A Study of the Different Channels for Selecting Cross Border Marriage Partners along the Sina睲yanmar Border

Wang Xiaoyan

（School of Marxism，Yunnan Agricultural University，Kunming，Yunnan，650201，China）

JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGY，VOL.6，NO.6，49-54，2015 （CN51-1731/C，in Chinese）

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2015.06.08

Abstract：

Transnational marriage in the SinoMyanmar border area is defined by locality，conditions of contact among the ethnic groups，as well as the social environment of both individuals and families.

This article selects Longan，Nongxian，Laxiang and Guangshan villages in Longchuan county，Yunnan province，China as the field investigation venues.

The characteristics of SinaMyanmar crossborder spouse selection channels have been verified as follows： First of all，most remarkably，the people in the area select their spouses mainly through acquaintance after having visited and/or worked together.

Secondly，marriage through introduction by parents  or relatives takes up a considerable proportion，whereas the proportion of introductions through neighbors or covillagers is the least.Introduction by parents  or relatives emphasizes the role of kinship networking，whereas，“visiting for social pleasure” model，to a great extent，reflects the relationships of marked locality.

In most cases，the individual networking core is shaped by intermediate kinship.However，close relatives may also be placed in estranged positions in these relationships.

The networks based upon locality manifest the regional channel  for crossborder spouse selection along the ChinaMyanmar border.Social groups bound by locality networking constitute a community within a local area.Although certain separations exist in different kinship and locality networks，still，they are not completely beyond the particular community.

In the border villages，some crossborder marriages happen and take place through the recommendation of friends.In this case，the friends role in spouse selection is the same as that of the “principle of proximity.The marketplace is a natural place for exchange among the people，as well as a public place which has networks  in multiple nearby villages.It is inevitably a place for chances of spouse selection.

In addition，the four villages have their own venues for religious activities，which，like the marketplaces，also strengthen exchanges among the border peoples.And，they also serve as important places for crossborder spouse selection.

Cowork networking also has become a new trend among the channels for spouse selection in the ChinaMyanmar border area. The interpersonal relationship in modern society tends to expand from kinship，marriage and locality to study and work connections.

Compared with kinship and locality，the work connection factor is the most direct in the process of spouse selection.Benefiting from the close locality and ethnic identity，the people from different countries，but who belong to the same ethnic group，are more likely to form relationships while working.This can provide sufficient evidence for crossborder marriage occurring out of crossborder free courtship.

Spouse selection is a social process，even for those who have gone through a stage of free courtship，albeit one with social structural characteristics.Based on the network of social relationships，the channels for crossborder spouse selection are explored and found reflected  this feature.The ChinaMyanmar border spouse selection channel also shows that individual social behavior is matched with relevant groups of people and geographical characteristics.The crossborder marriage is not a “special case”，but，rather，a normal outcome of the connections among the crossborder ethnic groups in their living areas.Crossborder marriage has a positive effect in continuing and developing local ethnic groups，and is recognized by the people themselves.However，it arouses some attention from “others” because of conflict with some ethnic policies and measures.Thus，several social problems about the “No Myanmar spouse is allowed to get a Chinese registered permanent residence” are inferred.Seen from the current available research findings，indepth and thorough discussions regarding crossborder marriage issues have been carried out on the national level.However，analysis regarding about the “reasonableness” in the ethnic society still needs further exploration in the field，so as to identify possible solutions to the problems from an “emic” perspectives.

Key Words： SinaMyanmar Crossborder marriage;marital spouse selection channel

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