The Khoton or Qotung people are a Mongolian-speaking ethnic group in (Outer)

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

and

Inner Mongolia Inner Mongolia, officially the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of China. Its border includes two-thirds of the length of China's China–Mongolia border, border with the country of Mongolia. ...

. Most Mongolian Khotons live in Uvs Province in western Mongolia. In China, the Khotons (often called Qotungs) live in Inner Mongolia, concentrated in Alxa League and are classified as ethnic Mongols. They speak the Dörbet or Alasha dialect of the Oirat language. According to the Great Russian Encyclopedia, modern Khoton people are a part of the "

Mongols Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China ( Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family o ...

— a group of peoples who speak Mongolian languages".

Demography

In Mongolia, most Khotons live in Uvs Province, especially in Tarialan, Naranbulag and Ulaangom. There were officially about 6,100 Khotons in 1989.Christopher Atwood ''Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire'', c. 2004
''Khotong was originally the Mongol designation for Muslim oases dwellers and in Inner Mongolia designates the Hui or Chinese-speaking Muslims''. In 2020, there were around 12,057 Khotons in Mongolia. The Khotons of Inner Mongolia reside in Alxa League, mainly in Alxa Left Banner. Some also live in Bayannuur. A 2004 study reported that Khoton informants estimated their total population to be about 1,200.

History

''Khoton'', ''Khotong'' or ''Qotung'' was originally a Mongol term for

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

Uyghur and

Hui people The Hui people are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Islam in China, Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the Northwest China, northwestern provinces and in the Zhongy ...

, or

Chinese language Chinese ( or ) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and List of ethnic groups in China, many minority ethnic groups in China, as well as by various communities of the Chinese diaspora. Approximately 1.39& ...

-speaking Muslims. However, while the term historically included multiple groups, modern research indicates that the Khotons are not directly related to the

. Instead, the Khotons have distinct origins, being primarily descendants of Turkic peoples brought to Mongolia by the

Oirats Oirats (; ) or Oirds ( ; ), formerly known as Eluts and Eleuths ( or ; zh, 厄魯特, ''Èlǔtè'') are the westernmost group of Mongols, whose ancestral home is in the Altai Mountains, Altai region of Siberia, Xinjiang and western Mongolia. ...

or who migrated there during historical conflicts, particularly during the 17th and 18th centuries. The Khotons were settled in Mongolia by the

when the latter conquered Xinjiang and took their city-dwelling ancestors to Mongolia. According to another version, they settled in Mongolia after 1753, when their leader, the Dörbet Prince Tseren Ubashi, surrendered to the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

. The Khotons soon adapted and assimilated Mongolian or Oirat culture and speech. According to some scholars, the Khotons can be considered Mongolized

Uyghurs The Uyghurs,. alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central Asia and East Asia. The Uyghurs are recognized as the ti ...

as a result. The Khotons of Inner Mongolia that reside in Alxa League are considered to be descended of Turkic peoples originally from Hami, Xinjiang, who later adopted and assimilated into local Mongol culture. Most scholars believe that the ancestors of the Khotons were brought to the area around the 18th century or earlier as captives from Xinjiang after the prince of the Alasha Mongols returned from fighting the Dzungars. According to local tradition, the ancestors of the Khotons arrived in the area in the late 17th century as merchants and eventually settled and assimilated with the Alasha Mongols. Occasional later migrants from Xinjiang and some Hui from nearby regions who were incorporated into the Khotons helped to maintain and increase their community.

Culture

Unlike most Mongolians, Khotons follow a syncretic form of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

that incorporates Buddhist and traditional elements (like Tengrism). They traditionally avoid intermarriage with other ethnic groups and tend to avoid mainstream Mongolian written culture. In Inner Mongolia, many Khotons are pastoral nomads though in recent times, an increasing amount are now settled.

Language

Khotons used to speak the Khoton language (a dialect of the Uyghur language). The language became extinct around the 19th century. Once settled in Mongolia, the Khotons adopted the or northern dialect of Oirat. In Inner Mongolia, the Khotons speak the Alasha dialect of Oirat.

Bibliography

*Fosse, Magdalena (1979)''. The Khotons of Western Mongolia''.

References