Which of China's 55 ethnic minorities have only their own language but not their own script?

1. Zhuang

The Zhuang are one of the most populous ethnic minorities in China, and their language is Zhuang, which belongs to the Zhuang-Dai branch of the Zhuang-Dong language family of the Sino-Tibetan language family.

The Zhuang originated from "Xiou" and "Luoyue" who lived in the Lingnan area as recorded in the Han historical records during the pre-Qin, Qin and Han Dynasties, and they are distributed in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government, and mainly reside in the south.

The range extends from Lianshan Zhuang and Yao Autonomous County in Guangdong Province in the east to Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province in the west, from Congjiang County in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture in Guizhou Province in the north, and to the Gulf of Tonkin in the south. The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region is the main distribution area of the Zhuang.

2. Buyei

The Buyei, a large ethnic minority in southwestern China, speak the Buyei language, a branch of the Zhuang-Dai language of the Zhuang-Dong language family of the Sino-Tibetan language family, which is closely related to the Zhuang language, and the Chinese language is commonly used.

Buyi people evolved from the ancient bureaucrats, mainly in agriculture, Buyei ancestors began to plant rice at an early age, enjoying the name of "rice nation".

The Buyi are mainly located in Guizhou, Yunnan, Sichuan and other provinces, with Guizhou province having the largest population of Buyi, accounting for 97% of the country's Buyi population.

The Buyei mainly live in the two Buyei Miao Autonomous Prefectures of Qiannan and Qianxinan, as well as in the cities of Anshun, Guiyang, and Liupanshui, with the rest of the cities, prefectures, and districts scattered, and a small portion of them living in Vietnam.

3. Yi People

The Yi people, the sixth largest ethnic minority in China, speak the Yi language, which belongs to the Yi branch of the Tibetan-Burmese group of the Sino-Tibetan language family, and there are six dialects in the northern, eastern, southern, southeastern, western, and central parts of the country, including five sub-dialects and 25 dialects of the native language.

The Yi ethnic group is mainly distributed between the plateau and coastal hills in the four provinces (autonomous regions) of Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou and Gui, mainly gathered in Chuxiong, Honghe, Liangshan, Bijie, Liupanshui and Anshun, etc. The Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture is the largest Yi settlement area in the country.

4, Miao

The Miao have their own language, the Miao language belongs to the Han-Tibetan family of Miao and Yao language Miao language branch, divided into western Hunan, Qiandong and Sichuan-Guizhou-Yunnan three major dialects. As a result of the long-term interaction between the Miao and the Han Chinese, some of the Miao are fluent in Chinese and use the Chinese language.

The religious beliefs of the Miao are mainly nature worship and ancestor worship. In the 2010 Chinese census, the total population of the Miao in China was 9,426,007, the fourth largest among ethnic minorities.

5. Hani Ethnic Group

The Hani ethnic group is mainly distributed between Yuanjiang and Lancang rivers in Yunnan Province, China, and live in Honghe, Jiangcheng, Mojiang and Xinping and Zhenyuan counties, and the northern mountainous areas of Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam.

According to the 2010 Sixth National Census, the total population of the Hani ethnic group in China is 1660,932.