Abstract: The development of the literature of Yunnan’s eight ethnic minorities with small populations is chiefly manifested in the historical transformation from oral tradition to written creation. With the exception of the Jingpo ethnic group, the other seven groups remained for a long period in a cultural condition characterized by “having language but no writing system.” As a result, literary transmission relied primarily on oral communication, and written creation emerged relatively late. The development of the literature of these eight ethnic minorities in Yunnan from a long-standing oral tradition to written creation constitutes the central concern of this paper. Focusing on the driving forces of this transformation, both external driving factors and internal generative dynamics are examined to reveal the formative mechanism, developmental logic, and evolutionary trajectory through which the literature of Yunnan’s eight ethnic minorities with small populations shifted from oral transmission to written expression, contributing to a deeper understanding of the developmental process of the literature of Yunnan’s ethnic minorities with small populations and provides a reference for further research on such literature.

Key words: ethnic minorities with small populations in Yunnan, oral tradition, written creation, Conversion motive