The name of Mongolian tribe first appeared in Tang Dynasty . At that time, in the north of the Huyue River (now Taoer River ), west to the surrounding Julunbo (now Hulun Lake), east to the Nahe (now Nenjiang) and north to Heilongjiang, there were many large and small tribes collectively called "Shiwei", among which one was the " Mengwu Shiwei ". Mengwu is the Tang Dynasty transliteration of Mongqol. "Old Book of Tang·Bi Di·Biography of Shiwei" records: There is a Dashiwei tribe north of the mountains, and its tribe lives by Jianhe. The river originates from the northeastern boundary of Turkic , and flows eastward, passes through the Western Wei realm, then goes eastward through the Dashi Wei realm, then goes eastward through the Mengwu realm, and then goes eastward through the north of the Mengwu realm, and south of the Shuzu Wei realm.
The mountain refers to the current Daxinganling , and Wangjian River is the current Erguna River . According to this historical data, the residence of the Mengwushi Wei tribe should be in the northern end of the Greater Xing'anling in the southeast of the lower reaches of the Ergun River. The thirteenth century Mongolian historical legend says that their ancestors originally lived in a place called "Ergunequn" (Ergunequn, qun means a cliff), which should refer to the forest area near the Erguna River, and the residence of the Mengwu tribe in the Tang Dynasty recorded in Chinese and historical records can be confirmed by each other.
About the late Tang Dynasty (the second half of the ninth century), Mongolian tribes migrated from the Xing'anling mountain to the grassland area to the west. With the division of tribes, the area occupied gradually expanded, and some of them moved to the Buerhanshan (now Kentshan ) area of the "source of the three rivers" of the Tula River. Cheng Gus Khan's ancestors belonged to this Mongolian tribe.
The legend of the Mongolian ancestors recorded in historical records of the Yuan Dynasty reflects the historical process of reproduction and migration of ancient Mongolian tribes. "The Secret History of the Yuan Dynasty" begins with the origin of the Mongols, saying that a white wolf ( Borte-chino) born under the will of heaven and matched with a white doe (qo’ai-maral), crossed Tengjisihaizi, came to Buerhan Mountain, the source of the Onon River () and set up a Xiayingpan, and gave birth to a son named Bata Chihan. It was passed down to the eleventh generation, and there were two brothers. The brother Duo Huoer had four sons, and moved out to become the border of Duoer (Dorben, meaning four); the younger brother Duo Benmeier married Alan Huoer, a woman from Huoli Tumati, as his wife, and gave birth to two sons, and each of his descendants was one. After Duo ran to his death, Alan Huo was pregnant with the light of the sky and gave birth to three sons. He did not grow up with Taji, and his descendants were Hedajin tribe (named "Shi Jin", written as Hedixin), and the descendants were Tuzale, and the descendants were Zalewuti tribe (named "Shi Jin", written as Shanzhikun, translated as Sanzhikun in the Yuan Dynasty); the youngest son Boduan Chaer, born in , and the descendants were , and about twenty clans or tribes were derived from this branch. Boduan Chaer is the tenth ancestor of Genghis Khan , and is called the "ancestor" in "History of Yuan Dynasty: List of Family Genealogy".
" Historical Collection " records another legend of origin. It is said that in ancient times, Mongolian tribes first pointed out that Mongolia is Mongolian. He was killed and only two men, Nagusi and Qiyan, were left, and escaped into the Kunshan area of Erguna, where he lived and reproduced for a long time. Their descendants formed into various clans (Obohei Oboq), and many branches were divided from these clans. Due to their large population and narrow mountainous areas, they moved to the vast grassland. Later, all Mongolian tribes originated from the original clans of Nagusi and Qiyan. The "History Collection" records that Genghis Khan's ancestors also traces the genealogy of Bortechina, but it is said that he was a tribe leader, who passed down from him to Duobenboyan ("Secret History" is called Duobenboyan); because they came from the Qiyan clan, this tribe was called Kiyat (plural of kiyan) in ancient times. Their pastures are in Buerhan Mountain, the source of the three rivers of Onon, Cyrol (Krulun), and Tuwula (Turra).Duoben's wife Alanhuo's After his husband's death, he gave birth to three sons in a row and "re-created" a clan: the tribes that were reproduced from the descendants of these three sons are called "Niluwen Mongolia" (Niluwen means waist, which is said to mean that they are all born from Alanhuo's chaste waist). They are relatives of the same bloodline. Other tribes are commonly called " Dilie Lijin Mongolian " (meaning ordinary Mongolians).
