投稿類別 : 英文寫作

篇名: Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

作者 : 李雨潔。台南市私立長榮高級中學。應用外語科三年級忠班 洪宇榛。台南市私立長榮高級中學。應用外語科三年級忠班

指導老師: 曾建鈞老師

Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

I. Introduction

1. Motivation of this research paper

Paiwan is densely populated in Pintung County, especially in Laiyi Township. (屏東縣政 府，2014). Also, Paiwan is distributed in the following administrative districts: Machia Township, Santimen Township, Taiwu Township, Chunri Township, Lion Township, Mutan Township and Taichung County. Paiwan is particularly touted as its gorgeous costumes, and the carvings are widely acknowledged.

We have friends from Paiwan, yet we are less familiar with their culture and customs. Through this research paper, we are intrigued to explore types of traditional activities, attributes of Paiwan culture, and possible challenges in the cultural inheritance.

2. Research Purposes

1. Understand the ethnic distribution of Paiwan. 2. Explore the extent of familiarity with Paiwan language and the acceptance by the young Paiwan generation. 3. Investigate the willingness of the cultural heritage of Paiwan by the young Paiwan generation.

3. Method

1. This questionnaire adopted a ''questionnaire'' according to the motivation and purpose of the above research. 2. We issued a total of 42 questionnaires were successfully recovered 42 valid questionnaires, response rate as high as 100%. 3. Analyzing the results of related research topics, and explore the different aspects of the experience of the Paiwan nationality students on the “degree of cognition and inheritance of the Paiwan youths”.

4. Research architecture

Design the Dicuss the Collect questionnaire Draft theme motivation relevant and the issues Conclusions and purpose documents for the oral interview

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

II. Body

1. The ethnic distribution of Paiwan tribe

Prior to the discussion on our formulated research questions in the previous section, we set out to summarize the ethnic distribution of Paiwan tribe. The Paiwan tribe, following the Amis and Atayal, is touted as the third aboriginal tribe in . The Paiwan tribe is densely populated in the southern Taiwan, from the north of Kavulungan, to the south of Peninsula, to the west of Fangliao, and to the east Taimali and Xinyuan hometown. Particularly, most Paiwan people reside in the following eight townships in Pintung County: Santimen, Machia, Taiwu, Laiyi, Chunri, Lion, Mutan, and Manzhoue. Also, the Paiwan tribe is populated in the following four townships in Taitung County: Jinfeng, Daren, Dawu, and Taimali.

The name of tribe Paiwan is related to the legend, in which Paiwan is specifically referred to the spiritual land where the ancestors originated from. The so-called spiritual land Paiwan is located in Kavulungan, Dawu. In other words, the Paiwan tribe is mainly originated from Kavulungan, Dawu. Currently, the Paiwan tribe is further subdivided into north , middle , south, and east Paiwan .(臺灣 原住民資訊資源網，2018 )

Figure 1 The distribution map of the Paiwan tribe (Information source: Digital Museum of Taiwan Indigenous People)

1.1. Attributes of the Paiwan cultural festivals

The indigenous art mirrors the ethnic life experiences, the artistic creation from its historical developments, the portrait of indigenous pas-vake firm belief, and the social and cultural identities. That is, the indigenous art acts as the identity of its cultural attributes. The indigenous culture art

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance has always been an important cultural asset to Taiwan, which can be further envisioned in its apparels, handicrafts, singing and dancing styles, ceremonies, and religious festivals. That is why the indigenous art is symbolized as the unique tribal or national characteristics. (原住民族委員 會，2014). In the following, we summarize the festivals of the Paiwan tribe:

1.1.1 Millet Harvest Festival(Harvest Festival)

The lexicon Millet in the Paiwan language is specifically referred to pass a year. For the Paiwan, the harvest festival held by Millet is the beginning of the year. At present, most of them have transformed into recreational programs, such as ballad competitions, weight-bearing contests, archery competitions and other performance programs.

1.1.2. Five-Year Festival Square

The tribes which are currently accountable for the five-year festivals include: (1) Gulou, Wenle, Wangjia Tribe in Pingtung Laiyi Township, and (2) Lili, Qijia, Gui Chong Tribe in Pingtung Chunri Township and Taitung Daren Township Tuban Tribe.

