Editing Xianbei

{{Short description|Para-Mongolic ancient people}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Xianbei
| common_name            = Xianbei
| native_name            = 鮮卑<br/>Xiānbēi
| image_coat             = 
| image_map              = Xianbei Confederation c. 160 AD.png
| image_map2             = 
| capital                = Mount Danhan (around present-day [[Shangyi County]], [[Hebei]])
| religion               = [[Shamanism]]<br />[[Tengrism]]<br />[[Buddhism]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hu |first1=Alex J. |title=An overview of the history and culture of the Xianbei ('Monguor'/'Tu') |journal=Asian Ethnicity |date=February 2010 |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=95–164 |doi=10.1080/14631360903531958 |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/14631360903531958 |language=en |issn=1463-1369}}</ref>
| government_type        = [[Tribe|Tribal]] [[confederation]]
| status                 = [[Nomadic empire]]
| year_end               = 3rd century AD
| year_start             = 3rd century BC
| image_map_size         = 
| image_map_caption      = Territory of the Xianbei Confederation under [[Tanshihuai]] during the late 2nd century. It spanned from the [[Liao River]] in the east to the borders of the [[Wusun]] in the west. North of them were the [[Dingling]] people that resided south of [[Lake Baikal]].<ref name="Rene">{{Cite book |last=Grousset |first=Rene |url=https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppesh00prof/page/53 |title=The Empire of the Steppes |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=1970 |isbn=978-0-8135-1304-1 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppesh00prof/page/53 53–54]}}</ref><ref>"Nomads in Central Asia." N. Ishjamts. In: ''History of civilizations of Central Asia, Volume II. The development of sedentary and nomadic civilizations: 700 B.C. to A.D. 250''. Harmatta, János, ed., 1994. Paris: UNESCO Publishing, pp. 155–156.</ref><ref>SGZ 30. 837–838, note. 1.</ref>
| image_map2_size        = 
| image_map2_caption     = 
| common_languages       = Xianbei
| title_leader           = Chieftain
| leader1                = [[Tanshihuai]]
| year_leader1           = c. 156–181
| leader2                = Helian
| year_leader2           = c. 181–189
| leader3                = Kuitou
| year_leader3           = c. 190s
| stat_area1             = 4500000
| stat_year1             = 200
| ref_area1              = <ref>{{Cite book|last1=Bang|first1=Peter Fibiger|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9mkLEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA92|title=The Oxford World History of Empire: Volume One: The Imperial Experience|last2=Bayly|first2=C. A.|last3=Scheidel|first3=Walter|date=2020-12-02|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-977311-4|language=en|page=92}}</ref>
| p1                     = Xiongnu
| s1                     = Rouran Khaganate
| flag_p1                = 
| flag_p2                = 
| p2                     = 
| flag_p3                = 
| flag_s1                = 
| flag_s2                = 
| s2                     = Han dynasty
| flag_s3                = 
| s3                     = Dai (Sixteen Kingdoms)
| era                    = [[ancient history|Antiquity]]
}}

{{infobox Chinese
| t = 鮮卑
| s = 鲜卑
| p = Xiānbēi
| w = Hsien<sup>1</sup>-pei<sup>1</sup>
| mi = {{IPAc-cmn|x|ian|1|.|b|ei|1}}
| gr = Shianbei
| y = Sīn bēi
| poj = Sian-pi
| mc = Sjen-pjie
| oc-bs = *S[a]r-pe
}}
{{History of Mongolia}}
{{History of Manchuria}}

The '''Xianbei''' ({{IPAc-en|ʃ|j|ɛ|n|ˈ|b|eɪ}}; {{zh|t=鮮卑|p=Xiānbēi|c=|s=鲜卑}}) were an ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern [[Eurasian]] [[steppes]] in what is today [[Mongolia]], [[Inner Mongolia]], and [[Northeast China|Northeastern China]]. The Xianbei were likely not of a single ethnicity, but rather a multilingual, multi-ethnic confederation consisting of mainly [[Proto-Mongols]] (who spoke either pre-Proto-Mongolic,<ref name = "Golden2013p47">{{harvnb|Golden|2013|p=47}}, quote: "The Xianbei confederation appears to have contained speakers of Pre-Proto-Mongolic, perhaps the largest constituent linguistic group, as well as former Xiongnu subjects, who spoke other languages, Turkic almost certainly being one of them."</ref><ref name = "Pulleyblank1983">Pulleyblank, Edwin G. (1983). "The Chinese and Their Neighbors in Prehistoric and Early Historic China," in The Origins of Chinese Civilization, University of California Press, [https://books.google.com/books?id=GK1hEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA452 p. 452] of pp. 411–466.</ref><ref name=":Kradin">{{Cite journal |author = [[Nikolay Kradin|Kradin N. N.]] |format= |url= https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/heterarchy-and-hierarchy-among-the-ancient-mongolian-nomads |title= Heterarchy and hierarchy among the ancient Mongolian nomads |journal= Social Evolution & History|type=  |orig-year= | agency =  |edition=  |year= 2011 |volume=  10|number= 1|pages = 188 |series=  |issn =  |doi =  |bibcode =  |arxiv =  |pmid =  |archive-url =  |archive-date =  |language=  |quote=  }}</ref>{{sfn|Janhunen|2006||pp=405–6}} or [[Para-Mongolic languages]]{{sfn|Janhunen|2006||pp=405–6}}), and, to a minor degree, [[Tungusic peoples|Tungusic]]<ref name = "Xu173179"/> and [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] peoples.<ref name = "Golden2013p47"/><ref>Wolfgang-Ekkehard Scharlipp ''Die frühen Türken in Zentralasien'', Darmstadt 1992, p. 10</ref> They originated from the [[Donghu people]] who splintered into the [[Wuhuan]] and Xianbei when they were defeated by the [[Xiongnu]] at the end of the third century BC. Following the split, the Xianbei people did not have a direct contact with the Han dynasty, residing to the north of the Wuhuan. In the first century BC, the Xianbei began actively engaging in the struggle between the Han and Xiongnu, culminating in the Xianbei replacing the Xiongnu on the [[Mongolian Plateau]].

