Abstract:

“Qatar Chay” is a popular practice of gathering and networking among Uyghur women who are Turkic-speaking Muslims in Xinjiang, China. It emerged in the 1980s along with economic reforms in China as a financial activity with features of Rotating Savings and Credit Association (ROSCA). It has spread widely since the 1990s when it began operating as a regulated gathering in particular public space. While receiving public attention and some critical comments from Uyghur society, it has become an essential part of social life of Uyghur women.

Contrary to the discussion of development of women’s agency and individualism in China, qatar chay as a social space embodies collectivity of Uyghur women. This research examines the social, historical and political circumstances that enabled qatar chay to emerge and popularize among Uyghur women to cope with their special life conditions.

Based on detailed ethnographic data collected from intensive field work conducted in Urumqi city, Xinjiang, China, this research seeks to illustrate the following issues: how qatar chay forged a new social space for Uyghur women that is different from their traditional social life; the relationship between women’s life with this new space; the accommodation of this new space with the social norms imposed upon women; and what kinds of new social relationships have been developed by the pattern of this new social space.