The Oikos of the Mother Tongue: Ecology and Maternality of Language in Two Yi Poets

Bruno, Cosima

Abstract

By recognizing interconnectedness in the coexistence of multiple forms of life and by supporting the distinction and singularity of identities, models of ecological consciousness have been defining fruitful frameworks to analyze not only the relationship between human and nature, but also the uneven relationship between marginalized communities and settler colonialists, animalism and anthropocentrism, local economy and global capitalism. This is an exploratory paper about the ecology of language in relation to racialized subjects of ethnic communities in mainland China. I refer to works by two poets from the Yi ethnic group Aku Wuwu (1964–) and Jidi Majia (1961–) to show the inextricable concerns for the loss and preservation of the linguistic, cultural, and natural environment. My aim is not to simplistically romanticize China’s ethnic minorities and their environment, nor is it to highlight their ethnic identity or nationalism. Rather, on the axiom of a relational politics of language, within which their poetry fulfills the purpose of keeping alive the cultural ecosystem, I aim to better understand how linguistic, cultural, and environmental protection combines with human ontology.

Citation

Bruno, C. (2025). The Oikos of the Mother Tongue: Ecology and Maternality of Language in Two Yi Poets. Chinese Literature and Thought Today, 56(1/2), 89-98. https://doi.org/10.1080/27683524.2025.2479345

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 2, 2024
• Publication Date: Jul 22, 2025
• Deposit Date: Sep 17, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 2, 2025
• Journal: Chinese Literature and Thought Today (CLTT)
• Print ISSN: 2768-3524
• Electronic ISSN: 2768-3532
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 56
• Issue: 1/2
• Pages: 89-98
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/27683524.2025.2479345
• Publisher URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/27683524.2025.2479345