"The Source of the Three Rivers"
Buerhan Mountain is the Kent Mountain area. It was originally the residence of the Turkic ethnic group. After the Mongolian tribe moved to this area, it is very likely that it absorbed a lot of Turkic-speaking populations left in the local area through conquest or other means, thus changing its ethnic composition; in terms of economy and culture, it is deeply influenced by the Turkic people. The above-mentioned Mongols' Cang Wolf White Deer ancestor legend should have been developed from the inheritance of part of the legend of the wolf ancestor of the Turks; the myth of the light of heaven is born to noble people, which is also related to the legend of the light of heaven ( Uighur ) that the light of heaven is born to Khan. When Mongolian tribes still lived in the mountains and forests of Daxinganling, hunting was their main production activity; after moving to the Innen River City and the Kent Mountains, they learned rich experience in nomadic animal husbandry from local Turkic-speaking residents. From the forest hunting tribe that used to "hunting as the task", "catching minks as the business", "building houses with birch bark" ("Book of Sui·Beidi·Shiwei Biography") to the grassland nomadic tribe that raised horses, cattle, and sheep, grazed with water and grass, and lived in "black carriages and white tents". "History Collection" records that Mo Silun, the wife of Genghis Khan's seventh ancestor, Meinian Tudun (according to "Secret History" and " Yuan History ", owned countless livestock. When they gathered together, the riverside from the top of the mountain to the foot of the mountain was covered with. The era when Tudun and Mo Silun lived in the late 10th century and the early 11th century was equivalent to the period of Emperor Shengzong of Liao. " Khitan Kingdom " also records that the people of the "Mongolian Kingdom" in the Liao Dynasty lived a life of pursuing water, grass and carnivorous cheese, and "trading cattle, sheep, horses, camels, skins and beefs with Khitan ", which shows that the nomadic economy of Mongolian tribes had developed considerably at this time, and could provide a large number of pastoral livestock and skins and hairs that were far more than their own consumption, and used to exchange them with neighbors.
With the development of the Mongolian tribal nomadic economy, the clan sharing system has been broken. Legend has it that after Alan Huo's death, the four eldest sons divided the furniture - abusun and food - and bullied his younger brother Boduan Cha'er and did not give him a share. This story tells us that livestock and other property have long been privately owned by the family, and it has become a common social rule for the son to inherit the property of his parents. Private ownership stimulates the accumulation of family wealth, and some people's wealth is increasing day by day, becoming rich (Boyan, bayan), while most of them become poor (Yadanggi-gu’un). Plundering neighbors is an important means for powerful people to increase their wealth. The Boduan Chaer brothers jointly plundered a group of people from the Zarchiwuti clan of the Urianha tribe. "Because of this, there were also slogans (adu’un, herds), including tea and food (ide’e, food), and harans (tutqars, population and servants).
