Státní ideologie a národnostní otázka v sovětské Střední Asii na příkladu proměny etnické identity Dunganů

The paper shows the role of the totalitarian state in the transformation of ethnic identity. The Soviet Union’s approach to the national question was based on the ideologies of 19th century ultra-radical theorists, whose aim was to change society by eliminating a number of institutions – in addition to membership of a national group, this included the elimination of private property or the family. There were many paradoxes in putting these theories into practice because the initial theories were fraught with internal contradictions. The example of the Central Asian Dungans shows how the state created a new ethnic group, which it supported in every possible way, and in the next stage, on the contrary, it was clearly persecuted. In the implementation of state intervention, it is evident that the main declared elements of ethnic identity (in the case of the Dungans, it is mainly the Muslim religion) are very volatile and their meaning changes considerably. While earlier Soviet ideology sought to present the Dungans as a group very different from their ancestors in China, a Chinese ideology is now emerging that points to the similarities between the two groups.