In the mid-2nd century, the chieftain, [[Tanshihuai]] unified the Xianbei and waged war against the Han dynasty. His confederation threatened the Han's northern borders for many years, but quickly disintegrated following his death in 181 AD. After suffering several defeats by the end of the [[Three Kingdoms|Three Kingdoms period]], the Xianbei migrated south and settled in close proximity to Han society and submitted as vassals to the Chinese dynasties. As one of the so-called "[[Five Barbarians]]" that settled in northern China, the Xianbei fought as auxiliaries for the [[Western Jin dynasty]] during the [[War of the Eight Princes]] and the [[Upheaval of the Five Barbarians]] before eventually distancing themselves and declaring their autonomy as the Jin was pushed to the south. During the [[Sixteen Kingdoms]] period, the Xianbei founded several short-lived states in the north and established themselves on the [[Zhongyuan|Central Plains]].{{sfn|de Crespigny|2017|p=502}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Altera/xianbei.html|title=Xianbei 鮮卑 |first=Ulrich|last=Theobald|website=Chinaknowledge.de|access-date=24 January 2022}}</ref>

The Xianbei were at one point all subjected to the [[Di (Five Barbarians)|Di]]-led [[Former Qin|Former Qin dynasty]] before it fell apart not long after its defeat in the [[Battle of Fei River]] by the Eastern Jin. In the wake of the Former Qin's collapse, the [[Tuoba]] formed the [[Northern Wei dynasty]] and eventually reunited northern China, ushering China into the [[Northern and Southern dynasties]] period. The [[Northern dynasties]], all of which were either led or heavily influenced by the Xianbei, opposed and promoted [[sinicization]] at one point or another but trended towards the latter and had merged with the general Chinese population by the [[Tang dynasty]].<ref name="urlThe Sixteen States of the Five Barbarian Peoples 五胡十六國 (www.chinaknowledge.de)">{{cite web |url=http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Division/shiliuguo.html |title=The Sixteen States of the Five Barbarian Peoples 五胡十六國 |work=Chinaknowledge.de }}</ref><ref name=Gernet>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jqb7L-pKCV8C&pg=PA186 |first=Jacques |last=Gernet |author-link=Jacques Gernet |title=A History of Chinese Civilization |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1996 |pages=186–87 |isbn=9780521497817 }}</ref><ref name=Tanigawa>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_uWUnbWbq7QC&pg=PA120 |first1=Michio |last1=Tanigawa |first2=Joshua |last2=Fogel |title=Medieval Chinese Society and the Local "community" |publisher=University of California Press |year=1985 |pages=120–21 |isbn=9780520053700 }}</ref><ref name="Van Der Veer">{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slp8RTUn97AC&pg=PA200 |first=Peter |last=Van Der Veer |chapter=Contexts of Cosmopolitanism |editor-first=Steven |editor-last=Vertovec |editor2-first=Robin |editor2-last=Cohen |title=Conceiving Cosmopolitanism: Theory, Context and Practice |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2002 |pages=200–01 |isbn=9780199252282 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zzEUAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA9 |first=John W. |last=Dardess |title=Governing China: 150–1850 |publisher=Hackett |year=2010 |page=9 |isbn=9781603844475 }}</ref> The [[Northern Wei]] also arranged for ethnic Han elites to marry daughters of the [[Tuoba]] imperial clan in the 480s.<ref name="Watson1991">{{cite book|author=Rubie Sharon Watson|title=Marriage and Inequality in Chinese Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gAIcwz3V_JsC&pg=PA80|year=1991|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-07124-7|pages=80–}}</ref> More than fifty percent of Tuoba Xianbei princesses of the Northern Wei were married to southern Han men from the imperial families and aristocrats from southern China of the [[Southern dynasties]] who defected and moved north to join the Northern Wei.<ref>{{cite thesis|url=https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstream/handle/1/33493331/TANG-DISSERTATION-2016.pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y |title= Divorce and the Divorced Woman in Early Medieval China (First through Sixth Century) |pages=151, 152, 153 |last=Tang |first=Qiaomei |date=May 2016 |type=A dissertation presented by Qiaomei Tang to The Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of East Asian Languages and Civilizations |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=Harvard University}}</ref>

==Etymology==
Paul Pelliot tentatively reconstructs the [[Eastern Han Chinese]] pronunciation of 鮮卑 as */serbi/, from *'''Särpi''', after noting that Chinese scribes used 鮮 to transcribe [[Middle Persian]] '''sēr''' ([[Asiatic lion|lion]]) and 卑 to transcribe foreign syllable /pi/; for instance, [[Sanskrit]] गोपी ''gopī'' "milkmaid, cowherdess" became Middle Chinese 瞿卑 (''ɡɨo-piᴇ'') (> [[Standard Chinese|Mand.]] ''qúbēi'').<ref name="Toh">{{cite journal |last=Toh |first=Hoong Teik |title=The ''-yu'' Ending in Xiongnu, Xianbei, and Gaoju Onomastica. Appendix I: the ethnicon Xianbei |journal=Sino-Platonic Papers |volume=146 |date=2005 |pages= 10–12|url=http://www.sino-platonic.org/complete/spp146_xiongnu.pdf}}</ref>
[[File:CMOC Treasures of Ancient China exhibit - figure of a Xianbei warrior.jpg|thumb|Figure of a Xianbei warrior from the Northern dynasties (286–581) era. The figure wear a covered "wind hat", trousers, short upper tunic, and a cape tied around the neck, designed to protect against the wind and dust.]]

According to Schuessler, however, the Eastern Han Chinese pronunciation of 鮮卑 is /sian pie/, and he does not reconstruct syllables ending in ''-r'' for this stage. He reconstructed the Later Han pronunciation of 室韋 as /śit wui/.<ref name="Schuessler2007">{{cite book |last1=Schuessler |first1=Axel |title=ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese |date=2007 |publisher=University of Hawaiʻi Press |location=Honolulu, HI |isbn=978-0-8248-2975-9}}</ref>

