Peoples of the Chinese group. History of China, ethnic groups and dialects. Traditions of the Chinese people

China is a multinational state with officially 56 nationalities. Although, in fairness, it is worth noting that this number is considered rather arbitrary: according to the census results in 1964, 183 national minorities were registered in China, of which the government recognized only 54, joining small ethno-linguistic groups to larger ones.

Among the nationalities of China, the most numerous are the Han, making up about 91% of the total population (about 1.137 billion). The remaining 9% (about 150 million) belong to other ethnic groups, which are commonly called national minorities. These peoples are mainly concentrated in the northwest, north, northeast, south and southeast of China, while the Han are found everywhere, but the bulk of them inhabit central China - the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow, Yangtze, Zhujiang, as well as the northeastern lands. They are not only the largest ethnic group in China, but also the largest nationality in the world.

The 2000 census showed that the number of 18 of the 55 national minorities exceeds 1 million. These include the Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao, Uighur, Yian, Tujiang, Mongols, Tibetans, Butian, Dungan, Yaotian, Korean, Bai, Hanians, Kazakhs, Daits and Liyans.

The other 17 nationalities number from 100 thousand to 1 million people each. These are the Sheyans, Lisuans, Gelaotians, Lahuts, Dongxiangs, Waits, Shuis, Nasians, Qiangs, Tuis, Sibotians, Mulaotians, Kirghiz, Daurs, Jingpotians, Salars and Maonans.

The most numerous people in China after the Han are the Zhuang (15.6 million people), the smallest is the Loba (about 2,300 people).

Among China's national minorities there are also Russians, whose number, according to official data, is about 15,000. These are mainly descendants of immigrants from Tsarist Russia who fled to the border cities in northwestern China at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The settlements of Russian immigrants in China began to be called “guihua”. Mostly Russians live in Xinjiang and Heilongjiang.

Many of the small ethnic groups live in compact, distinctive settlements and preserve their traditions and customs. One of the most ethnically diverse regions in both China and the world is Yunnan Province. At least 25 national minorities live here.

Almost every nationality has its own language and script, as well as many dialects. In total, there are 235 living languages ​​in China. The official Chinese language, taught in schools and universities and used in the media, is Putonghua (Mandarin), based on the Beijing dialect.

National affiliation is largely determined by religion. Thus, the Hui, Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Tatars, Kyrgyz, Salars, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Dungans and Baoans have professed Islam since ancient times. The Daits, Bulans and Palaungs who inhabit Yunnan province adhere to the conservative branch of Buddhism - Theravada, which came here from Burma and Thailand. Taoism and Buddhism are common among the Han Chinese. Among the Miao, Yao and Yi, adherents of shamanism, there are both Protestants and Catholics, and the Tibetan peoples (Tibetans, Mongols, Loba, Menbai, Tui, Yellow Uighurs) profess Tibetan Buddhism, which is commonly called Lamaism in the West.

Below is a table with the number of nationalities in China according to the results of the 2000 census.

The influence of mythology on the everyday life of the Chinese, traditions and customs is great. Various stories and legends speak of the possibility of learning the history of the origin of the Chinese. According to one of the legends, man appeared thanks to the goddess Nuiva, who was walking through the created world and noticed all its colorfulness and scale. The world is boring and not completely filled, something was missing. The goddess made a figurine of a man from clay and with her breath infused life into the first and so far only female person, because she sculpted him in her own image and likeness. Then a man appeared, also with the help of clay and the hands of the goddess Nüwe.

Sculpting each person is not an easy and very tedious task, so the goddess resorted to a trick by scattering pieces of clay on the ground that turned into people. Endowed people with reproductive function for procreation. This is how the people of China appeared, according to mythology.

The discovery of the remains of an ancient man allowed archaeologists to assume that the first man appeared in China about 500 thousand years ago. Scientists nicknamed him Sinanthropus. Later, sites of ancient tribes inhabiting China were found.

There are several main theories about the origin of the people of China:

Man in ancient times always tried to settle around bodies of water. This provided him with water, as well as fishing. In China, the main rivers are the Yellow River and the Yangtze.

• The people of China have been formed and lived here since the appearance of the first man. According to this theory, the Chinese people have inhabited this territory for a long time and never left. This theory is rather close to those who believe in the divine origin of the Chinese people.

• The theory of population migration. The ancestors of the Chinese migrated to this territory from other regions. China is surrounded by water from the East, therefore, all tribes and peoples migrated to this region from all the remaining three directions. Everyone's route was different. This theory is one of the most popular and reliable. There are endless debates among Sinologist historians about the route of the ancestors of the Chinese. Some claim that they came from the North, others that from the South.

• The Chinese, as a separate nation, arose as a result of the settlement of certain segments of the population on the territory of modern China. According to it, China was far from the final point of arrival; it is possible that the tribes moved to the East, but in the process of a long migration they got tired and got used to the climate, which allowed them to gain a foothold in this region. Indeed, this theory has its reasons. China's climatic conditions used to be much milder and more favorable. This created comfortable conditions for living in this territory.

• The Chinese were formed through a process of mixed assimilation. China is a state with a huge territory. Some peoples have lived here since ancient times, others migrated here, others settled here as a result of a grueling transition. They assimilated among themselves, which led to the emergence of a common ethnic group. In modern China, there are differences between the Chinese of different regions, this demonstrates that different theories of the origin of a great nation take place in modern times.

