Abstract:

This paper seeks to illuminate three overlooked facets of Dungan culture: their kinship patterns, interactions within their community, and a previously understudied Dungan subgroup in Zarya Vostoka, Almaty. Traditionally, Dungans tend to settle together based on their Chinese province of origin, primarily Gansu and Shaanxi. The strategy of maintaining group cohesion, developed upon their arrival in the Russian Empire, led to limited interactions with Dungans from other groups. Over more than a century, their kinship patterns have remained largely unchanged.

However, the settlement of Zarya Vostoka (Shapagat), now a part of Almaty in Kazakhstan, has become a focal point for Dungans from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan due to the presence of Barakholka, the largest shopping center in Kazakhstan. This study explores how different Dungan groups navigate their relationships in daily life and work within this community. The findings indicate that despite cohabiting and working in Zarya Vostoka, Dungan groups have retained their distinct kinship patterns. Despite living in close proximity, a mere fence often separates their houses, and neighbors may remain unfamiliar with each other's names. Interestingly, they exhibit a tendency to interact more with local Kazakhs and Uyghurs than with other Dungan groups. Furnivall's concept of "mix but don't blend at the marketplace" has proven invaluable in elucidating the dynamics between two distinct groups of Dungans residing in the same locale, Zarya Vostoka. This phenomenon is particularly evident in their interactions at Barakholka, a marketplace, where they engage with each other, yet deliberately avoid communication in their daily lives.