On the one hand, '''*Särpi''' may be linked to the Mongolic root ''*ser'' ~''*sir'' which means "crest, bristle, sticking out, projecting, etc." (cf. [[Khalkha Mongolian|Khalkha]] сэрвэн ''serven''), possibly referring to the [[Mongolian horse|Xianbei's horses]] (semantically analogous with the Turkic ethnonym ''Yabaqu'' < ''Yapağu'' 'matted hair or wool', later 'a matted-haired animal, i.e. a colt')<ref>Golden, Peter B. [https://maiet.cfuv.ru/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/014golden.pdf “The Stateless Nomads of Central Eurasia”] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220215100255/https://maiet.cfuv.ru/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/014golden.pdf |date=15 February 2022 }}, in ''Empires and Exchanges in Eurasian Late Antiquity'' Edited by DiCosmo, Maas. p. 347-348. doi: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316146040.024</ref> On the other hand, the ''[[Book of the Later Han]]'' and the ''[[Book of Wei]]'' stated that before becoming an ethnonym, Xianbei had been a toponym, referring to the Great Xianbei mountains (大鮮卑山), which is now identified as the [[Greater Khingan]] range ({{zh|s=大兴安岭|t=大興安嶺|p=Dà Xīng'ān Lǐng}}).<ref>''Hou Hanshu'' vol. 90 "鮮卑者，亦東胡之支也，別依鮮卑山，故因號焉" "the Xianbei people branched off from the so-called 'Eastern Hu' and came to settle around Mt. Xianbei after which name they were designated" translated by Toh (2005)</ref><ref>''Weishu'' vol. 1</ref><ref>{{cite thesis|type= PhD|last= Tseng|first= Chin Yin|title= The Making of the Tuoba Northern Wei: Constructing Material Cultural Expressions in the Northern Wei Pingcheng Period (398–494 CE)|date= 2012|publisher= University of Oxford|page= 1}}</ref>

Shimunek (2018) reconstructs *''serbi'' for Xiānbēi and *''širwi'' for 室韋 [[Shiwei people|Shìwéi]] < MC ''*ɕiɪt̚-ɦʉi''.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/37176756|title=Early Serbi-Mongolic-Tungusic lexical contact: Jurchen numerals from the 室韦 Shirwi (Shih-wei) in North China|first=Andrew|last=Shimunek|journal=Philology of the Grasslands: Essays in Mongolic, Turkic, and Tungusic Studies, Edited by Ákos Bertalan Apatóczky et al. (Leiden: Brill)|date=January 2018|page=331|doi=10.1163/9789004351981_019 |isbn=978-90-04-35195-0 |access-date=22 September 2019}}</ref>

==History==
{{multiple image
| align = right | direction = vertical | header = | header_align = left/right/center | footer = Mural paintings of court life in Xu Xianxiu's Tomb, [[Northern Qi dynasty]], 571 AD, located in [[Taiyuan]], [[Shanxi]] province | footer_align = left
| image1 = Paintings on north wall of Xu Xianxiu Tomb.jpg | width1 = 250 | caption1  =
| image2 = Paintings on east wall of Xu Xianxiu Tomb.jpg | width2 = 250| caption2  =
| image3 = Paintings on west wall of Xu Xianxiu Tomb.jpg | width3 = 250 | caption3  = 
}}

===Origin===
[[Warring States period]]'s [[Chinese literature]] contains early mentions of Xianbei, as in the poem "[[The Great Summons]]" ({{CJKV|t=大招|s=大招|p=Dà zhāo}}) in the anthology [[Chu Ci|Verses of Chu]]<ref>''Chu Ci'', [https://ctext.org/chu-ci/da-zhao#n51934 "Da Zhao"]. quote: "小腰秀頸，若'''鮮卑'''只。". translation (by Gopal Sukhu, 2017): "And she is as small-waisted and long-necked [a]s a '''Xianbei''' woman."</ref> and possibly the chapter "Discourses of Jin 8" in [[Guoyu (book)|Discourses of the States]].<ref>''Guoyu'', [https://ctext.org/guo-yu/jin-yu-ba#n24816 "Jinyu 8"] quote: "昔成王盟諸侯于岐陽，楚為荊蠻，置茅蕝，設望表，與'''鮮卑'''守燎，故不與盟。" translation: "Of yore, [[King Cheng of Zhou|King Cheng]]  convened an alliance-covenant ceremony with the [[Chinese nobility#Honors and awards, and clan law, of the Zhou dynasty|various vassals]] at [[Qishan County|(Mt.) Qi]]'s south-side, the [[Chu (state)|Chu]], being [[Nanman|barbarians]] from [[Jingzhou (ancient China)|Jing]], held up bundles of [[cogon grass]] (through which to pour sacrificial wine), set up spirit tablets (for making offerings to the spirits of mountains and streams), and tended to the torches along with the '''Xianbei''', therefore (the Chu) were not present at the alliance-covenant ceremony."</ref><ref>Zhang, Zhengming. (2019) A History Of Chu (Volume 1) Honolulu: Enrich Professional Publishing. p. 42-46</ref>{{efn|Zhang Zhengming (2017) accepts the reading 鮮卑<ref>Zhang, Zhengming. (2019) A History Of Chu (Volume 1) Honolulu: Enrich Professional Publishing. [https://books.google.com/books?id=kthDEAAAQBAJ&q=xianbei+%E9%AE%AE%E5%8D%91 p. 45]. quote: "and tending the shrine flames together with the '''Xianbei 鮮卑''' clan leader."</ref> (also seen in the early 19th century version published by Jinzhang bookstore ({{lang|zh|錦章図書局}}) in Shanghai<ref name = "gy-wul-2-36">''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Jinyu 8". Jinzhang Bookstore's version, vol. 2 [https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:WUL-bunko01_01820_%E5%9C%8B%E8%AA%9E_2.pdf&page=36 p. 36] Waseda University Library's copy</ref>) as the ethnonym of the people who accompanied the Chu. However, 鮮卑 Xianbei is likely a scribal error for '''鮮牟 Xianmou''' (as in other versions like Sibu Congkan ([[:w:zh:四部叢刊|四部叢刊]]),<ref name = "gy-sbck-140">''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Jinyu 8". 1st edition Sibu Congkan version, vol. 3 [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=en&file=77610&page=140#%E9%AE%AE%E7%89%9F p. 140] of 154</ref> or [[Siku Quanshu]] ([[:w:zh:四庫全書|四庫全書]])<ref name = "gy-skqs-42">''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Jinyu 8". Siku Quanshu version, vol. 3–7, [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=en&file=68900&page=42#%E9%AE%AE%E7%89%9F p. 42] of 148</ref>). [[Eastern Wu]] scholar [[Wei Zhao (Eastern Wu)|Wei Zhao]] states that the 鮮牟 Xianmou were an [[Dongyi|Eastern Yi]] nation,<ref name = "gy-sbck-140-wz">''Guoyu'', "Jinyu 8", explained by Wei Zhao, 1st edition Sibu Congkan version, vol. 3 [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=en&file=77610&page=140#%E9%AE%AE%E7%89%9F%E6%9D%B1%E5%A4%B7%E5%9C%8B p. 140] of 154. quote: "鮮牟東夷國"</ref><ref name = "gy-skqs-43">''Guoyu'', "Jinyu 8", explained by Wei Zhao. Siku Quanshu version, vol. 3–7, [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=en&file=68900&page=43#%E9%AE%AE%E7%89%9F p. 43] of 148. quote: "鮮牟東夷國"</ref> while the 鮮卑 Xianbei were of [[Shanrong|Mountain Rong]] origin.<ref>''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Qiyu", 1st edition Sibu Congkan version, vol. 2, [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=en&file=77609&page=90#%E5%B1%B1%E6%88%8E%E4%BB%8A%E4%B9%8B%E9%AE%AE%E5%8D%91 p. 90] of 160, quote: "山戎今之鮮卑"</ref><ref>''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Qiyu". Siku Quanshu version, vol. 6–8, [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=en&file=68894&page=28 p. 28] of 111, quote: "山戎今之鮮卑"</ref> The apparent scribal error results in contradicting statements, apparently by Wei Zhao, that the Xianbei were an Eastern Yi nation<ref name = "gy-wul-2-36-dy">''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Jinyu 8". Jinzhang Bookstore's version, vol. 2 [https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:WUL-bunko01_01820_%E5%9C%8B%E8%AA%9E_2.pdf&page=36 p. 36]. quote: "鮮卑東夷國". Waseda University Library's copy</ref> and a people of Mountain Rong origin.<ref name="gy-wul-1-42-sr">''Guoyu'', explained by Wei Zhao, "Qiyu". Jinzhang Bookstore's version, [https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:WUL-bunko01_01820_%E5%9C%8B%E8%AA%9E_1.pdf&page=42 p. 42]. quote: "山戎今之鮮卑". Waseda University Library's copy</ref> [[Huang Pilie]] (1763–1825) states that the reading 鮮卑 Xianbei was inauthentic and identifies the 鮮牟 Xianmou with '''根牟 [[Genmou]]''', an Eastern Yi nation conquered by the [[Lu (state)|Lu state]] in the 9th year of Duke Xuan of Lu's reign (600 BCE).<ref>''[[Spring and Autumn Annals|Chunqiu]] [[Zuo Zhuan]]'' "Duke Xuan's 9th year" [https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/%E6%98%A5%E7%A7%8B%E5%B7%A6%E6%B0%8F%E5%82%B3/%E5%AE%A3%E5%85%AC#%E7%B6%93_9 jing]; quote:（ 秋，取根牟。）; rough translation: "In autumn, [Lu] conquered Genmou." [https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/%E6%98%A5%E7%A7%8B%E5%B7%A6%E6%B0%8F%E5%82%B3/%E5%AE%A3%E5%85%AC#%E5%82%B3_9 zhuan]; quote:（秋，取根牟，言易也。）; rough translation: "In autumn, [Lu] conquered Genmou. It's said that was easy."</ref><ref>[[Du Yu]], 《春秋經傳集解》 ''Chunqiu Zuozhuan – Collected Explanations'', "vol. 2"  [https://ctext.org/library.pl?if=gb&file=77349&page=151#%E6%A0%B9%E7%89%9F%E6%9D%B1%E5%A4%B7%E5%9C%8B%E4%B9%9F p. 151 of 190]. quote:（ 根牟東夷國也 ）</ref><ref>Xu Yuangao & Wang Shumin (2002). 國語集解 (''Discourses of the States – Collected Explanations'') Publisher: [[Zhonghua Book Company]]. p. 430. quote:（ 黃丕烈曰：「鮮牟，一本作『鮮卑』，非。『鮮牟』即宣九年之『根牟』也，…… 。」）; rough translation: "Huang Pilie said: 'Xianmou (鮮牟), in one copy it is written as Xianbei (鮮卑), which is inauthentic. The Xianmou (鮮牟) are the Genmou  (根牟) in (Duke) Xuan's 9th year. [...].'"</ref>}}

