The Bonan people (Chinese: 保安族; pinyin: Bǎo’ānzú) are a distinct ethno-linguistic group from all other Mongolic peoples, living in Gansu and Qinghai provinces in Northwestern China. They are one of the “titular nationalities” of Gansu’s Jishishan Bonan, Dongxiang and Salar Autonomous County, which is located south of the Yellow River, near Gansu’s border with Qinghai. Bonan are the 10th-smallest (ranked in 47th-position, out) of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People’s Republic of China. 95% of Bonan live in Jishishan County, numbering 21,400 of the county’s population. The Bonan people are believed to be descended from Mongol and Central Asian soldiers stationed in Qinghai during the Yuan dynasty.
The Bonan, or Bao’an, a name meaning “I protect you,” are one of China’s 56 officially recognized ethnic groups. Though their lives now are very different, the Bonan are ethnically related to the Monguor people, from whom they split in the 19th century. The Bonan are one of China’s smallest ethnic groups, with only 20,000 members. They live in Gansu province in the Jishishan Bonan, Dongxiang, and Salar Autonomous County. The area borders Qinghai to the west and the Yellow River to the north and is a largely mountainous area. The Bonan are a branch of the Monguor, a separately recognized ethnic group known for their practice of Tibetan Buddhism. In fact, Bonan who never converted to Islam are still classified as Monguor. Those who moved east to Jishishan after the Dungan Rebellion, however, were classified as Bonan by the current government starting in 1949.
The Bonan people is one of China’s smallest ethnic minorities, with only 16,505 people. Its language belongs to the Mongolian branch of the Altaic language family and is close to that of the Tu and Dongxiang ethnic minorities. Due to long years of contacts and exchanges with the neighboring Han and Hui people, the Bonan people have borrowed quite a number of words from the Han language. The Han language is accepted as the common written language among the Bonans. Judging from their legends, language features and customs, many of which were identical with those of the Mongolians, the Bonan minority seems to have taken shape after many years of interchanges during the Yuan and Ming (1271-1644) periods between Islamic Mongolians who settled down as garrison troops in Qinghai’s Tongren County, and the neighboring Hui, Han, Tibetan and Tu people. The Bonans used to live in three major villages in the Baoan region, situated along the banks of the Longwu River within the boundaries of Tongren County.
The Bonan numbered 12,212 in 1990, and they live primarily in four villages in Gansu Province. Their population has been growing rapidly; there were only about 5,600 in 1959. The Bonan language belongs to the Mongolian Branch of the Altaic Family and is most closely related to Tu and Dongxiang; it has two dialects. Although the Bonan language is not written, the Bonan people know Han and use it in their written communications. It appears that the Bonan are descendants of Mongol soldiers who occupied the Tongren area during Genghis Khan’s rule. When the Mongol Empire fell, they chose to remain rather than retreat to Mongolia. The Bonan are distinguished from many of their neighbors in that they are Muslim; they converted in the early nineteenth century. Facing persecution from their Buddhist neighbors, they moved down the Yellow River to their present location. The Bonan live in a fairly arid region, though one that is covered with forest and grassland. They breed livestock and raise wheat and rye. In addition, they engage in lumbering, silversmithing, and charcoal making. It is their ability as knife makers, however, for which they are best known; the Bonan knife is prized in most of Gansu and Qinghai provinces. Otherwise, manufacturing is poorly developed.
The Tongren Bonan are the descendants of Mongolian troops who were stationed in the region during the Mongolian Empire of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. After the collapse of Mongol rule in 1368, most soldiers retreated to Mongolia, but a few remained behind. After centuries of intermingling with other nationalities, they became a distinct group called the Bonan. The Buddhist Bonan in Tongren consider themselves a separate people from the Muslim Bonan in Gansu. Their languages are now also different. Using the definition of a people group as “a significantly large ethnic or sociological grouping of individuals who perceive themselves to have a common affinity for one another,” the Tongren Bonan definitely qualify as a distinct people group. The Tongren Bonan observe all Tibetan festivals and have culturally become almost indistinguishable from the Tibetans. “Those Bonans who retained their Buddhist faith became strongly acculturated to their neighbors … as a result, only a small number of persons remain in Tongren who from an ethno-linguistic point of view can still be considered Bonan.”
