The Yenisei Kyrgyz Khaganate ( ky, Улуу Кыргыз Дөөлөтү, Uluu Kyrgyz Döölötü; ) was a Turkic
empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
that existed for about a century between the early 9th and 10th centuries. It ruled over the
Yenisei Kyrgyz
The Yenisei Kyrgyz ( otk, 𐰶𐰃𐰺𐰴𐰕:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣, Qyrqyz bodun), were an ancient Turkic people who dwelled along the upper Yenisei River in the southern portion of the Minusinsk Depression from the 3rd century BCE to the 13th ...
people, who had been located in southern
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part o ...
since the 6th century. By the 9th century, the Kyrgyz had asserted dominance over the
Uyghurs
The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central and East Asia. The Uyghu ...
who had previously ruled the Kyrgyz. The empire was established as a khaganate from 840–1207 (367 Years). The khaganate's territory at its height would briefly include parts of
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the east ...
,
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbek ...
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
and
Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million ...
. After the 10th century, there was little information on the Yenisei Kyrgyz. It is believed the khaganate had survived in its traditional homeland until 1207.
History
The earliest records of Yenisei Kyrgyz Khaganate were written during the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingd ...
. The Kyrgyz did not keep reliable written records during this period.
Before 202 BCE,
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 209 ...
chanyu
Chanyu () or Shanyu (), short for Chengli Gutu Chanyu (), was the title used by the supreme rulers of Inner Asian nomads for eight centuries until superseded by the title "''Khagan''" in 402 CE. The title was most famously used by the ruling ...
Modun conquered the Kyrgyzes –then known to Chinese as Gekun (鬲昆)– along with the Hunyu (渾庾), Qushe (屈射),
Dingling
The Dingling ( (174 BCE); (200 BCE); Eastern Han Chinese: *''teŋ-leŋ'' <
s and Jiankun (Kyrgyzes). During those times, Kyrgyz people lived in the Borohoro Mountains and the Manas River valley on east Tengir-Too, about 7,000 li (4,000 km) west of Ordos – the center of Xiongnu's territory.
In
Chinese historiography
Chinese historiography is the study of the techniques and sources used by historians to develop the recorded history of China.
Overview of Chinese history
The recording of events in Chinese history dates back to the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 ...
, the Kyrgyzes' endonym was first transcribed as Gekun (or ''Ko-kun''; ) or Jiankun (or ''Chien-kun''; ) in
Records of the Grand Historian
''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese hist ...
and
Book of Han
The ''Book of Han'' or ''History of the Former Han'' (Qián Hàn Shū,《前汉书》) is a history of China finished in 111AD, covering the Western, or Former Han dynasty from the first emperor in 206 BCE to the fall of Wang Mang in 23 CE. ...
, respectively.Pulleyblank, Edwin G. "The Name of the Kirghiz" in ''Central Asiatic Journal'', Vol. 34, No. 1/2 (1990). Harrassowitz Verlag. page 98-99 of 98-108 other transcriptions are ''Jiegu'' (結骨), ''Hegu'' (紇骨), ''Hegusi'' (紇扢斯), ''Hejiasi'' (紇戛斯), ''Hugu'' (護骨), ''Qigu'' (契骨), ''Juwu'' (居勿), and ''Xiajiasi'' (黠戛斯), Peter Golden reconstructs underlying *''Qïrğïz'' < *''Qïrqïz''< *''Qïrqïŕ'' and suggests a derivation from
Old Turkic
Old Turkic (also East Old Turkic, Orkhon Turkic language, Old Uyghur) is the earliest attested form of the Turkic languages, found in Göktürk and Uyghur Khaganate inscriptions dating from about the eighth to the 13th century. It is the o ...
''qïr'' 'gray' (horse color) plus suffix ''-q(X)ŕ/ğ(X)ŕ'' ~ ''k(X)z/g(X)z''.Golden, Peter B. (August 2018). "The Ethnogonic Tales of the Türks". ''The Medieval History Journal'', 21(2): 302.