The issue of the emergence of the Chinese people is still relevant and causes a storm of discussion, and has not yet been closed or studied in detail. Scientists, based on their findings, draw certain conclusions and build their theories based on them.

Dialects of the Chinese language.

Chinese, according to the UN, is one of the 6 main languages ​​of international communication. It is spoken by the most people (more than 1 billion).

China is famous for its linguistic diversity. Dialects can be so different that residents of opposite banks of the same small river may not understand each other. Therefore, Putonghua is the main dialect in the country. This dialect is derived from the Beijing language. It is widespread in the capital and is spoken by ¾ of the Chinese population.

There are about 300 different languages ​​in the Middle Kingdom. Several of them are irretrievably lost. The influence of the Chinese language is also noticeable in neighboring countries where Chinese is used.

The writing itself and the hieroglyphs were formed a long time ago, but the name and pronunciation were constantly changing, which led to the formation of dialects.

China is conventionally divided into 2 large language families: northern and southern.

Northern dialects are similar, which allows people to understand each other. In the southern part, it is difficult to understand a person from another province. The southern provinces are separate and independent.

Scientists linguists and sinologists have recently identified 10 main dialects:

• Gunhua
• Hakka
• Shanghaihua
• Pinghua
• Jin
• Anhui

Ethnic composition of China

China can be considered a multinational state. About 60 different nationalities live on a vast territory.

Chinese ethnic groups: Chinese (Han), Miao, Hui, Tujia, Bui, Dong, Yao, Bai, Hani, Tai, Li, Lisu, She, Lahu, Wa, Shui, Nasi, Tu, Qiang, Daur and others.

Other nationalities living in China: Manchus, Mongols, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Russians, Kazakhs, Uighurs, Tatars, Koreans, Japanese, Vietnamese, Filipinos and others.

Naturally, the Han Chinese have the lion's share of the advantage. Their share in the total population is 9/10. The number of the rest ranges from several million to several thousand people.

Han people live in almost all regions of China. The remaining nationalities, due to their insignificance, are dispersed in one region. The creation of autonomies on Chinese territory allowed such peoples, for example as the Uyghurs and Tibetans, to have their own administrative-territorial units.

Ethnos - is a historically formed social group that has a combination of the following characteristics: unity of territory, culture based on a common language, economic and everyday characteristics.

Officially, there are 56 nationalities in China. Since the Han Chinese make up approximately 92% of the country's population, the remaining peoples are usually called national minorities.

In practice, many small ethno-linguistic groups are combined with larger ones, and the actual number of ethnic groups is noticeably higher. China has 299 languages ​​- 298 living and one extinct (Jurchen).

Although most residents of China's southern provinces speak Chinese dialects that differ significantly from the official standard based on the northern dialects, they are not considered officially as separate nationalities, but as part of the Han nationality. The Chinese are so numerous, and the territory of their settlement is so vast and diverse that it seems quite natural that there are significant ethnocultural differences between the inhabitants of different regions of the Celestial World.

State official language - Mandarin (universal language). This is a modern literary language spoken by central radio and television announcers and taught to schoolchildren and students. The Beijing dialect is close to Putonghua. The differences in many other dialects - Guangdong, Anhui, etc. - are so great that people speaking them often do not understand each other. In order to communicate, they use hieroglyphic writing, which is common to all dialects.

Hieroglyphic writing significantly different from the alphabetical one. First of all, by the fact that each sign is assigned a specific meaning, both phonetic and semantic, and secondly, by a large number of signs. For many millennia, Chinese characters have remained the only generally accepted way of writing the Chinese language.

The Chinese (Han) are part of the Chinese group of the Sino-Tibetan family. This group includes Hui (Dungan)). Most of them live in the northern regions of China. The Hui have their own autonomy - the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Although the Hui do not differ from the Chinese in their spoken language and writing, the peculiarities of religion, life, and economic management make it possible to distinguish them into a special group. Most Hui descend from Iranian-speaking and Arabic-speaking settlers who appeared in China in the 13th-14th centuries, and from Chinese colonists who settled among the Turkic peoples in the 2nd century. BC e. By religion, the Hui are Muslims. They usually settle separately from the Chinese, forming independent rural or urban neighborhoods.

Sino-Tibetan family It is also represented in China by the peoples of the Tibeto-Burman group, including the Tibetans, Itzu, Hani, and Lisu.

Most of Tibetans lives in the Tibet Autonomous Region. They are engaged in high-mountain arable farming - growing gymnosperm barley "qingke". Nomads and semi-nomads raise yaks, sheep, and goats. Tibetans are very different from the Han people in their religious, linguistic, economic and cultural characteristics.

People Fox.

The Lisu language belongs to the Izu Tibetan subgroup of the Burmese group of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. There are two dialects of the Lisu language - Nujiang and Lijiang. However, the vocabulary and grammatical structure of these dialects are so close that Lisu speakers of different dialects can easily understand each other. The Lisu language is polytonal; its individual dialects and dialects have 6 - 12 tones. The order of words in a sentence is strictly defined. Writing is based on the Latin alphabet. According to beliefs, most Lisu are animists. The god of the village, Khalani, was especially revered. At the beginning of our century, Christianity became widespread among the Lisu. The main holiday is New Year. New Year is celebrated according to the lunar calendar from the 27th day of the twelfth month to the 9th day of the first month.