When the Donghu "Eastern Barbarians" were defeated by [[Modu Chanyu]] around 208 BC, the Donghu splintered into the Xianbei and Wuhuan.<ref>Xu Elina-Qian, [https://helda.helsinki.fi/handle/10138/19205 ''Historical Development of the Pre-Dynastic Khitan''], University of Helsinki, 2005. p. 164</ref> According to the ''[[Book of the Later Han]]'', "the language and culture of the Xianbei are the same as the [[Wuhuan]]".<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Chen|first1=Sanping|date=1996|title=A-Gan Revisited — The Tuoba's Cultural and Political Heritage|journal=Journal of Asian History|volume=30|issue=1|pages=46–78|jstor=41931010}}</ref>

The first significant contact the Xianbei had with the Han dynasty was in 41 and 45, when they joined the Wuhuan and Xiongnu in raiding Han territory.<ref name="chinaknowledge.de">{{cite web|url=http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Altera/xianbei.html|title = Xianbei 鮮卑 |website=Chinaknowledge.de}}</ref>

In 49, the governor Ji Tong convinced the Xianbei chieftain Pianhe to turn on the Xiongnu with rewards for each Xiongnu head they collected.<ref name="chinaknowledge.de"/> In 54, Yuchouben and Mantou of the Xianbei paid tribute to [[Emperor Guangwu of Han]].{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=1016}}

In 58, the Xianbei chieftain Pianhe attacked and killed Xinzhiben, a Wuhuan leader causing trouble in [[Yuyang Commandery]].{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=899}}

In 85, the Xianbei secured an alliance with the [[Dingling]] and [[Southern Xiongnu]].<ref name="chinaknowledge.de"/>

In 87, the Xianbei attacked the Xiongnu [[chanyu]] [[Youliu]] and killed him. They flayed him and his followers and took the skins back as trophies.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=991}}

In 93, as the Northern Xiongnu were forced to the northwest by the [[Han dynasty]], the Xianbei began occupying the [[Mongolian Plateau]], absorbing 100,000 Xiongnu tribes and increasing their strength.

