Buyang people
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (2,000) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan and Napo County, Guangxi in China | |
| Languages | |
| Buyang, Zhuang, Southwestern Mandarin |
The Buyang people are an officially unrecognized Kra ethnic group living in Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan and Napo County, Guangxi in China. They are closely related to the Laha, Qabiao, Gelao, and Lachi. The Buyang language is spoken, although many Buyang are now shifting to Zhuang and Southwestern Mandarin. In Yunnan, the Buyang are classified by the Chinese government as Zhuang, while they are classified as Yao in Guangxi (Li 2006).
The name Buyang comes from the Zhuang pu22 jaaŋ24 (alternatively pu22 ȵaaŋ24), which means "other people." The Buyang of Napo County, Guangxi call themselves the ʔia33 hrɔŋ53, while Guangnan Buyang call themselves pa33 ha33. In Napo and Jingxi counties, many Zhuang are called "Buyang" by other Zhuang groups. In southeastern Guizhou and Tianlin, Longlin, and Xilin counties of Guangxi, many villages also contain the word yang 央, suggesting that those villages may be formerly Buyang-speaking areas that had been assimilated by the Zhuang people.
The Buyang of Guangnan County and Funing County are officially classified as Zhuang, while those in Napo County are classified as Yao. This is because Buyang clothing appears similar to Yao clothing, and many Zhuangs and Hans have mistaken the Buyang as Yao and have called them:
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