​Down the Cultural Crosswords: 
​The Chinese Dialect of Xining
Keith Dede, PhD
1 March, 2025
9:30 - 11 am 
Qinghai Province is in the northeast corner of the Tibetan Plateau, a cultural crossroads where Chinese, Tibetan, and Mongolian civilizations have interacted for centuries. How has this unique ethno-geographic situation influenced the development of the Chinese language spoken in the region? What do the present linguistic and cultural observations tell us about ethnic relationships over the years? Join First Saturday PDX as we explore these and other questions in a presentation by Dr. Keith Dede about this fascinating corner of modern China.
REGISTER HERE by 28 February
About the speaker:  
Keith Dede received his PhD in 1999 from the University of Washington.  As Professor of Chinese and Chinese Section Head at Lewis & Clark College, he specializes in Chinese language and linguistics, specifically the languages and culture of Qinghai Province in northwest China.  He has written about the history of language contact in Qinghai, especially the influence of Tibetan and Mongolic languages on the development of local varieties of Chinese.  He has also written about the effects of the changing socio-cultural ecology on the languages of the region, and how Standard Chinese interacts with the local languages.  Ancillary interests include the history of Standard Chinese and its relationship to the dialects, Chinese language teaching, and modern Chinese literature and film.​
​​​For those interested in continuing the conversation, there will be a no host lunch family style with the speaker at a Chinese restaurant afterwards.   Please let us know if you are joining when you register for the program so that we can make the proper arrangements.
Check-in begins promptly at 9:15am
​Please meet at the SOUTH SIDE entrance doors
north side doors are to the Physics side of the building
​(building entrance doors will be locked at 9:30am)
Registration required   

​**This is an on-site presentation. 
Reed College, Biology Building, Rm 19
3203 SE Woodstock Blvd, Portland, OR 97202

The large East Parking Lot (free) is conveniently located nearby to the Biology Building, adjacent to the neighboring ETC (Educational Technology Center), see campus map here

Public transportation is available, plan your TriMet trip HERE.  

​We recommend that attendees be vaccinated and boosted, and follow CDC guidelines regarding masking.
Our program series is supported by Reed College, Northwest China Council, Lan Su Chinese Garden,  Portland Chinatown Museum and Portland State University's Institute for Asian Studies.   
​All our programs are free and open to the public.   ​