Don’t lose your moustache: community and cultural identity on the Uyghur internet in China

Abstract

This article reports on data collected from the online community forums of four Uyghur language websites between 2014–2016. These posts are representative of a moment in time in which the Uyghur cultural identity was being threatened by increasingly restrictive Chinese government policies. Concept coding was applied to online discussion posts and comments, through which we identified common ideas and ‘concepts’ from the emergent themes. Findings demonstrate how these Uyghur language websites served as a platform for an online community to negotiate their cultural identity and strengthen community ties. Uyghur individuals posted materials that built cultural knowledge, reinforced cultural pride, and encouraged community cultural support.