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Dungan Ethnicity in Transformation: From Totalitarian Control to Contemporary Adaptation
Brief about:
Journal Article (2025)
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This research examined how totalitarian regimes in the Soviet Union and China shaped the ethnic and national identity of the Dungan minority. Drawing on historical analysis, fieldwork and oral history, it traces the evolution of Dungan identity under political, social and economic pressures, and shows how the community has adapted to post-Soviet realities in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
The Dungans, a Muslim community of Chinese origin settled in Central Asia after nineteenth-century uprisings in China, have long lived at the intersection of Chinese and Islamic traditions. During the Soviet period, their identity was strategically constructed as part of nationality policies, which oscillated between limited cultural autonomy and harsh repression. In China, their counterparts, the Hui, experienced parallel pressures of Sinicisation. These contrasting but related trajectories illustrate how totalitarian regimes attempted to redefine ethnic belonging. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Dungans in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan faced new challenges: pressures to assimilate into titular national identities, renewed marginalisation, and ambivalent perceptions linking them to China. This historical context frames the analysis of how political power has shaped and reshaped Dungan identity across regimes and into the present.
Key findings
- Totalitarian regimes alternated between granting the Dungans limited cultural rights and enforcing harsh assimilation, creating a fluid and unstable ethnic identity.Evidence
Archival research and 95 in-depth interviews (2011–2019, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan) revealed that Dungan schools were first introduced in the 1920s, abolished in 1938 with executions of teachers, and partially reinstated in 1954. Respondents recalled both repression and temporary openings, describing these shifts as decisive for how their identity was formed.
What it meansThese oscillations show that ethnic identity is not a fixed inheritance but a product of constant negotiation under state power. The Dungan case illustrates how minorities adapt through resilience and selective memory, a pattern relevant to understanding minority survival under authoritarian and post-authoritarian regimes.
- In post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, Dungans face renewed marginalisation, as their perceived “Chineseness” provokes suspicion and hostility despite over a century of settlement.Evidence
Analysis of more than 6,000 online comments (YouTube, VK, Reddit) combined with interviews in Dungan villages showed a clear contrast: while interviewees highlighted shared Soviet history and wartime solidarity with Kyrgyz and Kazakhs, online debates often portrayed Dungans as “Chinese outsiders” or even “agents of China.” Negative perceptions increased after violent clashes in Kazakhstan in 2020.
What it meansThis highlights the fragility of minority integration in contexts where geopolitics shape public opinion. It shows that ethnic identity is continuously reinterpreted not only by state policies but also by collective memories and digital discourses, which can reinforce exclusion or open pathways to coexistence.
Proposed action
- Promote inclusive minority policies in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan that reduce ethnic marginalisation and address negative stereotypes linking Dungans to China.Step one
Develop community-based programmes that highlight shared Soviet and local histories, intercultural traditions, and economic contributions of Dungans to foster mutual respect and understanding.
Local authorities, NGOs, and schools could organise joint cultural events, oral history projects, and media campaigns. By involving Dungan voices alongside Kyrgyz and Kazakh communities, such initiatives would counter online hostility, strengthen social cohesion, and provide positive narratives that mitigate ethnic tensions.
Step twoIntroduce optional Dungan language and cultural modules in local schools and provide teacher training programmes that encourage bilingual or multilingual competence.
Education ministries, in cooperation with universities and community organisations, could design pilot curricula, train teachers from within Dungan communities, and provide incentives for students to study both state languages and minority languages. This would reduce barriers to participation, improve employment prospects, and counter feelings of exclusion among minority youth.
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Dungan Ethnicity in Transformation: From Totalitarian Control to Contemporary Adaptation
Cite this brief: Kokaisl, Petr. 'Dungan Ethnicity in Transformation: From Totalitarian Control to Contemporary Adaptation'. Acume. https://www.acume.org/r/dungan-ethnicity-in-transformation-from-totalitarian-control-to-contemporary-adaptation/
Brief created by: Professor Petr Kokaisl | Year brief made: 2025
Original research:
- Kokaisl, P., ‘Dungan Ethnicity in Transformation: From Totalitarianism to Contemporary Adaptation’ Central Asian Survey 13 Jan 2025, pp. 1–21 https://doi.org/10.1080/02634937.2024.2442441. – https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02634937.2024.2442441
Research brief:
This research examined how totalitarian regimes in the Soviet Union and China shaped the ethnic and national identity of the Dungan minority. Drawing on historical analysis, fieldwork and oral history, it traces the evolution of Dungan identity under political, social and economic pressures, and shows how the community has adapted to post-Soviet realities in Kyrgyzstan…
The Dungans, a Muslim community of Chinese origin settled in Central Asia after nineteenth-century uprisings in China, have long lived at the intersection of Chinese and Islamic traditions. During the Soviet period, their identity was strategically constructed as part of nationality policies, which oscillated between limited cultural autonomy and harsh repression. In China, their counterparts, the Hui, experienced parallel pressures of Sinicisation. These contrasting but related trajectories illustrate how totalitarian regimes attempted to redefine ethnic belonging. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Dungans in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan faced new challenges: pressures to assimilate into titular national identities, renewed marginalisation, and ambivalent perceptions linking them to China. This historical context frames the analysis of how political power has shaped and reshaped Dungan identity across regimes and into the present.
Findings:
Totalitarian regimes alternated between granting the Dungans limited cultural rights and enforcing harsh assimilation, creating a fluid and unstable ethnic identity.
Archival research and 95 in-depth interviews (2011–2019, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan) revealed that Dungan schools were first introduced in the 1920s, abolished in 1938 with executions of teachers, and partially reinstated in 1954. Respondents recalled both repression and temporary openings, describing these shifts as decisive for how their identity was formed.
These oscillations show that ethnic identity is not a fixed inheritance but a product of constant negotiation under state power. The Dungan case illustrates how minorities adapt through resilience and selective memory, a pattern relevant to understanding minority survival under authoritarian and post-authoritarian regimes.
In post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, Dungans face renewed marginalisation, as their perceived “Chineseness” provokes suspicion and hostility despite over a century of settlement.
Analysis of more than 6,000 online comments (YouTube, VK, Reddit) combined with interviews in Dungan villages showed a clear contrast: while interviewees highlighted shared Soviet history and wartime solidarity with Kyrgyz and Kazakhs, online debates often portrayed Dungans as “Chinese outsiders” or even “agents of China.” Negative perceptions increased after violent clashes in Kazakhstan in 2020.
This highlights the fragility of minority integration in contexts where geopolitics shape public opinion. It shows that ethnic identity is continuously reinterpreted not only by state policies but also by collective memories and digital discourses, which can reinforce exclusion or open pathways to coexistence.
Advice:
Promote inclusive minority policies in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan that reduce ethnic marginalisation and address negative stereotypes linking Dungans to China.
- Local authorities, NGOs, and schools could organise joint cultural events, oral history projects, and media campaigns. By involving Dungan voices alongside Kyrgyz and Kazakh communities, such initiatives would counter online hostility, strengthen social cohesion, and provide positive narratives that mitigate ethnic tensions.
- Education ministries, in cooperation with universities and community organisations, could design pilot curricula, train teachers from within Dungan communities, and provide incentives for students to study both state languages and minority languages. This would reduce barriers to participation, improve employment prospects, and counter feelings of exclusion among minority youth.