Overview
Chinese Name: 东乡族
English Name: The Dongxiang people, The Dongxiang nationality
Languages: Chinese 汉语
Total population: 6.21*105 (China mainland 2022)
Distribution: Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province
Brief introduction
The Dongxiang people 东乡族 is a minority in Gansu Province, China. Their national language belongs to the Altaic languages 阿尔泰语系. Most Dongxiang people can also speak Chinese, which is the common language of the Dongxiang people. The Dongxiang nationality mainly live in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture 宁夏回族自治区, Gansu Province. After the founding of New China, some Dongxiang people migrated from Gansu 甘肃 to Xinjiang 新疆 to live.
The history of the Dongxiang people
Regarding the historical origin of the Dongxiang people, there is a lack of direct and complete documentary records. There are only sporadic historical materials and fragmentary legends. Even the records of Hezhou 贺州, where the Dongxiang people have lived from generation to generation, are not recorded separately and the statements are very inconsistent.
It is said that the ancestors of the Dongxiang were the Sart 撒尔塔人 in Central Asia and West Asia. They came to settle in today’s Dongxiang area when they returned with the Mongolian army from the western expedition of Genghis Khan 成吉思汗, merged with the local Han, Mongolian and other ethnic groups, and gradually formed the Dongxiang people.
The religion of the Dongxiang people
The Dongxiang people are one of the ten ethnic minorities in China who believe in Islam 伊斯兰教. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the Party and the government implemented the policy of freedom of religious belief, adopted the policy of unity, education, and reform for people in the religious circles, and correctly dealt with and dealt with differences within religions. Since the reform and opening up 改革开放, the party and the government’s policy of freedom of religious belief have been further implemented, and the freedom of religious belief of the Dongxiang people has been guaranteed.
The Cultures of the Dongxiang people
Dongxiang clothing 东乡族
The women of the Dongxiang people in the past liked to wear embroidered clothes with a collar, a big placket and wide sleeves decorated with lace on the cuffs. Besides, they wear trousers underneath, with two embroidered lace trims on the trousers, a small fork at the back of the trousers, and a streamer to tie the legs. What’s more, they will wear beautifully embroidered skirts at some special festivals.
As for the men, they often wore wide robes with wide belts on which items such as knives, purses, snuff bottles and glasses were hung. Wearing a black and white hat. Middle-aged and older people like to wear robes.
Dongxiang foods 东乡族饮食
The Dongxiang people mainly eat wheat, beans, highland barley and other pasta staples food. Cows, sheep, chickens, ducks, fish, etc. are often used as non-staple food, but meat can only be eaten after being slaughtered by elders and bloodletting. They do not eat the meat of pigs, dogs, horses, donkeys, and ferocious animals. Also, backhand watering is not allowed. And eating pancakes and steamed buns must be broken or broken before eating. The Dongxiang people especially like to drink tea, and they usually have tea at every meal, and they often entertain guests with tea.
Dongxiang architecture 东乡族建筑
Before the reform and opening up, the people of Dongxiang were generally a family with one courtyard, with houses facing north to south. With the development of the times, the housing of the Dongxiang people has undergone major changes. Most of them have brick-and-wood structures, and some families have brick-concrete two-story buildings.
When Dongxiang nationality is building new houses or demolishing old houses, they usually ask imams to recite sutras to exorcise evil spirits. After the new houses are built, every household in the village will come to congratulate them, and the master will slaughter chickens and sheep to entertain guests.
Dongxiang Paintings 东乡族画作
Dongxiang folk have paintings on cabinets and cloth pockets on the walls. The cabinet paintings are mainly in black and white, outlined by meticulous brushwork, and the content mainly depicts the natural scenery, which is simple and elegant. The wall pocket paintings are mostly painted with crayons, and the content is mostly flowers and trees.
After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the art workers of the Dongxiang ethnic group created artworks that reflect the life of the Dongxiang ethnic group. Among them, the work “Wedding” shows the customs and customs of the Dongxiang ethnic group’s wedding.