In 109, the Wuhuan and Xianbei attacked [[Wuyuan Commandery]] and defeated local Han forces.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=782}} The [[Southern Xiongnu]] chanyu [[Wanshishizhudi]] rebelled against the Han and attacked the Emissary Geng Chong but failed to oust him. Han forces under [[Geng Kui]] retaliated and defeated a force of 3,000 Xiongnu but could not take the Southern Xiongnu capital due to disease among the horses of their Xianbei allies.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=782}}

The Xianbei under Qizhijian raided Han territory four times from 121 to 138.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2017}} In 145, the Xianbei raided [[Dai Commandery]].{{sfn|Cosmo|2009|p=106}}

===Xianbei Confederation===
{{See also|Tanshihuai}}
Around the mid-2nd century, a chieftain, [[Tanshihuai]], unified the Xianbei tribes and established an imperial court at Mount Danhan (彈汗山; in present-day [[Shangyi County]], [[Hebei]]). Under Tanshihuai, the Xianbei attacked the [[Wusun]] in the west and repelled the [[Dingling]] from the north and [[Buyeo]] from the east. He divided the Xianbei empire into three sections, each governed by an appointed chieftain.<ref name="Rene">{{Cite book |last=Grousset |first=Rene |url=https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppesh00prof/page/53 |title=The Empire of the Steppes |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=1970 |isbn=978-0-8135-1304-1 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/empireofsteppesh00prof/page/53 53–54]}}</ref><ref>"Nomads in Central Asia." N. Ishjamts. In: ''History of civilizations of Central Asia, Volume II. The development of sedentary and nomadic civilizations: 700 B.C. to A.D. 250''. Harmatta, János, ed., 1994. Paris: UNESCO Publishing, pp. 155–156.</ref><ref>SGZ 30. 837–838, note. 1.</ref>{{blockquote|Tanshihuai of the Xianbei divided his territory into three sections: the eastern, the middle and the western. From the [[You Beiping]] to the [[Liao River]], connecting the Fuyu and Mo to the east, it was the eastern section. There were more than twenty counties. The darens (chiefs) (of this section) were called Mijia 彌加, Queji 闕機, Suli 素利 and Huaitou 槐頭. From the You Beiping to Shanggu to the west, it was the middle section. There were more than ten counties. The darens of this section were called Kezui 柯最, Queju 闕居, Murong 慕容, et al. From Shanggu to Dunhuang, connecting the Wusun to the west, it was the western section. There were more than twenty counties. The darens (of this section) were called Zhijian Luoluo 置鞬落羅, Rilü Tuiyan 曰律推演, Yanliyou 宴荔游, et al. These chiefs were all subordinate to Tanshihuai.|''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]]''<ref>SGZ 30. 837–838, note. 1.</ref>}}Throughout his reign, Tanshihuai aggressively raided the Han dynasty's northern borders, with his first recorded raid being in 156. In 166, he even allied with the [[Southern Xiongnu]] and [[Wuhuan]] to attack [[Shaanxi]] and [[Gansu]]. These raids devastated the border commanderies and claimed many lives. Though the Han was able to repel them at times, they were concerned that they would not be able to subdue Tanshihuai. The Han attempted to appease him by offering him the title of King, but Tanshihuai rejected them and continued to harass their borders.

In 177, [[Xia Yu (Han dynasty)|Xia Yu]], [[Tian Yan (Han dynasty)|Tian Yan]] and the Southern Xiongnu [[Chanyu]], [[Tute Ruoshi Zhujiu]] led a force of 30,000 against the Xianbei. They were defeated and returned with only one-tenth of their original forces.{{sfn|Cosmo|2009|p=107}} A memorial made that year records that the Xianbei had taken all the lands previously held by the Xiongnu and their warriors numbered 100,000. Han deserters who sought refuge in their lands served as their advisers and refined metals as well as wrought iron came into their possession. Their weapons were sharper and their horses faster than those of the Xiongnu. Another memorial submitted in 185 states that the Xianbei were making raids on Han settlements nearly every year.{{sfn|Twitchett|2008|p=445}}

Despite the constant raids, the loose Xianbei confederacy lacked the organization of the Xiongnu empire, and they were struggling to sustain their growing population.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2017|p=401}} Tanshihuai died in 181 and was succeeded by his son, Helian, but he lacked his father's abilities and was killed in a raid on [[Beidi Commandery|Beidi]] during the last years of [[Emperor Ling of Han]].{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=320}} Helian's son, Qianman was too young at the time of his father's death, so the chieftains elected his nephew, Kuitou, to succeed him. Once Qianman came of age, however, he challenged his cousin to succession, destroying the last vestiges of unity among the Xianbei.
[[File:Iron_broadsword,_Xianbei_nation_during_the_Han_dynasty_(206_BCE_to_220_CE),_from_Xianbei_tomb_in_Yushu,_Jilin_Province.jpg|center|thumb|Iron broadsword, Xianbei nation during the [[Han dynasty]] (206 BCE to 220 CE), from a Xianbei tomb in [[Yushu, Jilin|Yushu]], [[Jilin Province]]]]

===Three Kingdoms===
{{See also|Kebineng}}[[File:Belt_fasteners,_Xianbei_nation_during_the_Han_dynasty_(206_BCE_to_220_CE),_from_Xianbei_tomb_in_Yushu,_Jilin_Province.jpg|thumb|Han-era Xianbei belt fasteners from a Xianbei tomb in Yushu, Jilin]]
By the [[Jian'an (Eastern Han)|Jian'an era]] (196–220), the Xianbei had split into many different groups, most notably with Kuitou ruling in [[Inner Mongolia]], [[Kebineng]] in northern [[Shanxi]], and Suli, Mijia and Queji in northern [[Liaodong]]. Following his death, Kuitou's brothers [[Budugen]] and [[Fuluohan]] divided his territory among themselves. After [[Cao Cao]] defeated the [[Wuhuan]] at the [[Battle of White Wolf Mountain]] in 207, Budugen, Fuluohan, Kebineng and others paid tribute to him. In 218, Fuluohan met with the Wuhuan chieftain Nengchendi to form an alliance, but Nengchendi double crossed him and called in Kebineng, who killed Fuluohan.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=237}} Budugen went to the court of [[Cao Wei]] in 224 to ask for assistance against Kebineng, but he eventually betrayed them and allied with Kebineng in 233. Kebineng killed Budugen soon afterwards.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=25}}

