As I begin to delve into various forms of Altaic story-telling, I am looking for clear and memorable definitions and descriptions. The quotes below are excerpted from H.B. Paksoy's Dastan Genre in Central Asia Ornate Oral History Dastan (jir, ir, chorchok) is ornate oral history, common among the peoples of Central Asia. It conveys the revered … Continue reading Dastan: Ornate Oral History among the Peoples of Central Asia
Category: Altaic Peoples & Tales (阿尔泰各民族及其故事)
Rahile Dawut: Defining the Uyghur Meshrep
The following description is excerpted from Uyghur Meshrep Culture and Its Social Function, by Sawut Pawan, Rahile Dawut, and Saadet Kurban, College of Humanities, Xinjiang University. Rahile Dawut (راھىلە داۋۇت, 热依拉 · 达吾提) a renowned expert in Uyghur folklore, was disappeared by the Chinese government in 2017 and has not been seen since. Uyghur Meshrep Culture A Meshrep is a traditional male … Continue reading Rahile Dawut: Defining the Uyghur Meshrep
Meshrep Under the Moon has Morphed into Variety Shows under the Klieg Lights
In Historic Uyghur Culture is under Existential Threat, co-authored by Rian Thum and Musapir, we learn how the traditional meshrep has been transmogrified into a large-scale tourist spectacle rather than a community event: In Emet’s village of Tashmiliq, a typical meshrep began under the guidance of a local notable. Guests danced to an orchestra of two-stringed lutes, the banjo-like rabap, … Continue reading Meshrep Under the Moon has Morphed into Variety Shows under the Klieg Lights
Multilingual Guide to Related Links: Performers of Turkic Oral Epics & Folk Romances
Turkish Hikâye & Aşık Hikâye: Turkish Folk Romance as Performance Art A list of 20th-century Aşık Based in Turkey Jusup Mamay 居素普·玛玛依评传 Jusup Mamay, Master Performer of the Kirghiz Manas Epic Jusup Mamay, Manaschi: A Rehabilitated Rightist and his Turkic Epic Live Performance Turkish Folk Singer Ruhi Su on Tour in Australia Turkish Musical Terminology … Continue reading Multilingual Guide to Related Links: Performers of Turkic Oral Epics & Folk Romances
Confessions of a Jade Lord (excerpt): ‘Marry your mother to the villain who killed your father’
(Posted: Feb 2, 2022) This short excerpt from Alat Asem's Confessions of a Jade Lord (时间悄悄的嘴脸, 阿拉提·阿斯木 著) intriguingly captures several key aspects of Uyghur culture, modern and ancient. To get his greedy hands on nine hefty chunks of priceless creamy-white, "mutton-fat" jade, Eysa and his gang administer a deadly beating to Xali, a fellow trader. Fearing arrest, Eysa flees … Continue reading Confessions of a Jade Lord (excerpt): ‘Marry your mother to the villain who killed your father’
A list of 20th-century Aşık Based in Turkey
Below is a list of 20th-century Aşık cited by Ilhan Basgöz in his seminal work, Hikâye: Turkish Folk Romance as Performance Art. Aşık Aziz Aydın Ilhami Demir (1932-87) Adem Efkari (1898-1980) Ishak Kemali (1913-77) Behçet Mahir Sabit Müdami (1918-68) Ali Izzet Özkan Üzeyir Pünhani (1917-98) Yaşar Reyhani (1930-) Mevlüt Ihsani Şafak (1928-) Davut Sutlari Aşık Sümmani Şerif Taşlıova … Continue reading A list of 20th-century Aşık Based in Turkey
Growing up Uyghur in Xinjiang: “Setting Sail in a Chinese-language World”
(Posted Dec 22, 2021) In China's Minority Fiction, Sabina Knight notes how China is pushing its ethnic minorities --- particularly the Uyghur in Xinjiang --- to master Mandarin: "The question of cultural survival haunts Patigül’s Bloodline《百年血脉》(2015). The novel situates the narrator—who, like the author, is half-Uyghur and half-Hui—within the matrix of the Han majority’s aggressive promotion … Continue reading Growing up Uyghur in Xinjiang: “Setting Sail in a Chinese-language World”
Book Review of “The War on the Uyghurs”: How a People Became “Terrified”
An excerpt from Darren Byler’s review of Sean Roberts’ The War on the Uyghurs: Prior to the US declaration of the Global War on Terror, Uyghurs were described occasionally as “counterrevolutionaries” or as “separatists”, but never as terrorists. Working in concert with Chinese state security in a Beijing-based investigation, in the early 2000s US intelligence officials took up … Continue reading Book Review of “The War on the Uyghurs”: How a People Became “Terrified”
“Sidik Golden MobOff”: Li Bai was Uyghur
An Excerpt from Sidik Golden MobOff by Alat Asem 斯迪克金子关机 阿拉提·阿斯木 著 First published in Peregrine, Issue 14, June 2013 Translated by Bruce Humes In our community, the only person who excelled at translating Uyghur into Chinese was Big Brother Sidik, and this was the inexhaustible source of his arrogance and aloofness. His colleagues and fellow students … Continue reading “Sidik Golden MobOff”: Li Bai was Uyghur
Synopsis: Moŋgoliya by Guo Xuebo
《蒙古里亚》郭雪波著 Original novel in Chinese by Guo Xuebo Synopsis by Bruce Humes A tale of ruthless ecological exploitation, a 20th-century European explorer’s fascination with Altaic culture & epiphany in today’s Inner Mongolia This semi-autobiographical novel comprises three parallel narratives that eventually intersect in 21st-century Inner Mongolia: A spiritual journey, in which the author — ostensibly … Continue reading Synopsis: Moŋgoliya by Guo Xuebo
Ethnic ChinaLit 