Donghu (g}) was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic
ethnic groupThe following are the ethnic groups in Chinese history. Any non clear-cut connection is denoted by a question mark beside the equivalences. As so many ethnic groups have appeared in history, this table is certainly not complete...
that included the
WuhuanThe Wuhuan were a nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia....
and
XianbeiThe Xianbei were a significant nomadic people residing in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan.-Origins:The Xianbei were descendants of the Donghu, which used to be believed to represent the “Eastern Hu” based on the Chinese record...
peoples.
The earliest
ChineseChinese or the Sinitic language is a language family consisting of languages mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
record of
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
(东胡) was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” (王会篇) compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
were active during this period. The
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
comprised the federations of the
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
,
WuhuanThe Wuhuan were a nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia....
, and
XianbeiThe Xianbei were a significant nomadic people residing in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan.-Origins:The Xianbei were descendants of the Donghu, which used to be believed to represent the “Eastern Hu” based on the Chinese record...
.
Donghu (g}) was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic
ethnic groupThe following are the ethnic groups in Chinese history. Any non clear-cut connection is denoted by a question mark beside the equivalences. As so many ethnic groups have appeared in history, this table is certainly not complete...
that included the
WuhuanThe Wuhuan were a nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia....
and
XianbeiThe Xianbei were a significant nomadic people residing in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan.-Origins:The Xianbei were descendants of the Donghu, which used to be believed to represent the “Eastern Hu” based on the Chinese record...
peoples.
Name
The earliest
ChineseChinese or the Sinitic language is a language family consisting of languages mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
record of
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
(东胡) was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” (王会篇) compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
were active during this period. The
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
comprised the federations of the
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
,
WuhuanThe Wuhuan were a nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia....
, and
XianbeiThe Xianbei were a significant nomadic people residing in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan.-Origins:The Xianbei were descendants of the Donghu, which used to be believed to represent the “Eastern Hu” based on the Chinese record...
. They engaged in warfare against the
Yan-Names:* Yan Emperor, closely related to the Yellow Emperor* Cantonese transcription of surname 甄, created for naming taboo; Emperor Ming of Han , renamed Zhuang to Zhen Mandarin transcription...
and
ZhaoZhao may refer to:* Zhao , a Chinese surname* Zhao , a historical Chinese state* Zhao County, in Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China* Zhou Dynasty a Chinese Dynasty split into two Eras Western & Eastern Eras...
Kingdom to their south, and by the time of the
Qin DynastyThe Qin Dynasty was the ruling Chinese dynasty between 221 and 206 BC. The Qin state was named because the people of is homeland were called the qin. The Qin's strength had been consolidated by Lord Shang Yang during the Warring States Period, in the 4th century BC...
in
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
, the
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
entered a powerful state.
Traditional explanation for the origins of "
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
," going back to the 2nd-century Han scholar Cui Hao 崔浩, is that the term came from their location on the "east of the
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
".. Recent research indicates that the term by itself was probably an
ethnonymAn ethnonym is the name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms and autonyms .As an example, the ethnonym for the ethnically dominant group...
. Whereas
Donghu was a Chinese transcription, the Mongolian reference was
Tünghu. Considering that there was no "hu" character in the name of the Xiongnu, the traditional reference of the northern nomadic peoples as “Hu ren” or the “Hu people” probably came from the extensive dominance of the Donghua over the Xiongnu and other northern nomads.
Some dictionaries confuse
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
東胡 with
TungusTungus can mean several things:* Tungus is an obsolete term for the Evenks of Russia and China.* Tungus may refer to the Tungusic languages.* Tungus may refer to the Tungusic people....
; Tungusic people (Chinese
Tonggu 通古). This "chance similarity in modern pronunciation", writes Pulleyblank, "led to the once widely held assumption that the Eastern Hu were Tungusic in language. This is a vulgar error with no real foundation."
History
Among the northern ethnic groups, the
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
was the earliest to evolve into a state of civilization and first developed
bronzeBronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive, but sometimes with other elements such as phosphorus, manganese, aluminium, or silicon. It was particularly significant in antiquity, giving its name to the Bronze Age...
technology. They spoke proto-Mongolic language and their culture was associated with the
Upper Xiajiadian cultureThe Upper Xiajiadian culture was a Bronze Age archaeological culture in Northeast China derived from the Eurasian steppe bronze tradition, and roughly contemporaneous to the Western Zhou Dynasty....
, characterized by the practice of agriculture and animal husbandry supplemented by handicrafts and bronze art. Through the use of cavalry and bronze weaponry in warfare, they dominated over the
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
on their west and other nomads.
By the 4th century B.C., the Xiongnu emerged from the Hetao (河套) and Great Qing Mountain (大青山) areas in
Inner MongoliaInner Mongolia is a Mongol autonomous region of the People's Republic of China, located in the country's north....
. They were comprised of diverse nomadic groups and became major force on the historical stage under their first
ChanyuChanyu Chinese Traditional=單于, Chinese Simplified=单于, sometimes transliterated Shanyu, was the title used by the rulers of the Xiongnu Luanti clan during the Qin and Han dynasties....
, Touman, in the 3rd century B.C. In 209 B.C., Touman was killed by his son, Maodun, who attacked Donghu by surprise and caused disintegration in the Donghu federation.
