Recent from talks
Bumin Qaghan
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Bumin Qaghan
Bumin Qaghan (Old Turkic: 𐰉𐰆𐰢𐰣:𐰴𐰍𐰣, romanized: Bumïn qaɣan, died 552 AD) was the founder of the First Turkic Khaganate. His regnal title was Illig Qaghan (Chinese: 伊利可汗, romanized: Yīlì Kèhán, Wade–Giles: i-li k'o-han). He was the eldest son of Ashina Tuwu (吐務 / 吐务). He was the chieftain of the Turks under the sovereignty of the Rouran Khaganate. He is also mentioned as Tumen (土門, 吐門, commander of ten thousand) of the Rouran Khaganate.
The name Tumen (Early Middle Chinese: 土門, romanized: thɔ'-mən and Late Middle Chinese: 土門, romanized: thuə'mun) found in Chinese historical records (such as the Book of Zhou and Book of Sui) and Bumin Qaghan found in Old Turkic inscriptions are considered to refer to the same person: the founder of the Turkic Khaganate. However, the two names do not match phonetically. Turcologist Volker Rybatzki suggested that "Bumin" can be analyzed from an Iranian linguistic perspective, splitting it into the root bum- and the suffix -in. The suffix -in often appears in Sogdian to indicate a nickname or patronymic. The root bum- can be compared to Old Sanskrit bhūmi ("earth, ground, soil, land"), Old Persian būmī- ("earth"), and Sogdian ßωmh ("earth, land, world").
According to turcologist Rui Chuanming, tu (土) means "earth, soil, territory," and men (門) means "entrance, faction, clan." Given the strong influence of Sogdian culture on the First Turkic Khaganate, the meaning of the name "Bumin" may have been introduced to China by Sogdians, where the Chinese then translated it into "Tu-men"—a name that captures both the sound (approximated) and the meaning, according to his theory. He suggested that "Bumin" might have been an alternative title for Tumen that was not recorded by Chinese historians.
Other theories suggest "Tumen" is a transliteration of the Turkic word for "ten thousand" (tümen). Sui and Tang historian Cen Zhongmian believed "Bumin" originated from the Sanskrit bhuman ("vast, wealthy").
According to the History of the Northern Dynasties and the Zizhi Tongjian, in 545 Tumen's tribe started to rise and frequently invaded the western frontier of Wei. The chancellor of Western Wei, Yuwen Tai, sent An Nuopanto (安諾盤陀, Nanai-Banda, a Sogdian from Bukhara) as an emissary to the Göktürk chieftain Tumen, in an attempt to establish a commercial relationship. In 546, Tumen paid tribute to the Western Wei state. Tumen later put down a revolt of the Tiele tribes, accepting the surrender of over 50,000 households against the Rouran Khaganate, their overlords.
Following this, Tumen felt entitled to request of the Rouran a princess to be his wife. The Rouran khagan, Yujiulü Anagui, sent a message refusing this request and adding: "You are my blacksmith slave. How dare you utter these words?" Bumin got angry, killed Anagui's emissary, and severed relations with the Rouran Khaganate. Anagui's "blacksmith" (Chinese: 鍛奴, romanized: duànnú) insult was recorded in Chinese chronicles. Some sources state that members of the Turks did serve as blacksmiths for the Rouran elite, and that "blacksmith slavery" may refer to a kind of vassalage that prevailed in Rouran society. Nevertheless, after this incident Bumin emerged as the leader of the revolt against the Rouran.
In 551, Bumin requested a Western Wei princess for marriage. Yuwen Tai permitted it and sent Princess Changle of Western Wei to Bumin in July or August 551. In the same year Emperor Wen of Western Wei died, and Bumin sent a mission and gave two hundred horses.
The Book of Zhou does not explicitly date revolt of the Tiele. Sima Guang's Zizhi Tongjian places it in 551, but historian Cen Zhongmian argued this dating is incorrect. According to him, since Tumen subsequently requested marriages from both Rouran and Western Wei, the defeat of the Tiele could not have happened as late as 551. Scholars Xue Zongzheng and Wu Yugui agree, with Xue further speculating the event occurred in 550 or earlier.
