关于通过名称找对应的编码

  string[,] nationals = new string[56,2] {
                                        {"汉族","01"}, {"蒙古族","02"},{ "回族","03"},{"藏族","04"}, {"维吾尔族","05"},
                                        {"苗族","06"}, {"彝族","07"}, {"壮族","08"}, {"布依族","09"}, {"朝鲜族", "10"},
                                        {"满族","11"}, {"侗族","12"}, {"瑶族","13"}, {"白族","14"}, {"土家族", "15"},
                                        {"哈尼族","16"}, {"哈萨克族","17"}, {"傣族","18"}, {"黎族","19"}, {"傈僳族", "20"},
                                        {"佤族","21"}, {"畲族","22"}, {"高山族","23"}, {"拉祜族","24"}, {"水族", "25"},
                                        {"东乡族","26"}, {"纳西族","27"}, {"景颇族","28"}, {"柯尔克孜族","29"}, {"土族","30"},
                                        {"达斡尔族","31"}, {"仫佬族","32"}, {"羌族","33"}, {"布朗族", "34"},{"撒拉族", "35"},
                                        {"毛难族","36"}, {"仡佬族","37"}, {"锡伯族","38"}, {"阿昌族","39"}, {"普米族","40"},
                                        {"塔吉克族","41"}, {"怒族","42"}, {"乌孜别克族","43"}, {"俄罗斯族","44"}, {"鄂温克族", "45"},
                                        {"德昂族","46"}, {"保安族","47"}, {"裕固族","48"}, {"京族","49"}, {"塔塔尔族", "50"},
                                        {"独龙族","51"}, {"鄂伦春族", "52"},{"赫哲族","53"}, {"门巴族","54"}, {"珞巴族","55"}, {"基诺族","56"}};
我有这样一个数组，如何通过文字查找定位编号，避免使用for或foreach，我也考虑过使用HashTable或Dictionary；我讲我的想法是讲字符转换为byte,然后去出前面两位特征码，保存，这样通过每次获取是只需比较这个特征码就能找到对应的值。
分数不多了，只能给这点，各位有什么好的思路或算法可以提示一下不