Nomadic people who founded the Liao dynasty in China
Khitan people
Depiction of Khitans by Hugui (胡瓌, 9th/10th century), hunting with eagles
Regions with significant populations
East and Central Asia
Languages
Khitan, Middle Chinese
Religion
Majority: Chinese Buddhism
Minorities: Shamanism, Tengriism, Christianity, Islam
Related ethnic groups
Mongols, Daur
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The Khitan people (Khitan small script: ; Chinese: 契丹; pinyin: Qìdān) were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia, Northeast China and the Russian Far East.
As a people descended from the proto-Mongols through the Xianbei,[1][2] Khitans spoke the now-extinct Khitan language, a Para-Mongolic language related to the Mongolic languages.[3] The Khitan people founded and led the Liao dynasty (916–1125), which dominated a vast area of Siberia, Mongolia and Northern China. The Khitans of the Liao dynasty used two independent writing systems for their language: Khitan small script and Khitan large script.
After the fall of the Liao dynasty in 1125 following the Jurchen invasion, many Khitans followed Yelü Dashi's group westward to establish the Qara Khitai or Western Liao dynasty, in Central Asia, which lasted nearly a century before falling to the Mongol Empire in 1218. Other regimes founded by the Khitans included the Northern Liao, Eastern Liao and Later Liao in China, as well as the Qutlugh-Khanid dynasty in Persia. The modern-day Daur people, a recognized minority ethnic group in Northeast China, are the genetic descendants of Khitans.[4]
The historical name for China, Cathay, originates from the word Khitan.
^"China's Liao Dynasty". Asia Society.
^Xu Elina-Qian (2005). Historical Development of the Pre-Dynastic Khitan. University of Helsinki. p. 99. quote: "According to Gai Zhiyong's study, Jishou is identical with Qishou, the earliest ancestor of the Khitan; and Shihuai is identical to Tanshihuai, the Xianbei supreme chief in the period of the Eastern Han (25–220). Therefore, from the sentence "His ancestor was Jish[ou] who was derived from Shihuai" in the above inscription, it can be simply seen that the Khitan originated from the Xianbei. Since the excavated inscription on memorial tablet can be regarded as a firsthand historical source, this piece of information is quite reliable."
^Janhunen, Juha (2006). "Para-Mongolic". In Janhunen, Juha (ed.). The Mongolic Languages. Routledge. p. 393 of pp. 391–402.
^Li Jinhui (2 August 2001). "DNA Match Solves Ancient Mystery". china.org.cn.
The Khitanpeople (Khitan small script: ; Chinese: 契丹; pinyin: Qìdān) were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited...
by the Khitanpeople (4th to 13th century). It was the official language of the Liao Empire (907–1125) and the Qara Khitai (1124–1218). Khitan appears...
Khitan language (the other was the Khitan large script). It was used during the 10th–12th century by the Khitanpeople, who had created the Liao Empire...
Khitan language (the other was the Khitan small script). It was used during the 10th–12th centuries by the Khitanpeople, who had created the Liao Empire...
dynasty (/ljaʊ/; Khitan: Mos Jælud; traditional Chinese: 遼朝; simplified Chinese: 辽朝; pinyin: Liáo cháo), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: Mos diau-d...
up Khitan or khitan in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Khitan or Khitai may refer to: Khitan (circumcision), the Islamic circumcision rite Khitan people...
based in Central Asia ruled by the Yelü clan of the Khitanpeople. Being a rump state of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty, Western Liao was culturally Sinicized...
all the Shiwei tribes. The Shiwei-Mongols were closely related to the Khitanpeople to their south. As a result of pressure from the west, south and south-east...
The history of the Khitans dates back to the 4th century. The Khitanpeople dominated much of northern China, Manchuria and the Mongolian Plateau. They...
Khitan names are the personal names of the Khitanpeople which ruled the Liao dynasty (907–1125) in ancient China and Kara-Khitan Khanate (1124–1218)...
Khitan scripts may refer to one of two mutually exclusive scripts used by the Khitanpeople during the 10th–12th centuries: Khitan small script, invented...
acceptable name for that people. The name Jurchen is derived from a long line of other variations of the same name. The initial Khitan form of the name was...
histories: the Rouran (claimed by some to be the Pannonian Avars), the Khitanpeople and the Shiwei (a subtribe called the "Shiwei Menggu" is held to be...
1996. The Khitanpeople adopted the practice of using eunuchs from the Chinese and the eunuchs used were non-Khitan prisoners of war. The Khitan were a nomadic...
posthumously known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Liao, was a Khitan leader and the founding emperor of the Liao dynasty of China, ruling from...
: 26 The Northern divisions of Liao was mainly composed of tribal Khitanpeople while the Southern regions was composed of the Han and other sedentary...
and agriculture. With the Song dynasty (960-1269) to the south, the Khitanpeople of Inner Mongolia created the Liao dynasty (916-1125) and conquered...
were used by the Khitanpeople in northern China during the 10th through 12th centuries for writing the extinct Khitan language. The Khitan language was in...
with the Indo-European migrations across Eurasia. The proto-Mongol Khitanpeople also occupied parts of the region. In the 13th century, during the period...
overthrew the Khitan, married Jurchen women and Jurchen girls were raped by Liao Khitan envoys as a custom which caused resentment. Khitan envoys among...
occupied by a succession of nomadic peoples, including the Khitanpeople,[citation needed] various Turkic peoples, and the Mongol Empire. In the Late...
extensive defensive forest in its northern border to thwart the nomadic Khitanpeople. In Chapter IV of his 1916 book The New Europe: Essays in Reconstruction...
finalized in 1344. Based on Khitan's primary sources and other previous official Chinese records, it details the Khitanpeople, Khitan's tribal life and traditions...
The Khitanpeople (Khitan small script: ; Chinese: 契丹; pinyin: Qìdān) were a historical para-Mongolic nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the...
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; Chinese: 契丹; pinyin: Qìdān) were a historical nomadic people from Northeast Asia who, from the 4th century, inhabited an area corresponding to parts of modern Mongolia, Northeast China and the Russian Far East.