Beyond the Great Wall: China's multicultural frontier cities.

摘要

This is an urban geographical study of Han Chinese cities on the historical and contemporary frontiers of Chinese settlement within the People's Republic of China. It explores the patterns and processes of urban settlement in the multi-cultural context of the frontier from ancient times to the present day, focussing on five large cities: Kunming, Lanzhou, Xining, Hohhot and Urumqi. The comparative urban form of these major frontier cities is considered in physical, cultural, social and economic dimensions on the basis of fieldwork, historical research and a review of contemporary Chinese scholarship.; Part One of the dissertation surveys theoretical issues in the geography of frontiers, examines the nature of the frontier regions of China, and discusses China's Han, Islamic and Lamaist peoples and their urban traditions. The history of all five cities is explored, and the multiple functions of Chinese frontier cities are highlighted. Part Two analyzes the form of frontier cities in comparison to both cultural ideals and the characteristic actual urban forms of the cities of the eastern core region of China. Form is considered from the perspective of a range of scales from the overall morphology of walled cities to the location of districts and markets and the location and styles of monumental and vernacular architecture. Part Three addresses issues of continuity and change in frontier cities since 1949, with discussions of both the persistence of traditional urban forms on the contemporary frontier and the impact of Chinese urban policies since 1949 on the form of frontier cities.; These analyses indicate that the Chinese city on the frontier was historically both a striking expression of the standardized urban ideals of eastern China and a distinctive form of multi-cultural settlement with unique characteristics which reflect the interaction of different peoples on the frontier. This duality has survived to a great extent to the present day. Distinctive frontier cultural and spatial patterns have persisted in many frontier cities despite recent rapid growth, economic development, and the promotion of new urban ideals and policies since 1949.