The National Museum of Ethnology (Minpaku) is a research center for ethnology and cultural anthropology.

Staff Members

KONAGAYA Yuki
KONAGAYA YukiKONAGAYA Yuki
Department of Cross-Field Research・Professor
Research Specialization
  • Cultural ecology and cosmology; Central Asia, Mongolia
Individual Research Projects
  • Reframing images of Mongolia: Photographic records from the 19th century to early 20th century
Personal website

Academic Qualifications:

  • B.A. Kyoto Univ. 1981
  • M.A. Kyoto Univ. 1983

Research Topics:

  1. The husbandry of Mongolian nomads on the process of change to marketing economy
  2. The history of natural environment in the Echina River Basen
  3. The activity of NGO (NPO) in Mongolia
  4. The history of 20th Century in Mongolia

Recent Research Interests:

In 1989, triggered by a process of democratization, Mongolia made the transition to a market economy. Since then, indeed, the economical activities of particularly urban areas have been expanding rapidly. On the other hand, however, the nomadic herdsmen in the countryside have had little chance to integrate their livelihoods in the market economy, which has proven to be the cause of many social problems. For example, drastic migrations from remote areas–where the economic distribution systems have collapsed–to the capital city, cause an increase of street children who live without their parents in underground manholes.

Another example is that herdsmen are now likely to breed bigger number of goats, rather than sheep, because the valuable goat hair brings them more direct cash income. In a sense goat hair has become like a cash ‘crop’, and ‘monoculturization’ of the economy is taking place. Additionally, the eating habit of goats is more harmful which fuels the process of overgrazing, bringing severe damage to the pasture lands.

In Mongolia, the most pressing problem thus is the widening economic disparities between city and countryside. To solve this problem, many countries, such as the USA and Germany, and also international organizations have been giving economic assistance, often through the involvement of NGO’s. However, this economic support in turn causes new economic issues.

As an example, one USAID project provided assistance to only the top 5% herdsmen who could manage their husbandry successfully by themselves, but the rest poor herdsmen were left behind as poor as before. This inevitable caused a disparity in wealth which did not existed under socialism arose and has been getting much wider.

This current period of Mongolia’s economical dependence on financial aid from many countries and international organizations, sometimes even is indicated as an era of neo-colonialism.

Geographical Areas of Interest:

Mongolia, Inner Mongolia

Ethnic Groups:

Mongol

Discipline:

Cultural Anthropology

Publications:

2011
Y., Sarengerile, and K. Kodama (eds.) An Oral History of Mothers in the Ejene Oasis, Inner Mongolia (RIHN-China Study Series No.2). Kyoto: SHOUKADOH Book Sellers.  cover [PDF: 760KB]  text [PDF: 2.75MB]
2008
SER75 A.D. Simukov Works about Mongolia and for Mongolia Vol.3–2 (in Russian).
2008
SER74 A.D. Simukov Works about Mongolia and for Mongolia Vol.3–1 (in Russian).
2007
SER72 Mongols in the 20th Century (2) (in Mongolian).
2007
SER67 A.D. Simukov; Works about Mongolia and for Mongolia Vol.2 (in Russian).
2007
SER66 A.D. Simukov; Works about Mongolia and for Mongolia Vol.1 (in Russian).
2006
A Tool for Creating Pseudo-3D Spases with Hyperphoto: An Application in Ethnographic Studies. GIS-Based Studeis in the Humanities and Social Sciences, pp.19–33. Taylor & Francis.
2003
SER42 Mongols in the 20th century (in Mongolian).
2002
Mongolian Culture Studies IV-A People Divided: Buriyat Mongols in Russia, Mongolia and China, International Society for the Study of the Culture and Economy of the Ordos Mongols, Cologne, Germany.
2001
The Changing Paradigm of Mongolian Studies–Between Documents and the Field.

Presentations:

2000
“Urbanization and the Strategy of Animal Husbandry of Mongolian Pastoralism, Metropolitan Ethnic Cultures: Maintenance and Interaction.”, 24–28 July, 2000, Beijing, China.