Beijing Sounds — 北京的声儿

Special thanks to a reader in the sānlǐtún (三里屯) area for bringing this to my attention and providing the sound clip. You’ll probably recall the local Beijinger uproar last August when it came out that that Legal Mirror was publishing some Shanghai dialect expressions in a grammar book.

Why, they wondered, couldn’t Beijing get equal treatment for its beloved tǔhuà 土话?

(Here’s a link to the Danwei summary of the controversy and some pretty off-the-mark interpretations of local dialect words from the mouths of youngsters.)

Leave it to Beijingers not to just leave it alone. In a press conference today, a local organization calling itself the “Society for the Preservation of Beijing Dialect” (北京地方方言保护协会) announced, apparently with the blessing of the local government, that it is organizing a full-curriculum elementary school dedicated to the promotion of Beijing dialect. It is revamping an industrial building just to the east of Dōngzhímén (东直门) that it says will be ready in time for an opening ceremony during the Olympics. Classes will begin with the regular school year starting in the fall. Here were the opening remarks from society leader Wáng Wénhuà 王文华 at the press conference:

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目前，北京方言面临着流失的危险，
mùqián, běijīng fāngyán miànlín zhe liúshī de wēixiǎn
Recently, Beijing dialect is facing the danger of being washed away

我们基于此而成立了这所学校。
wǒmen jīyú cǐ ér chénglì zhè suǒ xuéxiào
We are establishing this school for this reason

08年北京奥运会意义重大，
língbā nián běijīng àoyùnhuì yìyì zhòngdà
The 08 Beijing Olympics are meaningful and significant

我们坚信创办这所学校
wǒmen jiānxìn chuàngbàn zhèisuǒ xuéxiào
We firmly believe that launching this school

有助于重新振兴北京方言。
yǒu zhùyú chóngxīn zhènxīng běijīng fāngyán
will promote the cause of the Beijing dialect

By the sounds of the rest of the discussion, the school is to be a full immersion school not unlike Mandarin immersion schools found abroad. The key, said Wang, will be to uphold strict pronunciation and vocabulary requirements for teachers. Although in answer to a question she claimed that there would be no discrimination against non-Beijingers (wàidìrén) in the filling of these positions, it seems unlikely that any will apply for a job that she said will require:

Knowledge of the hutongs prior to Olympic construction

Comprehensive and appropriate use of typical Beijing vocabulary and érhuàyīn

In addition to a written test, final competency will be assessed through a panel interview of each teacher by a team of old-time old Beijing residents. The questioning got a little touchy around this point, as a member of the press pointed out that not all residents of homes for old people would necessarily be long-time Beijingers, and was Ms. Wang going then to require they prove their heritage? She said they had debated this point within the society and had decided that setting a minimum age limit of 80 would best define the panel. That way, she said, most would be familiar with talking with peers who had lost most of their teeth, which is a good approximation of the vernacular anyway and would suffice as “experience” with the accent.

Please, if you have other information about the school, its policies or funding, leave a comment below. Since the Beijing Association of Local Customs was present at the press conference, I’m guessing that they’ve been deeply involved, but I’d also conjecture that, given the Olympic references, they’ve been able to sneak a slice of funding from that pie as well.

(Still haven’t been able to find a video of the press conference on youku.com. If anyone comes across one, please send it this way.)