From a Thai family most numerous zhuang living in the southern part of the country, in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Their main occupation is plow farming with the most common bed-terrace system. Livestock plays a supporting role. Zhuang settlements usually differ little from those of the Chinese living in the same areas. They are characterized by pile, bamboo and adobe buildings. The Zhuangs profess southern Buddhism, and the ideas of Taoism have a strong influence among them.

Representatives of the Austroasiatic families - the Miao and Yao people - live in Southern and Southwestern China. The main types of economic activity of these peoples are mountain farming (the Miao are engaged mainly in the cultivation of irrigated rice and wheat, the Yao - upland rice and corn), logging, and hunting. Among the Miao and Yao believers, polytheism was most widespread.

Altai.family represented by Turkic, Mongolian and Tungus-Manchu groups. The Turkic group includes Uighurs, Kazakhs and Kyrgyz living in the north-west of China, with the bulk concentrated within the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Among the peoples of this group, there are settled farmers who conduct intensive farming using artificial irrigation, nomadic pastoralists, as well as a semi-sedentary population that combines cattle breeding with agriculture. Moreover, the Uyghurs are mainly engaged in agriculture, and the Kazakhs and Kyrgyz are engaged in cattle breeding. Most peoples of the Turkic group profess Islam. The most characteristic is the oasis type of settlement.

Mongols live in Northeast China, the provinces of Gansu, Qinghai, and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Mongols living in China speak five different dialects, one of which is close to Khalkha, which is the basis of the literary Mongolian language in the Mongolian People's Republic. The main occupation is nomadic cattle breeding. Some of the Mongols, who had closer contacts with the Chinese and other agricultural peoples, adopted farming skills from them. The predominant religion among the Mongols is Buddhism (Lamaism).

Peoples of the Tungus-Manchu group settled in the territory of North-East China, mainly in remote mountain and taiga corners. For many representatives of these peoples, the Chinese language and writing have become native. The main occupation of the Manchus living in river valleys is agriculture, and those living in cities and their environs are trade and crafts.

In Chinese o. Taiwan reside representatives of the Austronesian family - Gaoshan(“highlanders”), related to the Malays.

In China there are also representatives of the Indo-European family - Pamir Tajiks and Russians, as well as Koreans and many other small nationalities.

Geographically, China is divided along the Yangtze River into two almost equal parts: North and South. Even in their appearance, northern and southern Chinese are noticeably different from each other. Northerners tend to be taller, have lighter skin, wider cheekbones, a thinner nose, and a slightly sloping forehead. Southerners are shorter, their skin is darker, their faces are more elongated, their noses are flatter, and their foreheads are straight.

In general, the population of the North China Plain is much more homogeneous in both language and culture than the population of the South.

"Chinese letters"

There is no single Chinese language in the country. What we take as such - the language of official documents and the media of the PRC, Putonghua - is only the “Beijing dialect”, one of the dialects of the so-called North Chinese language, which, due to historical circumstances, has become the standard in the Chinese state.

The most widely spoken language in China is Northern Chinese., according to linguists, it is spoken by about 800 million people. But within this language, provincial dialects differ.

The Northern Chinese language has 8-10 major dialects, each of which in turn is divided into local dialects.

Cantonese is the furthest language from Beijing is everyday life for almost 90 million people living in southern China, centered in Guangzhou and Hong Kong. Cantonese is the fourth most spoken language in the United States, after English, Spanish and French.

Almost 80 million speak Shanghai language, otherwise called the Wu dialect. There are six major dialects within this language, in particular the dialect taihu , which includes the Shanghainese dialect itself, which is spoken by 14 million people in everyday life. Another 60 million Chinese have spoken Chinese since childhood. Min language- this is the population of the richest and economically developed coastal regions in the Taiwan Strait area, as well as the population of the islands of Taiwan and Hainan.

Approximately 30-35 million Chinese citizens speak three separate Chinese languages ​​- Xiang language, Hakka language and Gan language.

In Hong Kong and Macau, which were recently annexed to the PRC but retained autonomy, Chinese is adopted as the official language, although the official laws do not indicate which dialect of Chinese it is. Therefore, in the media and correspondence, the common Chinese literary language is used.

China is a multinational state, home to 56 nationalities. According to the third national census of 1982, there were 936.70 million Chinese (Han) and 67.23 million members of national minorities in China.

The 55 nationalities living in the country include: Zhuang, Hui, Uyghurs, Miao, Manchus, Tibetans, Mongols, Tujia, Bui, Koreans, Dong, Yao, Bai, Hani, Kazakhs, Tai, Li, Lisu, She, Lahu, Wa, Shui, Dong-Xiang, Nasi, Tu, Kirghiz, Qiang, Daur, Jingpo, Mulao, Sibo, Salar, Bulan, Gelao, Maonan, Tajik, Pumi, Well, Achan, Evenki, Jing, Benlongs, Uzbeks, Ji-no, Yugurs, Baoan, Dulongs, Orochons, Tatars, Russians, Gaoshan, Hezhe, Menba, Loba (arranged in descending order of numbers).

Among the ethnic groups, the largest is the Zhuang with 13.38 million people, and the smallest is the Loba with 1 thousand people. 15 national minority groups have a population of over a million people, 13 - over 100 thousand, 7 - more than 50 thousand and 20 - less than 50 thousand people. In addition, there are several ethnic groups in Yunnan and Tibet that have not yet been identified.

