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Sound clips - hear ethnic voices in the language they think, dream and love in.
Language — Individual words

Du'an Zhuang - How many tones can you manage?

Jingxi Zhuang - Negation Sandwich

Jingxi Zhuang Quiz - How is your nose?

Jingxi Zhuang - Bye bye
In Jingxi, Guangxi, when you’re ready to finish a conversation and go away, you don’t say, “good-bye.” Instead, you tell them that you’re about to leave. This sound clip is the Jingxi Zhuang way of saying, “I’m going first.”

Jingxi Zhuang - Stay longer
In Jingxi, Guangxi, when your guest is about to depart from your house, you tell them you want them to stay longer. You don’t want them to leave so quickly, so you say, “Go slowly.” This sound clip shows how a Jingxi Zhuang person says, “Slowly, slowly go.” The word for “slowly” uses a sound that is unique to Southern Zhuang dialects. Can you hear the person’s tongue placed just behind her upper front teeth?

Dong - Greeting on the Road
When Dong people meet each other on the road, usually they will ask, "Where are you going?" This is a natural way to start a conversation. In the Dong script the phrase is written: Nyac bail nup?

Dong - Greeting around Mealtime
If it is near mealtime instead, a Dong person may greet someone by asking, "Have you eaten yet?" In the Dong script the phrase is written: Jil oux mix?

Bouyei - Goose egg
If you had been present when the story "First Aid, Bouyei-Style" happened, you would have heard this sentence in the Bouyei language! After the little girl fell and hit her head, Wei Qiao Man heard this sentence. It means: "Forehead swell goose egg." In Bouyei, it is written like this: nacbias henc guingc.

Folktales — Ethnic folktales as told in their own mother-tongue

The Naughty Boy - Zhuang folk tale from Du'an County, Guangxi Province.

Why Dung Beetles Roll Balls of Dung - Zhuang folk tale from Wuming, Guangxi Province (adapted from "At Grandfather's Knee".)

A Crafty Hmong Man - A Folktale from the Hmong (Western Miao) People in Guizhou Province.

The Vagabond and the Snake - Western Mountain Lalo (Western Yi) folk tale from Dali County, Yunnan Province.

Two Brothers - Zhuang folk tale from Wuming, Guangxi Province (adapted from "At Grandfather's Knee".)

Three Pounds Six - Zhuang folk tale from Wuming, Guangxi Province (adapted from "At Grandfather's Knee".)

Music — Get caught up in the Ethnic rhythm!

The "Dance of the Annual Cycle" - Courtesy of Duàn Désān (段德三), Hèqìng County Cultural Centre (鹤庆县文化馆)

Miao Playing the Ghenx - by Xiao Kang

Nuosu Yi Mouth Harp

Drinking Songs - Central (Lolo) Yi - by Ashley Zi, Kelly Zi, and Rong-Jie Luo

The Sound of the Local Opera - by Mo Rui Qiu

Debao Zhuang Mountain Song - by Mo Rui Qiu

Zhuang Peach Tree Love Song - by Teng Ming Xin in Wuming, Guangxi Province.

Zhuang Stringed Instruments - by Mo Rui Qiu