Kebineng was from a minor Xianbei tribe. He rose to power west of [[Dai Commandery]] by taking in a number of Chinese refugees, who helped him drill his soldiers and make weapons. After the defeat of the Wuhuan in 207, he also sent tribute to Cao Cao, and even provided assistance against the rebel Tian Yin. In 218 he allied himself to the Wuhuan rebel Nengchendi but they were heavily defeated and forced back across the frontier by [[Cao Zhang]]. In 220, he acknowledged [[Cao Pi]] as emperor of Cao Wei. Eventually, he turned on Wei for frustrating his advances on Suli. Kebineng conducted raids on Cao Wei before he was killed in 235, after which his confederacy disintegrated.{{sfn|de Crespigny|2007|p=289}}
[[File:Xianbei post 3K (2024).png|left|thumb|Distribution of major Xianbei clans in the early 4th century.{{icn|date=July 2024}}]]
Many of the Xianbei tribes migrated south and settled on the borders of the Wei-Jin dynasties, where they often offered their submission. In 258, the [[Tuoba]] tribe settled in the abandoned city of [[Shengle]], north of the [[Yin Mountains]].{{sfn|de Crespigny|2017|p=502}} To the east of them, the [[Yuwen]] tribe settled between the [[Luan River]] and [[Chaoyang, Liaoning|Liucheng]], while the [[Murong]] tribe were allowed to move deeper into [[Liaodong Peninsula|Liaodong]]. The [[Duan tribe|Duan]] tribe was founded in [[Liaoxi Commandery|Liaoxi]] within the [[Great Wall of China|Great Wall]] by a Xianbei ex-slave along with a group of exiles. In the west, an offshoot of the Murong moved into northern [[Qinghai]] and mixed with the native [[Qiang people]], becoming [[Tuyuhun]].<ref name="chinaknowledge.de" /> The Qifu tribe settled near the [[Longxi Commandery|Longxi basin]], while a branch of the Tuoba, the Tufa tribe, roamed the [[Hexi Corridor|Hexi corridor]]. In 270, the Tufa chieftain, [[Tufa Shujineng]], led the various ethnic tribes in the northwest in a [[Tufa Shujineng's Rebellion|rebellion]] against the [[Jin dynasty (266–420)|Jin dynasty]] in [[Qín Prefecture|Qin]] and [[Liang Province|Liang]] provinces but was defeated in 279 by [[Ma Long (Jin dynasty)|Ma Long]].<ref name="Rene" />

===Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Wei===
[[File:Northern Dynasties Pottery Horse & Rider.jpg|thumb|Northern dynasties horseman]]
[[File:Northern Wei Cavalry (4).jpg|thumb|Northern Wei cavalry]]
[[File:Dinastia wei del nord, due cavalieri, cina del nord, 500-550 ca..JPG|thumb|Northern Wei cavalry]]
{{See also|Upheaval of the Five Barbarians|Sixteen Kingdoms|Northern Wei}}

During the [[War of the Eight Princes]], the Xianbei of the northeast, primarily the [[Duan tribe|Duan]], were brought in to fight in the civil wars of the Jin princes and played a deciding factor in the wars. When the [[Xiongnu]] in [[Shanxi]] rebelled and founded the [[Han-Zhao|Han-Zhao dynasty]], the Tuoba offered their assistance to Jin to fight the rebels. The Jin were heavily reliant on the Xianbei's military force as they gradually lost the north during the [[upheaval of the Five Barbarians]]. For their services, the Duan and Tuoba were granted the duchies of [[Liaoxi Commandery|Liaoxi]] and [[Dai Commandery|Dai]], respectively. However, for varying reasons, most of the Xianbei eventually withdrew from the conflict, allowing the remnants of Jin to be quickly overwhelmed. Mass number of Chinese officers, soldiers and civilians fled south to join the Eastern Jin or north to join the Xianbei duchies.

The Xianbei founded several of the [[Sixteen Kingdoms]] in northern China. The [[Murong]] of [[Liaodong Peninsula|Liaodong]] were the most notable clan of this period. Having adopted the Jin governing system and customs, they rose to prominence during the fall of Western Jin by providing refuge and cooperating closely with the Chinese exiles, eventually establishing Xianbei rule over the [[Zhongyuan|Central Plains]] after they defeated the [[Ran Wei]] in 352. They founded the [[Former Yan]] (337–370), [[Later Yan]] (384–407) and [[Southern Yan]] (398–410), as well as the [[Western Yan]] (384–394; not listed among the Sixteen Kingdoms). The Murong dominated the northeast and at one point vied to unify China, but fell short due to family infighting, corruption and weak rulers. Meanwhile, in [[Gansu]], the Qifu established the [[Western Qin]] (385–431) while the Tufa established the [[Southern Liang (Sixteen Kingdoms)|Southern Liang]] (397–414).

The Tuoba retained their fiefdom of [[Dai (Sixteen Kingdoms)|Dai]] (310–376), which was elevated to a kingdom in 315, before they were eventually conquered by the [[Di (Five Barbarians)|Di]]-led [[Former Qin|Former Qin dynasty]]. With the fall of Dai, northern China was briefly unified under the Qin, but as they rapidly collapsed following a disastrous defeat at the [[Battle of Fei River]] in 383, the Tuoba restored their state as the [[Northern Wei|Northern Wei dynasty]] (386–535), becoming the first of the [[Northern dynasties]] (386–581). The Northern Wei grew in power after they defeated and supplanted the Later Yan on the [[Zhongyuan|Central Plains]]. In 439, they conquered the last of the [[Sixteen Kingdoms]], thereby unifying the north and completing the transition into the [[Northern and Southern dynasties|Northern and Southern dynasties period]].<ref>Ma, Changshou [馬長壽] (1962). Wuhuan yu Xianbei [Wuhuan and Xianbei] 烏桓與鮮卑. Shanghai [上海], Shanghai ren min chu ban she [Shanghai People's Press] 上海人民出版社.</ref><ref>Liu, Xueyao [劉學銚] (1994). Xianbei shi lun [the Xianbei History] 鮮卑史論. Taipei [台北], Nan tian shu ju [Nantian Press] 南天書局.</ref><ref>Wang, Zhongluo [王仲荦] (2007). Wei jin nan bei chao shi [History of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties] 魏晋南北朝史. Beijing [北京], Zhonghua shu ju [China Press] 中华书局.</ref>

[[Image:BeltBuckleXianbei3-4thcentury.jpg|left|thumb|Xianbei belt buckles, 3–4th century AD]]

===Sinicization, assimilation and descendants===
{{See also|Northern and Southern dynasties|Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei}}
[[File:Seattle terracota china 04.JPG|thumb|Northern Wei cavalry figurines]]
The Northern Wei unification was long-lasting and brought a period of relative peace to the north in the wake of the chaotic Sixteen Kingdoms period. The Xianbei had naturally been in the process of [[sinicization]] since they first entered the Chinese interior, but this process became systemic during the late Northern Wei period. [[Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei]] established a policy of systematic sinicization that was continued by his successors and largely abandoned Xianbei traditions. The royal family took sinicization a step further by decreeing the [[change of Xianbei names to Han names]], even changing their own family name from Tuoba to Yuan. Xiaowen also moved the capital to [[Luoyang]] in the Chinese heartlands away from [[Pingcheng]] near the northern frontiers. While the population in Luoyang were open to accepting the policies, the population near the old capital were more conservative and held on to their Xianbei culture.

