Introduction

The study of China’s relationship with its diverse populations and the meaning of “Chineseness” has long occupied a significant area of research in both Chinese and international scholarship. The present volume is founded on two fundamental inquiries that continue to animate the debate: first, the question of why is it that identities and cultures distinct from Chineseness cannot coexist on equal terms within environments dominated by it? and second, how “Chineseness” itself has historically manifested an interventionist impulse, consistently seeking to assimilate or appropriate the “Other”. This study invites critical reflection on how the state and society construct and renegotiate notions of belonging; on the institutional and discursive mechanisms through which boundaries are established and transformed; and on the broader implications of these processes for minority nationalities and for China’s engagement within an increasingly interconnected global context.