Language:
Chinese
Dissertation note:
Dissertation 2013
DDC:
390
Abstract:
The present paper Study on cultural pattern and human migration along the Chinese Silk Road (Gansu-Qinghai stretch): taking the Salar's ethnic formation and development as an example" has a rather simple framework which unceasingly oscillates between structural analysis and historical narration. Starting from a cross-cultural perspective, it combines traditional historical insights and postmodern paradigms of conceiving history. It consists on three parts - concept definition, historical analysis and critical inquiries, fieldwork summarization - presenting a comprehensive research on the topic. Through a combination of various theoretical approaches and practical historical examples, it pays attention to the formation and development of ethnic patterns under the influence of human migrations, and describes above all the heterogeneity, variability, and diversity of Gansu-Qinghai regional culture and of its constituent ethnic cultures. It investigates, respectively, their inner structures, their historical transformations, and the forging and maintenance of specific boundaries dividing the ethnic groups involved, thus refuting by placing them under the category of "ethnic isle" or "ideal cultural type". Ethnic groups that inhabit exclusively in the Gansu-Qinghai region (most commonly known as "ganqing diqu" in Chinese) are raised here as an example. They represent the central subject matter of the paper. The entire framework of the first part is dedicated to the discussion of this idea and provides a solid support for the following observations. In this paper, the author based on population theories and studies on history of human migration, will summarize from a dynamic point of view the main patterns, characteristics, procedures in the process of migration (including uprooting, arrival, settlement, reorganization), motives, reasons and other related aspects. In doing this he regards the changes in population distribution as a complex social phenomenon. Developing closer relations with other social phenomena, migration is constrained by natural and social environments, and at the same time poses profound influences on society itself. This research can thus enhance our understanding of the structure of various social aspects, including ethnic formation, motivations and consequences of mobility, culture relevance and flexibility within social system, the connection between human mobility and maintenance of boundaries (both ethnic and cultural), possible conflicts and clashes instigated in the process of cultural regeneration, and elements influencing identity transformation. After defining the scope of migration, it places migrants in the perspective of premodern globalization and probes into the history of ethnic relations, analyzing the changes brought to Gansu-Qinghai's cultural pattern by the penetration of Mongolian army into the Hexi Corridor, which resulted in a network of four self-contained worlds (cultural regions). It also points out the strategic status of the region inside the premodern global system in relation to the rise of a new communication network. The first chapter presents the basic framework and the research methodology by exploring the human instinct of expanding space and transcending cognitive confines. In this chapter, the author first systematically summarizes both Chinese and foreign literature and their respective research findings, and then, taking cross-cultural theories and deconstructivism as guidelines, provides a theoretical framework in reflection of the concept of "boundaries". As the heart of this matter, groups' cross-boundaries behavior is described as a "migration" mechanism which comes into being as a result of human endeavors in seeking new developmental space and resources. In the meantime, boundaries are also regarded as existing in two spaces - communication and academic spaces. Therefore, two models are proposed to interpret "boundaries": 1. laying stress on the homogenizing and heterogenizing trends among the ethnic groups unique to the Gansu-Qinghai region, explored on the basis of the "interaction and communication among cultural regions of Eurasian Continent"
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