Marriages to Han elite families were encouraged, and the Northern Wei started to arrange for Han Chinese elites to marry daughters of the Xianbei [[Tuoba]] royal family in the 480s.<ref name="Watson1991"/> More than fifty percent of Tuoba Xianbei princesses of the Northern Wei were married to southern Han Chinese men from the imperial families and aristocrats from southern China of the [[Southern dynasties]] who defected and moved north to join the Northern Wei.<ref>{{cite thesis |url=https://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:33493331 |title=Divorce and the Divorced Woman in Early Medieval China (First through Sixth Century) |pages=151, 152, 153 |last=Tang |first=Qiaomei |date=May 2016 |type=PhD |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=Harvard University}}</ref> Some Han Chinese exiled royalty fled from southern China and defected to the Xianbei. Several daughters of the Xianbei [[Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei]] were married to Han Chinese elites, the [[Liu Song]] royal Liu Hui (劉輝), married Princess Lanling (蘭陵公主) of the Northern Wei,<ref>{{cite book|title=Papers on Far Eastern History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BdtBAAAAYAAJ&q=liu+hui+wei+princess|year=1983|publisher=Australian National University, Department of Far Eastern History.|page=86}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hinsch |first1=Bret |title=Women in Early Medieval China |date=2018 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1538117972 |page=97 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=84BqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA97}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hinsch |first1=Bret |title=Women in Imperial China |date=2016 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1442271661 |page=72 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1L7kDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA72}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Lee |first1=Jen-der |editor1-last=Swartz |editor1-first=Wendy |editor2-last=Campany |editor2-first=Robert Ford |editor3-last=Lu |editor3-first=Yang |editor4-last=Choo |editor4-first=Jessey |title=Early Medieval China: A Sourcebook |date=2014 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0231531009 |pages=156–165 |edition=illustrated |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AeiIl2y6vJQC&pg=PA161 |chapter=9. Crime and Punishment The Case of Liu Hui in the Wei Shu}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Australian National University. Dept. of Far Eastern History |title=Papers on Far Eastern History, Volumes 27–30 |date=1983 |publisher=Australian National University, Department of Far Eastern History. |pages=86, 87, 88 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BdtBAAAAYAAJ&q=liu+hui+lanling}}</ref> Princess Huayang (華陽公主) to Sima Fei (司馬朏), a descendant of [[Jin dynasty (266–420)]] royalty, Princess Jinan (濟南公主) to Lu Daoqian (盧道虔), Princess Nanyang (南陽長公主) to [[Xiao Baoyin]] (蕭寶寅), a member of [[Southern Qi]] royalty.<ref>{{cite book|title=China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200–750 AD|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_JbdS-R3y72MC|quote=Xiao Baoyin.|year=2004|publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art|isbn=978-1-58839-126-1|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_JbdS-R3y72MC/page/n56 30]–}}</ref> [[Emperor Xiaozhuang of Northern Wei|Emperor Xiaozhuang of Northern Wei's]] sister the Shouyang Princess was wedded to the [[Liang dynasty]] ruler [[Emperor Wu of Liang]]'s son Xiao Zong (蕭綜).<ref>{{cite book|title=Ancient and Early Medieval Chinese Literature (vol.3 & 4): A Reference Guide, Part Three & Four|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OWLPBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA1566 |date=22 September 2014|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-27185-2|pages=1566–}}</ref>

After the [[Six Frontier Towns|Six Frontier Towns Rebellion]] and the events that followed, the Northern Wei split into [[Eastern Wei]] (534–550) and [[Western Wei]] (535–556) before becoming the [[Northern Qi]] (550–577) and [[Northern Zhou]] (557–581) respectively.<ref>{{cite book |first=Charles |last=Holcombe |title=A History of East Asia: From the Origins of Civilization to the Twenty-First Century |page=68 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-521-73164-5 }}</ref> The chaos allowed the Xianbei frontier nobility to enter the Central Plains and give pushback on the Wei's sinicization policies. The Northern Qi was ruled by the Gao clan, a Xianbeified Han Chinese family who relied on the Xianbei elites and favoured their traditions. Meanwhile, the Northern Zhou was ruled by the [[Yuwen]] clan of Xianbei ethnicity. Ruling over a predominantly Chinese population, the military reforms of the Western Wei and Northern Zhou saw an attempt to revive the Xianbei warrior culture, which includes reverting the sinicized names of the Northern Wei and rewarding Han Chinese officers with Xianbei names. The Prime Minister of Northern Zhou, [[Emperor Wen of Sui|Yang Jian]], later had these names restored back to Han names.

In 581, Yang Jian founded the [[Sui dynasty]] (581–618) and unified China in 589 after absorbing the [[Chen dynasty]] (557–589). When the Sui came to an end amidst peasant [[rebellions]] and renegade troops, his cousin, [[Emperor Gaozu of Tang|Li Yuan]], founded the [[Tang dynasty]] (618–907). Both Sui and Tang were founded by families who identified with their Han Chinese patrilineage, and were backed by an alliance of Chinese and Xianbei nobles from the Northern Zhou who sought to protect their common interest.<ref>Chen, Yinke [陳寅恪], 1943, Tang dai zheng zhi shi shu lun gao [Manuscript of Discussions on the Political History of the Tang dynasty] 唐代政治史述論稿. Chongqing [重慶], Shang wu [商務].</ref><ref>Chen, Yinke [陳寅恪] and Tang, Zhenchang [唐振常], 1997, Tang dai zheng zhi shi shu lun gao [Manuscript of Discussions on the Political History of the Tang dynasty] 唐代政治史述論稿. Shanghai [上海], Shanghai gu ji chu ban she [Shanghai Ancient Literature Press] 上海古籍出版社.</ref> Through these political establishments, the Xianbei who entered China and their culture were largely merged with the Chinese, examples such as the wife of [[Emperor Gaozu of Tang]], [[Empress Taimu|Duchess Dou]] and [[Emperor Taizong of Tang]]'s wife, [[Empress Zhangsun]], both having Xianbei ancestries.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KLNrqn4WLZYC&pg=PA181 |title=Notable women of China: Shang dynasty to the early twentieth century|author=Barbara Bennett Peterson|editor=Barbara Bennett Peterson|year=2000|publisher=M.E. Sharpe|edition=illustrated|page=181|isbn=978-0-7656-0504-7|access-date=28 June 2010}}</ref> 

The Xianbei who remained behind in the northern grassland evolved into tribes of the [[Rouran Khaganate]] and [[Khitan people]]. In the west, the [[Tuyuhun]] remained independent until it was defeated by the [[Tibetan Empire]] in 670. After the fall of the kingdom, the Tuyuhun underwent a diaspora over a vast territory that stretched from the northwest into central and eastern parts of China. [[Murong Nuohebo]] led them eastward into central China, where they settled in modern [[Yinchuan]], Ningxia.