The population in China is distributed very unevenly. The Han people are settled throughout the country, but the bulk of them live in the basins of the Yellow, Yangtze and Pearl rivers, as well as on the Songlia Plain (in the northeast). Throughout Chinese history, the Han Chinese have had close political, economic, and cultural ties with various ethnic groups. The high level of development of the Han nationality determines its leading role in the state. National minorities, despite their small numbers, live in an area occupying about 50-60% of the country's area, mainly in Inner Mongolia, Tibet, Xinjiang Uyghur, Guangxi Zhuang and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Regions, as well as the provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan, Yunnan, Guichou, Guangdong, Hunan, Hebei, Hubei, Fujian and Taiwan. Many national minorities are settled in the highlands, in areas of steppes and forests, and most are located in border areas.

The vast natural resources of areas inhabited by national minorities play an important role in socialist construction.

Internal migrations are significant in the distribution of the population. Residents of densely populated provinces are moving to less developed and populated areas. As a result of the change of dynasties in the course of history, the search for empty lands in border areas, and the policy of resettlement within the provinces, representatives of different national minorities have constantly migrated and currently live in mixed or compact communities. Thus, more than 20 nationalities live in Yunnan province. This is the area with the largest number of ethnic minorities present in China. Koreans are settled mainly in Yanbian County (Jilin Province), Tujia and Miao - in the eastern part of Hunan Province. The Lis live on Hainan Island, Guangdong Province. About 10 million ethnic minorities live in mixed groups throughout China, and even these small ethnic communities have merged with the Han Chinese. For example, in Inner Mongolia, Ningxia Hui and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Regions, the majority of the population is Han, and only a small part are ethnic minorities. This pattern of small compact communities among large mixed groups of mainly Han Chinese is characteristic of the settlement of nationalities in China.

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Published based on the book by Intercontinental Publishing House of China
"Xinjiang: An Ethnographic Essay", by Xue Zongzheng, 2001

The Uyghurs are an ancient ethnic group that has lived in northern China since ancient times; their main place of residence is Xinjiang, but they also live in Hunan, Beijing, Guangzhou and other places. There are very few Uyghurs outside of China. The self-name "Uyghurs" means "unification", "unification". In ancient Chinese historical chronicles there are different variations of the name of the Uyghurs: “Huihu”, “Huihe”, “Uighurs”. The official name "Uyghurs" was adopted by the Xinjiang provincial government in 1935.

Uyghurs speak the Uyghur language, which belongs to the Turkic language family, and profess Islam. Their places of residence are mainly in the regions of Southern Xinjiang: Kashi, Khotan, Aksu, as well as the city of Urumqi and Ili County in Northern Xinjiang. According to the 1988 census, the number of Uyghurs in Xinjiang is 8.1394 million people, 47.45% of the total population of Xinjiang, in rural areas the proportion of Uyghurs is 84.47%, in rural townships 6.98%, in cities 8 .55%.

Ancestors of the Uyghurs and the evolution of development

The issue of the origins of the Uyghur nationality is quite complex. Ancient peoples took part in it: the Sakas (Eastern Iranian language group), Yuezhi, Qiang (tribes of the ancient Tibetan language group who lived on the northern spurs of Kunlun), and finally, the Han people who lived in the Turfan depression. In the 40s of the 8th century, Uighur tribes engaged in nomadic cattle breeding on the Mongolian plateau migrated to the territory of what is now Xinjiang. In total, three migration flows can be traced. In Xinjiang, migrants settled in the areas of Yanqi, Gaochang (Turfan) and Jimsar. Gradually, the Uighurs settled in the vast expanses of Southern Xinjiang. This was the first stage in the formation of the Uyghur nationality based on mixing with other ethnic groups, as well as an important period in the popularization of the Uyghur language. The wall paintings of the Baiziklik Thousand Buddha Cave Temples contain images of Uyghurs. The Uyghurs of those times had clearly expressed features of the Mongoloid race. Today, the Uyghurs, along with black hair and eyes, have an oval face and skin color characteristic of a mixed yellow-white race. Moreover, there are differences in the appearance of Uyghurs living in different areas. Uyghurs living in the Kashgar-Kucha region have light skin and thick facial hair, which brings them closer to the white race; The Uyghurs of Khotan have dark skin, which brings these Uyghurs closer to the Tibetans; The Turfan Uighurs have the same skin color as the Han Chinese living in Gansu and Qinghai. All this indicates that in the process of ethnic formation, the Uyghurs experienced processes of mixing with other nationalities. The ancestors of the Uighurs by blood also include the Mongols, a large influx of whom into Xinjiang took place during the period of the Chagetai and Yarkand Khanates.

The ancestors of the Uyghurs were adherents of shamanism, Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism and Buddhism. The abundance of Buddhist religious buildings that have survived to this day: cave temples, monasteries and pagodas suggests that in ancient times Buddhism occupied a dominant position among various beliefs. In the mid-10th century, Islamism, brought from Central Asia, spread in the Karakhan Khanate. Islamism first penetrated into Kucha. In the mid-16th century, during the existence of the Yarkand Khanate, Islamism supplanted Buddhism and became the dominant religion in the Turfan and Hami regions. Thus, a historical change of religions took place in Xinjiang.

