Hybrid: Paris, France | Zoom
28th May 2027
Deadline: 30th Oct 2026
Organized by Valentina Punzi (École pratique des hautes études/CRCAO) & Aurore Dumont (Université Paris Cité/CRCAO)
Through the history of the People’s Republic of China, the association between certain animal species and state-identified “ethnic minorities” (shaoshu minzu 少数民族) have been shaped by a combination of emic cultural symbolism, environmental factors, and socio-economic activities. Far from static, these associations have been evolving following the Chinese state’s governance and modernization policies across its ethnic borderlands and beyond. Indeed, over time, shifts in political agendas — including economic structures and more recently environmental policies and cultural heritage programs — have contributed to redefining the perception of the symbolic and practical roles that animals play in representing ethnic groups and their cultural practices. Granted a new agency, particular animals have become emblematic of certain ethnicities or territories, thus contributing significantly to the (de)construction of “cultural identities” and heritage narratives in contemporary China. Different types of animals are involved in these symbolic relationships. Some species are displayed as exotic or geographically distinctive, meaning they are strongly associated with particular regions. This is the case, for example, with the snow leopard in Qinghai Province, whose conservation status further contributes to its symbolic value, and with the reindeer in Inner Mongolia, which has historically been central to pastoral economies.
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