Locality from Hybridization to Integration: Cultural Politics and Space Production of Taiwan Mazu Temples in Mainland China

Abstract

An upsurge in Taiwan-based Mazu temple buildings has been observed in China (Tianjin, Kunshan, and Xiamen, etc.) recently. This paper applies qualitative research methods, including participatory observation and semi-structured interviews, to explore the development of Mazu temples in Tianjin, Kunshan, and Xiamen, China in terms of cross-regional connectivity, materiality, and cross-regional locality, to explore the process of transplantation and construction in the mainland. This paper finds that Mazu culture is a reproduction of the vision of “one race one culture” in the cultural space, and this spatial reproduction is realized through cross-strait religious and cultural exchanges. Informed by the perspective of the political and cultural context, three interconnected dimensions—cross-regional connectivity, materiality, and cross-regional locality—have influenced why, where, and how Taiwan Mazu temples have been transplanted and constructed. This kind of hybrid locality is an integration of urban space and religion, as well as an organic, complex process that integrates religious functions, local politics, and the cultural economy. With the ingenious localization efforts of Taiwanese businessmen, these new Mazu temples promote homogenization in the sacred space and create a unique mixed locality—a more-than-state.

Cultural Exchange in the East Asian Seas in Light of the Acceptance of Mazu Beliefs by Japanese Sea Gods

“…A number of scholars have focused on topics related to Mazu's beliefs and the development of tourism resources (Shuo et al 2009; C.-P. Lin 2021; Zhang 2021), while others have devoted their attention to Mazu and literary production (Poceski 2015) and literary acceptance . Geographically, Mazu studies are most richly diversified in Taiwan (Park 2018;Tischer 2020;Zhou 2022), followed by East Asia (Sang 2016), including Japan (Ng Wai-ming 2020), South Korea (Moo 2017), and Southeast Asia , including Vietnam (Fraszczak 2018). However, there is little literature exploring themes related to the exchange of Mazu beliefs between China and Japan.…”

The Evolution of the Spatial Distribution Pattern of Mosques in the Kashgar Region from 1955 to 2004

“…With the intersection of the research paradigm of religion in geography, the content of the study of the geography of religion as a discipline was clearly identified in the 1980s (Sopher 1981). In recent years, spatial data on religion have often been used in geographic studies, and some religious studies have drawn on geographic research methods, with many developments in data-driven spatial perspectives on the study of religion emerging (Gregory 2003;Sunier 2013;Zhou 2022). Some scholars have explored the spatial evolution of religion and its causes based on the geographic information data of religious officially sacred sites (Song et al 2016;Zhu et al 2019;Jiang 2019;Liu and Wan 2022).…”