Forty college students from Lijiang city and twenty government officials attended a language program for the Yi language and Mandarin, co-sponsored by the Southwest University for Nationalities and the Chinese Communist Party school of Yulong County Committee, which took place in Yulong Naxi Autonomous County of Lijiang from August 6 to 11.

Most of the program’s courses were culture-oriented, including an introduction to Yi culture, standard Yi language, courses on the Naxi culture, Lijiang and Shangri-La and the traditional culture of the Yi nationality.

Professors from the Southwest University for Nationalities and TV presenters from Lijiang Television and Ninglang Television gave the lectures. (Ninglang is a Yi autonomous county of Lijiang city)

The program aimed to help preserve the cultural heritage of the Yi nationality, to train bilingual (Yi language and Mandarin) talents and to consolidate the Yi people’s cultural identity by exposing them to a comprehensive national culture.

The program also aimed to help the students attain a deeper understanding of the culture of other nationalities, thus contributing to national unity and social stability.

Edited by Niva Whyman and Le Qin