During the period of the Yarkand Khanate, the Uyghurs lived mainly in Southern Xinjiang - the region between the Tianshan and Kunlun ranges. During the period of the Dzungar Khanate, the Uyghurs began to settle in the valley of the Ili River, where they plowed virgin lands. But the number of Uyghurs resettled was small. In general, until the beginning of the Qing dynasty, the Uyghurs mainly lived concentrated in Southern Xinjiang, and from here they moved to other places. For example, the current Uyghurs living in Urumqi are descendants of those Uyghurs who migrated here from Turfan in 1864. At that time, a resident of Dihua (since 1955 Urumqi) Taoming (Hui by nationality) opposed the Qing rule and proclaimed the establishment of an independent government. Residents of Turfan supported the rebels and sent an armed detachment to help them in Dihua. After some time, the Kokand military leader Agub captured Dihua and Guniin (now a district of Urumqi) and organized a recruitment of recruits in Southern Xinjiang to replenish his army. Thus, many Uyghurs from Southern Xinjiang migrated to Dihua and settled permanently. In addition, already during the years of the Republic of China (1911-1949), many Uyghur traders and workers moved to Northern Xinjiang. Until now, the number of Uyghurs living in Southern Xinjiang is much larger than their number in Northern Xinjiang.

Political history of the Uyghurs

At different periods of history, the Uyghurs created their own local power structures. But they all maintained close contact with the central government of the Chinese Empire.

At the beginning of the Tang dynasty, the Uyghur ruler inherited the title of governor of the Gobi and created the Uyghur Khaganate. The Khagans (supreme rulers) received a letter of appointment and a state seal from the hands of the Chinese emperor, in addition, one of the Khagans was connected by a matrimonial union with the Tang dynasty. The rulers of the Uyghur Khaganate assisted the Tans in pacifying internal turmoil among the tribes of the Western territories and protecting the borders.

In the 10th century, three state formations existed on the territory of the Western Territories: the Gaochang Khanate, the Karakhan Khanate and the Keria State. They all paid tribute to the emperors of the Song (960-1279) and Liao (907-1125) dynasties. In the 16th - 17th centuries, close political and economic ties existed between the Yarkand Khanate in Xinjiang and the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

In 1696, Khamiya Bek Abdul, before others, spoke out against the Dzungar administration that then dominated the southern and northern spurs of the Tien Shan and announced recognition of the power of the Qing dynasty. Abdul's descendants invariably received titles and seals from the Chinese emperor, indicating recognition of their powers by the central government of China.

Thus, the ground was gradually prepared for the inclusion of the Western territories in the map of Chinese possessions. After the Qing troops defeated the troops of the Dzungar Khanate in 1755, the process of recognition of the supremacy of the central Chinese government by the leaders of the kingdoms in the Western territories accelerated. Following the example of the Han Dynasty, which established the position of viceroy "duhu" in the Western Territories, and the Tang Dynasty, which established military administrative districts in Anxi and Beiting, the Qing government established in 1762 the position of Ili Governor-General - the highest military administrative rank in the Western Territories . As for the local government in the areas inhabited by the Uyghurs, the traditional feudal-bureaucratic system of beks (feudal lords who held bureaucratic posts, inherited from father to son) was preserved, which lasted until the end of the Qing dynasty.

In the mid-19th century, the Chinese nation was experiencing a severe crisis, and class contradictions sharply worsened. Against this background, the defects of the feudal-bureaucratic system of bekship and the system of paramilitary viceroyship established in Xinjiang by the Chinese government were increasingly revealed. Peasant uprisings became more frequent, and religious leaders, taking advantage of the ensuing turmoil, began to preach for a “holy war for Islam.” From outside, Xinjiang was invaded by troops of the Central Asian Kokand Khanate (a feudal state created by the Uzbeks in the 18th century in the Fergana Valley) under the leadership of Khan Aguba (1825 - 1877). The Uzbeks captured Kashi and the southern Xinjiang region. Tsarist Russia occupied Inin (Kulja). These are troubled times for Xinjiang. Only in 1877, under the pressure of the rebellious population and the blows of the Qing troops, the interventionist government of Aguba fell, and the power of the Qing government was again restored in the Northern and Southern regions of Xinjiang, which in 1884 proclaimed Xinjiang a Chinese province.

The Uyghurs played an important role in resisting external aggressors during the period of modern history.

In the 20-30s of the 19th century, the Uyghurs repelled the armed machinations of the troops of Zhangir and Muhammad Yusup, who acted with the support of the Kokand Khan; in the 60s, the Uyghurs expelled the Russian consul of the Ili and Tarbagatai districts and Russian merchants because they grossly violated local laws and provoked incidents in which there were casualties among the local population; in the 70s, the Uyghurs repulsed the intervention of Agub Khan's troops and supported the Qing troops in restoring Chinese power in Xinjiang. They also contributed to the return of Gulja to the fold of the Motherland in 1881 from Russian occupation. During the years of the Republic of China, the Uyghurs resolutely fought against pan-Turkism and pan-Islamism, defending the unity of the motherland and national cohesion. During the years of the People's Republic of China, in particular after the formation of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, the Uyghurs acted as an important stabilizing force in the political life of China and Xinjiang.

Social life and economics

The Uighurs lead a sedentary lifestyle, their main occupation is agriculture. Most Uyghurs live in rural areas. In the mid-17th century, the Dzungars, one of the four Oirat tribes in Western Mongolia, arose. Having established their dominance in Xinjiang, the Dzungars resettled part of the Uighurs living in Southern Xinjiang to the north, to the Urumqi region, forcing them to plow virgin lands. In the past, the Uighurs grew crops extensively, without applying fertilizers, without selecting seed, without caring about restoring soil fertility, and used unlimited quantities of water from irrigation ditches for irrigation. But even under these conditions, Uyghur peasants have made considerable progress in crop production.

