From Steppes to Silence: The Systematic Assimilation of Inner Mongolians

The Mongolian people of Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region within the People’s Republic of China, face a significant threat to their unique cultural identity and traditional way of life. Over the past decades, the Chinese government has implemented policies aimed at assimilating ethnic minorities into the dominant Han Chinese culture, often at the expense of their linguistic, social, and economic structures. The forced Sinicization of Inner Mongolia is not just an administrative policy; it is a deliberate attempt to reshape the identity of an entire ethnic group, using education, economic pressures, and demographic manipulation as tools of control.

Despite its name, Inner Mongolia is not part of the modern nation of Mongolia due to historical geopolitical shifts. Mongolia declared independence when the Qing Dynasty collapsed in the early 20th century. However, China retained control over the southern portion, now known as Inner Mongolia. Over time, Beijing tightened its grip, incorporating the region into the People's Republic of China in 1947 and establishing it as an autonomous region. To better incorporate the region, China's political strategies reinforced the separation of Inner Mongolia from independent Mongolia, including efforts to weaken Mongolian nationalism and integrate the area into the Chinese state.

One of the most significant attacks on Mongolian identity occurred in 2020 when the Inner Mongolia Department of Education introduced a sweeping curriculum reform that replaced Mongolian as the medium of instruction with Mandarin Chinese in key subjects such as Language and Literature, Morality, Rule of Law, and History. This move was framed as part of a national effort to standardize education, but for ethnic Mongolians, it signaled a direct threat to their cultural survival. In response, the Mongolian people, demonstrating remarkable resilience, voiced their opposition through protests that erupted across the region. Thousands of students, parents, and activists stood up for their language and culture despite the government's crackdown with mass arrests, surveillance, and other repressive measures aimed at silencing dissent. This resistance is a testament to the strength and determination of the Mongolian people in the face of cultural assimilation.

Beyond the education system, the Chinese government has sought to rewrite the historical and cultural narrative of Inner Mongolia. A clear example is promoting the term “northern frontier culture” (bei jiang wenhua), a state-sponsored reinterpretation of the region’s identity that minimizes Mongolian influence and instead portrays Inner Mongolia as a historical buffer zone of Han Chinese civilization. The concept of "northern frontier culture" (bei jiang wenhua) is part of a broader ideological effort to recast Inner Mongolia as an extension of Han Chinese heritage rather than a historically Mongolian region. It promotes the idea that Inner Mongolia has long been a contested frontier where Han Chinese and other ethnic groups interacted, with the Han ultimately shaping the region’s development. This narrative downplays Mongolia’s independent historical contributions, instead emphasizing themes of integration and unity under Chinese rule. State media and educational institutions use this framework to suggest that Mongolian culture is merely a regional variation within a broader Chinese identity rather than a distinct civilization with its history, language, and traditions. By doing so, the Chinese government justifies policies that replace Mongolian cultural elements with Han Chinese norms, further eroding the region’s unique identity. Overall, by using the term, Beijing is attempting to force the region’s heritage through a Han-centric lens to the detriment of Mongolians who have lived there for generations.

On top of that, Beijing's policies extend to the traditional nomadic lifestyle that has defined Mongolian culture for centuries. Government programs have led to the privatization of grassland use rights, the construction of large-scale wire fencing, and the forced settlement of nomadic herders into fixed urban dwellings. The conversion of traditional grazing lands into farmland and the overstocking of livestock has resulted in severe ecological damage, undermining the environment and Mongolian herders' livelihoods. Despite centuries of sustainable pastoralism, authorities have portrayed nomadic practices as outdated, promoting sedentary agriculture and urbanization instead. Studies have repeatedly shown that managing grasslands as farmland is both ecologically harmful and culturally destructive, as it severs Mongolians from their deep connection to the land.

Under the guise of poverty alleviation, the government has also implemented mass relocation programs, displacing thousands of traditional herders from their ancestral lands. These programs often entail the demolition of conventional yurts, the fragmentation of extended families, and the stripping of Mongolians’ self-sufficient way of life. Once moved to urban areas, many Mongolians struggled to find employment and had little choice but to assimilate into mainstream Han society. The loss of their economic independence forced them to abandon their language and customs in favor of a way of life dictated by the state. These relocations are not voluntary transitions but mechanisms of forced cultural integration designed to weaken Mongolian identity.

Fighting forced cultural assimilation is a struggle in which Inner Mongolia is not alone. The broader trend of assimilationist policies in Inner Mongolia mirrors similar strategies implemented in Tibet and Xinjiang, where Beijing has pursued aggressive Sinicization efforts. In these regions, the government has restricted religious and cultural practices, restructured educational curricula to prioritize Mandarin Chinese, and implemented demographic shifts that favor Han Chinese migration. The long-term goal of these policies is to eliminate distinct ethnic identities and create a homogenous Chinese national identity. While the Chinese Communist Party frames these efforts as necessary for national unity, they come at the expense of rich and diverse cultural traditions that have existed for centuries.

What causes the erosion of Mongolian culture in Inner Mongolia is that it is primarily out of the international spotlight. Unlike Tibet or Xinjiang, where government crackdowns have drawn significant global attention, the systematic erasure of Mongolian identity has been relatively low-profile. Nevertheless, human rights organizations and Mongolian activists continue to raise alarms about the consequences of these policies. The loss of the Mongolian language, the dismantling of nomadic traditions, and the marginalization of Mongolian heritage all contribute to what many observers see as a slow-motion cultural genocide. It is crucial that we, as a global community, recognize the urgency of this situation and take immediate action to preserve the rich and diverse cultural traditions of Inner Mongolia.

If the forced assimilation of Inner Mongolians continues unchecked, the world will witness the gradual erasure of a people whose heritage has shaped the vast steppes of Asia for centuries. The policies implemented by the Chinese government are not just undermining a regional culture; they are systematically dismantling an entire way of life. The international community must not disregard this ongoing crisis. Protecting Mongolian culture in Inner Mongolia is not just about preserving language or traditions; it is about defending the people's fundamental human rights, such as maintaining their identity and history. Without meaningful resistance and global awareness, the rich heritage of Inner Mongolia may be lost to the relentless march of assimilation, leaving behind only echoes of a once-thriving culture swallowed by state control.