Historical records show that the Wei people in Shiwei "no sheep", and the word "qonin" in Mongolian comes from Turkic. There are many Turkish borrowing words in Mongolian animal husbandry, which shows that they learned animal husbandry from the Turkic people. The northern tribes such as Dada (Tatar) all "take the richest people in the tribe as the leader", and the same is true for the Mongolian tribe. The grandson of Boduan Chaer, Mien Tudun, had the title of Tudun, the official name of Tudun. He was the leader of the tribe, so his family had countless livestock. Later, the Zalayier's troops, defeated by the Liao Dynasty's army, retreated from the Krulun River and invaded the Mongolian tribe's pasture, and clashed, and the men of Tudun were killed. When his grandson Haidu (the sixth generation ancestor of Genghis Khan) grew up, he led his troops to take revenge, destroyed the Zhalayier tribe, and captured his wife and children as slaves.Zhalayier is a large tribe with a large population (" Liao History " is called " Zubu Zhala tribe"), so the victory of this war is of great significance. It greatly expanded the prestige and power of Haidu, "having countless wives, concubines, subordinates, sheep and horses." "The History of Yuan Dynasty: The Original Annals of Taizu" says that Haidu was established as the "monarch". Since defeating Zhalayier, "the situation has gradually increased among those who have returned to the top four tribes."
Haidu's eldest son, Huer and his second son, Chalahanningkun, successively succeeded as tribal leaders. "Ningkun" ("Secret History" is called "Linghu") which is the name of the official title of "Lingwen" of the Liao Dynasty. Chalaha's eldest son Zhinas succeeded as the leader, saying that he was bent. "心心" means the official title of "心心" of the senior subordinates of Liao and the vassal states, and his status is equivalent to that of the governor. At that time, all the tribes of the northern desert were under the rule of the Liao Dynasty. In addition to setting up the northwest road and other northern border defense officials to control it, the Liao Dynasty also established northern tribes, vassal state officials, and "ordered their chiefs to distinguish them from the Khitans" ("History of Liao·Journal of Hundred Officials"). The era when Chalaha and his son lived was around the second half of the eleventh century, that is, the period of Emperor Daozong of Liao. "History of Liao·Big History of Daozong" twice recorded in the tenth year of Taikang (1084) that "the ancient country sent envoys to hire" was seen, which shows that the Mongolian tribe also envoys to the Liao Dynasty, so its leader was appointed as a vassal state official. The conferred title of the Central Plains dynasty undoubtedly greatly strengthened their political power, allowing them to manage the people of the headquarters as officials of the court, and became " Nayan " (noyan, master, official) above ordinary tribe members. Chalaha’s father and son were worth a hundred times more valuable, and their descendants inherited their status as officials, becoming the most powerful nobleman in the Mongolian tribe, known as Tayichi’ut (Taichi’ut, derived from the Chinese "Prince"). Dunbi, the son of Huer, was appointed as Xue Chan, who also took charge of some of the people, and his power was not inferior to the Chalaha family. His son Ge Buluhan (Genghis Khan's great-grandfather, written in "Secret History" by Hebule Hehan) followed Xiangkunbilege to rule over the Mongolian people and called him the Khan; his descendants praised the name of the ancient ancestor clan and called him Qiyan clan.
As the power of the grassland nobles continues to grow, the status of ordinary tribal members is becoming increasingly low and they become the people of the nobles. Among them were not only members of the tribes of Dielekjen Mongolia (the majority of the people), but also members of some of the Niruwen Mongolian clans, who were also descended from Bodunchaer. These clans had to rely on powerful nobles and ruled by them because of their weak power. For example, according to the Secret History, members of the clans such as Oronaer, Huanghuotan, and Xuelai, who were the descendants of the youngest son of Haidu, later became subordinates of the nobles of Taichiwu and Qiyan. The "Shi Ji Tribe" actually included them among the Mongolian tribes of Dielite Hall, but another place said that they also belonged to Niruwen Mongolia. This unclear clan origin reflects the decline of their status. At a meeting where the Taichiwu nobles elected the leader, due to a dispute, an old man from the Oronar family asked to express his opinion. He replied, "I am the lowly Halachu (qarachu, the lower people), what right do you have to speak? You lords. Please speak wise and kind words so that our Halachu can be like a keel and get breasts, so that we can be born and raised." It can be seen that the people (Halachu) are not only not qualified to be elected as the leader, nor have the right to elect the leader. Although the people are ruled by the nobles, they still have incomplete personal freedom and their own independent family economy. They can separate from the nobles they originally belong to and instead of joining other troops. They are the main bearers of social production and the main source of warriors, so the strength of a noble family's power mainly depends on how many people he controls.
