Abstract:
The dissertation titled Folk Literatures and Identities Construction of Muslim Hui People is aimed at studying the identities of Hui people through folk literature and the construction of identities of Hui people. This is done by exploring the concept of cultural construction and identity for the analysis of the ethnic identities as they appear in Hui people folk literature. One example can be observed in Hui folk literature written by Li Shujiang and Wang Zhengwei (2009). It has a total of 157 stories. The results show that the identities of Hui people in folk literature were created with the Chinese language used by Hui people- particularly the Hui language which had borrowed words from Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Mongolian languages. Also identified are new words combined from Chinese words. Seven of these symbols are kettle (汤瓶), fried flour dessert (油香), turban (缠头), green cloak
(绿袍), white beard (白胡子), moon (月亮) and dragon (龙). Four ideologies that were discovered were used for negotiating between Hui people and the emperor's power for protecting the faith of Islam, resisting the violation of Hui traditions, fighting oppression between social classes, and developing the Hui ethnicity. The construction of Hui ethnic identity is presented through tea culture, naming, weddings, funerals, festivals, praying for rainfall. Additionally, applying philosophy, beliefs, and idioms into a combination with other ethnic groups include linking narratives featuring important people in history such as Zheng He (郑和), Sai dian chi Shan si ding (赛典赤赡思丁), Hu Dahai (胡大海), Chang Yuchun (常遇春), Jin Guozheng
(金国正), and Du Wenxiu (杜文秀). Chracteristics of Hui ethnicity can be related to the power of the ruling class in each distinct period of China. The identity of Hui ethnicity is expressed in a multicultural dimension which is a combination between Arab-Persian and Chinese. This identity differs from other ethnics both in and out of China. Hui people are scattered across many areas. This has impacted Hui culture and makes it unique when compared with other cultures. The factors of constructing Hui identities is complicated because of the multi-dimensions of history, politics, economy, religious, and the journey of Hui ancestors. Therefore, Hui identities have adapted with the dynamics of the society.