The Uighurs live in oases in the middle of the desert, their villages formed as they settled without a specific plan. In addition to working in the fields, villagers always plant trees and shrubs around their homes; fruit growing and melon farming are widespread. Raisins are prepared from grapes by drying them in the open air, dried fruit is made from apricots, and apricot kernels are also dried. Well-known products are Khotan peaches and walnuts, Pishan and Kargalyk pomegranates, Badan apricots, Atush figs, Kuchan apricots, Turfan seedless grapes, Kurlya pears, melons grown in Fayzabad, Megati and Shanshan, Ili apples, sea buckthorn, etc. Xinjiang is an important cotton growing region of national importance to China. The Uyghurs are excellent cotton growers. Living in an arid climate with very little rainfall, the Uyghurs learned to build underground water pipelines and kariz wells, which draw water from rivers. During the years of people's power, especially during the period of reforms and open policy (since 1978), a galaxy of young specialists grew up in Xinjiang, new trends, new agro and livestock technology came to the agricultural sector, and mechanization began to be widely introduced. All this led to a new boom in agriculture in the region.

The diet of Uighur peasants is dominated by small livestock meat, dairy products and fruits. Residents of cities work in the craft field and are engaged in petty trade. Leather production, blacksmithing, and food processing are developed among the crafts. Merchants sell fruit, cook barbecue, bake flatbreads, pies and other types of traditional food. The products of Uyghur artisans are distinguished by great elegance. Khotanese carpets and silk, miniature daggers from Yangisar, embroidered skullcaps and copper items produced in Kashi are in great demand.

Folk customs

Modern Uyghurs are very different from their ancestors: the Huihu, who believed in Manichaeism, or the Gaochang Uyghurs, who believed in Buddhism. Today the dominant religion is Islamism. At the early stage of the spread of Islam, the Uyghurs belonged to the Sufism sect, but today the majority of the population are Sunnis, in addition, there are adherents of the Yichan sect, which requires renunciation of worldly pleasures and wearing rosaries.

Marriages are concluded exclusively between supporters of the same faith; marrying a girl to someone of a different faith is strictly condemned. Marriages between relatives and early marriages occur. According to tradition, the decisive factor when choosing a groom (bride) is the will of the parents. Today, it is true that the right to marriage for love is officially recognized, but it is still believed that any decent groom should be able to present the bride’s family with a rich bride price, otherwise he will be charged with underestimating the bride’s merits. Both among the groom's gifts and the bride's dowry, a prayer rug is an indispensable attribute. The act of marriage must be confirmed by a clergyman - akhun. The newlyweds eat a flatbread soaked in water, to which salt is added, the groom's friends and the bride's friends perform dances and songs. Today, wedding celebrations last one day, but previously they lasted at least three days. According to Uyghur custom, in the event of the death of an older brother, the widow does not remain in her husband's family, but can return to her parents' home or marry someone else. But if the wife dies, then the widower can marry his sister-in-law. Uyghurs show great tolerance towards divorce and remarriage; in a divorce, the divorcing parties divide property equally among themselves. However, custom prohibits a married woman from filing for divorce on her own initiative. Although recently there have been changes here too.

The Uyghur family is based on the marital relationship of husband and wife; children who reach adulthood and start a family are separated from their parents. The youngest son continues to live in his parents’ house so that there is someone to care for the elderly and see them off on their last journey. In addition, there is a custom according to which a son, if he is the only male child in the family, is not separated from his parents. At the birth of a child, the mother remains on bed rest for 40 days. The baby is placed in a cradle, in which it is convenient to rock the child. To name a newborn, a special ceremony is held; a male child aged 5-7 years is circumcised, and this operation is timed to coincide with the odd month of the spring or autumn season. Children of both sexes, as well as the wife in the event of the death of the husband, have the right to inherit, but a daughter can inherit property in an amount that is only half the inheritance due to a son. It must be said that these customs today are no longer as absolute as they were in the past. Uighurs place great importance on maintaining relationships with relatives. Relatives are divided into direct, close and distant. But even when dealing with indirect relatives, they resort to such names as “father”, “mother”, “brother”, “sister”, etc. It is customary to provide mutual support between relatives. A personal nomination consists of a first and patronymic, without a surname, but the name of the ancestor (grandfather) is mentioned. It is the custom of the Uyghurs to honor the elderly and old, they are greeted and escorted with respect, and they give way. When greeting each other, Uyghurs place the palm of their right hand to their chest.

Funeral customs involve interring the remains of the deceased. The deceased is laid with his head to the west, as a rule, for a period of no more than three days, and the akhun performs a prayer over him. Before burial, the corpse is wrapped in white cloth in several layers: three layers for men and five layers for women; in the mosque, the relatives of the deceased bring the last offerings, after which the funeral procession follows to the cemetery. A grave is dug in a quadrangular shape, most often in a cave, the deceased is laid with his head to the west, the akhun says the words of prayer, and after that the entrance to the cave is walled up. As a rule, people of other faiths are prohibited from entering the cemetery.

