Preservation of The Manchu Language

The Manchu language is the native language of the Manchu people of North-eastern China. It was the official state language of the Chinese Empire during the imperial rule of the Qing dynasty. The Qing dynasty ruled China from the mid-17th century to the early 20th century. Throughout this period Manchu and Chinese were the official imperial language and all imperial business; courts, police and military communication, as well as academia were conducted in either of the two. Educated civilians, military officers, and other noble people within the empire were required by official government policy to acquire literacy in Manchu (Pamela Crossley & Evelyn Rawski, 2011). Roots, History, and Decline Manchu belongs to a Tunguistic language group of the Altaic language family; the language family of central Eurasia and Siberia including the Turkic, Mongolic, and Tungusic groups. The roots of Manchu can be traced, therefore, to these groups of languages spoken across North-eastern China, Russia, and extending through Mongolia. At its peak Manchu was spoken by over 8.5 million within the Qing dynasty. Up until the mid-17th century, most the majority of Qing’s empire was monolingual Manchu speakers. This was despite Chinese being an official language in the empire at the same time. In the period around late 17th century to early 18th century, however, a significant portion of the population had shifted from monolingual Manchu speakers to bilingual Manchu and Chinese speakers (Yu 2001). This was the beginning of the decline of Manchu language and post 18th century Manchu speakers shifted to monolingual Chinese speakers. Hsiao-jung Yu’s article titled Manchu Rule over China and the Attrition of the Manchu Language divides the history of the Manchu language into three periods: the early Qing period, , when almost all the native Manchu speakers were monolingual. The middle Qing rule, , when almost all Manchu speakers spoke both Chinese and Manchu. And the late Qing period, 1796 to the end of the Qing dynasty, when most Manchu speakers became monolingual Chinese speakers (Yu 2001). From this period henceforth the Manchu language continued on a downward path. Of the over ten million native Manchurians in China, only less than a hundred centenarians can speak fluent Manchu. When these few speakers finally die, which will happen sooner or later, the Manchu language will be extinct. After most Manchurians became monolingual Chinese speakers post Qing dynasty, there were very few Manchurians who were willing to re-assert their ethnic identity. This was particularly encouraged by the new Chinese culture and educational system that portrayed Manchurians as responsible for China’s backward years. Thus Manchu was slowly but surely pushed to the periphery and presently faces extinction. A significant number of organizations, individuals, and government programs, however, are working together to ensure that the proud language does not become extinct.