A number of ethnic groups of the People's Republic of China are not officially recognized. Taken together, these groups (simplified Chinese: 未识别民族; traditional Chinese: 未識別民族; pinyin: wèi shíbié mínzú) would constitute the twentieth most populous ethnic group of China. Some scholars have estimated that there are over 200 distinct ethnic groups that inhabit China, compared to 56 groups that are officially recognized. There are in addition small distinct ethnic groups that have been classified as part of larger ethnic groups that are officially recognized. Some groups, like the Hui of Xinjiang with the Hui of Fujian, are geographically and culturally separate, except for the shared belief of Islam. Han Chinese, being the world's largest ethnic group, has a large diversity within it, such as in Gansu, whose Han individuals may have genetic traits from the assimilated Tangut civilization. Although they are indigenous to Hainan island and do not speak a Chinese language, the Lingao (Ong-Be) people near the capital (8% of the population) are counted as Han Chinese.
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👉 Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of Altai people
The Altai people (Altay: Алтай-кижи, romanized: Altay-kiji, IPA: [ɐɫtʰɐ́ɪ̯ kʰɪʑí]) of the Altaians (Altay: Алтайлар, romanized: Altaylar, IPA: [ɐɫtʰɐɪ̯ɫɐ́r]) are a Turkic ethnic group of Siberia mainly living in the Altai Republic, a federal subject of Russia. Several thousand of the Altaians also live in Mongolia (Altai Mountains) and China (Altay Prefecture, Xinjiang) but are not officially recognized as a distinct group and listed under the name "Oirats" as a part of the Mongols, as well as in Kazakhstan where they number around 200. For alternative ethnonyms see also Tele, Black Tatar, and Oirats. During the Northern Yuan dynasty, they were ruled in the administrative area known as Telengid Province.
- ⭐ Core Definition: Unrecognized ethnic groups in China
- 👉 Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of Altai people
- Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of List of ethnic groups in China
- Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of Ethnic minorities in China
- Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of Ili Turk people
Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of List of ethnic groups in China
The Han Chinese are the largest ethnic group in Mainland China. In 2010, 91.51% of the population were classified as Han Chinese (~1.2 billion). Besides the Han Chinese majority, 55 other ethnic (minority) groups are categorized in present-day China, numbering approximately 105 million people (8%), mostly concentrated in the bordering northwest, north, northeast, south and southwest but with some in central interior areas.
The major ethnic minorities in China are the Zhuang (19.6 million), Hui (11.4 million), Uyghurs (11 million), Miao (11 million), Manchus (10.4 million), Yi (9.8 million), Tujia (9.6 million), Tibetans (7 million), Mongols (6.3 million), Buyei (3.5 million), Dong (3.5 million), Yao (3.3 million), Bai (2 million), Koreans (1.7 million), Hani (1.7 million), Li (1.6 million), Kazakhs (1.5 million), and Dai (1.2 million). In addition, there are a number of unrecognized ethnic groups which together comprise over 730,000 people. Collectively, the ethnic groups of China are referred to as the Zhonghua minzu (Chinese: 中华民族; pinyin: Zhōnghuá mínzú; lit. 'Chinese ethnicity'). However, being part of the Zhonghua minzu (i.e. being part of one of the 56 ethnic groups) does not necessarily mean one must have Chinese nationality (Chinese: 中国国籍; pinyin: Zhōngguó guójí) or be loyal to the People's Republic of China.
Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of Ethnic minorities in China
Ethnic minorities in China are the non-Han population in the People's Republic of China (PRC). The PRC officially recognizes 55 ethnic minority groups within China in addition to the Han majority. As of 2020, the combined population of officially-recognized minority groups comprised 8.89% of the population of Mainland China. In addition to these officially-recognized ethnic minority groups, there are Chinese nationals who privately classify themselves as members of unrecognized ethnic groups, such as the very small Chinese Jewish, Tuvan, and Ili Turk communities, as well as the much larger Oirat and Japanese communities.
In Chinese, 'ethnic minority' has translated to shǎoshù mínzú (少數民族), wherein mínzú (民族) means 'nationality' or 'nation' (as in ethnic group)—in line with the Soviet concept of ethnicity—and shǎoshù (少數) means 'minority'. Since the anthropological concept of ethnicity does not precisely match the Chinese or Soviet concepts (which are defined and regulated by the state), some scholars use the neologism zúqún (族群, 'ethnic group') to unambiguously refer to ethnicity. Including shǎoshù mínzú, Sun Yat-sen used the term zhōnghuá mínzú (中華民族, 'Chinese nation' or 'Chinese nationality') to reflect his belief that all of China's ethnic groups were parts of a single Chinese nation.
Unrecognized ethnic groups in China in the context of Ili Turk people
The Ili Turks (Chinese: 土尔克人; pinyin: Tǔ'ěrkè rén; lit. 'Turk people') are a Turkic ethnic group native to Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture of northern Xinjiang, China. They speak the Ili Turki language, which belongs to the Karluk branch of the Turkic languages. The oral history of the Ili Turks says that they came from the Ferghana Valley of Uzbekistan. The Chinese government does not recognize the Ili Turks as a distinct ethnic group in censuses.
The Ili Turks are nomadic herders. There are many unique animal husbandry words in their language.