Period2022–present
Reading timeAbout 1 min · English text · photos at your pace
Guizhou · Yunnan · Guangxi · Photograph from the original portfolio · Click to explore

Listening across languages

Since December 2022, I have worked with the Geyang Language Branch Research Team at Minzu University of China, participating in the National Social Science Foundation’s Rare and Endangered Ethnic Studies project (22VJXT012).

My fieldwork has taken me through Guizhou, Yunnan, and Guangxi, into communities including Buyi, Gelao, Mulao, Zhuang, and Buyang. Through oral histories, linguistic surveys, and anthropological observation, I explore lives, memories, and languages that quietly persist.

Field practice & public writing

My CV records more than 600 hours of observation with 14 participants, alongside seven co-authored public research briefs. The articles collected here were authored or edited by me; individual publications retain their original credits.

My earlier website recorded over 18,000 views across the selected WeChat articles, with support from Minzu University of China and Beijing Language and Culture University.

Buyang mountain songs

This recording from Maguan village shares a song welcoming guests. The original page invited listeners to join that welcome: “Enjoy this song with us, and you are our guests as well. Welcome!”

Buyang mountain songs

Original field recording · Sound plays only when you choose. A transcript was not provided on the original site.

Writing from the field

01

The Gelao People Emerging from the Pages of History

Article · Chinese-language publication · Authored or edited

Read on WeChat 02

Field Notes: the Baha Buyang Language in Guangnan, Yunnan

Article · Chinese-language publication · Authored or edited

Read on WeChat 03

Review of Chinese Language and Culture Collection: Longlin Gelao

Article · Chinese-language publication · Authored or edited

Read on WeChat 04

A Gelao High School Student’s Journey to Rediscover Culture

Article · Chinese-language publication · Authored or edited

Read on WeChat 05

Entering the World of the Zhuang Buyang Bazhai Villages — Part 1

Article · Chinese-language publication · Authored or edited

Read on WeChat 06

Entering the World of the Zhuang Buyang Bazhai Villages — Part 2

Article · Chinese-language publication · Authored or edited

Read on WeChat 07

A Gelao High School Student’s Journey to Rediscover Culture

一个仡佬族高中生的语言文化寻根之旅

Reprinted by 语宝 · Beijing Language and Culture University · Same article as entry 04

Read on WeChat

Project description adapted from my original website and current CV.

Earlier website text — preserved in full
Ethnographer Member of Geyang Language Branch Research Team, Minzu University of China I am the youngest member of the Geyang Language Branch Research Team at Minzu University of China, currently participating in the National Social Science Foundation’s “Rare and Endangered Ethnic Studies” project. Over the past three years, I have ventured into the border regions of Guizhou, Yunnan and Guangxi, entering the villages of the Buyi, Gelao, Mulao, Zhuang, Buyang and other people. Through oral histories, linguistic surveys, and anthropological field work research, I explore lives, memories and languages that quietly persist. ​ Buyang Mountain Songs They are unrecognized ethnic  people living in the China-Vietnam border. This song is for welcoming the guests. Enjoy this song with us, and you are our guests as well. Welcome! Selected WeChat articles I authored or edited They have received over 18,000 views. Thanks for the generous support of Minzu University of China and Beijing Language and Culture University. 01 The Gelao People Emerging from the Pages of History Read Now 02 Field Notes:  the Baha Buyang Language in Guangnan, Yunnan Read Now 03 Review of Chinese Language and Culture Collection: Longlin Gelao Read Now 04 A Gelao High School Student’s Journey to Rediscover Culture Read Now 05 Entering the World of the Zhuang Buyang Bazhai Villages 1   Read Now Entering the World of the Zhuang Buyang Bazhai Villages 2 06 Read Now Beijing Language and Culture University 07 Read Now ​Preparing 08 Wait ​ 09 Wait ​ 10 Wait Contact E-mail: xiaoboge1109@gmail.com

THE VISUAL NOTEBOOK

Look a little closer

All 14 distinct photographs from this page are retained. Select any image to enlarge it; use the arrow keys to browse.

01 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA group of adults and a child stand outdoors beside a rural road with hills and trees behind them.
02 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiSeveral women sit outside in conversation with a woman facing them, beneath leafy branches.
03 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA group portrait inside a brick-walled room, with some people seated in the front row.
04 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiPeople sit around a low table speaking together in a brick-walled home.
05 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA group poses outdoors under a blue sky beside a village building and green hillside.
06 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiSix people pose together in a room in front of a framed landscape picture.
07 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiFive people stand in a large indoor space for a group photograph.
08 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA group sits in a circle outside a brick house, listening to people standing beside the doorway.
09 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA group portrait in a brick-walled room with an altar-like structure behind the back row.
10 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA person works at a laptop on a desk while two other people look on beside a window.
11 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA large group stands side by side outdoors for a photograph, with distant hills behind them.
12 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiPeople gather around a seated laptop user at a desk during the research visit.
13 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiA group of women stands outdoors beside a low brick wall and trees.
14 / 14 · Guizhou · Yunnan · GuangxiWomen sit close together at a table during a conversation, with cups and food in front of them.

CONNECTED BY A QUESTION

Where this story leads

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