The most important part of the entire festival on the day of the five-year festival is the way that all the fallen tribe gathered at the thorn court, summoning the gods and ancestors to return to be with the tribal people, and praying for the blessings and good luck from the ancestors through the thorn ball. The event descended on himself and his family. Apart from festivals, the peculiar cultural events of Paiwan are sketched as follows:

1.2.1 Caste system

As the infants were born, they would be immediately classified by the Paiwan tribe. For instance, Paiwan and Rukai are both aristocratic class systems. Under the norms of the social class system, everyone is inherently divided into different statuses.

This is a caste system based on the blood relationship. Yet, the Paiwan youngsters could improve their social status through war, hunting, and sculptures. The Paiwan youngsters may raise their social ranks through marriage.

1.2.2 Ancestral worship

The large sculpture of the ancestral spirit in the house reflects the worship of the ancestral spirit by the Paiwan people. A statue, like a pillar in the house, is the most sacred place where many valuables such as clay pots will be placed.

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

Before the start of the five-year ritual ceremony of the Tung Paiwan Tusaka Village, the ex-leader (Bao Xiumi) first sacrifice the ancestral spirit with millet wine in the ancestral house.

1.2.3 Splendid Art Decoration

The Paiwan clothing is greatly distinguished from its fancy flowers in bloom. Such a splendid flower decoration, like the art works, is evidently the best portrait of Paiwan costumes.

1.2.4 Clothing Features

The special status of the leader and aristocracy, in addition to clothing, is also distinguished from tattoos in arms or wrists. Civilians are also awarded as tattoos in their hands when they have reached certain achievements or gained glories. Among clothing accessories, Paiwan glazed beads are the most valuable accessories in Paiwan traditional clothing. In short, based on the accessories and their corresponding social status (i.e. the symbolization of aristocratic society), the Paiwan tribe is meticulously dressed. The styles of clothing (including accessories) and the marked totem represent social ranks in the caste system. Yet, the Paiwan youngsters would not attend to the importance of clothing styles or marked totem. They just care much about the beauty or particular attributes of clothing or marked totem.

2. Challenges for Paiwan adolescents

2.1. The crisis of tribal society and tradition

With the invasion of foreign cultures (especially the Han culture), aboriginal adolescents are now gradually losing their willingness to inherit the culture of their hometown. Aboriginal adolescents are inclined to mark their identities with the tribe totems, leading to the tribal society decaying. The decaying social status of the Paiwan tribe makes the aboriginal people less desired to preserve or inherit their own culture. (亞榮隆・撒可努，2000) Because many traditional customs are gradually lost and failed to be preserved, an increasing number of Paiwan youngsters would not follow the traditional customs or regulations. Under the impact of varying cultures, the aboriginal culture is decayed. Currently, the aboriginal tribes are solely highly valued and subsidized by governments or non-governmental organizations. Yet, the traditionally aboriginal cultures are not highly supported by the younger generation.

Bo Hongming (波宏明), Chairman of Taiwan's Aboriginal Language Development Society, discovered that the ethnic language, symbolizing the peculiar identity, encountered a crisis of inheritance. Bo Hongming found that many teenagers are inclined to acquire or learn their mother

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance tongue, leading to the ethnic group to disappear (Vanessa Lai，2017). As Bo Hongming stated, the older generations still fluently engaged in their communication in the native language. Yet, the youngsters failed to communicate in their native language, and many of them failed to understand the basic meaning of their mother tongue.

2.2. Difficulties in employment

In addition to the disappearance of the cultural heritage, tribal societies were invaded by the Han people. Finally, the indigenous people fail to meet their needs for life in their hometown, and they are forced to hunt for the labor-oriented jobs in cities. (亞榮隆・撒可努，2000). For the young generation of aboriginal tribes, they fail to make a living in their hometown. They cannot help but get enrolled to the military school to support the living of their family members. Otherwise, the indigenous youngsters would grope for high-risk jobs (e.g. working in the iron industry), and they would be poorly-paid. Virtually, the indigenous youngsters need to be encouraged since they may encounter the problems of racial discrimination when working out of town. Particularly, the indigenous youngsters would be socially despised since most of them work for the agriculture, forestry, fishing, and animal husbandry industries. As Vanessa Lai reported, the labor-intensive jobs would suffer the socially highest discrimination (8.3%), followed by construction engineering (7.45%), finance and insurance (7.41%). (Vanessa Lai，2017).

