Internal migration and left-behind populations in China

AbstractThe astonishing scale of internal migration in China since 1980s can be compared to only a few cases in world history. The migration gave birth to a vast number of peasant workers with their family members left behind in rural communities. Dominant studies on migration address mainly the following questions: why people migrate, what impacts migration has brought about, and how to cope with such positive or negative influences. This review paper builds on this rich body of literature and engages with critical agrarian studies. A better understanding of rural-urban migration in China from a critical agrarian studies perspective can be better achieved in the context of the historical emergence of a new (semi-) proletariat class and the biopolitics of their migration. Based on this and the aforementioned discussion, we will point to potential future studies as a conclusion.Keywords: internal migrationleft-behind populationimpact studiespolitical economybio-politics We would like to thank Ding Baoyin, Tu Jing, Xu Siyuan, Ning Xia and Chen Jinghuan for their efforts in the collection of references. We thank Prof. Tony Fuller for helping improve the English language of the paper.Additional informationNotes on contributorsJingzhong Ye is a professor of development studies and deputy dean at the College of Humanities and Development Studies (COHD), China Agricultural University. His research interests include development intervention and rural transformation, rural 'left behind' populations, rural education, land politics and sociology of agriculture.Notes on contributorsChunyu Wang is an associate professor at the College of Humanities and Development Studies (COHD), China Agricultural University. Her research interests include rural transformation, county governance and planning, rural politics and land grabbing. Email: wangchyu@cau.edu.cn.Notes on contributorsHuifang Wu is an associate professor at the College of Humanities and Development Studies (COHD), China Agricultural University. Her research mainly covers gender studies, agrarian sociology and rural left-behind populations. Email: wuhf@cau.edu.cn.Notes on contributorsCongzhi He is a senior lecturer at the College of Humanities and Development Studies (COHD), China Agricultural University. Her research mainly covers rural social security issues, rural left-behind elderly, rural development policy and civil society. Email: hecz@cau.edu.cn.Notes on contributorsJuan Liu is a researcher at the College of Humanities and Development Studies (COHD), China Agricultural University. Her research interests include rural politics, land politics and land grabbing. Email: juanlcau@gmail.com.