Three days after his release from prison in December, a Tibetan village chief named Gonpo Namgyal deceased. While his body was preparing for traditional Tibetan funeral rites, brands were found indicating that it had been suddenly tortured in prison.
His crime? Gonpo Namgyal had been part of a Campaign to protect the Tibetan language in China.
Gonpo Namgyal is the victim of a slow conflict that has made the match for almost 75 years, since China invaded Tibet in the middle of the 20th century. The language was at the heart of this conflict.
The Tibetans worked to protect the Tibetan language and withstood efforts to enforce Mandarin Chinese. However, Tibetan children lose their tongue through registration In state internships where they are educated almost exclusively in Mandarin Chinese. The Tibetan is generally only taught sometimes a week – not enough to support the language.
My research, published in a new book In 2024, provided unique information on the struggle of other minority languages in Tibet which received much less attention.
My research shows that linguistic policy in Tibet is surprisingly complex and motivated by subtle violence, perpetuated not only by the Chinese authorities but also in other Tibetans. I also found that the efforts of foreigners to help fail in minority languages at the highest risk of extinction.
I lived in Ziling, the largest city in the Tibetan plateau, from 2005 to 2013, teacher in a university, studying Tibetan and supporting local non -governmental organizations.
Since then, most of my research has focused on linguistic policy in the Rebgong valley on the northeast of the Tibetan plateau. From 2014 to 2018, I interviewed dozens of people, I spoke informally with many others and conducted hundreds of domestic surveys on the use of the language.
I also collected and analyzed Tibetan linguistic texts, including government policies, online trials, social networks and even Pop Song Words.
When I was in ziling, the Tibetans launched a Massive protest movement Against Chinese domination just before the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. These demonstrations led to Government warmingIncluding mass arrests, increased surveillance and restrictions on freedom of movement and expressions of Tibetan identity. This was widely focused on language and religion.
Years of troubles ensued, marked by more manifestations and acts of individual sacrifice. Since 2009, more than 150 Tibetans have been burnt down Protest of the Chinese rule.
Tibet is a linguistically diverse place. In addition to the Tibetan, about 60 other languages are spoken in the region. About 4% of Tibetans (around 250,000 people) speak a minority language.
Government policy forces all Tibetans to learn and use Mandarin Chinese. Those who speak only of Tibetan find it difficult to find work and face discrimination and even the violence of the Han dominant ethnic group.
Meanwhile, support for Tibetan linguistic education was slowly remotely remotely: the government recently Prohibited students to have private Tibetan lessons or tutors during their school holidays.
Tibet linguistic minorities all need to learn and use Mandarin. But many also need to learn Tibetan to communicate with other Tibetans: classmates, teachers, doctors, bureaucrats or bosses.
In Rebgong, where I did my research, the inhabitants speak a language they call manegacha. Increasingly, this language is replaced by the Tibetan: about a third Of all the families who speak Manegacha now teach Tibetan to their children (who must also learn Mandarin).
The government refuses to provide possibilities to use and learn minority languages such as manegacha. He also tolerates constant Discrimination and violence Against Manegacha speakers by other Tibetans.
These assimilationist state policies cause the collapse of linguistic diversity through Tibet. As these minority languages are lost, people Mental and physical health suffers and their Social connections and community identities are destroyed.
Tibetan resistance to Chinese domination dates back to the invasion of the popular liberation army in the early 1950s.
When the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959, this movement of resistance became global. Governments around the world have continued to support Tibetan self -determination and fight Solve Tibet Act in 2024.
However, external efforts to support Tibetan struggle fail to some of the most vulnerable people: those who speak minority languages.
Manegacha speakers want to maintain their language. They are resisting the pressure to assimilate each time they speak Manegacha, publish memes online in Manegacha or repel the discrimination they face with other Tibetans.
However, if the Tibetans stop talking about Manegacha and other minority languages, this will contribute to the efforts of the Chinese government to erase Tibetan identity and culture.
Even if the Tibetan language survives in a way in China, the loss of one of the minority languages of Tibet would be a victory for the Communist Party in the conflict which he started 75 years ago.
This article was initially published on The conversation. Read it original article.
