Mongols

Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia and China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. They also live as minorities in other regions of China, as well as in Russia. Mongols are bound together by a common heritage and ethnic identity. Their indigenous dialects are collectively known as the Mongolian language.

About Mongols in brief

Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia and to China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. They also live as minorities in other regions of China, as well as in Russia. Mongols are bound together by a common heritage and ethnic identity. Their indigenous dialects are collectively known as the Mongolian language. The ancestors of the modern-day Mongol are referred to as Proto-Mongol. The word Mongol grew into an umbrella term for a large group of Mongolic-speaking tribes united under the rule of Genghis Khan. In various times Mongolic peoples have been equated with the Scythians, the Magog, and the Tungusic peoples. Based on Chinese historical texts the ancestry of the Mongolic people can be traced back to the Donghu, a nomadic confederation occupying eastern Mongolia and Manchuria. The identity of the Xiongnu is still debated today, although some scholars maintain that they were proto-mongols, they were more likely a multi-ethnic group of Mongololic and Turkic tribes. In the late 2nd century, the Han dynasty scholar Fu Qian wrote in his commentary: “Shanrong and Beidi are ancestors of the present-day Xianbei\”. In the 49 CE, Bianhe raided and killed the New Newi ruler, killing the royal line and the royal family of the Wuhuan, using the word Mongol instead of the word donghu.

In 2000, the word Mongol was used for the first time to refer to a Mongolian-speaking ethnic group. The term Mongol is now used to describe the Mongols proper, Buryats, Oirats, the Kalmyk people and the Southern Mongols. It also refers to the Abaga Mongols, Abaganar, Aohans, Baarins, Gorlos Mongols and the Jalaids, Jaruud, Khishigten, Khuuchid, Muumyangan and Onnigud. The name Mongol first appeared in 8th century records of Tang China to describe a tribe of Shiwei. It resurfaced in the late 11th century during the Khitan-ruled Liao dynasty. After the fall of the Liao in 1125, the Khamag Mongols became a leading tribe on the Mongolia’s Mongolian Plateau. The Mongols were also active during the Shang dynasty, but had earlier times of independence, as evidenced by a mention in the Guoyu, which states that during the reign of King Cheng of Zhou they came to participate at a meeting of Zhou subject-lords at Qiyang but were only allowed to perform the fire ceremony under the supervision of Chu since they were not vassals by covenant. They came from the nearby Zhukaigou culture in the Ordos Desert, where maternal DNA corresponds to the Mongol Daur people. The Xian Bei were closely connected to the Upper Xiajiadian culture.

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