“Does Market Integration Give Rise to Social Inequality? The Case of Mosuo in Southwestern China” with Dr. Chun-Yi Sum

Untitled

Friday October 28, 2016, 12:00pm

PLS102 (Anthropology Seminar Room)

The Mosuo (Na) are a Tibeto-Burman ethnic group in southwestern China. This small population of 30,000 on the provincial border of Yunnan and Sichuan is known for being the only remaining matrilineal society in all of China. Since the 1990s, tourism and economic development have brought considerable income to some – but not all – Mosuo communities. Having practiced subsistence agriculture for centuries, Mosuo people found their traditions and lifestyles increasingly integrated into the mainstream Han Chinese economy.

Based on demographic data collected in 2008, this paper compares patterns of wealth distribution and socio-economic well-being in three Mosuo communities. It investigates how varying levels of market integration correlate with inequalities in health, employment, and educational attainment in transitioning economies.