老馬寨回族作為邊疆多民族區域共同體中的一員，是「一對多」回族社區類型的代表，它既具有中國回族內部的同質性，也具有較突出的民族邊緣性和特殊性；這種邊緣性和特殊性，集中體現為邊疆回族與當地多民族基於生存交互性而產生的族群邊界的可穿透性與民族認同的梯度化。筆者以作為回族族屬象徵符號的飲食為切入點，從回族集體族屬的社會表達與個體族屬的梯度表現兩層面，來討論回族飲食與族屬之間的密切聯繫。建構主義為主的民族認同的包容性、生活實踐與「清真」觀念的普遍脫節，是老馬寨回族邊緣性的主要特徵。老馬寨回族認同梯度及民族邊緣性的形成，與其所居多民族邊疆特有的文化生態與國家邊疆體制密切相關，筆者從微觀、中觀、宏觀三個層面就其邊緣性成因進行分析總結。該個案對回族族屬、邊緣族群及邊疆民族關係相關研究可能的理論拓展與反思，主要有兩方面：一是在回族族屬研究方面，可能會帶給我們一些從邊緣反觀中心的思考；二是在理論分析工具與方法論方面，具有一定的創新性。

Laoma village is part of the community of the borderland multiethnic region. It is representative of communities which consist of the Hui plus multiple other ethnic groups. It has the internal homogeneity of the Chinese Hui nationality, and as well as national marginality and particularity, which is manifest in the permeable ethnic boundaries and gradiated ethnic identities which are based in the interactions between the Hui and other local nationalities. Focusing on the diet of Hui village people, which plays a symbolic role of Hui ethnicity, the author discusses the close relationship between diet and ethnicity from both collective and individual perspectives. An important feature of Hui marginality is that ethnic identity is primarily based on constructivism and on the living practices which are commonly disjointed from the concept of Halal. The formation of the identity gradient among the Hui of Laoma village is closely related to the particular cultural ecology and the national frontier system of the multi-ethnic borderland in western Yunnan. The author analyzes the factors in this formation from the microscopic, middle view, and macroscopic perspectives. The possible theoretical contributions and reflections on Hui ethnicity, marginalized ethnic groups, and frontier ethnic relationships lie in two aspects: firstly, in terms of the study of Hui nationality this case provides some reflection on the center from the position of marginality; secondly, in terms of theoretical analysis toosl and methodology, this case study has a certain value.