Hub AI
Bumin Qaghan AI simulator
(@Bumin Qaghan_simulator)
Bumin Qaghan
Bumin Qaghan (Old Turkic: 𐰉𐰆𐰢𐰣:𐰴𐰍𐰣, romanized: Bumïn qaɣan, died 552 AD) was the founder of the First Turkic Khaganate. His regnal title was Illig Qaghan (Chinese: 伊利可汗, romanized: Yīlì Kèhán, Wade–Giles: i-li k'o-han). He was the eldest son of Ashina Tuwu (吐務 / 吐务). He was the chieftain of the Turks under the sovereignty of the Rouran Khaganate. He is also mentioned as Tumen (土門, 吐門, commander of ten thousand) of the Rouran Khaganate.
The name Tumen (Early Middle Chinese: 土門, romanized: thɔ'-mən and Late Middle Chinese: 土門, romanized: thuə'mun) found in Chinese historical records (such as the Book of Zhou and Book of Sui) and Bumin Qaghan found in Old Turkic inscriptions are considered to refer to the same person: the founder of the Turkic Khaganate. However, the two names do not match phonetically. Turcologist Volker Rybatzki suggested that "Bumin" can be analyzed from an Iranian linguistic perspective, splitting it into the root bum- and the suffix -in. The suffix -in often appears in Sogdian to indicate a nickname or patronymic. The root bum- can be compared to Old Sanskrit bhūmi ("earth, ground, soil, land"), Old Persian būmī- ("earth"), and Sogdian ßωmh ("earth, land, world").
According to turcologist Rui Chuanming, tu (土) means "earth, soil, territory," and men (門) means "entrance, faction, clan." Given the strong influence of Sogdian culture on the First Turkic Khaganate, the meaning of the name "Bumin" may have been introduced to China by Sogdians, where the Chinese then translated it into "Tu-men"—a name that captures both the sound (approximated) and the meaning, according to his theory. He suggested that "Bumin" might have been an alternative title for Tumen that was not recorded by Chinese historians.
Other theories suggest "Tumen" is a transliteration of the Turkic word for "ten thousand" (tümen). Sui and Tang historian Cen Zhongmian believed "Bumin" originated from the Sanskrit bhuman ("vast, wealthy").
According to the History of the Northern Dynasties and the Zizhi Tongjian, in 545 Tumen's tribe started to rise and frequently invaded the western frontier of Wei. The chancellor of Western Wei, Yuwen Tai, sent An Nuopanto (安諾盤陀, Nanai-Banda, a Sogdian from Bukhara) as an emissary to the Göktürk chieftain Tumen, in an attempt to establish a commercial relationship. In 546, Tumen paid tribute to the Western Wei state. Tumen later put down a revolt of the Tiele tribes, accepting the surrender of over 50,000 households against the Rouran Khaganate, their overlords.
Following this, Tumen felt entitled to request of the Rouran a princess to be his wife. The Rouran khagan, Yujiulü Anagui, sent a message refusing this request and adding: "You are my blacksmith slave. How dare you utter these words?" Bumin got angry, killed Anagui's emissary, and severed relations with the Rouran Khaganate. Anagui's "blacksmith" (Chinese: 鍛奴, romanized: duànnú) insult was recorded in Chinese chronicles. Some sources state that members of the Turks did serve as blacksmiths for the Rouran elite, and that "blacksmith slavery" may refer to a kind of vassalage that prevailed in Rouran society. Nevertheless, after this incident Bumin emerged as the leader of the revolt against the Rouran.
In 551, Bumin requested a Western Wei princess for marriage. Yuwen Tai permitted it and sent Princess Changle of Western Wei to Bumin in July or August 551. In the same year Emperor Wen of Western Wei died, and Bumin sent a mission and gave two hundred horses.
The Book of Zhou does not explicitly date revolt of the Tiele. Sima Guang's Zizhi Tongjian places it in 551, but historian Cen Zhongmian argued this dating is incorrect. According to him, since Tumen subsequently requested marriages from both Rouran and Western Wei, the defeat of the Tiele could not have happened as late as 551. Scholars Xue Zongzheng and Wu Yugui agree, with Xue further speculating the event occurred in 550 or earlier.