Manchu people

Nurhaci then renounced the Ming overlordship with the Seven Grievances and launched his attack on the Ming dynasty). Factors for the name change from Jurchen to Manchu include the fact that the term "Jurchen" had negative connotations since the Jurchens had been in a servile position vis a vis the Ming dynasty for hundreds of years, and it also referred to people of the "dependent class". The change was made to hide the fact that the ancestors of the Manchus, the Jianzhou Jurchens, had been ruled by the Chinese. In the Ming period, the Koreans of Joseon referred to the Jurchen inhabited lands north of the Korean peninsula, above the rivers Yalu and Tumen to be part of Ming China, as the "superior country" (sangguk) that they called Ming China. The Qing deliberately excluded references and information that showed the Jurchens (Manchus) as subservient to the Ming dynasty, from the History of Ming to hide their former subservient relationship to the Ming. Because of this, the Ming Veritable Records were not used as a source for content on the Jurchens during Ming rule in the History of Ming.

Hong Taiji created an effective political system for that time based on Han Chinese management methods, which lasted until the fall of the Qing Empire in the 20th century. In this sense, Hong Taiji is considered by historians as the true first emperor for the Qing dynasty. In 1636, Hong Taiji invaded Joseon Korea, as the latter did not accept that Hong Taiji had become emperor and refused to assist in operations against the Ming Dynasty, who were the legitimate emperors of China. With the Joseon dynasty surrendered in 1637, Hong Taiji succeeded in making them cut off relations with the Ming dynasty and force them to submit as tributary state of the Qing dynasty. Also during this period, Hong Taiji took over Inner Mongolia, which protected northern border of China, in three wars, each of them victorious. From 1636 until 1644, he sent 4 major expeditions into the Amur region. In 1640 he completed the conquest of the Evenks, when he defeated and captured their leader Bombogor. By 1644, the entire region was under his control.

In 1644, the Ming capital, Beijing, was sacked by a peasant revolt led by Li Zicheng, a former minor Ming official who became the leader of the peasant revolt, who then proclaimed the establishment of the Shun dynasty. The last Ming ruler, the Chongzhen Emperor, died by suicide by hanging himself when the city fell. When Li Zicheng moved against Ming general Wu Sangui, the latter allied with the Manchus and opened the Shanhai Pass to the Manchu army. After the Manchus defeated Li Zicheng, they established their capital in Beijing () in the same year. It was this multi-ethnic, majority Han force in which Manchus were a minority that conquered China for the Qing Empire.

A mass marriage of Han Chinese officers and officials to Manchu women was organized to balance the massive number of Han women who entered the Manchu court as courtesans, concubines, and wives. These couples were arranged by Prince Yoto and Hong Taiji in 1632 to promote harmony between the two groups. To promote ethnic harmony further, a 1648 decree from the Shunzhi Emperor allowed Han Chinese civilian men to marry Manchu women from the Banners with the permission of the Board of Revenue (if they were registered daughters of officials or commoners) or the permission of their banner company captain (if they were unregistered commoners). Later in the dynasty these policies allowing intermarriage were done away with. A few were sent to other places such as Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and Tibet to serve as garrison troops.

While the Manchu ruling elite in Beijing and posts of authority throughout China increasingly adopted Han culture, the Qing imperial government viewed the Manchu communities (as well as those of various tribal people) in Manchuria as a place where traditional Manchu virtues could be preserved, and as a vital reservoir of military power dedicated to the regime. The Qing emperors tried to protect the traditional way of life of the Manchus (as well as other tribal peoples) in central and northern Manchuria by a variety of means. In particular, they restricted the migration of Han settlers to the region. This had to be balanced with practical needs, such as maintaining the defense of northern China against the Russians and the Mongols, supplying government farms with a skilled work force, and conducting trade, which resulted in a continuous trickle of Han convicts, workers, and merchants to the northeast. An example was the Tokoro Manchu clan in the Manchu banners, which claimed to be descended from a Han Chinese with the surname of Tao who had moved north from Zhejiang to Liaodong and joined the Jurchens before the Qing in the Ming Wanli emperor's era. The Han Chinese Banner Tong 佟 clan of Fushun in Liaoning falsely claimed to be related to the Jurchen Manchu Tunggiya 佟佳 clan of Jilin, attempting to get transferred to a Manchu banner in the reign of the Kangxi emperor.