According to the aforementioned statement, the indigenous young people have to make an early living at the expense of their academic study. The major reason lies in the financial support of their family members since the youngsters’ parents are poorly-paid in their labor jobs or unemployed. Otherwise, the indigenous young people would join the army to make their living stable. This is further evidenced by the investigation of the indigenous youngsters’ currently academic degrees by the Ministry of Interior in the year of 2010. At most, more than half of the indigenous young people (i.e. more than 15 years old) have obtained the senior high school degree. This finding is congruent with our early statement in which the indigenous young people have to shoulder their financial responsibility of the whole family. That is the major reason why the indigenous young people fail to pursue for the advanced study. This is further empirically envisioned in the research finding by the Ministry of Interior, in which less than 20 percent of the indigenous young people have captured the undergraduate academic degree, let alone their graduate school study（Department of Statistics, Ministry of The Interior，2010）.

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

3. Findings

3.1 Fluency of the youth of the platoon to their mother-tongue

Never 7%

Not quite, just know the common words. It's hard to show 33% even phrases when communicating. Slightly understand, but also only use phrases or simple vocabulary to express life issues, can not show the… 41% Fluent in life conversation. However, more in-depth historical 19% and cultural issues will only be expressed in shallower terms. Very fluent, and even can talk about history, culture, politics, 0% etc. in his professional ethnic language.

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

Figure 2 Questionnaire on the fluency of Paiwan youths in speaking languages

As seen in the result in figure 2, we know that the loss of mother tongue is the thorny problem for the invited Paiwan participants in our research paper. Evidently, only nearly 20 percent (19%) of the interviewed youths fluently command their own ethnic group. Yet, 40 percent of the Bayan youths only know a few ethnic languages (41%). This result confirms that the decreasing number of adolescents are aware of their native language owing to the influences of Chinese cultural education or values.

3.2. Reasons why young Paiwan generation don't speak their own ethnic languages

3.2.1. Young Paiwan generation don't speak their own language

Other: less time to learn 5% Since I was a child, my education environment has been dominated by Chinese, so I have no motivation to learn… 33% My relatives and friends taught me, but they rarely 38% communicate with me in ethnic languages. My parents or elders in my family did not teach me 24%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

Figure 3 Main reasons why Paiwan youths do not speak ethnic languages

The result in Figure 3 pertains to the in-depth study, exploring the major reasons why 40 percent of the interviewed teenagers fail to command their native language well (See Figure 2: Not quite: 33% + not at all: 7%). In Figure 3, we have discovered that the dearth of communication channel is the major contributing factor for the youth failing to learn their native language fluently (38%).

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

Secondly, the Han culture has become the juggernaut in nurturing the local education (33%). Therefore, they are less motivated in learning their own ethnic language culture. By extension, in our research paper, even nearly 30 percent of their parents or elders decline to guide their kids in Paiwan language (24%).

3.2.2 Young Paiwan generation can improve their language motivation under the incentive of gaining extra points or gaining job security

5.90% 0% 5.90%

88.20%

Absolutely Consider Less likely Never

Figure 4 The motivation of ethnic language learning in Paiwan youth association

According to Figure 4, if you learn Paiwan language yourself, you can have further education or job security. Nearly 94 percent of the Paiwan people interviewed will have a stronger motivation to learn a mother tongue (absolutely: 88.20% + consider: 5.90%).

In other words, "instrumental motivation for learning" has driven young people who are less fluent in Paiwan language to actively learn their mother tongue, which indirectly improves the cultural benefits of the ethnic group.

3.3. The main learning channels for Paiwan speakers

Grandparents 31% Parents 28% Relatives 18% Mother-tongue lesson at school 14% Friends of the same tribe 9% Movie and TV programs 0% Music 0% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

Figure 5 Main channels for young Paiwan generation to learn ethnic languages

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

The results in Figure 5 are mainly from a further written survey of nearly 60 percent of the relatively fluent Paiwan speakers in the above Figure 2 (fluent: 19% + slightly understand: 40.50%). We learned that the elders (grandparents or parents) at home were the main channel for learning Paiwan language. The main reason is that they have a higher cultural depth and natural expression of their Paiwan mother tongue, which is also the main reason why Paiwan teenagers want to find grandparents to learn their mother tongue.

