No. 32
Nomads and Museums

Research articles

Shared pasts, divergent histories: Representing Torghuts and Khoshuts in museums in China

Published 2026-08-08

  • Dorjraa Purvei
    • ,
  • Zulbaatar Gangaa

Dorjraa Purvei
Inner Mongolia University image/svg+xml

Zulbaatar Gangaa
International Institute for the Study of Nomadic Civilizations under the Auspices of UNESCO

Abstract

Since the 1980s, China has experienced an unprecedented 'heritage boom', generating extensive scholarly interest in museums, tourism, and the politics of cultural representation. While much of this literature has examined the production of ethnic diversity and minority heritage, less attention has been paid to recent shifts in official historical narratives and their implications for heritage practices in Xinjiang. Drawing on long-term ethnographic fieldwork conducted since 2015 in museums, tourism sites, and community heritage spaces in the Bayangol Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, this article examines the representation of two Oirat Mongol groups: the Torghuts and the Khoshuts. Although these communities share closely intertwined historical trajectories, they occupy markedly different positions within contemporary heritage narratives. Employing the concept of Authorised Heritage Discourse, the article argues that museums and heritage sites in contemporary China increasingly function as mechanisms for incorporating minority histories into narratives of national unity.

Keywords

authorized heritage discourse, museums, heritage tourism, Oirat Mongols, Torghuts, Khoshuts, ethnic minorities

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