Between official and vernacular memories: Remembering Han migration to Xinjiang through museum photographs

Bodnar’s conceptualisation of official, vernacular and public memory offers a compelling framework for analysing the dynamics of collective remembering. However, due to its development in a democratic setting, it is unclear whether it can be applied to contexts where memory is under tight state control. This article examines the dynamics of official, vernacular and public memory in China, focusing on memories of Han migration to Xinjiang. Drawing on 45 interviews with Han inhabitants, we analyse how visitors receive photographs displayed in the Xinjiang Military and Agricultural Reclamation Museum, the key heritage institution commemorating Han migration. We show how museum photographs trigger vernacular memories that amplify official memories and promote official memories that endorse vernacular memories. Instead of forming an independent layer of public memory, distinct from official memory, discordant vernacular memories enter the public domain as ‘public secrets’ that are widely known, but rarely spoken about.