Jim Millward
@jimmillward.bsky.social
Historian of Sinitic lands and Central Asia at Georgetown University, and mandolinist for By & By. Work on Qing Empire, the Uyghur Region, Silk Road, stringed instruments in world history.
Interesting. I’ve been smelling dead things on my runs.
September 15, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Interesting. I’ve been smelling dead things on my runs.
No one in Qing ever said “Xinjiang has been part of China since ancient times.” Though the court did reference Tang expansion to Western Regiona
August 4, 2025 at 11:29 PM
No one in Qing ever said “Xinjiang has been part of China since ancient times.” Though the court did reference Tang expansion to Western Regiona
To be mischievous, here and there I might say, “In the Sinocentric geographical conventions which the Qing court for some purposes adopted, former Ming China was ‘inner,’ and non-Chinese parts recently conquered by the Qing were ‘outer’”
August 4, 2025 at 11:27 PM
To be mischievous, here and there I might say, “In the Sinocentric geographical conventions which the Qing court for some purposes adopted, former Ming China was ‘inner,’ and non-Chinese parts recently conquered by the Qing were ‘outer’”
There is always inside and outside the pass. That’s the center / periphery imperial logic that 内地 originates in.
August 4, 2025 at 11:23 PM
There is always inside and outside the pass. That’s the center / periphery imperial logic that 内地 originates in.
The problem with “inland” is that it already means something else in English: it refers to distance from the sea-the exact opposite of neidi with regard to Xinjiang. Some Chinese writers (especially official sources) translate 内地 as “inland” but they are making a mistake.
August 4, 2025 at 11:23 PM
The problem with “inland” is that it already means something else in English: it refers to distance from the sea-the exact opposite of neidi with regard to Xinjiang. Some Chinese writers (especially official sources) translate 内地 as “inland” but they are making a mistake.
For Qing and before, “China” or Sinitic parts of the Qing, vs. Inner Asia or Central Asia. Xinjiang is geographically central (Inner) Asia. Geographical China is eastern Eurasia — a term a lot of middle period historians use to avoid confusion of “China.” Today, “eastern parts of the PRC”
August 4, 2025 at 10:06 PM
For Qing and before, “China” or Sinitic parts of the Qing, vs. Inner Asia or Central Asia. Xinjiang is geographically central (Inner) Asia. Geographical China is eastern Eurasia — a term a lot of middle period historians use to avoid confusion of “China.” Today, “eastern parts of the PRC”
Interesting (and discouraging) example of how PRC desperation to whitewash their policies in Xinjiang hurts its international relations and makes it harder for those trying to maintain engagement with China. A 🧵regarding Princeton Press' trip to Xinjiang:
June 29, 2025 at 8:38 PM