Nomadic livestock producers can provide many products that exceed their own consumption, so using slave labor becomes profitable. After the Mongolian tribe entered the grassland area, it soon became a phenomenon of plundering other tribes as slaves. For example, the above-mentioned Boduan Chaer brothers plundered a group of people in Urianha, and thus there were servants at home for driving. Later, Haidu destroyed the Zhalayier tribe, and except for those who were slaughtered, all of these Zhalayier people became slaves to Haidu and their families.The slaves of ancient Mongolian society (Boole bo’ol) were called "the slaves of the threshold" (bosoqa-yinbo’ol), "the ladder of the house has been slaves" (e’uden-uemchubo’ol), indicating that they are the private population of each master’s family. Their descendants also inherited the identity of slaves, and their ancestors maintained a master-slave relationship with their masters for generations. The descendants of the Zhalayier, who were captured by Haidu as slaves, became slaves to the descendants of Haidu for generations, and were passed down until the time of Genghis Khan.
famous general Muhuali are descendants of these Zhalayier people. They were sent to Genghis Khan's house to serve when they were young. "If you teach those who are always slaves, you will pick up your tendons and cut off your heart." Genghis Khan also had a slave, the descendant of the slave captured by the fourth generation of the ancestor Dunbinai, so Genghis Khan said that he was "a slave since my ancestors." Slaves can start a family and start a business and own some of their own property, but they must be affiliated with their master and must not leave without permission; they must provide all kinds of unpaid labor to their master. In order to maintain the rule and slavery of the people and slaves, and to carry out increasingly frequent wars, the Mongolian nobles established their own armed forces. A group of guards loyal to their individuals gathered around the nobles, nokor (companion). Some of them were from people, some were from slaves, and some were from other tribes. They all formed special affiliation with their respective masters, were nurtured, and charged for them, and went through life and death. The powerful Taichiwu family and Qiyan nobles also organized guards - turqa’ut and keshig, whose core was composed of Na Keer. This is a team that has a special relationship with the nobles and serves his personal ranks, not the people's armed forces within the clan. The emergence of Nake and the Guard further strengthened the power of the nobles and prompted them to engage in plunder and annexation wars more frequently to gain more wealth and slaves and control more people.
The paternal blood clan of ancient times, Oboq, has long disintegrated, and replaced by another clan. Although it is still called "Oboq", it is actually a small number of noble families, and ruled many social units of the people (haran) and slaves (bo’ol) who came from different clans. It turns out that the status of clan elders was replaced by the noble family leader, and their name or honorific title was the name of "clan". The parents of noble families distributed the people and slaves as property to their adult sons. Each of them inherited a "member" (Kubi, qubi) and expanded to form a new "clan". In order to jointly deal with foreign invasion or engage in plunder wars, many sons or grandchildren of the same father or ancestor "clan" nobles often form alliances and elect the most powerful nobles as their leader. Over time, some weak "clan" nobles not only belonged to the people and were annexed by powerful nobles, but also became vassals of powerful nobles and even became people. The formation of the two aristocratic forces of the descendants of Bondon Chaer (a branch of Niruwen Mongolia) of the "clans" and the formation of the two noble forces of Taichiwu and Qiyan are proof of this historical development process.
Grassland nobles have various honorary titles, such as "Tu Dun", "Crown Prince", "Xue Chan" (sechen, wise man), " Meiergan " (mergen, good crower), "Ba Tuer" (warrior, ba’atur), etc. They are called "Nayan" by the people. They have separated from nomadic production labor and have taken command of the troops to engage in war and plunder. The development of the grassland aristocratic system will inevitably lead to fierce struggles among the nobles of various tribes for hegemony of the Mongolian Plateau. It was the war of hegemony between the various nobles that pushed the Mongolian Plateau to unification, thus ending the era of grassland aristocratic system.
