HOHHOT, May 23 (Xinhua) -- A big family dinner was held Thursday for Sarna whose family of various ethnic groups in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region gathered to see her off, as the 24-year-old master's graduate left Friday for Shanghai to work.

She put into her suitcase masks, sanitizers, disinfectant wipes and casual shoes sent by her aunts and uncles reminding her of self-protection tips against the novel coronavirus disease.

After graduating from a college in London in November 2019, Sarna returned to her home in Yakeshi, Hulunbuir City.

The young lady of the Mongolian ethnic group has family members of Han, as well as Ewenki and Xibe ethnic groups.

"There were different languages spoken at the dinner of 17 people. All children in the family can speak Mandarin and their own ethnic languages," said Sarna.

Milk tea and Mongolian lamb, stir-fried Han dishes and dumplings, and Ewenki dried cheese were served on the table. All relatives in the family respect each other's customs and living habits.

"In Hulunbuir, multi-ethnic mixed families are actually very common," she said, proud of her big family.

China has upheld equality among all ethnic groups, striving to create a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation to work jointly for common prosperity and development.

The country's leadership has stressed that the national rejuvenation requires all ethnic groups to strive together, hand in hand and shoulder to shoulder.

Tong Wenquan, director of the Hulunbuir municipal commission of ethnic affairs, said ethnic unity is among China's great achievements in safeguarding national unity and developing economy in ethnic minority areas.

According to the Inner Mongolia regional commission of ethnic affairs, the region has 55 ethnic groups. About one-eighth of the families in Inner Mongolia are multi-ethnic families.

The Inner Mongolia region has a population of 25 million, of which more than 4.6 million are of the Mongolian ethnic group. In 2019, the per capita disposable personal income in the region reached 30,555 yuan (about 4,294 U.S. dollars), up 7.7 percent over the previous year.