Jilin (Kirin) Manchurian Society and Immigrants in Early Qing (Ch’ing) Dynasty
Feng Erkang
Nankai University
35th Meeting of the PIAC, Taipei 1992
A. Jilin area in early Qing Dynasty refered to the territory which was under jurisdication of military governer of Niguta (Jilin), including Jilin province, most of the Heilongjiang province, and a part of Far East Russia today.
Early Qing Dynasty here refers to the time from the first half of 17th century to the early decades of 18th century.
B. Jilin society in early Qing Dynasty was composed of Manchurian immigrants as its mainstay. The indigenouse inhabitants were mainly ethnic groups belonged to the Manchu-Tungus language family, namely, descendants of Nuzheng nationality from Ming Dynasty, a small amount of Han Chinese, Mongols etc. A great amount of immigrants migrated to Jilin in early Qing Dynasty. Among them were exiled Han Chinese, members of Hanjun due to punishment, bannermen who were sent from Beijing and Shengjin, farmers, merchants, monks, nuns of Han people floated in by spontaneousness. It tended to be inceasing gradually. The indigenous population in frontier area moved to inland continuously, creating a new Manchurian banner. Thus the immigration society was characterized by immigrating and population movement within this area.
C. Immigrants were the pushing forces of promoting the initiative development of agriculture and commerce. The original social produce was based on hunting and fishing, farming existed only in a very limited area. Commerce was in a primitive stage in the form of barter of goods. Immigrants of Han and Hanjun banner brought farming techniques with them, they reclaimed the virgin land wherever they arrived. A combination of Han merchants and Manchu consummers made contribution to the rising of cities such as Ninguta, Jilinwula, and Sanxin, activating commodities circulation in this area.
D. Changing of way of life among immigrants and Manchu indigenouse inhabitants. The relationship between Han and Manchuse in this period was differed from the late Qing period featured by discrimination against each other. The harmonious relations provided a favorable environment for them to abosrb cultutal merits from each other, and caused the amalagamation of these two peoples. The sites for ancestor worhip temples of Buddhism and Taoism, the embodyment of Han culture were established gradually in this area and became a part of Manchu worship and belief. Han people’s festivals attracted Manchuse attendance and their involvement. They also adopted social rite of Han partially. Some of the Hanjun people used Manchu names as their family names and put on Manchu costums. But Manchuse still kept their religious belief and their ceremony of worship the heaven, maintaining thoir rites of marriage and funeral and way of enteitainment. Overall, some of the Manchuse in Jilin during this period started to absorb more Han culture, in the meantime, still kept their own national identity. The process of amalagamation by piecemeal created the common culture for Chinese people and became an inseparable great strength and social factors.
E. The significance of migration. The migration in early Qing was a starting point of ethnic amalgamation which was interrupted since Jin Dynasty. Its consequence was significant. A vast expanse of land in the territory ruled by the deputy Dutong of Sanxing city was’t occupied by Russian during the late Qing should at trib ute to the cultural amalgamation caused by immigration.