3.4. The willingness of young people to pass on Paiwan culture and face challenges

3.4.1. The willingness of young Paiwan generation to participate in traditional ceremonies

8% 0%

20%

72%

Absolutely willing Willing Not too willing Absolutely unwilling

Figure 6 The willingness of young Paiwan generation to participate in Paiwan traditional festivals

According to Figure 6, nearly 90% of the Paiwan ethnic group (absolutely willing: 72% + willing: 20%) are willing to participate in their traditional festival. Therefore, the young people interviewed also want to participate in the culture in person through traditional ceremonies and understand their deep cultural significance.

3.5. The Types of Paiwan Ethnic Groups Who Face the Most Challenge to Paiwan Culture

Own ethnic culture is gradually being 35% commercialized, losing the original traditional… Quite a lot of culture was destroyed by other 4% ethnic groups in the past Relatives and elders rarely inherit their own ethnic 20% culture to learn from younger generations

Fewer people are willing to learn ethnic languages 41%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

Figure 7 Types of cultural challenges to young Paiwan generation Interviewed

According to Figure 7, the invited Paiwan youth believe that the major challenge is that a declining number of people acquire ethnic languages (41%). This result echoes the figure 2, in which 8

Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

Paiwan young people would only fluently command their native language in the daily realities. Another challenge is the deteriorating their peculiar cultural significance which has been replaced by Han culture. This result is also in tune with Figure 3 above. The Han affects the ethnic group, which leads to gradual lose in its local cultural understanding.

3.5.1 Paiwan youth's willingness to inherit their culture

4% 4%

52% 40%

Absolutely willing Willing Not too willing Absolutely unwilling

Figure 8 Interview with young Paiwan generation

According to Figure 8, 92 percent of the young people are willing to inherit Paiwan culture (absolutely willing: 52% + willing: 40%). This is mainly because the invited Paiwan youths have lost their own culture and need more cultural learning and understanding.

However, most Paiwan youths endeavor to inherit their own culture, which are also in harmony with the positive effects of the government's promotion of the revival of the mother tongue and culture learning.

3.5.2 Paiwan youth are most willing to inherit their own cultural types

Religious culture 5% Art culture 22% Hunting culture 15% Architectural culture 9% Clothing culture 25% Food culture 24% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%

Figure 9 Young Paiwan generation are most willing to inherit their own cultural types

Following on from Figure 8 above, since most Paiwan youths are willing to inherit their own culture, which cultures are they intended to inherit most? According to Figure9, most Paiwan youths manifest their interest in learning the locally daily life culture, such as diet, clothing, art, and so forth. Comparatively, the following issues are surveyed to be relatively challenging for Paiwan youths to introduce in their native language: traditional buildings, hunting, and religious beliefs. The main reason is that Paiwan youths gradually lose their understanding of their cultures.

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Paiwan Teenagers' Responses to Their Native Language Learning and Indigenous Cultural Inheritance

III. Conclusion

Based on the results of this project research, we will summarize the results of the questionnaire investigation as follows. Through our questionnaire investigation, the young Paiwan generations moderately understand their native language, yet they fail to fluently communicate with their elderly in their native language. This may be compensated by the revival of the native language policy by our government, in which the Paiwan youngsters grasp the opportunities to learn their native language in their elementary or high school education. The Paiwan teenagers would engage in their mother- tongue learning if Paiwan language is highly instrumental to their job employment or their mother- tongue instruction. What they are intended to inherit most is the culture of language, food, and clothing. This is mainly because language acts as the cost-effective media to understand the peculiar culture of the Paiwan tribe. Also, Paiwan language is highly important to keep the record of its history. The clothing of Paiwan draws the particular attention to the public because it symbolizes the aristocracy. This is further envisioned in the decoration of flowers in the dressing or particular totem. Conversely, the current Paiwan teenagers attend to aesthetics rather than social classes in the dressing. Through this project, we have discovered that the young Paiwan teenagers are highly motivated to the food culture. The young generation of Paiwan is evidenced to frequently participate in traditional ceremonies, presenting the strong support of the ethnic culture. Nevertheless, for the Paiwan young generation, the great challenge is the loss of culture and language. Because of the increasing pressure in life, the youngsters of Paiwan are forced to leave their hometown to launch their career in the downtown. Additionally, the Han culture is percolated into the indigenous culture of Paiwan, leading to the gradual loss of language and culture.

IV. References

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