The Khitan (or Khitai, Chinese: 契丹; pinyin: Qìdān) were an ethnic group which dominated much of Manchuria in the 11th century and has been classified by Chinese historians as one of the Eastern proto-Mongolic ethnic groups Donghu (東胡族 dōng hú zú). They established the Liao Dynasty in 907 but fell to the Jin Dynasty of the Jurchen in 1125. Their name survived in the Russian word for China (Китай, Kitay), as well as the archaic English (Cathay), Portuguese (Catai), and Spanish (Catay) appellations of the country. Pinyin is a system of romanization (phonemic notation and transcription to Roman script) for Standard Mandarin, where pin means spell and yin means sound. The most common variant of pinyin in use is called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: , Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: HànyÇ” PÄ«nyÄ«n), also known as scheme... Manchuria (Manchu: Manju; Traditional Chinese: 滿洲; Simplified Chinese: 满洲; pinyin: MÇŽnzhōu, Russian: ) is a vast territorial region in northeast Asia. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 11th century was that century which lasted from 1001 to 1100. ... The Mongolic languages are a group of thirteen languages spoken in Central Asia. ... Donghu（Chinese 东胡；pinyin dong hu), was an ancient nomad tribe or tribe union in Northeast China. ... The Liao Dynasty (Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , pinyin: Liáo Cháo), 907-1125, also known as the Khitan Empire, was an empire in northern China that ruled over the regions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and parts of northern China proper. ... Events Oleg leads Kievan Rus in a campaign against Constantinople Yelü Abaoji establishes Liao (Khitan) dynasty Births Deaths Categories: 907 ... The JÄ«n Dynasty (Jurchen: Anchu; Chinese: 金朝; Pinyin: ; 1115-1234), also known as the Jurchen dynasty, was founded by the Wanyan (完顏 Wányán) clan of the Jurchen, the ancestors of the Manchus who established the Qing Dynasty some 500 years later. ... The Jurchens (Chinese: 女真, pinyin: nǚzhēn) were a Tungusic people who inhabited parts of Manchuria and northern Korea until the seventeenth century, when they became the Manchus. ... Events May 23 - Lothair of Saxony becomes Holy Roman Emperor on the death of Henry V. War ends between Toulouse and Provence. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Cathay is the Anglicized version of Catai, the name that was given to northern China by Marco Polo (he referred to southern China as Manji). ...

Ancestors of the Khitan were the Yuwen clan of the Xianbei, an ethnic group situated in the area covered by the modern Liaoning and Jilin provinces. After their regime was conquered by the Murong clan, the remnants scattered in the modern-day Inner Mongolia and mixed there with the original Mongolic population. They had been identified as a distinct ethnic group since paying tribute to the Northern Wei Dynasty in the mid-6th century. The Yuwen (Simplified Chinese character: 宇文, Traditional Chinese character: 宇文, pinyin Yǔwén) was a pre-state tribe of Xianbei and Hun ethnicity during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms in China. ... The Xianbei (Simplified Chinese: 鲜卑; Traditional Chinese: 鮮卑; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hsien-pei) were a significant nomadic people residing in modern Manchuria and eastern Mongolia, or Xianbei Shan, a historic term for Greater Khingan, before migrating into areas of the modern Chinese provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Qinghai, Hebei, Inner Mongolia... Liaoning (Simplified Chinese: 辽宁; Traditional Chinese: 遼寧; pinyin: ) is a northeastern province of the Peoples Republic of China. ...   (Chinese: ; Pinyin: Jílín; Wade-Giles: Chi-lin; Postal System Pinyin: Kirin; Manchu: Girin ula), is a province of the Peoples Republic of China located in the northeastern part of the country. ... Murong (慕容) is a Chinese compound surname. ... Inner Mongolia (Mongolian: ᠥᠪᠦᠷ ᠮᠣᠨᠺᠤᠯᠤᠨ ᠥᠪᠡᠷᠲᠡᠺᠡᠨ ᠵᠠᠰᠠᠬᠤ ᠣᠷᠤᠨ r Mongghul-un bertegen Jasaqu Orun; Chinese: 内蒙古自治区; Hanyu Pinyin: N... The Mongolic languages are a group of thirteen languages spoken in Central Asia. ... Northern Wei Buddha Maitreya, 443 AD. A Buddhist stela from the Northern Wei period, build in the early 6th century. ... This Buddhist stela from China, Northern Wei period, was built in the early 6th century. ...

