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Minzu wenxue (nationalities literature) is the short form for shaoshu minzu wenxue (national minorities literature), a term for which China claims exclusivity. Although a vivid discussion has taken place, especially during the 1980s, no agreement has been reached regarding a definition of the term beyond the ethnic belonging of the creators of this literature. In fact, this ethnic belonging is already problematic in itself: was the poet Sa Dula (1271-1368, Yanmen ji) a Mongol or a Hui, was Pu Songling (1640-1715, Liaozhai zhiyi) a Han or a Mongol, was the Chinese banner-man C…

In the PRC, folklore studies ( minsuxue) and ethnology ( minzuxue) are the academic disciplines dedicated to the study of the traditions of the Han and the ethnic minorities and non-Chinese peoples in China, for which a rich body of especially written sources is available. As early as in the historical works of Chinese antiquity there are records about the "mores and customs" ( fengsu) of the Han, the traditions of the inhabitants of the "border regions," and about other peoples. However, the passages and chapters in official and unofficial history books, lo…