Inventing the Barbarians: The Changing Contexts of Yi in the Late Qing Dynasty

DOI

10.2991/assehr.k.211220.259How to use a DOI?

Keywords

hua-yi distinction; contexts; the late Qing dynasty; barbarian; foreigner; missionary

Abstract

This study analyses how the meaning of yi (夷, barbarian) was constructed in different historical contexts at the end of the Qing dynasty, which is important for us to reconsider xenophobia and Sino-centrism both in the past and present. Our study combines contextual with intertextual reading methods. It places different materials, including missionaries’ works, newspapers, and official documents, in their specific historical contexts and links them to obtain a full picture of this transformation. We argue that yi was invented. Various agents and actors created the connotation of yi to suit their interests. It was transformed by the Qing court from “barbarians” to those who follow Confucianism to justify their rule. Then it was first translated as “foreigners” and later as “barbarians” when Europeans came to China. Our study situates the meaning of yi to help us rethink some of the labels and misconceptions attached to yi and the early missionaries in China.

Copyright

© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press SARL.

Open Access

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Xinying Hu
AU  - Linyi Zheng
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/12/24
TI  - Inventing the Barbarians: The Changing Contexts of Yi in the Late Qing Dynasty
BT  - Proceedings of the 2021 4th International Conference on Humanities Education and Social Sciences (ICHESS 2021)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 1535
EP  - 1541
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.211220.259
DO  - 10.2991/assehr.k.211220.259
ID  - Hu2021
ER  -