They were largely subordinate to the
Göktürks
The Göktürks, Celestial Turks or Blue Turks ( otk, 𐱅𐰇𐰼𐰰:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣, Türük Bodun; ; ) were a nomadic confederation of Turkic peoples in medieval Inner Asia. The Göktürks, under the leadership of Bumin Qaghan (d. 552) and ...
from 560s to 700s. Kyrgyz khagan Bars Bek was a brother-in-law to
Bilge Khagan
Bilge Qaghan ( otk, 𐰋𐰃𐰠𐰏𐰀:𐰴𐰍𐰣, Bilgä Qaγan; ; 683 – 25 November 734) was the fourth Qaghan of the Second Turkic Khaganate. His accomplishments were described in the Orkhon inscriptions.
Names
As was the custom, his ...
. His son ruled Kyrgyzs after Bars Bek's defeated in hands of Qapaghan in 710. After Turkic downfall, they submitted to Uyghurs. Their leader Bayanchur killed the Kyrgyz leader and appointed a new Kyrgyz khagan named Bilge Tong Erkin (毗伽頓頡斤).
Relations with Tang dynasty
The first embassy to Yenisei Kyrgyz was sent during reign of the
Emperor Taizong of Tang
Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty ...
, in 632. He received Kyrgyz ambassador named Shiboqu Azhan (失鉢屈阿棧) who was later appointed to the Yanran (燕然) Commandery.
The Kyrgyz
khagan
Khagan or Qaghan (Mongolian:; or ''Khagan''; otk, 𐰴𐰍𐰣 ), or , tr, Kağan or ; ug, قاغان, Qaghan, Mongolian Script: ; or ; fa, خاقان ''Khāqān'', alternatively spelled Kağan, Kagan, Khaghan, Kaghan, Khakan, Khakha ...
s claimed descent from the
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a wa ...
general Li Ling, grandson of the general Li Guang. Li Ling was captured by the
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 209 ...
and defected in the first century BCE. And since the Tang imperial Li family also claimed descent from Li Guang, the Kyrgyz khagan was therefore recognized as a member of the Tang imperial family. This relationship soothed the relationship when Kyrgyz khagan Are (阿熱) invaded
Uyghur Khaganate
The Uyghur Khaganate (also Uyghur Empire or Uighur Khaganate, self defined as Toquz-Oghuz country; otk, 𐱃𐰆𐰴𐰕:𐰆𐰍𐰕:𐰉𐰆𐰑𐰣, Toquz Oγuz budun, Tang-era names, with modern Hanyu Pinyin: or ) was a Turkic empire that ...
and put Qasar Qaghan to the sword. The news brought to
Chang'an
Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...
by Kyrgyz ambassador Zhuwu Hesu (註吾合素).
The Yenisei Kyrgyz Khaganate of the Are family bolstered his ties and alliance to the Tang imperial family against the Uyghur Khaganate by claiming descent from the Han dynasty general Li Ling who had defected to the Xiongnu and married a Xiongnu princess, daughter of Qiedihou Chanyu and was sent to govern the Jiankun (Ch'ien-K'un) region which later became Yenisei. Li Ling was a grandson of Li Guang (Li Kuang) of the Longxi Li family descended from Laozi which the Tang dynasty Li Imperial family claimed descent from. The Yenisei Kyrgyz and Tang dynasty launched a victorious successful war between 840-848 to destroy the Uyghur Khaganate and its centre at the Orkhon valley using their claimed familial ties as justification for an alliance. Tang forces under General Shi Xiong wounded the Uyghur Khagan (Qaghan) Ögä, seized livestock, took 5,000-20,000 Uyghur Khaganate soldiers captive, killed 10,0000 Uyghur Khaganate sources on 13 February 843 at the battle of Shahu (kill the barbarians) mountain in 843.
In 845, Are khagan was created Zong Yingxiong Wu Chengming Khagan () by Emperor Wuzong. But Wuzong died before his ambassadors departed Chang'an. The new emperor Xuanzong did not rush to create him khagan. At a general council of senior officials, they decided that the titles were given to the Uyghurs when they were strong, and if the Yenisei Kyrgyz were awarded as well, they would become proud and become dangerous. The emperor revoked the letter.
After Are's murder by one of his officials in 847, new Kyrgyz khagan was created Yingwu Chengming Khagan (英武誠明可汗) by Xuanzong, who sent Li Ye ( 李業) to award him the title.