Mahjong as interstitial cultural practice: Displacement, liminality, and social formation among mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong

Abstract

This ethnographic study examines how Mahjong functions as an interstitial cultural practice among mainland Chinese taught in postgraduate students, living off-campus at a Hong Kong university. Through eight months of participant observation and in-depth interviews with 25 students (2022–2023), the research reveals how these students navigate multiple forms of liminality—between educational stages, cultural contexts, and institutional incorporation. Analysis demonstrates that Mahjong operates through three key mechanisms: (1) strategic utilization of spatial heterogeneity across institutional, domestic, and commercial environments; (2) exploitation of structural conditions including academic temporal flexibility and spatial-economic constraints; and (3) deployment as socio-material infrastructure facilitating social relationship formation and maintenance. Rather than a mere recreational activity, Mahjong emerges as a boundary object enabling social incorporation while preserving cultural continuity. The study also examines how digital platforms reconfigure Mahjong's social dynamics, creating parallel, but distinct, modes of engagement. This research contributes to anthropological theory by illuminating how embodied cultural practices mediate educational migration experiences and constitute alternative forms of sociality within contemporary cross-border educational contexts.