New Books in Sociology

Xiaoming Wang, "Muslim Chinese: The Hui in Rural Ningxia" (de Gruyter, 2019)

Oct 14, 2024

Xiaoming Wang, a librarian and cultural anthropologist, dives into the intricate identity of the Hui people, China's largest Muslim group, in rural Ningxia. He examines how migration reshapes their religious practices and beliefs, such as fasting and the concepts of purity. Wang shares insights from his field research, highlighting gender dynamics and the cultural challenges Hui women face within patriarchal norms. The discussion illustrates the impact of modernization on the Hui’s ethno-religious identity as they navigate cultural assimilation.

48:25

Episode guests

Xiaoming Wang

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Quick takeaways

The Hui people's identity is shaped by their historical interactions with the Han majority, resulting in a diverse and heterogeneous community.

Migration patterns significantly influence the Hui's religious practices, particularly fasting, amidst modern economic demands and socio-cultural changes.

Deep dives

Understanding the Hui Identity

The Hui, China's largest Muslim ethnic group, possesses a unique identity shaped by their historical interactions with Han culture. They are descendants of Muslim immigrants who settled in China over centuries, leading to a diverse and heterogeneous community. Although they share common religious beliefs, the Hui are not a monolithic group, as they encompass various subgroups that have experienced internal divisions and conflicts. This complex identity underscores the Hui's necessity to navigate their distinct cultural practices while being influenced by the dominant Han society.

Intro

3min

Exploring Hui Identity in Rural Ningxia

10min

Exploring Gender Dynamics in the Hui Community

6min

Migration and Identity Among the Hui Community

12min

Navigating Identity and Religious Practice: The Hui Experience in Rural Ningxia

6min

Migration and the Hui Women: Challenges and Dynamics

9min

As the predominantly Muslim Chinese who claim ancestry from Persian and Arabic-speaking regions in Central Asia and the Middle East, the Hui people in China have received relatively little attention in anthropology. According to the 2010 census, the Hui are the largest Muslim group in China and its third largest ethnic minority with a total population of 10.6 million. Due to their extensive geographic distribution and long-term acculturation by the atheist Han majority, the question of Hui identity is rarely raised in humanities and social sciences both in China and abroad. This book examines Hui identity in the rural area of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, while taking account of China’s rapid modernization and industrialization in the twenty-first century. Specifically, it focuses on the massive internal migration of rural populations, which has been playing an essential role in the socioeconomic life of Chinese peasants in the past few decades.

Based on field data collected between 2011 and 2013 among the Jahriyya Hui, Wang seeks to clarify the impacts of migration on the Hui’s ethnoreligious identity by investigating three key issues: the Hui’s purity concept, fasting and their belief in the afterworld. In relation to these reference points, religious rituals, including commemoration ceremonies and the Ramadan fast as well as their changing forms and values, are illustrated and analyzed. Muslim Chinese - the Hui in Rural Ningxia (de Gruyter, 2019) shows that Islam continues to play a crucial part in drawing boundaries and maintaining identity for the Hui both before and after migration. However, population movements in Ningxia are resulting in increased interactions between Hui and Han populations as well as between Hui from diverse “menhuan” (Sufi paths). Consequently, the Hui’s unique “menhuan” awareness is being weakened and their purity concept subjected to many queries, doubts, ambiguities, and tensions.

Xiaoming Wang currently works as a librarian in the East Asia Department of the Berlin State Library. She holds a PhD in Social and Cultural Anthropology from the Free University of Berlin. Her research interests include the anthropology of Islam, identity and migration, power structure, and rural transformation.

Yadong Li is a PhD student in anthropology at Tulane University. His research interests lie at the intersection of economic anthropology, medical anthropology, hope studies, and the anthropology of borders and frontiers. More details about his scholarship and research interests can be found here.

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