The Archives possesses a number of early reimbursement reports left behind by IHP research staff, but despite their perceived tedium, these materials can allow us to better apprehend the details of a researcher’s fieldwork.
From September 14 to December 30, 1935, scholars Fang-kuei Li (1902–1987) and Wu Zongji (1909–2010) worked on a dialect survey in Guangxi, which was financially supported by the China Foundation for the Promotion of Education and Culture. According to expenditure reports, Li and Wu would treat participants to a meal and tea as well as paying a fee for the recordings. Along the way, they also acquired various manuscripts of folk songs and developed photos. The reports additionally show their fieldwork schedules and list other miscellaneous expenses such as haircuts, laundry, as well as the purchases of fruit, tea, and medicine, all of which were paid in the Guangxi currency “Gui bi,” reflecting the fact that Chinese currencies had not yet been unified.
During this project, Li collected an abundance of remarkable linguistic data, and after analyzing these materials, wrote two monographs: The Tai Dialect of Lungchow and The Tai Dialect of Wu-ming: Texts, Translations, and Glossary. Besides being the home to these reports and texts, the Archives holds various aluminum discs that contain the valuable dialect recordings from Li and Wu’s survey.
From September 14 to December 30, 1935, scholars Fang-kuei Li (1902–1987) and Wu Zongji (1909–2010) worked on a dialect survey in Guangxi, which was financially supported by the China Foundation for the Promotion of Education and Culture. According to expenditure reports, Li and Wu would treat participants to a meal and tea as well as paying a fee for the recordings. Along the way, they also acquired various manuscripts of folk songs and developed photos. The reports additionally show their fieldwork schedules and list other miscellaneous expenses such as haircuts, laundry, as well as the purchases of fruit, tea, and medicine, all of which were paid in the Guangxi currency “Gui bi,” reflecting the fact that Chinese currencies had not yet been unified.
During this project, Li collected an abundance of remarkable linguistic data, and after analyzing these materials, wrote two monographs: The Tai Dialect of Lungchow and The Tai Dialect of Wu-ming: Texts, Translations, and Glossary. Besides being the home to these reports and texts, the Archives holds various aluminum discs that contain the valuable dialect recordings from Li and Wu’s survey.