ABSTRACT
In order to establish trade connections with Central Asia and the Middle East, Ningxia was promoted as a bridge connecting China, through its Muslim minorities, with the international Muslim community. Abrupt change came when the accent on nation-building overshadowed aims of cultural diplomacy and strategies for economic development. In the new context, the visualization and development of specific “unchinese” minority cultural features started to be understood as an obstacle to the nation-building efforts introduced by Xi Jinping. The capital city of Yinchuan changed from a “Muslim” city to a pure “Chinese” one within only one year. Ningxia is an example not only of the extreme inconsistency and waste of China’s policy but also of the diverse mechanisms of (re)inventing cultural identity.