Today, the Uyghurs use the generally accepted calendar, but the onset of some holidays is still determined by the old calendar. The beginning of the year according to the Uyghur calendar is the Kurban holiday, and the Small New Year falls on Zhouzijie. According to Muslim custom, one month of the year must be dedicated to fasting. This month you can eat only before sunrise and after sunset. The end of Lent falls on “zhouzijie” (“kaizhaijie”). Now you can eat well. 70 days after “kaizhaijie”, the New Year (Kurban) begins, when every family slaughters a lamb, arranges a New Year’s party and goes around with congratulations to each other. During the spring solstice, "Nuwuzhouzijie" is celebrated - the arrival of spring. But this holiday does not belong to Muslim holidays, and is rarely celebrated in our time.

The architecture of the Uyghurs is marked by Arabic characteristics. Outstanding architectural monuments are the tomb of Khoja Apoka (Kashi), the Etigart Mosque, and the Imin Minaret (Turfan). Residential buildings are built from wood and clay. The yard is surrounded by an adobe wall, the walls of the house, which are the main load-bearing structures, are also made of adobe, and wooden beams are placed on the edges of the walls to support the roof. In Khotan, the walls of houses are built from clay, which is kneaded with added wood chips. The roof of the house is made flat, fruits are dried on it, etc. In addition to the residential building, in the courtyard there is a grape trellis and an orchard; the house has a door, but there are no windows that are familiar to us; light enters through a window in the ceiling. Niches are made in the walls of the house where household utensils are stored, the bed is replaced by an adobe couch (kan), covered with a mat or carpet, carpets are also hung on the walls. On cold days, the house is heated by heat emanating from the wall, under which a fire is lit. Doors in a Uyghur house never face west. Uyghurs, who live in modern stone-and-brick houses, use modern furniture, but still like to decorate the room with carpets.

Uyghur cuisine is rich in a variety of dishes prepared by baking, boiling, and stewing. Spices are added to food, especially the spice “Parthian anise”, or “Zizhan” in Uyghur. The main bread product is baked flatbread made from fermented dough with added onions and butter. A popular drink is tea with milk. Uighur pilaf, whole fried lamb, sausage, pies, steamed pies with filling, crispy bagels, etc. are widely known. The most delicious dish is considered to be lamb shish kebab, seasoned with anise, salt and pepper. Uighur-style kebab has become a popular dish throughout China.

An integral part of the clothing of Uyghurs, both men and women, is a headdress; skullcaps, beautifully embroidered with gold or silver threads, are especially popular. Everyday men's clothing is a long-skirted chepan, which is sewn with wide sleeves, without a collar and without fasteners. It is worn wrapped to the side and belted with a sash. Currently, Uyghurs living in cities have begun to dress in a modern way, men wear jackets and trousers, women wear dresses. When choosing cosmetic creams and lipsticks, Uighur women prefer products based on natural plant materials. Developed by a Xinjiang company, Osman brand eyebrow tint has been quality tested and offered for sale in China and abroad.

Culture and art

Uyghur culture has deep roots. During the time of the Uyghur Khaganate, the Uyghurs used the Zhuni script (a Turkic language group). It is in “zhuny” that the “Moyancho” stele is written. Later, syllabic writing came into use using the letters “sutewen”; it was written vertically from top to bottom, from right to left. During the Chagatai Khanate, the Uyghurs adopted the Arabic alphabet, giving rise to a writing system called Old Uyghur. Kashgar pronunciation was considered generally accepted. The alphabet consisted of letters, written from right to left. In the 19th century they switched to modern Uyghur writing. Modern Uyghur language has 8 vowels and 24 consonants. In the 11th century, the Uyghur poet Yusup from the city of Balasaguni (Karakhan Khanate) published the didactic poem “Knowledge that Gives Happiness,” the poet Aplinchotele wrote the idyllic poem “There is such a place.” During the Chagatai period, the love poem “Laila and Matain” and the poet Abdujeim Nizari’s poem “Zhebiya and Saddin” appeared. Modern Uyghur fiction and poetry developed already in the 20th century.

Colorful dance and song creativity of the Uyghurs. Even during the time of the Yarkand Khanate, the musical suite “Twelve Mukams” was created, which includes 340 fragments: ancient tunes, oral folk tales, dance music, etc. The Kash Mukam is especially large in scale, which includes 170 musical fragments and 72 pieces of instrumental music. They can be performed continuously for 24 hours. Uyghur musical instruments include the flute, trumpet, sona, balaman, sator, zheczek, dutar, tambur, zhevapa (a type of balalaika), kalun and yangqing. Percussion instruments include a leather-covered drum and a metal drum. Uyghur dances can be divided into two categories: dances accompanied by singing and dances to music. The dance style “sanem” is popular, which is distinguished by a free choice of movements, performed both by one dancer and in a pair, as well as by an entire ensemble. "Syatyana" is a cheerful dance performed by an unlimited number of artists. In this dance, the performers, raising their arms up, make turns and swings with their hands in time with the small dance steps; in addition, the performers' shoulders make characteristic movements so that the neck remains motionless. In addition, circus acts are popular: tightrope walkers walking on a steel cable suspended at a high altitude, tightrope walking with a wheel, etc. Even the Qianlong Emperor (Ding Qing) wrote with admiration about the Uighur tightrope walkers. In 1997, the Uyghur tightrope walker, a native of Kashgar, Adil Ushur crossed the Yangtze River on a steel cable, entering a record in the Guinness Book.

http://www.abirus.ru/content/564/623/624/639/11455/11458.html

Dzungars (Zungars, zengors, jungars, jungars, (Mong. zungar, calm. zүn һar) - the population of the medieval Oirat possession "zүүngar nutug" (in Russian-language literature the Dzungar Khanate), whose descendants are now part of the European Oirats or Kalmyks, the Oirat of Mongolia, China. Sometimes identified with olets.

