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Learning in Na Communities
Tami Blumenfield ([email protected])
University of Washington
Dept. of Anthropology
Lugu Lake, China
Presented to Anthropology 470: Minority Peoples of ChinaMarch 3, 2009
Background: Who are the Na?
• 30,000 people living in Himalayan Foothills (northwest Yunnan, southwest Sichuan)
• Sexual visit system and extended family households
• Schooling since 1960s; compulsory schooling beginning in late 1990s
• Tourism since 1990s
• Minority Region, but not just Na• Yi, Han, and Pumi are other significant
populations in the region
In Yongning Township:Na 摩梭人 (37.6%) Han 汉族 (25.5%) Yi 彝族 (19.3%)Pumi 普米族 (9.9%)
Background: Ethnic Diversity
Four Forms of Learning
• ‘Traditional’ village-based learning• Religious education• School education• Tourism and migration
‘Traditional’ Learning
• ‘Traditional’ learning:– Family-based– Peer-based– Apprentice-based
• Knowledge transmitted:– Morals and manners– Skills– Ecological knowledge– Medicinal knowledge
Religious Education• Daba shamans• Gelugpa sect of ‘Tibetan Buddhism’ and
another sect • Zhameisi Monastery in Yongning• Temples in Zebo, Luoshui, and Latadi
Religious Education
• Funerals, ceremonies, and daily rites
School Education• State-run Chinese-language schools• Compulsory schooling through junior
middle school (chuzhong)
• Quality• Accessibility • Affordability
School Education
Tourism and Migration
Local and regional tourism since 1990s changing the landscape and economy
Interactions between tourists and Na as a form of learning
Development of museums and exhibits to educate tourists about Na culture
Interactions between tourists and Na as a form of learningLige Village
Lige Village
Strong emphasis on education by visitorsLuoshui Village
Tourism and Migration: Creating a Tiered System
Economy Villages and Zones
Villages affluent from tourism
Lugu Lake area: Luoshui, Lige
Villages with significant out-migration and agricultural economies
Central Yongning plain: Dapo, Badzu, Zebo, Zhongshi, Baqi
Villages with cyclical out-migration and agricultural economies
Wenquan area; Tuozhi
Villages with little out-migration and agricultural economies
Mountainous zones above the Yongning plain
Yongning
Lugu Lake
Luoshui
Satellite Image Source: Google Earth
Lige
Wenquan
Tuozhi
Yanyuan
County -->
At the Scenic Overlook Platform with Young Vendors
Educational Aid• Educational NGOs, informal donations and
volunteers• From the Moso Education Fund to “Edu-aid in YongNing” 永宁山区爱心助学行动 (www.luguhu.org)• Complications of ethnicity and education
Husi Chawu: Cafe and GuesthouseLuoshui Village
Site of an Education Fund (Since 2001)Luoshui Village
Bringing School Supplies to a Nuosu Village School (2002)
A Nuosu Village School
Volunteer Teachers
“We also had the privelige of teaching English at a Muosu elementary school. The school had been destroyed the previous year by an earthquake and the children were still having to attend classes in tents. We were happy to give our time and even provided each child a pencil, a small token by our standards but not an insignificant gift in a region as poor and remote as this one.”
Posted from Kunming, 10/22/02 9:42:53 AM
http://www.wheretherebedragons.com/participants/participantstxt.asp?CID=100&s=1&artID=1489&artTop=2 (accessed January 22, 2004)
Where There Be Dragons Bulletin Board Posts
Employment Migration as a Form of Learning
“No matter how poor, don’t impoverish the children…
No matter how bitter, don’t make it bitter for the children!”
Can the Four Forms of Learning be Complementary?• ‘Traditional’ village-based learning
• Religious education
• School education• Tourism and migration
