Zur Situation von Sprache und Kultur der Tsou in Taiwan

Abstract

Background: In Taiwan, there are 16 recognized minorities speaking Formosan languages; the Tsou in the Alishan mountaneous region are a small distinct group of 4000 people; their language is endangered. Material and method: This is a report on various conversations with three Tsou about cultural and sociolinguistic aspects of Tsou culture and language use which were collected during a short field trip in 2018. Analysis: The subjective view of indigenous people being the last generation of competent speakers of a small language is reported, in a mixture of viewpoints, old stories and explanations about traditional culture. Conclusions: Members of small communities made the step into modernity in a rather fast process enforced from outside which challenges their traditional group identity in many ways. Modernisation comes at the price of losing the indigenous language.