Contemporary Xiangxi Tujia And Miao Cultural Interaction And Ethnic Relations

Xiangxi has been a multi-ethnic area since ancient times. Tujia and Miao, the two major ethnic groups in this area, have made frequent cultural interactions. Contemporarily, with the implementation of the policy of national identification and regional national autonomy, the ethnic group structure and ethnic relations have changed profoundly, and the ethnic group culture has also experience great changes.Based on the theory of ethnic group and ethnic relation, this thesis is to describe and analyze the background, the form, the content, the process, the motivation and the model of the cultural interaction between Tujia and Miao in Xiangxi, and it is also to discuss how the cultural interaction and ethnic relation influence each other, so as to provide countermeasures and suggestions for constructing harmonious ethnic culture, relations and society.The paper mainly includes the following sections.The preface section mainly explores the significance of this research, and it simply explains the theory of ethnic group identity and the theory of ethnic group relation. At the same time, it summarizes the previous related research.Chapterâ… provides a general introduction of Xiangxi. From natural habitats, living style, economic situation, ethnic structure ect., this chapter explores the natural habitat and humanistic environment of the growth and development of Tujia and Miao in Xiangxi and displays the platform of culture interaction between these two ethnic groups.Divided by the time of GaiTuGuiLiu, Chapter II briefly backtracks the historic relations of Tujia and Miao in Xiang xi from Chieftain period to the foundation of New China, and sketches their cultural overall pictures, so as to contrast with the contemporary cultural interactions and relations. It has both displayed the characteristics and discovered the changes at different stages.Chapterâ…¢analyzes and summarizes the main forms of cultural interactions between Tujia and Miao of Xiangxi . Through intermarriage, community communication, political integration, economic exchanges, joint participation in cultural activities, this chapter displays the conditions and the fields of the culture interactions between Tujia and Miao.Chapterâ…£summarizes the cultural identity and its reasons in culture interaction of Xiangxi Tujia and Miao. The cultural identification of Tujia and Miao in Xiangxi has experienced such stages as mutual understanding, praising, borrowing, reflection of their own culture. The result of the identification and interaction is the cultural convergence.The main reasons which lead to the increasing cultural identification are as follow: the promotion of the cause of ethnic unity and progress of our country since the foundation of People's Republic of China; the protection policy of Ethnic culture; the requirements of Market-economic system and regional economic integration; the basis of culture-ecology symbiosis; the demand for tourism development; the educational popularization; the increasing of population mobility.Chapterâ…¤, discusses the cultural prejudice and it reasons. This chapter summarizes the manifestation of cultural prejudice between Tujia and Miao, especially foucing on the cultural prejudice center: their contest over the excellent culture phenomena, their deny of some cultural advantages of opponent and the misunderstanding of the backward cultural elements of opponent. These prejudices are caused by such factors as the gap between the level of economic development, the historical ethnic estrangement, the discrepancy in the level of education, and the imbalance of resources possession.Chapterâ…¥analyzes ethnic relation between contemporary Tujia and Miao in Xiangxi. With convergence of the two cultures, the maintenance of contemporary ethnic boundary of Tujia and Miao are mainly kept by the languages, the customs, the beliefs as well as the recreations of cultural boundary. The variations of ethnic boundary have caused new patterns to ethnic group relations in Xiangxi , which include the dislocation of legal identity and cultural identity, the increasing of multi-ethnic families and the diversification of selection of ethnic identity for the children in multi- families..Chapterâ…¦,on the investigation and analysis in Xiangxi, induces and conclues the models of cultural interactions in multiple ethnic group area in China. It especially analyzes the role played by Han nationality in cultural interactions and ethnic relations between these two groups, such as the transmission of Han culture and the cultural borrowing, and the role of Han culture in the cultural identity of Tujia and Miao. This chapter concludes the multi-dimensional ethnic relation model of "coexistence and harmony" and "competition and conflict". It also looks forward to the tendency of ethnic group relations, which winds from "corporate pluralism" pattern to "multi-integration of Chinese nationality " pattern .The Conclusion part considers how to construct harmonious culture and harmonious ethnic group relationship in Xiangxi . It reflects on the gaming of the cultural assimilations and ethnic diversities in contemporary Xiangxi . Finally, from the aspects such as cultural interaction diversity, launching education of national unity, perfecting the policy of coordinated economic and social development, playing the special role of ethnic elites in ethnic relations, the thesis makes some suggestions about how to construct harmonious culture and harmonious ethnic groups relationship in Xiangxi.The main research methods of this thesis are field work, questionnaire surveys and collecting literature information . In the analysis of data, the author focus attention on the combination of the emic approach and etic approach, exerts deepdepiction and makes effort to discover the implied meaning behind the data.The value of this thesis lies mainly in the following aspects.The thesis is a study about the cultural interaction and relations of two autonomous ethnic groups in joint multi-ethnic autonomous areas that have been residing in Xiangxi since ancient time . This study is a breakthrough in the traditional field area of Xiangxi.Second, the innovation of research perspective. Firstly, the thesis does research on the interaction of two specific ethnic groups from cultural perspective, trying to find the coordinating role of culture in the competition and cooperation between ethnic groups. Secondly, the thesis introduces the concept of "ethnic groups", which contributes a lot in the analysis and understanding of cultural interaction and ethnic relation between Tujia and Miao of Xiangxi in resource sharing, distribution and competition. Finally, it emphasizes the importance of the mediating and balancing function of Han and Han culture in the cultural interaction and ethnic relation between Tujia and Miao of Xiangxi.Third, the integration and innovation of theory. through specific empirical research about unique situation of ethnic groups in Xiangxi, the study improve ethnic groups theory and promotes its application. The thesis integrates eastern and western ethnic relations theory. It integrates research mode of the "Center - Edge," "powers -conflict " of Western theory and the model of "symbiotic - harmonious" of China's ethnic relations theory.