"Chinese" has many meanings, with narrow nationality attribute, broad conceptual title, and even different identification on various occasions or positions. In addition to the objective definition, the identity between himself and the surrounding society (value factors) also accounts for a very important part. The following is what I brought to you. Why is the cohesion of the Chinese people so strong?, For your reference.
Why is the cohesion of the Chinese people so strong?
National cohesion refers to the form of an idea (feelings, wishes, ideals and values) contained in each national member. Like economic strength and scientific and technological strength, it is an important part of comprehensive national strength, the soul and spiritual pillar of comprehensive national strength, and plays a core role. At least in BC? In the Dayu era of the th century, there was a situation of "princes coming to Korea" and preliminary reunification in China. People's "central consciousness" and the concept of unity have been continuously strengthened. Even in the spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period, the emperor of Zhou, a symbol of unity, always existed, and the main goal of the disputes among various vassal states was to unify the world. The local governments of some ethnic minorities established during the northern and Southern Dynasties and the Five Dynasties and ten states also aimed to become the "king of China" and unify the whole country. This unified concept has even become a basic standard for the Chinese people to cover the coffin of historical figures. The most prominent examples are Yue Fei and Qin Hui in the Southern Song Dynasty. Bearing in mind the national humiliation of humiliating the country and paying compensation for the lost land, Yue Fei is determined to recover the lost land and unify the motherland. Therefore, for more than 800 years, he has been greatly respected and remembered by the people all over the country and has become one of the most outstanding national heroes in Chinese history. Yuefen by the West Lake in Hangzhou attracts an endless stream of visitors every year. The traitors and traitors who insisted on capitulating and splitting, such as Qin Hui, were cast into iron men, kneeling in front of the tomb and being cursed and ridiculed by others. There is a saying that the Chinese people "one is a dragon and three are insects", saying that the Chinese people have the root of "a plate of loose sand". Indeed, in some historical periods, there may be some problems of "internal friction" among some people, some phenomena of undermining each other, and even some acts of betrayal and separatism. But we can't overstate the truth and say how serious the Chinese people are. Since ancient times, we have had the centripetal force of great unity, the model of being loyal to the country and the tradition of patriotism, which is the mainstream and dominant. One of the three magic weapons for the victory of the modern Chinese revolution is the United Front, which unites and condenses the wisdom and strength of the whole nation to strive for independence, liberation and prosperity. By carrying forward the tradition of patriotism, we will certainly improve the overall quality and national cohesion of the nation, truly achieve the great unity of the Chinese nation, including fraternal nationalities in China, compatriots in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and overseas Chinese, and we will certainly achieve great prosperity, development and reunification of the Chinese nation.
National cohesion is not only the expression of a country's people's love for their motherland, but also the concrete embodiment of a country's national spirit. Since ancient times, countries all over the world have paid attention to cultivating the cohesion of their own nations. If there is cohesion, the nation will prosper. The centennial history of modern China is not only the history of humiliation and suffering of the Chinese nation, but also a heroic history of the Chinese nation's unity and struggle to resist aggression. It is by relying on the great national cohesion that we have finally safeguarded the sovereignty and dignity of the country and made the Chinese nation stand tall among the nations of the world.
Discrimination of Chinese identity
Generally speaking, ethnic Chinese is mainly in terms of race, while Chinese people are mainly distinguished by nationality. The two meanings are different.
Ethnic Chinese (race) = people of Chinese Han nationality and similar ethnic origin of Han nationality + people of overseas Han nationality and similar ethnic origin of Han nationality
Chinese (nationality) = people from 56 ethnic groups in China + immigrants from other ethnic groups with Chinese nationality
Nowadays, most countries in the world can distinguish the different meanings of race and nationality, so there is little controversy about the use of the word Chinese; The use of the word "Chinese" involves political issues: cross-Strait issues ("one China", "one China with each statement", "two Chinas", "special two-state theory", "one China, one Taiwan"), the issue of Chinese in Southeast Asia, the integration of immigrants from other countries and national identity, so there are great disputes.
Chinese mainland
People on the Mainland generally understand Chinese living all over the world as Chinese, because their ancestors originated from China and have Han descent. Hong Kong and Macao are also used to calling people of Chinese descent or immigrants from the mainland Chinese.
"Chinese" is widely regarded today as not equal to "Chinese". In addition, the Chinese generally represent only the Han nationality in essence, not all other ethnic groups currently distributed in China. Generally speaking, people of Chinese descent or blood relationship in Southeast Asia and around the world are usually called "Chinese" instead of claiming to be or being called Chinese. Another definition of "Chinese" includes people from the mainland, Hong Kong and Macao (i.e. citizens of the people's Republic of China), people from Taiwan (i.e. citizens of the "Republic of China") and overseas Chinese. The majority of Malaysian and Taiwanese Chinese, for example, emphasize that they are "Chinese in Malaysia" rather than "Chinese in Taiwan".
Taiwan, China
However, most of the members of the Taiwan independence movement do not deny that they are "Chinese" or "Chinese descent".
