Linguistic policy and “minority” languages in the People’s Republic of China : The case of the Tai Lue of Sipsong Panna

This paper offers a brief discussion of some of the contradictions informing linguistic policies implemented by the government of the People´s Republic of China (PRC) in “minority” areas, allegedly aimed at preserving and promoting non-Han languages, through the case of the Tai Lue (officially classified as Dai) in Yunnan province. It is argued that, while all (recognized) ethnic groups (minzu) in the PRC are granted the right to use and develop their own spoken and written languages by the state, the insertion of the Tai Lue and other “minority” languages within a symbolic hierarchy dominated by the culture of the Han majority legitimates their de facto exclusion from public spaces.