Thereafter, the
WuhuanThe Wuhuan were a nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia....
moved to Mt. Wuhuan and engaged in continuous warfare with the
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
on the west and China on the south, whereas the
XianbeiThe Xianbei were a significant nomadic people residing in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan.-Origins:The Xianbei were descendants of the Donghu, which used to be believed to represent the “Eastern Hu” based on the Chinese record...
moved northward to Mt. Xianbei. In the first century, the Xianbei defeated the Wuhuan and northern
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
, and developed into a powerful state under the leadership of their elected
KhanKhan is an originally Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, first used by medieval Altaic-speaking nomadic tribes living to the north of China and the center of Rumelia Kailar yoruks are mentioned as yorukkhans in Ottoman arvhives...
, Tanshihuai, while the
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
remnants submitted and self proclaimed to be
XianbeiThe Xianbei were a significant nomadic people residing in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan.-Origins:The Xianbei were descendants of the Donghu, which used to be believed to represent the “Eastern Hu” based on the Chinese record...
.
The ancient Chinese records often made derogatory interpretations against all those outside of the political centers of China, which have substantially influenced the Western understandings and interpretations of the northern nomads.
At this time Qin and Jin were the most powerful states in China. Duke Wen of Jin expelled the DiDi may refer to:* The diminutive form of the name Diana, Diane and Dianne. Dai is the Welsh diminutive form of the name David.*Diana, Princess of Wales.*Di , an ancient ethnic group in China....
nomads and drove them into the region west of the Yellow RiverThe Yellow River or Huang He / Hwang Ho is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at 5,464 kilometers . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into the Bohai Sea...
between the Yun and Luo rivers; there they were known as the Red Di and the White Di. Shortly afterwards, Duke Mu of QinDuke Mu of Qin , born Ying Renhao , was a ruler of the State of Qin from 659 or 660 to 621 BC in China. One of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period, he greatly expanded the territory of Qin during the reign of King Xiang of Zhou.He acquired many talented advisors, such as Baili Xi,...
[r. 659 or 660 to 621 BCE], having obtained the services of You Yu, succeeded in getting the eight nomadic tribes of the west to submit to their authority.
Thus at this time there lived in the region west of LongLong may refer to:* Length, the long dimension of any object* Lóng, the Chinese dragon* Long , a common surname* Long , a position in finance, especially stock markets...
the Mianzhu, the Hunrong, and the Diyuan tribes. North of Mts. Qi and Liang and the Jing and Qi rivers lived the Yiqu, Dali, Wuzhi, and Quyuan tribes. North of Jin were the Forest peoples and the Loufan, while north of Yan lived the Eastern Nomads and Mountain Nomads, each of them with their own chieftains
By the time of the rule of the
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
ChanyuChanyu Chinese Traditional=單于, Chinese Simplified=单于, sometimes transliterated Shanyu, was the title used by the rulers of the Xiongnu Luanti clan during the Qin and Han dynasties....
Touman (c. 220 BCE to 209 BCE), ". . . the Eastern nomads were very powerful and the Yuezhi were likewise flourishing." When the Xiongnu crown prince Maodun
ChanyuChanyu Chinese Traditional=單于, Chinese Simplified=单于, sometimes transliterated Shanyu, was the title used by the rulers of the Xiongnu Luanti clan during the Qin and Han dynasties....
killed his father, Touman (in 209 BCE) and took the title of Chanyu, the Donghu thought that Maodun feared them, and they started to ask for tribute from the Xiongnu. Not satisfied with this they asked for some of the Xiongnu territories. Maodun attacked by surprise and defeated
DonghuDonghu was a historical name for the Mongolic nomadic ethnic group that included the Wuhuan and Xianbei peoples.-Name:The earliest Chinese record of Donghu was found in the “Wang Hui Chapter” compiled during the Warring States from the 5th to the 3rd century B.C., indicating that the Donghu...
, taking their ruler and his subjects prisoner, and seizing their livestock, before turning west to attack and defeat the
YuezhiThe Yuezhi or Rouzhi , also known as the Da Yuezhi or Da Rouzhi , were an ancient Central Asian people.They are believed by most scholars to have been an Indo-European...
(c. 177 BCE)..
According to historical records, the Donghu rulers wore headdresses of gold known as
huguan (胡冠）, and gold-decorated belts known as a
hudai （胡帶）.
Reference List
- Di Cosmo, Nicola. (1999). "The Northern Frontier in Pre-imperial China", in Cambridge History of Ancient China, Cambridge University Press, pp. 885-966.
- Lebedynsky, Iaroslav. (2007). Les nomades. Editions Errance, Paris. ISBN 9782877723466
- Pulleyblank, Edwin G. (1983). "The Chinese and Their Neighbors in Prehistoric and Early Historic China," in The Origins of Chinese Civilization, University of California Press, pp. 411-466.
- Pulleyblank, Edwin G. (2000). "Ji 姬 and Jiang 姜: The Role of Exogamic Clans in the Organization of the Zhou Polity", Early China 25:1-27.
- Watson, Burton. (1993). Records of the Grand Historian
The Records of the Grand Historian, also known in English by the Chinese name Shiji , written from 109 BC to 91 BC, was the magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the Yellow Emperor until his own time. The Records of the Grand Historian, also known in...
by Sima Qian. Translated by Burton Watson. Revised Edition. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-08167-7.
- Yu Ying-Shih. (1986). "Han Foreign Relations," in The Cambridge History of China. 1. The Ch'in and Han Empires, Cambridge University Press, pp. 377-462.