Select groups of Han Chinese bannermen were mass transferred into Manchu Banners by the Qing, changing their recorded ethnicity from Han Chinese to Manchu. Han Chinese bannermen of Tai Nikan (台尼堪, watchpost Chinese) and Fusi Nikan (撫順尼堪, Fushun Chinese) The Fushun Nikan became Manjurified and the originally Han banner families of Wang Shixuan, Cai Yurong, Zu Dashou, Li Yongfang, Shi Tingzhu and Shang Kexi intermarried extensively with Manchu families.

A Manchu Bannerman in Guangzhou called Hequan illegally adopted a Han Chinese named Zhao Tinglu, the son of former Han bannerman Zhao Quan, and named him Quanheng so that he could benefit from his adopted son receiving a salary as a Banner soldier.

Commoner Manchu bannermen who were not nobility were called irgen, which meant common, in contrast to the Manchu nobility of the Eight Great Houses who held noble titles.

Manchu bannermen of the capital garrison in Beijing were said to be the worst militarily, unable to draw bows, unable to ride horses, and fight properly, and abandoning their Manchu culture. Han civilians and Manchu bannermen in Xi'an had bad relations, with the bannermen trying to steal at the markets. Manchu Lieutenant General Cimbru reported this to the Yongzheng Emperor in 1729. Governor Yue Rui of Shandong was then ordered by the Yongzheng to report any bannerman misbehavior and warned him not to cover it up in 1730 after Manchu bannermen were put in a quarter in Qingzhou. Sociologist Edward Alsworth Ross wrote of his visit to Xi'an just before the Xinhai revolution:

Ross spoke highly of the Han and Hui population of Xi'an, Shaanxi and Gansu, saying: "After a fortnight of mule litter we sight ancient yellow Sianfu, "the Western capital," with its third of a million souls. Within the fortified triple gate the facial mold abruptly changes and the refined intellectual type appears. Here and there faces of a Hellenic purity of feature are seen and beautiful children are not uncommon. These Chinese cities make one realize how the cream of the population gathers in the urban centers. Everywhere town opportunities have been a magnet for the élite of the open country."

In the 1850s, large numbers of Manchu bannermen were sent to central China to fight the Taiping rebels. (For example, just the Heilongjiang province – which at the time included only the northern part of today's Heilongjiang – contributed 67,730 bannermen to the campaign, of whom only 10–20% survived). Only after the "Hundred Days Reform", during the reign of emperor Guangxu, were Han allowed to enter inner Beijing. German Minister Clemens von Ketteler was assassinated by a Manchu. Thousands of Manchus fled south from Aigun during the Boxer Rebellion, their cattle and horses stolen by Russian Cossacks who razed their villages and homes. The Manchu clan system in Aigun was obliterated by the invaders.

By the 19th century, most Manchus in the city garrison spoke only Mandarin, and not Manchu, which distinguished them from their Han neighbors in southern China, who spoke other dialects. The Manchus' use of Beijing dialects made it relatively easy to recognize them. In Guangdong, Manchu Mandarin teacher Sun Yizun advised that the Yinyun Chanwei and Kangxi Zidian, dictionaries issued by the Qing government, were the correct guides to Mandarin pronunciation, rather than the pronunciation of the Beijing and Nanjing dialects. Most intermarriage consisted of Han Bannermen marrying Manchus in areas like Aihun.

As the end of the Qing dynasty approached, Manchus were portrayed as outside colonizers by Chinese nationalists such as Sun Yat-sen, even though many reform-minded Manchu officials and military officers supported the Republican revolution he brought about. In 1942, the Japanese-authored Ten Year History of the Construction of Manchukuo emphasized the right of ethnic Japanese to the land of Manchukuo while attempting to delegitimize the Manchus' claim to Manchukuo as their native land, noting that most Manchus moved out during the Qing dynasty and returned only later.

