Xianbei belt buckles, 3-4th century CE
The
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. Now most Chinese historians believe that Donghu by itself was an
ethnonym, rather than having derived from their location on the east of the
Xiongnu. Whereas Donghu was a
Chinese transcription, the
Mongolian reference was “Tünghu” . Later they migrated south and westward into areas of the modern Chinese provinces of
Shanxi,
Shaanxi,
Gansu,
Qinghai,
Hebei,
Inner Mongolia, and
Liaoning. Possibly some Xianbei groups also lived in ancient Eastern
Heilongjiang or
Hulun Manchu Imperial province, currently
Khabarovsk and
Amur regions in the
Russian Far East.
The Xianbei people consisted of a federation of non-
Han groups of which the most important was the
Tuoba (拓跋). During the
Han Dynasty, they occupied the
steppes in Mongolia, Hebei and
Liaodong. After the downfall of the Xiongnu, the Xianbei set up the nomadic
Xianbei state. After the fall of the Han dynasty, the Xianbei established extensive presence in China.
Dynasties
During the
Sixteen Kingdoms (304-439) period, the Xianbei founded six kingdoms in China proper, including the
Former Yan (281-370),
Western Yan (384-394),
Later Yan (383-407),
Southern Yan (398-410),
Western Qin (385-430) and
Southern Liang (397-414). Most of them were unified by the Tuoba Xianbei, who established the
Northern Wei (386-535), which was the first of the
Northern Dynasties (386-581) founded by the Xianbei.
In 534, the Northern Wei split into an
Eastern Wei (534-550) and a
Western Wei (535-556). The former evolved into the
Northern Qi (550-577), and the latter into the
Northern Zhou (557-581), while the
Southern Dynasties were pushed to the south of the
Yangtze River. In 581, the Prime Minister of Northern Zhou,
Yang Jian, founded the
Sui Dynasty (581-618). His son, Emperor
Yang Guang, annihilated the Southern Chen (557-589), the last kingdom of the Southern Dynasties, thereby unifying northern and southern China. After the Sui came to an end amidst peasant rebellions and renegade troops, his cousin,
Li Shimin, founded the
Tang Dynasty (618-907); Li led China to develop into one of the most prosperous states in history. Sui and Tang dynasties were founded by Han Chinese generals who also served the Northern Wei Dynasty. Through these political establishments, the Xianbei who entered China were largely merged with the Han, while those who remained behind in the northern grassland emerged as later powers to rule over China.
Modern Descendants
Today the "
Monguor" as known in the West and as “Tu Zu” in China have descended from the Xianbei who were led by
Tuyuhun Khan to migrate westward and establish the
Tuyuhun Kingdom (284-670) in the third century and
Western Xia (1038-1227) through the thirteenth century. Today they are primarily distributed in Qinghai and Gansu Province, and speak an Altaic Mongolic language. The multi-ethnic environment and relative distant distribution in the northwest, detached from the political centers of China, have enabled them to preserve their language and culture until the present times.
The
Xibe or "Xi Bo" people also believed themselves to be descendants of the Xianbei, with considerable controversies that have attributed their origins to the
Jurchens, the
Elunchun, and the Xianbei. Since they were historically referred to as "Suolun people" and spoke
Tungus rather than
Mongolic language, they may have derived their origins from one or more fractions of the Xianbei or other ethnic groups subjugated by the Xianbei. While most of the Xianbei went south and westward to establish different empires, they remained behind in Manchuria until subjugated by the Jurchens who moved southward from the Tungus Plains in Eastern Russia.
See also
