Material Culture, Loss and Resilience: Findings in the Uyghur Diaspora

Abstract

Based on the Uyghur collection from the late 19^th century that is housed within the Ethnologisches Museum Berlin, the project asks what objects, both those held at the museum and contemporary objects, mean for Uyghurs living in the diaspora today. The research focused on Uyghur traders, makers and consumers of Uyghur objects in Istanbul and Kazakhstan. It revealed different ways of coping with biographical ruptures and the loss and (re-)forming of Uyghur identity in the diaspora. For this purpose, the concepts of nostalgia and resilience are discussed, especially in the context of working with museum collections and exhibitions.