Editing Hua Mulan (section)

===Historicity===
Mulan's name is included in [[Yan Xiyuan]]'s ''[[One Hundred Beauties]]'', which describes a number of women from Chinese folklore. It is still unclear whether Mulan was a historical person or just a legend, as her name does not appear in ''Exemplary Women'', a collection of biographies of women who lived during [[Northern Wei| Northern Wei dynasty]].{{sfn |Mann |1997 |p=[https://archive.org/details/preciousrecordsw0000mann/page/208/mode/2up 208]}}

Although ''The Ballad of Mulan'' itself does not expressly indicate the [[Setting (narrative)|historical setting]], the story is commonly attributed to the Northern Wei dynasty due to geographic and cultural references in the ballad.<ref name="Mu Yu">(Chinese) [http://reader.epubee.com/books/mobile/df/dfcf06e22354ed004f01d198b6ba2dde/text00029.html 暮雨, "燕山胡骑鸣啾啾《木兰辞》背后的鲜卑汉化与柔然战争"] Accessed 2020-09-06</ref> The Northern Wei dynasty was founded by the [[Tuoba]] clan of ethnic [[Xianbei]] who united northern China in the 4th century CE ([[Conquest dynasty]]). The Tuoba Xianbei rulers were themselves nomads from the [[Mongolian-Manchurian grassland|northern steppes]] and became [[Sinicization|sinified]] as they ruled and settled in northern China.<ref name="Mu Yu"/> The Tuoba Xianbei took on the Chinese dynasty name "Wei", [[Change of Xianbei names to Han names|changed their own surname from "Tuoba" to "Yuan"]], and moved the capital from Pingcheng, modern-day [[Datong]], Shanxi in the northern periphery of [[China Proper|Imperial China]], to [[Luoyang]], south of the [[Yellow River]], in the [[Central Plain (China)|Central Plain]], the traditional heartland of China.<ref name="Mu Yu"/> The emperors of the Northern Wei were known both by the sacred Chinese title, "[[Son of Heaven]]", and by "[[Khagan]]", the title of the leader of nomadic kingdoms. ''The Ballad of Mulan'' refers to the sovereign by both titles. The Northern Wei also adopted the governing institutions of Imperial China, and the office of ''shangshulang'' ({{lang|zh-hant|尚書郎}}) the Khagan offered Mulan is a ministerial position within the [[Department of State Affairs|''shangshusheng'']] ({{lang|zh-hant|尚書省}}), the highest organ of executive power under the emperor.<ref>(Chinese) [http://www.jltzsly.com/a/jingquzixun/1106.html 赵贵全, "北魏兴亡与尔朱荣——北魏官制简介（尚书省）"2019-01-19] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026005015/http://www.jltzsly.com/a/jingquzixun/1106.html |date=26 October 2020 }}</ref> This offering indicates Mulan was trained in the martial arts and literary arts as she was capable of serving as a civilian official charged with issuing and interpreting written government orders.{{fact|date=November 2023}}

The Xianbei in China also retained certain nomadic traditions, and Xianbei women were typically skilled horseback riders.<ref name="Mu Yu"/> Another popular Northern Wei folk poem called "Li Bo's Younger Sister" praises Yong Rong, Li Bo's younger sister, for her riding and archery skills.<ref name="Mu Yu"/> ''The Ballad of Mulan'' may have reflected the gender roles and status of women in nomadic societies.<ref>[https://time.com/5881064/mulan-real-history/ Suyin Hayes, "The Controversial Origins of the Story Behind ''Mulan''", ''Time'' Sept. 4, 2020] accessed 2020-09-06</ref>

The Northern Wei was engaged in protracted military conflict with the nomadic [[Rouran]], who frequently raided the northern Chinese frontier to loot and pillage.<ref name="Mu Yu"/> Northern Wei emperors considered the Rouran to be uncivilized "[[Four Barbarians|barbarians]]" and called them ''Ruanruan'' ({{zh|蠕蠕}}) or "wriggling worms".<ref name="Gu Nong"/> According to the ''[[Book of Wei]]'', the dynasty's [[Twenty-Four Histories|official history]], [[Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei]] launched a military expedition in 429 against the Rouran by advancing on the Black Mountain and then extending northward to the Yanran Mountain.<ref name="Mu Yu"/> Both locations are cited in ''The Ballad''. The Black Mountain corresponds to Shahu Mountain ({{lang|zh-hant|殺虎山}}), located southeast of modern-day [[Hohhot]] in Inner Mongolia. Yan Mountain, the shorthand for Yanran Mountain ({{lang|zh-hant|燕然山}}), is now known as the [[Khangai Mountains]] of central [[Mongolia]].<ref name="Gu Nong">(Chinese) [http://www.chinawriter.com.cn/n1/2019/0118/c404063-30575837.html 顾农 "两首《木兰诗》的异同" 《文汇报》] 2019-01-18</ref>

The Northern Wei sought to protect the frontier by establishing a string of frontier garrison commands across what is today Inner Mongolia.{{fact|date=November 2023}}