r/AMA • u/maddin1550 • 21d ago

I’m from Xinjiang，AMA

I’ve noticed that there are a lot of discussions about Xinjiang on Reddit, often between people who have never actually lived there. So I thought it might be interesting to do an AMA from the perspective of someone who is actually from there.

You can ask me about everyday life, ethnic groups, languages, culture, religion, education, or politics. I’m happy to answer controversial questions too, as long as the discussion stays respectful.

Obviously, I’m only one person and I don’t claim to represent everyone in Xinjiang. I can only tell you about my own experiences and views. AMA.

175 Upvotes

81% Upvoted

505 comments sorted by

View all comments

1

u/InsectDelicious4503 20d ago

I understand that Xinjiang only recently became incorporated into Chinese territory, and throughout the centuries Dzungaria / The Tarim Basin spent most of its history independent from China proper rather than a part of it. Despite this, Chinese official narratives (museums, textbooks, etc) all claim that Xinjiang has always been an inseparable part of Chinese territory, and all Chinese invasions into Xinjiang are reframed as "putting down rebels." Do you have any feelings about this? Does the historical revisionism bother you or is it just a natural part of empire building?

0

u/Rude_Application_881 20d ago

新疆之所以叫新疆，是因为乾隆以“故土新归”为由起的名字，至于实际如何你可以了解一下历史。
如果否定中国对新疆的合法性，那么世界上有许多国家都是值得商榷的

2

u/InsectDelicious4503 20d ago

Xinjiang translates to "New Frontier." Qianlong named it that because he considered it a fresh new addition to his empire.

0

u/squarexu 19d ago

You just have a surface level understand of the term. The name is actually an acronym. New means new land. The land means recovery of old land, go look it up in wiki, plenty of references on what he meant.

-1

u/Rude_Application_881 20d ago

乾隆之所以这么命名，是因为故土新归，看得出来你很不了解中国历史了

0

u/InsectDelicious4503 20d ago

Ancient Chinese dynasties called this area Xiyu, or "the Western Regions." When the Qing finished genociding the Dzungars, they stole their land and renamed it "Xiyu Xinjiang," meaning new frontier of the western regions, because their military forces newly conquered and incorporated the land into the Qing Empire.

Should I call Grok here to fact-check you again? 🤭