Old Chinese Old Chinese, also called Archaic Chinese in older works, is the oldest attested stage of Chinese, and the ancestor of all modern varieties of Chinese. The earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones from around 1250 ...

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 20 ...

confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

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 his ...

Shanrong Shanrong (山戎), or Rong (戎) were an Old Chinese nomadic people of ancient China. Origin Shanrong literally means the Rong of mountain. The Rong were a collection of tribes that lived in Northern China during the Spring and Autumn period, it ...

Xianyun The Xianyun (; Old Chinese: ( ZS) *''g.ramʔ-lunʔ''; (Schuessler) *''hɨamᴮ-juinᴮ'' < *''hŋamʔ-junʔ'') was an ancient nomadic tribe that invaded the

'' 獫狁, and ''Hunyu'' 葷粥 "since before the time of Tang .e._Emperor_Yao_(堯).html" ;"title="Emperor_Yao.html" ;"title=".e. Emperor Yao">.e. Emperor Yao (堯)">Emperor_Yao.html" ;"title=".e. Emperor Yao">.e. Emperor Yao (堯)and Yu [i.e. Emperor Shun (舜)]" (唐虞以上).Sima Qian et al., ''"Records of the Grand Historian"''
"Ch. 110: Accounts of the Xiongnu"
/ref> 3rd century scholar Wei Zhao also identified the name Chunwei with the name of 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 20 ...

: “During the Han (206 BC-220 AD) they were called

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 20 ...

匈奴, and the ''Hunyu'' 葷粥 is just another name for the same people, and similarly, the

Xunyu The Xunyu (; Old Chinese: ( ZS) *''qʰun-lug'', (Schuessler): *''hun-juk'') is the name of an ancient nomadic tribe which invaded China during legendary times. They are traditionally identified with the Guifang, the Xianyun and the Xiongnu. Identi ...

獯粥 is just another transcription of Chunwei 淳維, their ancestor’s name”.In ''Shiji jijie'' (史記集解) "Collected Explanations on Historical Records"

Liu Song Song, known as Liu Song (), Former Song (前宋) or Song of (the) Southern Dynasty (南朝宋) in historiography, was an imperial dynasty of China and the first of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties period. ...

historian Pei Yin (裴駰) quoted Jin Zhuo's statement that "In Yao's time they were called ''Hunyu''; in Zhou's time they were called ''Xianyun''; in Qin's time they were called ''Xiongnu''." In ''Shiji Suoyin'' (史記索隱) "Seeking the Obscure in the

Records A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, r ...

", Tang history

Sima Zhen Sima Zhen (; 679–732), courtesy name Zizheng (Tzu-cheng; 子正), was a Tang dynasty Chinese historian born in what is now Jiaozuo, Henan. Sima Zhen was one of the most important commentators on the ''Shiji ''Records of the Grand Histo ...

quoted from Fengsu Tongyi (風俗通義) "Comprehensive Meaning of Customs and Mores", by

Ying Shao Ying Shao (140–206), courtesy name Zhongyuan, was a Chinese politician, writer and historian who lived during the Eastern Han dynasty. He was an author of the ''Fengsu Tongyi'', an encyclopedic work about the folk customs and legends that exis ...

應劭, that “In the time of

Yin Yin may refer to: *the dark force in the yin and yang from traditional Chinese philosophy and medicine *Yīn (surname) (), a Chinese surname *Yǐn (surname) (), a Chinese surname *Shang dynasty, also known as the Yin dynasty **Yinxu or Yin, the S ...

, they were called ''Xunyu'' ��粥 which was changed to ''Xiongnu'' ��奴��; however, this quote no longer exists in Fengsu Tongyi's received text. Sima Qian wrote that the 匈奴 Xiongnu's ruling clan were descendants of Chunwei (淳維), a descendant of Lord Xia (夏后氏), aka

Yu the Great Yu the Great (大禹) was a legendary king in ancient China who was famed for his introduction of flood control, his establishment of the Xia dynasty which inaugurated dynastic rule in China, and his upright moral character. He figures promine ...

. Chunwei is alleged to be a son of Jie of Xia (

Xia Dynasty The Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In tradit ...

's last ruler). Sima Zhen stated that Yue Chan (樂產) wrote in now-lost ''Guadipu'' (括地譜) "Register of the Encompassing Lands" that: “Jie, (ruler of) the House of Xia lived an immoral life. Tang exiled him to Mingtiao, he died there three years later. His son Xunyu 獯粥 married his concubines and they wandered far away to the northern wilderness in search of pasture lands, and then in the Middle Kingdom they were mentioned as Xiongnu 匈奴.” Sima Zhen also quoted Zhang Yan (張晏)'s statement that “Chunwei, during the Yin era, fled to the northern borders.” However, Goldin (2011) points out chronological difficulties resulting from attempts to identify ''Chunwei'' 淳維 with ''Hunyu'' 葷粥 ~ ''Xunyu'' 獯粥. If one would literally interpret "since before the time of Tang .e. Emperor Yaoand Yu .e. Emperor Shun (唐虞以上) (when the Hunyu supposedly had been in existence) in Sima Qian's ''Shiji'' and would identify ''Chunwei'' 葷粥 with ''Hunyu'' 葷粥 ~ ''Xunyu'' 獯粥, those would result in Chunwei, allegedly a son of Jie of

Xia dynasty The Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In tradit ...

, living ''before'' instead of many generations ''after'' Yao and Shun, both of whom had lived and ruled before the

Xia dynasty The Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In tradit ...

. Moreover, Goldin (2011) reconstructs the

Old Chinese Old Chinese, also called Archaic Chinese in older works, is the oldest attested stage of Chinese, and the ancestor of all modern varieties of Chinese. The earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones from around 1250 ...

pronunciations of ''Hunyu'' 葷粥 ~ ''Xunyu'' 獯粥 as *''xur-luk'', 獫狁 as ''hram′-lun′'', and 匈奴 as *''xoŋ-NA''; and comments all three names are "manifestly unrelated"; he further states that sound changes made the names more superficially similar than they really had been, and prompted later historians and commentators to conclude that those names must have referred to one same people in different epochs, even though people during the

Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

would never have been thus misled.Goldin, Paul R. (2010
"Steppe Nomads as a Philosophical Problem in Classical China"
in ''Mapping Mongolia: Situating Mongolia in the World from Geologic Time to the Present''. Penn Museum International Research Conferences, vol. 2. Ed. Paula L.W. Sabloff. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania. 2011. p. 225-226

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* Zhonghan Wang, ''Outlines of Ethnic Groups in China'', Taiyuan, Shanxi Education Press, 2004, p. 133, {{ISBN, 7-5440-2660-4

Overview

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See also