Journal Article

Others No More: The Changing Representation of Non-Han Peoples in Chinese History Textbooks, 1951–2003

Baranovitch, Nimrod

2010

Overview

This article analyzes the changes in the representation of non-Han peoples in textbooks of premodern Chinese history published in China since the establishment of the People's Republic. Whereas in the early 1950s, these peoples were treated as non-Chinese others and were even referred to as “foreigners,” by the beginning of the twenty-first century, they were totally incorporated into the Chinese historical self through a new narrative claiming that they had always been Chinese. Simultaneously, the textbooks exhibit a clear shift from a Han-exclusivist vision of Chinese history to a more inclusive and multi-ethnic one. Based on an analysis of the content, language, and organization of textbooks and other related materials, the article proposes that although the incorporation of non-Han peoples into the Chinese historical subject was gradual, this process accelerated dramatically as a result of a planned reform launched in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The article explains the reasons for the reform and its timing, and examines its implications for the Chinese nation-state and China's ethnic minorities.

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press,Duke University Press, NC & IL
• Subject: 20th century / Asia / Asian history / Asian studies / China / Chinese culture / Chinese history / Chinese languages / Chinese nationalism / Content analysis / Countries / Cultural Revolution / Ethnic groups / Ethnicity / Ethnology / Han / Heroism & heroes / Historical source materials / Historical text analysis / History / History education / History instruction / History teachers / Intellectuals / Language textbooks / Minority & ethnic groups / Minority groups / Narrative history / Nation states / National history / Nationalism / Noncitizens / Polities / Reforms / Secondary schools / Social exclusion / Social relations. Intercultural and interethnic relations. Collective identity / Social representations / Social structure and social relations / Socialization / Sources and methods / Territories / Textbooks