Hub of Ethnic Integration

The Hexi Corridor in China has long been a region of diverse ethnic habitation, and Dunhuang, located at the western end of the Corridor, made it an unavoidable waypoint of the Silk Road through which people originating from all places passed. Historically described as "the intersection of China and the Rong tribes, a hub for all", Dunhuang has been home to various ethnic groups including the Han, Qiang, Wusun, Yuezhi, Xiongnu, Xianbei, Tuyuhun, Sogdian, Tubo, Uighur, Tangut, Mongolian, and others. Co-existing and laterally contributing to the rich tapestry of China's long history, these ethnic groups continually nurtured and passed on individually vibrant, distinctive cultures, which eventually merged into the ocean of outstanding traditional culture embraced by the Chinese nation.

The ancient documents preserved in Dunhuang include not only a wealth of Han Chinese literature but also a significant volume of texts in other ethnic scripts such as ancient Tibetan, Uighur, Sogdian, Khotanese, Tangut, and Mongolian (including Phags-pa script). These texts record a history of interaction, exchanges, and integration among various ethnic groups along the Silk Road. Moreover, the murals in Dunhuang depict not only Han figures but also individuals from ethnic groups such as the Xianbei, Sogdian, Tubote, Uighur, Tangut, and Mongolian, vividly illustrating scenes of communal life involving different ethnicities. These materials prove that Dunhuang has historically been a site of shared establishment and development by multiple ethnic groups, authentically reflecting the unifying characteristics of Chinese civilization.

民族融合之地

中國的河西走廊自古就是多民族聚居之地，地處河西走廊西端、絲綢之路咽喉的敦煌更是如此，史稱“華戎所交一都會”。歷史上，曾經(jīng)有漢、羌、烏孫、月氏、匈奴、鮮卑、吐谷渾、粟特、吐蕃、回鶻、黨項(xiàng)、蒙古等各民族在這里雜居生活，見證了各民族共同書寫中國悠久歷史的事實(shí)。這些民族不斷創(chuàng)造和傳承燦爛輝煌、各具特色的民族文化，并最終匯流到中華民族優(yōu)秀傳統(tǒng)文化的海洋。

在敦煌留存下來的古代文獻(xiàn)中，不僅有漢文文獻(xiàn)，還有大量用其他民族文字書寫的文獻(xiàn)，如古藏文、回鶻文、粟特文、于闐文、西夏文、蒙古文（含八思巴文）等，記錄了絲綢之路上各民族交往、交流、融合的歷史；在敦煌壁畫中，不僅有漢族人物，還有鮮卑、粟特、吐蕃、回鶻、黨項(xiàng)、蒙古等民族人物，生動地反映了敦煌古代各民族共同生活的情景。這些資料證明了敦煌自古以來就是多民族共同建立和發(fā)展的，真實(shí)地印證了中華文明的統(tǒng)一性特征。