Äynu people
Encyclopedia
The Äynu are a people native to the Xinjiang
region of western China
. There are estimated to be fewer than 30,000 Äynu, mostly located on the fringe of the Taklamakan Desert.
several hundred years ago, while others conclude that the Persian
vocabulary of the Äynu language is a result of Persian being once the major trade language of the region, or Persian traders intermarrying with local women.
is spoken at home and in public, by Äynu men and women alike. Äynu men also speak Äynu, a Turkic language
with mainly Persian vocabulary.
There is a tradition of discrimination against the Äynu by their neighbors, who identify the Äynu as Abdal, a name which carries a derogatory meaning. Intermarriage with their neighbors the Uyghur people
is uncommon. However, the Chinese government counts the Äynu people as Uyghur.
The predominant religion is Sunni Islam
.
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
region of western China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. There are estimated to be fewer than 30,000 Äynu, mostly located on the fringe of the Taklamakan Desert.
Origins
The origins of the Äynu people are disputed. Some historians theorize that the ancestors of the Äynu were a nomadic people who came from PersiaIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
several hundred years ago, while others conclude that the Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
vocabulary of the Äynu language is a result of Persian being once the major trade language of the region, or Persian traders intermarrying with local women.
Language
UyghurUyghur language
Uyghur , formerly known as Eastern Turk, is a Turkic language with 8 to 11 million speakers, spoken primarily by the Uyghur people in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of Western China. Significant communities of Uyghur-speakers are located in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and various other...
is spoken at home and in public, by Äynu men and women alike. Äynu men also speak Äynu, a Turkic language
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
with mainly Persian vocabulary.
Culture
The Äynu people engage mostly in agriculture, although in the past some were peddlers, circumcisers, or beggars.There is a tradition of discrimination against the Äynu by their neighbors, who identify the Äynu as Abdal, a name which carries a derogatory meaning. Intermarriage with their neighbors the Uyghur people
Uyghur people
The Uyghur are a Turkic ethnic group living in Eastern and Central Asia. Today, Uyghurs live primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China...
is uncommon. However, the Chinese government counts the Äynu people as Uyghur.
The predominant religion is Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
.