From Miao to Miaozu -- Alterity in the Formation of Modern Ethnic Groups.
Author(s):
Zhiqiang Yang
Format:
Journal article
Citation:
Hmong Studies Journal, Volume 10, (2009-12). pp. 28-Jan.
Language:
English
Abstract:
In China, the Miao ethnic group has been known for its long and tragic history. This image, however, was formed only during the modern era. Using a historiographical approach, this paper reviews and analyzes the process through which the Chinese Miao emerged as a modern ethnic group. Specifically, it focuses on the transition from "Miao" as a blanket term for non-Han ethnic groups in southern China during the pre-modern period to "Miaozu" as a modern ethnic group, originally constructed in the context of the emergence of Chinese nationalism at the beginning of the 20th century in the context of the domineering "Other" of Han culture and eventuating in the official recognition of fifty-six "minority nationalities" (shaoshu minzu) in the 1950s. Based on this study, this paper then goes on to a theoretical discussion on the question of alterity in the formation of ethnic groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]