Tu people
Encyclopedia : T : TU : TUP : Tu people
The Tu (土) people are an ethnic group. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. Most of them live in Qinghai province, some of them in Gansu province.
They call themselves "Mongour" (also spelled "Monguor") or "Tsagaan mongghol", which literally means White Mongols, and are closely related to the Mongols. However, they are classified as a separate minority in the Peoples' Republic of China, partly due to the fact that they have intermingled with the Tibetan and Turkic people.
Language
The Tu language, which has been recently identified as two separate but related languages--Mongghul (once known as the Huzhu dialect of Monguor/Tu) and Mangghuer (formerly the Minhe dialect of Monguor/Tu)--is a Mongolian language. In recent years, Pinyin-based orthographies have been created for both languages.In addition, some people speak Wutunhua, a mixed language based on Chinese, Tibetan, and Mongolian.
Miscellaneous
The current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is Mongour by ethnicity.[[Citing sources citation needed]]
External links
- [The Tu ethnic minority] (Chinese government site in English)
- [Joshua Project - Mongour of China]
- [The Unreached Peoples Profiles - The Tu of China]
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