A mysterious women's only language, handed down among the Yao ethnic group in Hunan Province and the Guangxi Autonomous Region in the south of China, was on the brink oblivion when its remnants caught the attention of a small group of scholars. Nushu -- nu meaning woman, shu book -- is a unique language invented by women, used by women, and one which embodies their unique feelings. Chinese scholars believe it is the only unisex script system in the world.
    Although Nushu was once widespread, it has now all but died out along with the the few women who still know it.
    As a unique historical cultural heritage, Nushu is invaluable to the research of ancient philology, linguistics,
    rchaeology, women's studies, ethnicity, sociology, literature and philosophy.
    To save it from being lost forever the Chinese government and concerned research institutes  launched the Nushu Culture Rescue Project, a programme which has attracted worldwide attention.
    In 1982, an old woman in a rural area, Doupangling in Hunan Province told me her female ancestors could write an "ant        language," so called because the shape of its characters looks like ants. The Nushu language was only handed down by, and to women, not men, by the local people. For most periods in ancient China, only men were allowed to read and write, while women were very much confined to the home and domestic chores. For this reason women called the Chinese characters (Hanzi) men's language. Women spelt out the characters of their language on fans, handkerchiefs, and paper books. Some of them even wove the characters into their colourful belts and quilts. It is said there were women who could read and write this language in every village in the mid-twentieth century, when the People's Republic of China was founded, and many families collected the paper fans and handkerchiefs bearing the language. Nushu belonged to the "Four Olds" -- the old idea, old culture, old custom and old habits -- and therefore earmarked for eradication during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Nobody was allowed to keep it, so it was unlikely any original copies survived. Many believed it was now extinct, and those women who could write it had died out. But has it really died out? Can no trace of it really be found? Those were the questions I set out to investigate and find the answers to.
    The Lasses in Blue
    In a village surrounded by a river and mountains, five young girls walked in single file along a narrow road beside a meandering river. They were going to market, gaily dressed all in blue -- blue blouses, blue trousers, blue linen shoes, blue headscarves, each carrying a bamboo basket covered with a piece of blue cloth. They were like a blue cloud flowing, or a blue wind blowing softly in my eyes. The road to the small town was very crowded. Men were riding bicycles with local products such as ginger, sugar canes, pachyrhizus, tobacco and pigs grunting on the back racks. The women were mostly walking on foot. Some girls walked in rows and some middle-aged women were followed by children. The middle-aged women were also garbed all in blue and one was even carrying a baby swaddled in blue.
    There were several colorfully embroidered belts and sashes which broke up the procession of blue and wound around each woman's waist and shoulder. There were lots of designs on them which reminded me of some sort of code. Curious, I stopped one woman and asked where she had got her belts. She told me that she had woven them herself. I asked her whether the designs were language characters and she said yes. According to her mother and the older women, the designs were the ancient language of the Yao ethnic group which had become extinct, so nobody could understand them nowadays. Some of the young girls also wore the belts, some a headscarf, and others sash-like belts around their waist. I was thrilled! I had found some clues to the mysterious language.
    Unexpected Encounter
    Under a big tree near the market squatted five girls in a row. Each of them had a bamboo basket covered with blue cloth on the ground in front of them. They were the blue clouds and blue wind I earlier spotted. I went over, squatted in front of one of them, pointed at the basket and asked what one she was selling. Her face blushed and she didn't utter a word. I couldn't hold back my curiosity and uncovered the basket. Nothing! It was empty. But why was she carrying an empty basket to market? When I uncovered it, the girl jumped up as if she had suffered an electric shock and immediately turned away. The other four stood up and followed her and looked at me in surprise. One of them placed the uncovered basket in front of me, leaving me even more perplexed. Why was the basket empty? Why was she so exasperated? Why did she turn away? Why was the basket given to me? At that moment, a middle-aged man strolled towards me, pulled me aside and asked where I was from. I quickly produced my work ID and the introduction letter from my institute. He introduced himself as the Party secretary of that commune and invited me to his office for a chat.
    Pingdi Yao is a branch of the Chinese Yao ethnic group. Its marriage customs are varied, one of which is called Basket Dating. Those who have only daughters and no son in the family opt for this way to find suitable husbands. Those young men who wed following this custom, are required to live with their in-laws and their children carry the wife's family name so that its line can continue. The way such an unmarried girl shows she is looking for a suitor is by carrying a basket and waiting near the market. If a young man is interested in the girl, he will uncover the basket to show his affection. The girl then runs home followed by the boy with the basket. Thus the dating begins. It was my first time in such a village and I had no idea about the custom and could only hope the young woman and her family would forgive my curiosity and rudeness.
    It was the Party secretary who provided a valuable clue about Nushu. He told me that women in his home village of Baishui, in Jiangyong County could write a strange language and they spelt out the characters on fans which they held as they sang. He had personally seen this language in childhood, but he could not read it.