In the 17th century, four Oirat tribes - Zungars, Derbets, Khoshuts, Torguts - created in the west of Mongolia Derben Oirad Nutug - translated from the Kalmyk language - “Union” or “State of Four Oirat”, in the scientific world called the Dzungar Khanate (translated from the Kalmyk language “jun gar”, or “zyun gar” - “left hand”), once the left wing of the Mongol army). Therefore, all subjects of this khanate were also called Dzungars (Zungars). The territory in which it was located was (and is) called Dzungaria.

In the 17th-18th centuries, the Oirats (Dzungars), as a result of migration and military clashes with the Manchurian Qing Empire and the states of Central Asia, formed three state entities: the Dzungar Khanate in Central Asia, the Kalmyk Khanate in the Volga region, and the Kukunar Khanate in Tibet and modern China.

In 1755-1759 As a result of internal strife caused by infighting among the ruling elite of Dzungaria, one of whose representatives called for help from the troops of the Manchu Qing dynasty, this state fell. At the same time, the territory of the Dzungar Khanate was surrounded by two Manchu armies, numbering a million people, and 90 percent of the then population of Dzungaria was exterminated, incl. women, old people and children. One combined ulus - about ten thousand tents (families) of Zungars, Derbets, Khoyts, fought their way through heavy battles and reached the Volga into the Kalmyk Khanate. The remnants of some Dzungar uluses made their way to Afghanistan, Badakhshan, Bukhara, were accepted into military service by the local rulers and subsequently converted to Islam.

Currently, the Oirats (Dzungars) live in the Russian Federation (Republic of Kalmykia), China (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region), Mongolia (Western Mongolian aimaks), Afghanistan (Hazarajat).

http://ru.jazz.openfun.org/wiki/%D0%94%D0%B6%D1%83%D0%BD%D0%B3%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%8B

To most foreigners, China appears to be a mono-ethnic state. Meanwhile, “Chinese” is essentially the same as “Russian”. But a Tatar, a Buryat, or a representative of any other nationality can be a Russian. There are officially 56 nationalities in China, and the Chinese government emphasizes the multinationality of its state at every opportunity. By the way, in Chinese identity cards, as before in the USSR, nationality must be indicated. This article is not even a thousandth of what could be said on this topic, but it should give you some idea of ​​the national composition of China.

The titular nation is called “Han” and makes up 92% of the total population of China. When foreigners say “Chinese,” they most often mean Han Chinese. Thus, national minorities account for 8%, which is more than 100 million people. And this is only according to official data. Many of them, for Westerners, and sometimes even for the residents of the PRC themselves, are no different from the Han Chinese. However, they are a separate people with their own culture, customs and often language. This is most noticeable in the autonomous regions, of which there are five in China:

• Guangxi Zhuang;
• Inner Mongolia;
• Ningxia Hui;
• Xinjiang Uyghur;
• Tibetan.

In addition to them, there are autonomous districts and counties that are scattered both throughout these areas and in some provinces. For example, the only autonomous region in northeastern China, Yanbian-Korean, which is part of Jilin Province, borders Russia. Ethnic Koreans live there. Most often, they are fluent in Putonghua (the official language of the People's Republic of China), but do not forget their native language and culture.

There are also many Manchus in the northeast, who began to become Sinicized in the 17th century. Ultimately, in our time, although there are more than 10 million Manchus, it is very difficult to distinguish them from the Han Chinese. Very few of them have preserved their language and culture. However, many people still consider themselves Manchus, some live in remote villages and still speak their native language. Such places are located closer to Inner Mongolia or in it itself. The Mongols, like the Koreans, were less sinicized, but at the moment their traditional way of life is gradually being destroyed. The Han people are actively populating and urbanizing an area that is larger in area than France and Germany combined.

Most national minorities are concentrated in the west and southwest of China. The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) is predominantly Uyghur, but also home to Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Kyrgyz and many other Muslim nationalities. Next to the Han Chinese in bright modern clothes, you can see a man in a turban with his wife dressed in a burqa.

Tibet is no less unique. So unique that some foreigners think it is a separate country. However, for the most diverse ethnic composition, you need to go to the provinces of Guizhou and Yunnan. It is there that the untouched settlements of various small ethnic groups with a unique culture and rare languages ​​have been preserved. In recent years, an increasing number of tourists have been flocking there to see everything with their own eyes. In addition, nature there also remains untouched. Feel free to agree if you have the opportunity to visit these places.

It is worth noting that among the 56 official nationalities of China there are Russians. The Russian population is present in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), mainly in the cities of Ghulja (Yining), Chuguchak (Tacheng) and Urumqi; in the north of Heilongjiang Province and in Argun-Yuqi City County of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Most people who come to China visit large cities, where cultural and linguistic differences blur. People flock there from all over the country, and therefore a false impression is formed about the mono-ethnic composition of the Chinese population. In addition to the occasional Uyghur cuisine and the same Uyghurs preparing kebabs in crowded places. In such places it is difficult to say how rich the ethnic composition of the PRC is.

Artem Zhdanov