Xinjiang: China accused of renaming hundreds of Uyghur villages

Activists claim removal of place names is the latest attempt to undermine Uyghur culture in China.

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According to a report by the group, hundreds of villages in Xinjiang with names related to the religion, history or culture of Uyghurs were replaced between 2009 and 2023.

Words such as "sultan" and "shrine" are disappearing from place names - to be replaced with terms such as "harmony" and "happiness", according to the research, which is based on China's own published data.

China's embassy in London denied the allegations.

In recent years, Chinese authorities have been radically overhauling society in Xinjiang in an attempt to assimilate its minority Uyghur population into mainstream Chinese culture.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cxrrkl6ve39o

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