The Bonan people are the 7th smallest of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People’s Republic of China. A sideline occupation for which Bonans are particularly noted is the making of knives. A cottage industry, the Bonan knives are famous all over China for their beauty and sturdiness. The Bonans mainly lived in Gansu and Qinghai province in northwestern China; they are one of the “titular nationalities” of Gansu’s Jishishan Bonan, Dongxiang and Salar Autonomous County, which is located south of the Yellow River, near Gansu’s border with Qinghai. Bonans language belongs to the Mongolian branch of the Altaic language family and is close to that of the Tu and Dongxiang ethnic minorities. Due to long years of contacts and exchanges with the neighboring Han and Hui people, the Bonan people have borrowed quite a number of words from the Han language. The Han language is accepted as the common written language among the Bonans.
The Bonan share many traditions with the Dongxiang and Hui. Their traditional dress includes elements of Tibetan, Hui and Dongxiang clothing. Married Bonan women wear black veils, while unmarried women wear green veils. Bonan men typically wear black or white head coverings and white jackets. Bonan knives are renowned for their beauty and hardness and their manufacture and sale form an important part of the local economy, along with farming and ranching. The Bonan (also Bao’an) people (保安族; pinyin: Bǎo’ān zú; native ) are an ethnic group living in Gansu and Qinghai provinces in northwestern China. They are one of the “titular nationalities” of Gansu’s Jishishan Bonan, Dongxiang and Salar Autonomous County, which is located south of the Yellow River, near Gansu’s border with Qinghai. Numbering approximately 17,000 the Bonan are the 7th smallest of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People’s Republic of China.
Southwest of the Gansu Province, the area of Mt. Jishishan Bonan, Dongxiang, and Salar Autonomous County is home to the Bonan ethnic minority. With a population of just sixteen thousand, they are one of the smallest ethnic minorities in China. They speak a unique Bonan language which is part of the ‘Altai’ language family descended from Mongolian. Most can also speak and write Mandarin Chinese like the majority Han people. It is thought that the Bonan ethnic minority developed over a long period of time formed largely by Mongolians who followed Islam. During the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, some people of the Hui, Tibetan, and Tu ethnic minorities were assimilated into the group, often through marriage and in this way the groups influenced each other. The Bonan people did, however, retain most of their Muslem traditions and customs. Bonan musical forms of songs and dances sound distinctly similar to the Tibetan ones. The men play traditional stringed or woodwind instruments and often perform impromptu pieces.
The Bonan ethnic group is one of China’s smallest ethnic groups. They mainly cluster in the area around Mt. Jishishan and Linxia County, southwest of Gansu province. The Bonan people may have originated from the amalgamated Mongolians, believing in Islam, Han, Tu, Hui and Tibetan before settling in the Bonan area. Bonan people live on wheat, corn, Murphy, highland barley and peas as well as beef and mutton. Various animal meats such as pork, beef, mutton, horse, donkey and dog as well as other ferocious birds that naturally die are forbidden in their diets. The Bonan’s language belongs to the Mongolian branch of the Altaic language family. But due to the frequent daily contacts and exchanges with the neighboring Han people, they’ve evolved to using Chinese as their main communion tool. The Bonan are culturally close to the Hui. They speak a Mongolian language and are Islamic. They mostly live in Gansu Province.
The Bonan language (pronounced [p⁼aoˈnaŋ], Baonang; Chinese: 保安语, Bǎo’ānyǔ; Amdo Tibetan: Dorké) is the Mongolic language of the Bonan people of China. As of 1985, it was spoken by about 8,000 people, including about 75% of the total Bonan ethnic population and many ethnic Monguor, in Gansu and Qinghai Provinces. There are several dialects, which are influenced to varying degrees — but always heavily — by Chinese and Tibetan, while bilingualism in Wutun is less common. The most commonly studied is the Tongren dialect. There is no writing system in use. The language is also referred to as “Manegacha”, natively.
Indigenous Peoples Literature 
