Christian missionaries' ethnographic accounts of diets and foodways in the area of Kokonor during the late 19th century and early Republican time

Abstract

The paper deals with the description of food(s) used in religious rituals and in daily life in the Kokonor area from the point of view of Christian missionaries. By looking at Christian missionaries' reports of the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican time, light is shed on selected societies in the Kokonor region – namely the Tibetans and Mongolic groups, such as the Monguors – with an emphasis on these societies' diets and foodways. Food is at the core of everyday life, not speaking about festive occasions. Moreover, food and beverages with their symbolism constitute an important part of religious practice. On the basis of missionary reports, such as those by French Lazarist missionaries, missionaries of the Belgian Congregatio Immaculati Cordis Mariae, and missionaries of the Societas Verbi Divini, besides the mundane description of daily food(s), we also highlight how special ingredients became an essential part of ritual offerings and how food exchange and shared eating was understood to create a bridge between humans and super-mundane beings.