The Eight Banners system is one of the most important ethnic identity of today's Manchu people. Manchu culture and language preservation is promoted by the Chinese Communist Party, and Manchus again became one of China's most socioeconomically advanced minorities. Manchus generally face little to no discrimination in their daily lives, except among Han nationalist conspiracy theorists, whom claim that Manchu elites occupy the CCP and, therefore, Manchus receive better treatment under the People's Republic of China.

Manchus were subjected to the same one child policy and rules as the Han people. All Manchus, Koreans, Russians, Hui, and Mongols living in Inner Mongolia were subjected to restrictions on two children.

Population

Mainland China

Most Manchu people now live in Mainland China, with a population of 10,423,303, which is 8.19% of the ethnic minority population and 0.74% of China's total population. Modern China allows all members of the Eight Banner System to register as Manchu, which inflates modern population numbers of Manchus by including non-Jurchen ancestral sources. Additionally, as Manchu identity was traditionally patrilineal, even if the mother was not Manchu, the child would be registered as Manchu as long as the father was in the Manchu banners. The Manchu banners were never genetically homogeneous, as ethnicity was fluid.

Manchu identity itself was diverse. It comprised the Jianzhou and Haixi Jurchen tribes, and two Yeren Jurchen tribes. The Hulun confederacy of the Haixi Jurchens had intermarried with the Khorchin and Kharchin Mongols to such an extent that Nurhaci of the Jianzhou Jurchens described them as "Mongols" to denote their culture as alien and hostile. The Jurchen tribes themselves also included people of Han Chinese descent. Han, who had moved to Nurgan (in present-day Jilin Province) before 1618 and adopted the Jurchen culture and language, were recognized as Jurchens and became part of the Manchu banners. These Han were known as "transfrontiersmen" and became part of the Jurchen elite. They had assimilated into Jurchen culture to the extent that their ancestry was the only thing that differentiated them from the Jurchens. Meanwhile, other Jurchens who had moved to Liaodong and adopted Han customs and language were regarded as Han and could become part of the Han banners, but not the Manchu banners.

A 2010 study reported that in a sample of 111 Liaoning Manchus and 25 Heilongjiang Manchus, 25 Liaoning Manchus (22.52%) and 11 Heilongjiang Manchus (44.00%) had Y haplogroup C.

The Y DNA of the royal Aisin Gioro clan is believed to be C2b1a3a2-F8951, which is a subclade of C2a-L1373, the "northern" branch of haplogroup C2-M217. The Aisin Gioro paternal lineage is also closely related to that of the Ao clan of the Khitan-Mongolic Daur ethnic group; both Ao and Aisin Gioro diverged only a couple of centuries ago from a common ancestor. The Mongolic C2*-Star Cluster (C2b1a3a1-F3796) haplogroup is a fraternal branch to Aisin Gioro's C2b1a3a2-F8951 haplogroup. In the database of the Chinese DNA company 23Mofang, 1/3 of the Gūwalgiya clan have haplogroup C-F11330, which also descended from the northern C2a-L1373. In the 23Mofang database, 40% of the Yehe Nara clan have haplogroup C, and 20% have C-MF46267, which descended from C-M407, the same branch as Dayan Khan. C-M407 is also predominant among Buryats and Oirats, suggesting that they may share similar paternal origins with the Yehe Nara clan.

Autosomal DNA

Manchus can be modeled as having West Liao River-related ancestry (83%) and Iron Age Taiwan-related ancestry (17%). There is no significant evidence of West Eurasian admixture in Manchus compared to their Tungusic neighbors. Overall, Manchus cluster with Northern Han Chinese, some Yugurs, and Koreans, who themselves cluster with Japanese.

According to a 2023 study, the Manchu and Han in Northeastern China were genetically distinct, possibly due to historical policies and limited intermarriage. Northeastern Han clustered with Han Chinese from the Central Plains and the Qiang from Sichuan, indicating historical migrations, substantial gene flow, and intermarriage among these groups. The genetic distance between Manchus and Han Chinese increases as one moves northward from Liaoning toward Heilongjiang.

