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'Zhonghua minzu' (Chinese: 中华民族; Pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínzú), is a Chinese term that refers to the notion of a Chinese nationality transcending ethnic divisions, with a central identity to China as a whole. It includes peoples who have historically interacted, contributed and assimilated to various extents with Chinese civilization. It is sometimes translated into English as the "'Chinese nation'."

Contents

History

Controversy

See also

External links

History

The immediate roots of the Chinese nationality lie in the Qing Empire, a multi-ethnic empire created in the 17th century by the Manchus. Faced with the necessity to legitimize their rule, the Manchus sought to portray themselves as patrons of classical learning and sought to create an identity which was based in these traditions which deemphasized the ethnic differences between the Qing court and the various peoples that they ruled. In this fashion, the Qing court intended and to a large part succeeded in gaining the loyalty of the large Han Chinese gentry, whose cooperation was essential to govern China. The strength of this identity was demonstrated in the course of fighting the Taiping Rebellion in which the gentry largely sided with the Qing court as preservers of ''Chinese tradition.''
In the late 19th century, the identity which the Qing promoted was modified to fit with Western concepts of ethnicity and nationality. Chinese nationalists such as Sun Yat-sen planned to overthrow the Qing Empire and establish a Chinese nation-state modelled closely after Germany and Japan. In the background was a fear that an overly restrictive view of the nation-state would have dissolved the Qing Empire into several different nations, which, it was felt, would give the Western powers an opportunity to dominate China. The unifying and centralizing principles of Japan and Germany were considered examples China should follow, while the ethnically divided Ottoman Empire was seen as an example of what some Chinese nationalists feared.
The term ''Zhonghua minzu'' was first used by President Yuan Shikai in 1912, shortly after the overthrow of the Qing Empire and the founding of the Republic of China. Facing the imminent independence of Outer Mongolia from China, Yuan Shikai stated, "Outer Mongolia is part of ''Zhonghua minzu'' [the Chinese nation] and has been of one family for centuries" (外蒙同為中華民族，數百年來儼如一家).
Sun Yat-sen also supported Yuan Shikai's viewpoint, and expanded upon its definitions by including all the ethnic groups within China in support of the concept of Five Races Under One Union. He wrote, "Some people say, after the overthrow of the Qing, we do not need nationalism anymore. Those words now are certainly wrong.... Right now we speak of the 'union of five nationalities' (Han, Manchu, Mongol, Hui and Tibetan), but how is it our country only has five nationalities? My stand is that we should incorporate all the peoples within China into one Chinese nation...and develop the Chinese nation into a very civilized nation, only then will we no longer need nationalism."
After the fall of the ROC and the founding of the People's Republic of China, the concept of ''Zhonghua minzu'' became influenced by Soviet nationalities policy. Officially, the PRC is a unitary state composed of 56 ethnic groups, of which the Han ethnic group is by far the largest one. The concept of Zhonghua minzu is seen as an all encompassing category comprised of people within the PRC.
This term has continued to be invoked and remains a powerful concept in China into the 21st century. It continues to hold use as the leaders of China need to unify into one political entity a highly diverse set of ethnic and social groups as well as to mobilize the support of overseas Chinese in developing China.
The boundaries of ''Zhonghua minzu'' are fuzzy but most Chinese today use the term to include all peoples within the territorial boundaries of China along with overseas Chinese integrated as one national, political, cultural and perhaps even ideological-moral group.
''Zhonghua'' refers to the concept of "Chinese" independently of ethnic concepts such as the Han ethnic group and is the term for "China" used in the formal names for both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China. ''Minzu'' can be translated as either "nation" or "people." Confusion also arises because the term Chinese is often used in Western languages to refer both to 'Zhonghua minzu' and to the Han ethnicity, two concepts which are usually distinct among Chinese speakers. In particular, most Chinese do not argue that ethnic minorities in China are or should be the same as the major Han, but see the concept of Zhonghua minzu as creating a unified national concept that respects the differences within it.

Controversy

The theory behind the concept of Chinese nation is that includes not only the Han but also other minority ethnic groups within China, such as the Mongols, Manchus, Hmong, Tibetans that have historically and to various degrees interacted, contributed and assimilated with the Han. This theoretical concept is not universally accepted. Supporters of Tibetan independence or Uighur independence, for example, tend to reject the notion their respective ethnic groups are part of a single people with Han Chinese and that this sense of nationhood should be grounds for a unified nation-state. They would argue that their peoples have a culture, history of political independence, and sense of nationhood which is distinct from that of the majority Han Chinese, and that under the right of self-determination, they have a right to political independence from the Chinese state.
The concept of Zhonghua Minzu is also attacked by supporters of Taiwan independence who while not denying that most people on Taiwan are ethnically Han Chinese, argue that Taiwan has a right to independence because it forms a separate and distinct political community from the Mainland.
The boundaries of who is or is not a member of the Chinese nation have always been rather inconsistent. For example, whether overseas Chinese are considered part of this Chinese nationality depends on the speaker and the context. The logic often stems from geographic location and political status--a Mongol living in the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia would be considered by most to be part of ''Zhonghua minzu'', while a Mongol living in the independent state of Mongolia is almost universally considered not to be. Alternatively person of Russian, Korean, or Vietnamese ethnicity with Chinese citizenship would be considered by most Chinese to be a full member of the Zhonghua Minzu not withstanding the cultural differences with the majority Han.
The situation of overseas Chinese in Malaysia and Singapore is also interesting in that they make a clear distinction between being Chinese in a political sense and being Chinese in an ethnic sense, making it unclear whether or not they belong to a group that contains both political and ethnic connotations.
The concept has implications with regard to history. The conceptual boundaries of the Chinese nation are complicated by independent countries such as Mongolia and Korea, with their differing interpretations of historical peoples and states. For instance, Genghis Khan is claimed to be a "Chinese" by China (in part because the Mongol nationality is part of the "Chinese nation") and a "Mongolian" by Mongolia. A dispute of a similar nature has arisen over the status of the state of Koguryo in ancient history, with the Chinese claiming it as Chinese on the grounds that much of it existed within the historical borders of China and the Koreans claiming that it was Korean on ethnic grounds. Such views can result in conflicts when the claims are seen as exclusive as the Koguryo case sometimes is.

See also

★ Chinese people

★ Nationalities of China

★ Chinese nationalism

★ List of recipients of tribute from China

★ List of Chinese ethnic groups

★ List of tributaries of Imperial China

★ Northeast Project of the Chinese Academy of Social Science

External links

★ The War of Words Between South Korea and China Over An Ancient Kingdom: Why Both Sides Are Misguided Zhonghua minzu and the Sino-Korean controversy over the 'ownership' of ancient Koguryo.