"Afraid that their use of Chinese advisers and administrative techniques would blur their own ethnic identity, the Khitan made a conscious effort to retain their own tribal rites, food, and clothing and refused to use the Chinese language, devising a writing system for their own language instead" (2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica). They also made Peking the capital for the first time in the city's history. Chinese (written) language (pinyin: zhōngw n) written in Chinese characters The Chinese language (汉语/漢語, 华语/華語, or 中文; Pinyin: H nyǔ, Hu yǔ, or Zhōngw n) is a member of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. ... The Khitan language is a now-extinct language once spoken by the Khitan people. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... ... Beijing (Chinese: 北京; pinyin: Běijīng; Wade-Giles: Pei-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Peking), is the capital city of the Peoples Republic of China. ...

The Khitan were known as خطا in Arabic (Khata) and are mentioned by Muslim chroniclers, such as Ibn al-Athir, al-Thahabi and Ibn Khaldun.^{[citation needed]} They had several clashes with the Khwarezmid Empire, winning at first, and imposing annual tribute on some, with territorial concessions (e.g. Tirmiz was handed over to them at one point).^{[citation needed]} They eventually suffered a catastrophic defeat at the hands of Muhammad II of Khwarezm and no longer posed a serious threat to Muslims in adjacent regions. Arabic can mean: From or related to Arabia From or related to the Arabs The Arabic language; see also Arabic grammar The Arabic alphabet, used for expressing the languages of Arabic, Persian, Malay ( Jawi), Kurdish, Panjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Urdu, among others. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Turkish: Müslüman, Persian and Urdu: مسلمان, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of Islam. ... Izz ad-DÄ«n Hassan Karam pour AthÄ«r (1160–1233), was a 13th century Iranian/Persian historian born in Cizre in Northern Kurdistan province. ... Ibn Khaldun Ibn KhaldÅ«n (full name ) (ابو زيد عبد الرحمن بن محمد بن خلدون الحضرمي ), (May 27, 1332/732AH to March 19, 1406/808AH) was a famous Arab historiographer and historian born in present-day Tunisia, and is sometimes viewed as one of the forerunners of modern historiography, sociology and economics. ... The Khwarezmid Empire (also known as the Khwarezmian Empire) was a Muslim Iranian state in the 11th century in Khwarezmia that lasted until the Mongol invasion in 1220. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

Although a number of the nobility of the Liao Dynasty escaped the area westwards towards Turkestan, establishing the short-lived Kara-Khitan or Western Liao dynasty, they were in turn absorbed by the local Turkic and Iranic populations and left no influence of themselves. As the Khitan language is still almost completely illegible, it is difficult to create a detailed history of their movements. The Liao Dynasty (Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , pinyin: Liáo Cháo), 907-1125, also known as the Khitan Empire, was an empire in northern China that ruled over the regions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and parts of northern China proper. ... Map of Turkestan (green) with borders of modern states in white Turkestan (Persian: ترکستان ) (also spelled Turkistan or Türkistan) is a region in Central Asia, which today is largely inhabited by Turkic people. ... This article needs cleanup. ... This article needs cleanup. ... The Khitan language is a now-extinct language once spoken by the Khitan people. ...

For a while after the invention of the Korean Hangeul script in the mid-15th century, the name of the Khitans continued to appear in Korean texts as Georan/Kǒran (거란). The ethnonym eventually fell out of use, however, and vanished along with the distinct ethnic identity of the Khitan people. Hangul is the native alphabet used to write the Korean language (as opposed to the Hanja system borrowed from China). ... Look up script in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

There is no clear evidence of there being any descendant ethnic groups of the Khitan in modern-day Northeast China, but some recent genetic studies have tended to support the hypothesis that the Daur ethnic group of Inner Mongolia contains at least some direct descendants of the ancient Khitan [1]. Approximate extent Northeast China (Simplified Chinese: 东北; Traditional Chinese: 東北; pinyin: Dōngběi; literally east-north), historically known as Manchuria, is the name of a region (ca. ... The Daur people are an ethnic group. ... Inner Mongolia (Mongolian: ᠥᠪᠦᠷ ᠮᠣᠨᠺᠤᠯᠤᠨ ᠥᠪᠡᠷᠲᠡᠺᠡᠨ ᠵᠠᠰᠠᠬᠤ ᠣᠷᠤᠨ r Mongghul-un bertegen Jasaqu Orun; Chinese: 内蒙古自治区; Hanyu Pinyin: N...

See also

• Buraq Hajib
• Ethnic groups in Chinese history
• Goryeo-Khitan Wars

A small part of the Sinitic Central Asian Karaqitay state under Buraq Hajib shifted to urban live and established a local dynasty in the southern Persian province of Kirman. ... Any non clear-cut connection is denoted by a question mark (?) beside the equivalences. ... The Goryeo-Khitan Wars were a series of 10th- and 11th-century conflicts between the kingdom of Goryeo and Khitan forces near what is now the border between China and North Korea. ...

References