Culture

Influence on other Tungusic peoples

The Manchus implemented measures to Manchufy the other Tungusic peoples living around the Amur River basin. The southern Tungusic Manchus influenced the northern Tungusic peoples linguistically, culturally, and religiously. and was officially standardized during Qianlong's reign. During the Qing dynasty, Manchus at the imperial court were required to speak Standard Manchu or face the emperor's reprimand. In the latter half of the 18th century, some Manchu officials did not understand the Manchu language. By the early 19th century, even the imperial court had lost fluency in the Manchu language and the emperor complained that his officials had difficulty understanding or writing Manchu. Several thousand people can speak Manchu as a second language through primary education or free classes for adults in China. most of whom are to be found in Sanjiazi (), Heilongjiang Province. Since the government workers, scholars, and social activists have begun to resurrect Manchu. With the help of governments in Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang, many schools offer Manchu classes. Manchu volunteers in many parts of China teach Manchu. Thousands of non-Manchus have learned the language through these pathways.

In an effort to save Manchu culture from extinction, the older generation of Manchus teaches young people, often without charge.

Alphabet

The Jurchens, ancestors of the Manchus, created Jurchen script during the Jin dynasty. After the Jin dynasty collapsed, the Jurchen script gradually fell out of use. In the Ming dynasty, 60–70% of Jurchens wrote letters in Mongolian script, while 30–40% used Chinese characters. This persisted until Nurhaci revolted against the Ming Empire. Nurhaci considered it a major impediment that his people lacked a script of their own, so he commanded scholars Gagai and Eldeni to create Manchu characters by reference to Mongolian scripts. They created Manchu script, which is called "script without dots and circles" (; ) or "old Manchu script" (). Due to its hurried creation, the script has defects. Some vowels and consonants were difficult to distinguish.

Lifestyle

The Manchu were sedentary agriculturalists who lived in permanent villages, cultivated crops, and practiced hunting and mounted archery.

Names and naming practices

Family names

thumb|upright|the cover of the Eight Manchu Banners' Surname-Clans' Book

The history of Manchu family names follows the Jurchen family name. However, after the Mongols extinguished the Jin dynasty, the Manchus started to adopt Mongol culture, including their custom of using only their given name until the end of the Qing dynasty,

Stories tell of Han migrating to the Jurchens and assimilating into Manchu Jurchen society. Nikan Wailan may have been an example of this. The Manchu Cuigiya () clan claimed that a Han Chinese founded their clan. The Tohoro () clan (Duanfang's clan) claimed Han Chinese origin.

Given names

Manchus given names are distinctive. Generally, they take several forms, such as bearing suffixes "-ngga", "-ngge" or "-nggo", meaning "having the quality of";}

Some ethnic names can serve as given names. One of the common first names is Nikan, which is also a Manchu exonym for the Han Chinese. For example, Nikan Wailan was a Jurchen leader who was an enemy of Nurhaci. Nikan was also the name of one of the Aisin-Gioro princes and grandsons of Nurhaci who supported Prince Dorgon. Nurhaci's first son was Cuyen, one of whose sons was Nikan.

Manchus primarily use Chinese family and given names. However, some still use a Manchu family name and Chinese given name, a Chinese family name and Manchu given name or both Manchu family and given names.

Burial customs

The Jurchens and their Manchu descendants originally practiced cremation and almost all of them practice it today. Very few adopted the burial practice from some Han Chinese. Princes were cremated on pyres.

Hair

The traditional hairstyle for Manchu men is shaving the front of their heads while growing the hair on the back of their heads into a single braid called a queue (), known as soncoho in Manchu. During the Qing dynasty, the queue was legally mandated for male Ming Chinese subjects. The Ming were to shave their foreheads and begin growing their queues within 10 days of the order. If they refused to comply, they were executed for treason. Throughout the rest of the Qing dynasty, the queue was seen as a signal of loyalty, as it showed who had submitted. As the Qing dynasty came to an end, the hairstyle shifted from a symbol of loyalty to one of feudalism, leading many men to cut off their queues as a statement of rebellion. These acts gave China a step toward modernization and moved it away from imperial rule as China began to adopt more of Western culture, including fashion and appearance.

Manchu women wore their hair in a distinctive hairstyle called liangbatou ().