According to the survey, in the 1990s, more than half of Taiwanese identified themselves as "Chinese" or "Taiwanese and Chinese". However, with the mutual unfriendly behavior in cross-strait exchanges and the so-called Taiwan localization movement, the self-identity of Taiwanese has also changed over time. By 2008, the same survey showed that the number of Taiwanese who identified themselves as "Chinese" decreased significantly, while the number of people who identified themselves as "Taiwanese rather than Chinese" increased significantly. Since "China" is not clearly defined in the survey, there are differences in identity. People who think that "China" is equivalent to "the people's Republic of China" do not agree that they are "Chinese". Those who think they are "Chinese" in Taiwan are mostly based on cultural blood factors, or think that China is the Republic of China rather than the people's Republic of China. But they generally agree that they are Chinese or ethnic Chinese. The independence education of Lee Teng Hui and Chen Shui Bian during their administration is the main reason why most of Taiwan's new generation do not agree that they are Chinese.
In a survey conducted by Taiwan foresight magazine in 2009, only 46% of people thought they were "Chinese" and more than 70% thought they were "Chinese" or "Chinese nation" under the condition of plural choice.
Some Taiwanese want to rename the "Republic of China" to "Taiwan" in order to cut the conceptual connection and identity between "Taiwan" and "China", but this proposition is opposed by those who support the Republic of China, such as the Taiwan pan blue camp.
Hong Kong, China
Most of the people in Hongkong are Chinese descent. Their grandparents and parents are Chinese mainland Chinese, even if they are not indigenous people in the new territories. They will not deny China's culture and tradition, nor will they doubt their Chinese origin. However, after more than 150 years of British colonial rule, the British gave Hong Kong people the special status of British Dependent Territories citizens, which also made many Hong Kong people consider themselves British at that time.
Since Hong Kong's return in 1997, Hong Kong people's sense of identity with "Chinese" has continued to increase. In the 2008 survey, from the four categories of "Chinese", "Hong Kong people", "Hong Kong people of China" and "Chinese people of Hong Kong", 42% of the respondents chose the last two, while 39% chose "Chinese", an increase of 12% compared with the similar survey in 2007, while 18% chose "Hong Kong people", a decrease of 5%. However, the awareness of the above four may overlap and may not reflect the strength of various identities. Therefore, the survey also conducted a single test on the identity of Hong Kong citizens. The identity of the respondents to "Hong Kong people" and "Chinese people" were 7.80 and 8.02 respectively. According to a survey conducted by the Asia Pacific Institute of CUHK in 2003, Hong Kong people's identity with "Chinese" is only 41.9%, higher than 38.2% in 2009. The relevant data is also a seven-year high, while those who identify with "Hong Kong people" have a downward trend.
However, it is worth mentioning that the so-called "Chinese" may only refer to the Chinese nation or the Chinese people, not specifically to the nationals of a country. In addition, Hong Kong people born in the 1970s and 1980s are more likely to agree that they are "Hong Kong people" than "Chinese people".
In recent years, China's international status has been continuously improved. Events such as the Beijing Olympic Games, the Sichuan earthquake and the Shenzhou 7 space walk have spontaneously aroused Hong Kong people's sense of identity with the Chinese people.
Macao, China
According to the data survey report of Macao Bureau of statistics and census, as of September 30, 2008, the resident population of Macao is estimated to be about 557000, mainly Chinese, accounting for 97% of the total population, while Portuguese (including native Portuguese in Macao) and other foreigners account for 3%, including 71182 foreign employees. They mainly include Indonesians, Filipinos and Vietnamese. They are mainly engaged in domestic maids and other labor occupations.
Overseas Chinese
Overseas Chinese mainly live in Singapore, where there are relatively majority ethnic groups, and Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam, where there are relatively minority ethnic groups. Overseas Chinese in these areas were mainly in Fujian and Guangdong provinces from the 16th to 19th centuries, and later Hainan Province. From the 10th century to the 15th century, immigrants mainly went to Malacca and Southeast Asia. Since the second half of the 20th century, the geographical distribution of overseas Chinese has also changed, which is characterized by the gradual dispersion from concentration, that is, from highly concentrated in Asia, especially Southeast Asia, to areas outside Asia, especially Europe, the United States and Australia.
Other places
In the west, the so-called Chinese is generally equivalent to the use of Chinese in Chinese. In addition to the Han nationality, it sometimes includes some ethnic minorities that have been assimilated by the Han nationality (such as Tu family and Manchu) and some ethnic groups that have always used the Chinese language (such as Hui and she). As for Uygur, Tibetan and other ethnic groups that still retain their own cultural characteristics, or Korean, Jing Russians and other ethnic groups that have their own nation-state are often not considered Chinese.
According to the generally accepted geographical definition, the division of mainland people, Hong Kong people, Macao people, Taiwan people and overseas Chinese has been greatly recognized. For people in other countries, generally speaking, Chinese refer to people from the mainland of the people's Republic of China. People from Taiwan of the Republic of China are usually regarded as another group, while people from Hong Kong and Macao are often regarded as an independent group. However, all residents of the mainland, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao have obtained foreign visas from China.