Where has the spirit of "westward advancement" of Shanxi people gone now?

"Westward Movement" is one of the five major migration events in modern China, and the main body of this migration is Shanxi people.

From the mid-Ming Dynasty to the early years of the Republic of China, for more than 400 years, countless Shanxi people, Shaanxi people and Hebei people left their homes and set foot on the road of Mongolian grassland. Their purpose is to make a living by doing business. After this migration, the commercial road between the Central Plains and the Mongolian grassland was also opened.

"West exit" generally refers to the exit north of the Great Wall, such as Shahukou in Shanxi, Fugukou in Shaanxi and Dushikou in Hebei. These three exits are the gathering places for people from northern Shaanxi, northern Shaanxi and Hebei to "westward".

Later, "Xikou" gradually referred to the commercial activities of Mongolia at home and abroad north of the Great Wall, including Shenmukou in northern Shaanxi, Zhangjiakou in Hebei, Guihua City in Inner Mongolia (now Hohhot).

After the "westward migration" incident, thousands of people from Shanxi and Shaanxi flooded into grassland areas, and the social and economic structure and lifestyle of Inner Mongolia have undergone tremendous changes. A high proportion of Shanxi people brought Shanxi culture into the central and western Inner Mongolia, which made the local immigrant culture with Shanxi characteristics form.

The Journey to the West is a hard history of emigration and a sad history of entrepreneurship, and Shanxi people have finally achieved fruitful results. After arriving in Inner Mongolia, with step-by-step efforts, the trade from naturalization, Suiyuan, Kulun and Ulya Sutai to parts of Xinjiang was finally taken over by Shanxi people, and Inner Mongolia also evolved from a traditional nomadic society into a flag county for activities in several pastoral areas, which was a great influence brought by Shanxi immigrants.

Then, why do Shanxi people want to start a business outside the mouth?

There is a proverb in northern Shanxi, "Hequ protects Texas, and it will not be collected for ten years and nine years." Men go outside and women dig wild vegetables. " It can be seen from this sentence that the geographical environment in northern Shanxi is harsh, and most people who go out are hungry.

During the 3-5 years of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty, Shanxi and other provinces suffered from drought for three consecutive years, but there was no rain in some areas. This famine is called "Ding Wuqi Famine". Poor land and harsh environment forced the local population in northern Shaanxi to leave their homeland and make a living outside. This is "moving westward". If summed up in one sentence, I think it should be "people in poor areas migrate for survival"

Shanxi people "westward" has two routes:

1, heading west, passing through Shahukou and entering Inner Mongolia.

2. Go north, cross Datong, cross Zhangjiakou and enter Inner Mongolia.

Shanxi and northern Shaanxi are the traditional dividing lines between agriculture and animal husbandry in China. Because of the vast territory and sparsely populated outer Mongolia of Xikou, the local people actively recruited mainlanders to cultivate seeds for various needs, and the Qing government encouraged mainlanders to immigrate to Mongolia to "settle the fields" for reasons such as stabilizing the border. So the people of Shanxi and Shaanxi called friends and made a living in naturalization, Chahar and Ordos.

Shanxi immigrants have had a great impact on the local trade and economy in Inner Mongolia. There is a saying that "Fusheng Palace comes first and Baotou City comes last". "Fusheng Palace" is a business name of Shanxi Qiao merchants. Their relationship with the formation and development of Baotou City is the epitome of the close relationship between Shanxi merchants and the prosperity of the former border cities.

"Westward" has greatly strengthened the links between the border and the mainland. There is a proverb in the Qing Dynasty: "Wild geese in Yanmenguan are difficult to fly, and naturalized treasures pile up like mountains. There is nothing wrong with the drought in Shanxi, and naturalization is ruined. " Enough to prove it. "pursed mouth" means you are hungry. This proverb means that the local drought in Shanxi has little impact on the local society, but if there is a famine in naturalization, people in these places can only starve. It can also be seen that some places in Shanxi are highly dependent on foreign economy.

As a farming nation, it is normal for us Chinese people to stick to one acre and three points, which is also a deep-rooted tradition. As a wanderer, it really takes a lot of courage to leave home and explore the new world, but Shanxi people in this period did it. They not only did it, but also did it well and became a generation of Shanxi merchants.

Today, there are still many Shanxi people on the vast Mongolian grassland. They may be the witnesses that Shanxi people started from the west, but the local economy in Shanxi is very depressed. It seems difficult for contemporary Shanxi people to see the spirit of "going west" by their ancestors in order to support their families.

Text/View the Past and Present