Garments

thumb|right|Han and Manchu clothing coexisted during Qing dynasty

thumb|upright|Han Chinese clothing in early Qing

A common misconception among Han Chinese was that Manchu clothing was distinct from Hanfu. A strip of cloth was added at the waist, with the skirt pleated for a snug fit. Manchus modified Han Chinese court costumes by adding a large ceremonial collar (da-ling) or shawl collar (pijian-ling). The belief that Manchu hunting attire evolved into Qing clothing arose from comparing the straight-cut Ming garments with the irregularly shaped Qing long pao and chao fu. Western scholars mistakenly viewed these as purely Manchu. Excavations from Ming tombs, such as the Wanli emperor's, revealed chao fu robes with embroidered or woven dragons, similar to Qing chao fu, but distinct from long pao dragon robes. Flared skirts with right-side fastenings and fitted bodices were found in the tombs of Ming officials and the imperial family in Beijing, Shanxi, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, and Shandong.Ming chao fu upper sleeves had two attached cloth pieces, a feature retained in Qing chao fu with sleeve extensions. Qing long pao resembled Yuan dynasty clothing, such as robes from Li Youan's Shandong tomb, with flared hems and tight arms and torso. The Spencer Museum of Art holds six long pao robes of Han Chinese Qing nobility. A surcoat, derived from the Eight Banners military uniform, was often worn over the robe, gaining popularity among commoners during the Kangxi period. Manchu hats, worn year-round by all ages, contrasted with Han Chinese custom of wearing hats from age 20. Men wore one earring in youth, but none as adults. High-heeled shoes were common among Manchu women. Every spring and fall, ordinary Manchus and aristocrats took riding and archery tests. The results could affect their rank in the nobility.

Wrestling

thumb|Manchu wrestlers competed in front of the Qianlong Emperor

Manchu wrestling ()

Falconry

As a result of their hunting traditions, Manchus are interested in falconry.

Ice skating

thumb|The performance of Manchu palace skaters on holiday

Ice skating () is another Manchu pastime. The Qianlong Emperor called it a "national custom". It was one of the most important winter events of the Qing royal household, performed by the "Eight Banner Ice Skating Battalion" () He appeared in many Beijing skating rinks. It primarily recounts how Nisan Shaman helps revive a young hunter. which incorporates octagonal drum, remain popular in Chinese society. Many famous Chinese monochord performers and crosstalkers were artists of the octagonal drum, such as De Shoushan and Zhang Sanlu. Ulabun is popular among the Manchu people living in Manchuria. It has two main categories: one is popular folk literature, such as the Tale of the Nisan Shaman; the other is folk music with an informative, independent plot. so it was familiar to the Manchus. Qing emperors were always entitled "Buddha". They were regarded as Mañjuśrī in Tibetan Buddhism Huangtaiji patronized Buddhism but allegedly felt Tibetan Buddhism to be inferior to Chan Buddhism.

This policy of supporting only the "Yellow Hats" was used by the Qianlong Emperor to deflect Han criticism, who had the "Lama Shuo" stele engraved in Tibetan, Mongol, Manchu, and Chinese, which said: "By patronizing the Yellow Church we maintain peace among the Mongols." It seems he was wary of the rising power of the Tibetan Kingdom and its influence over the Mongolians and Manchu public, princes and generals.

Chinese folk religion

Manchus were affected by Chinese folk religions for most of the Qing dynasty. and Duanwu Festival. Some are of Manchu origin. Food Exhaustion Day (), on every 26th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar, is another example that was inspired by a story that once Nurhaci and his troops were in a battle and almost running out of food. The villagers nearby heard about the emergency and came to help. Soldiers used perilla leaves to wrap rice. Afterwards, they won the battle. To encourage later generations to remember this hardship, Nurhaci made this day "Food Exhaustion Day". Traditionally, Manchus eat perilla or cabbage wraps with rice, scrambled eggs, beef, or pork. Banjin Inenggi (), on the 13th day of the tenth month of the lunar calendar, which started to be celebrated in late 20th century, is the anniversary of the creation of the Manchu name.

Population

Mainland China

Autosomal DNA

Culture

Influence on other Tungusic peoples

Alphabet

Lifestyle

Names and naming practices

Family names

Given names

Burial customs

Hair

Garments

Wrestling

Falconry

Ice skating

Chinese folk religion

See also

Notes

References

Sources

In Chinese

In English

Further reading

External links