Traditional Wedding Rites of the Dungan in Kazakhstan: a comparative historical analysis

DOI: 10.33876/2311-0546/2020-49-1/147-162

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the traditional wedding rites of the Dungan diaspora in Kazakhstan. The Dungan are descendants of the Huízú, who arrived in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan voluntarily after a failed uprising against the Qing Dynasty in 1877–1888.

Based on a comparative historical analysis, the article discusses the differences in the wedding ceremonies of the Dungans, who live compactly in three areas – the Zhambyl region of Kazakhstan (the villages of Zhalpak-Tobe, Sortobe) and Almaty (the village of Zarya Vostoka). The traditional wedding ceremonies vary greatly due to close cultural and social contacts of the Dungan with Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Uighurs and Russians. The case of wedding rites demostrate that the fact that the Dungan are surrounded by a different cultural environment, on the one hand, stimulates the consolidation of an ethnic group and preservation of many traditional archaic cultural traits, and, on the other hand, leads to the transformation of marriage ceremonies. This is illustrated by the changes in the bride’s traditional clothes, hats, music, dances, as well as the replacement and simplification of the wedding rituals such as receiving guests and others.

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