Oroqen elder's classes preserve ethnic language

"During these contests, I found that contestants from Xunke performed worse than those from other regions," she said. "The Oroqen people in Xunke moved out of the mountains earlier and had more opportunities to embrace modern culture, which hastened the extinction of ethnic culture in the county. Even though it means that we are more developed, I feel quite upset.

"The pupils I taught also told me that they are interested in our ethnic culture, but few of their parents could speak the Oroqen language to them. Furthermore, all the young parents hope their children can speak standard Mandarin and fluent English, to help them enter good universities and then find decent jobs."

She then had the idea of starting a class mainly for adults, hoping it would encourage young parents to pay attention to their own culture and provide their children with a better Oroqen language environment. During each class, she teaches her students 30 words, interspersed with instruction about traditional Oroqen culture, including clothing, singing, dancing and hunting.

"I have received great support from my family members," Wu said. "My son, who is a teacher at the ethnic primary school, helped me apply for the classroom and also gives students in the school lessons on the Oroqen language every week.

"My granddaughter keeps helping me collate my teaching materials on a computer, even though she cannot understand the Oroqen language spoken by the older generation. I often discuss the meaning of language inheritance with her. I am quite clear that despite the efforts, we are still facing the danger that the language of our people might fade into history, but I hope it can leave a mark."

Mo Renjie, 23, a senior student at Wuhan University of Technology, attended Wu's class for the first time when he returned to the county after his final exam.

"I am quite familiar with Wu, a respected senior in our Oroqen family," he said. "In the past, I often asked her questions about the Oroqen language and culture. The public class is of great significance for all the Oroqen people, especially for our young generation.

"I can only speak a few words in Oroqen due to the lack of a language environment and good learning methods. My classmates (at the university) have shown great interest in my ethnic background but I am really ashamed every time they ask me to speak my ethnic language.

"I also hope people like me, who are outside our hometown, can bring our culture to a wider platform, which may greatly help heighten our ethnic pride," Mo said.