Editing Xiongnu (section)

==== Tiefu tribe and Helian Xia dynasty (309–431) ====
{{Main|Xia (Sixteen Kingdoms)}}
[[File:统万城.JPG|thumb|Remnants of [[Tongwancheng]], capital of the [[Hu Xia dynasty|Helian Xia dynasty]] in present-day [[Jingbian County]], [[Shaanxi]].]]
The chieftains of the [[Tiefu]] tribe were descendants of [[Qubei]] and were related to another tribe, the [[Dugu (surname)|Dugu]]. Based on their name, which meant a person whose father was a Xiongnu and mother was a [[Xianbei]], the Tiefu had mingled with the Xianbei, and records refer to them as "[[Wuhuan]]", which by the 4th-century had become a generic term for miscellaneous ''[[Hu (people)|hu]]'' tribes with [[Donghu people|Donghu]] elements.{{sfn|Tang|2010|loc=ch.〈魏晋杂胡考 四 乌丸〉}} In 309, their chieftain, [[Liu Hu (Tiefu)|Liu Hu]] rebelled against the Western Jin in Shanxi but was driven out to [[Shuofang Commandery]] in the [[Ordos Loop]]. The Tiefu resided there for most of their existence, often as a vassal to their stronger neighbours before their power was destroyed by the [[Northern Wei]] dynasty in 392.

[[Liu Bobo]], a surviving member of the Tiefu, went into exile and eventually offered his services to the [[Qiang (historical people)|Qiang]]-led [[Later Qin]]. He was assigned to guard Shuofang, but in 407, angered by Qin holding peace talks with the Northern Wei, he rebelled and founded a state known as the [[Hu Xia dynasty|Helian Xia dynasty]]. Bobo strongly affirmed his Xiongnu lineage; his state name of "Xia" was based on the claim that the Xiongnu were descendants of the [[Xia dynasty]], and he later changed his family name from "Liu" (劉) to the more Xiongnu-like "Helian" (赫連), believing it inappropriate to follow his matrilineal line from the Han. Helian Bobo placed the Later Qin in a perpetual state of warfare and greatly contributed to its decline. In 418, he conquered the [[Guanzhong]] region from the [[Jin dynasty (266–420)|Eastern Jin dynasty]] after the [[Liu Yu's Northern Expeditions|Jin destroyed Qin]] the previous year.

After Helian Bobo's death in 425, the Xia quickly declined due to pressure from the Northern Wei. In 428, the emperor, [[Helian Chang]] and capital were both captured by Wei forces. His brother, [[Helian Ding]] succeeded him and conquered the [[Western Qin]] in 431, but that same year, he was ambushed and imprisoned by the [[Tuyuhun]] while attempting a campaign against [[Northern Liang]]. The Xia was at its end, and the following year, Helian Ding was sent to Wei where he was executed.

[[Tongwancheng]] (meaning "Unite All Nations"), was one of the capitals of the Xia that was built during the reign of Helian Bobo. The ruined city was discovered in 1996<ref>{{Citation|title = Sand-covered Hun City Unearthed|place = [[China|CN]]|publisher = China|url = http://www.china.org.cn/english/travel/45103.htm}}</ref> and the State Council designated it as a cultural relic under top state protection. The repair of the Yong'an Platform, where Helian Bobo reviewed parading troops, was completed and restoration on the {{Convert|31|m|ft|abbr=on}} tall turret follows.<ref>{{Citation |title=National Geographic |edition=online |url=http://www.geographic.hu/index.php?act=napi&id=5207}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |language=hu |last=Obrusánszky |first=Borbála |date=10 October 2006 |trans-title=Huns in China |title=Hunok Kínában |journal=Amsterdam Studies |issn=1873-3042 |issue=3 |url=http://www.federatio.org/as/AS_0003.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718081823/http://www.federatio.org/as/AS_0003.pdf |archive-date=18 July 2013 |url-status=live |access-date=18 August 2008}}</ref>