广西开考壮语测试水平

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First Zhuang Language Exam to Be Held in Guangxi广西首次“壮语文水平考试”将于6月30日下午在南宁市举行，此是我国少数民族语文标准化考试的首次探索和尝试。

The first proficiency test for the Zhuang language will be held on June 30 in Nanning, capital city of southwest China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the Beijing Times reports.

The Zhuang, the country's largest ethnic minority, has a population of more than 20 million, about 18 million of whom speak their native language and live mostly in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

"Candidates will be placed into three levels according to their performances, and each level has two grades in this language examination," said Mo Bin, an official from the Ethnic Minorities Language Committee in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Shu Shanlong, deputy head of a leading group on the Zhuang Language Examination said, "This test will help to promote the standard ethnic language and protect the endangered heritage of the Zhuang."

China's 56 ethnic groups speak and write 130 different languages, half of which are spoken by fewer than 10,000 people. Some dialects are on the verge of extinction, such as Hezhe in northeastern China, Mulao ethnic group's language, and Xiandao spoken by the Achang ethnic minority in Yunnan province.