QUESTION:
We
all know that there are 55 or so ethnic minorities
in China. Now, which of these has the largest
population?
a) Bai Zu
b) Min Zu
c) Yi Zu
d) Wa Zu
e) Beijing Zu
ANSWERS:
If you answered:
a) Dui, and double dui ("Dui" means
"correct" in Chinese). With a population
of about 1,339,000 people, the Bai minority
is one of, if not the largest such groups
in all of China. The Bai Minority is centralized
in Da Li, a pleasant region of the beautiful
Yunnan province. Due to Yunnan's location
on the border of Burma, Laos, Vietnam, and
it relationship to Tibet, this province, historically,
has been a crossroads of culture and trade.
This interaction has enriched the Bai minority
in many ways.
They enjoy their own spoken language and distinct
culture. However, they have no written language,
or more precisely, they have too many written
languages. Many Bai scholars have devised
their own method of writing down the complex
8-tone Bai dialect. As of yet there is no
standard. Their traditional music is played
on a simple four stringed pipa. Their sounds
are based on the natural scenery in which
they have lived for three thousand years,
mostly Er-hai lake and Tangshan.
#Reality Check: Even though all the minorities
of China combined only make up 7% of China's
overall population, that is still over 84
million people!
b)
Wrong, this isn't even a minority. It is in
fact the Chinese word for "Minority".
c) Sorry to say no. This Sichuan-based minority
is small in number.
d)
Ha, so wrong! This beautiful dark-skinned
minority has a very small population.
e) The Beijing Zoo? Stop monkeying around
and go find the right answer.