== Culture ==
The economic base of the Xianbei was [[animal husbandry]] combined with agricultural practice. They were the first to develop the [[khanate]] system,<ref name="Wittfogel 1949 p. 1">Wittfogel, Karl August and Chia-sheng Feng (1949). History of Chinese society: Liao, 907–1125. Philadelphia, American Philosophical Society distributed by the Macmillan Co. New York. p. 1.</ref> in which formation of social classes deepened, and developments also occurred in their literacy, arts and culture. They used a zodiac calendar and favoured song and music. [[Tengrism]] and subsequently [[Buddhism]] were the main religions among the Xianbei people. After they abandoned the frigid north and migrated into [[Northern China]], they gradually abandoned nomadic lifestyle and were [[Sinicization|sinicized]] and assimilated with the [[Han Chinese]]. [[Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei|Emperor Xiaowen]] of the Xianbei-led state of [[Northern Wei]] in northern China, eventually decreed the [[Change of Xianbei names to Han names|changes of Xianbei names to Han names]].<ref>Patricia Buckley Ebrey, [[Kwang-ching Liu]] – The Cambridge illustrated history of China</ref> Prior to Tanshihuai, the Xianbei did not have a [[Hereditary monarchy|hereditary system]], and their chieftains were chosen by electing a member of their tribe based on their character and abilities. Even as they established their states on the [[Central Plains (China)|Central Plains]] and adopted the Chinese hereditary system, influential brothers, uncles and cousins of the Xianbei rulers often posed as rival claimants to the throne.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Balogh |first=Mátyás |date=15 December 2021 |title=From Family Crisis to State Crisis: The Case of Former Yan (Qian Yan 前燕, 285/337–370), a Xianbei Conquest Dynasty |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357179581 |journal=[[Journal of East Asian Cultures]] |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=141–158 |via=ResearchGate}}</ref>

==Art==
[[File:CMOC Treasures of Ancient China exhibit - gold horse head ornament.jpg|thumb|Xianbei head ornament with horse motif. Northern dynasties (A.D. 386 – 581)]]
[[File:HearingsNorthernWei5thcentury.jpg|thumb|[[Northern Wei]] earrings. Northern Wei dynasty, 5th century]]
Art of the Xianbei portrayed their nomadic lifestyle and consisted primarily of metalwork and figurines. The style and subjects of Xianbei art were influenced by a variety of influences, and ultimately, the Xianbei were known for emphasizing unique nomadic motifs in artistic advancements such as leaf headdresses, crouching and geometricized animals depictions, animal pendant necklaces, and metal [[openwork]].<ref name=dawn>Watt, James C.Y. China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200–750 AD. Comp. An Jiayao, Angela F. Howard, Boris I. Marshak, Su Bai, and Zhao Feng. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2004. Print.</ref>

===Leaf headdresses===
{{Main|Buyao}}

The leaf headdresses were very characteristic of Xianbei culture, and they are found especially in Murong Xianbei tombs. Their corresponding ornamental style also links the Xianbei to Bactria. These gold hat ornaments represented trees and antlers and, in Chinese, they are referred to as buyao ("step sway") since the thin metal leaves move when the wearer moves. Sun Guoping first uncovered this type of artifact, and defined three main styles: "Blossoming Tree" (huashu), which is mounted on the front of a cap near the forehead and has one or more branches with hanging leaves that are circle or droplet shaped, "Blossoming Top" (dinghua), which is worn on top of the head and resembles a tree or animal with many leaf pendants, and the rare "Blossoming Vine" (huaman), which consists of "gold strips interwoven with wires with leaves."<ref name=leaves>{{cite thesis |last=Laursen |first=Sarah |title=Leaves That Sway: Gold Xianbei Cap Ornaments from Northeast China |publisher=UPenn Repository |type=PhD |year=2011 |url=https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/304 }}</ref> Leaf headdresses were made with hammered gold and decorated by punching out designs and hanging the leaf pendants with wire. The exact origin, use, and wear of these headdresses is still being investigated and determined. However, headdresses similar to those later also existed and were worn by women in the courts.<ref name=dawn/><ref name=leaves/>

===Animal iconography===
[[File:Flying Horse plaque, Xianbei culture, Inner Mongolia province, China, Eastern Han dynasty, 1st century BC to 1st century AD, silver repousse - Portland Art Museum - Portland, Oregon - DSC08648.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|left|Flying Horse plaque, Xianbei culture, Inner Mongolia province, China. 1st century BC to 1st century AD.]]

Another key form of Xianbei art is animal iconography, which was implemented primarily in metalwork. The Xianbei stylistically portrayed crouching animals in geometricized, abstracted, repeated forms, and distinguished their culture and art by depicting animal predation and same-animal combat. Typically, sheep, deer, and horses were illustrated. The artifacts, usually plaques or pendants, were made from metal, and the backgrounds were decorated with openwork or mountainous landscapes, which harks back to the Xianbei nomadic lifestyle. With repeated animal imagery, an openwork background, and a rectangular frame, the included image of the three deer plaque is a paradigm of the Xianbei art style. Concave plaque backings imply that plaques were made using [[lost-wax casting]], or raised designs were impressed on the back of hammered metal sheets.<ref name=nomadic>{{cite book |last1=Bunker |first1=Emma C. |first2=Zhixin |last2=Sun |title=Nomadic Art of the Eastern Eurasian Steppes: The Eugene V. Thaw and Other New York Collections |via=Google Books |editor-first=James |editor-last=Watt |publisher=Yale University Press |year=2002 |isbn=0-300-09688-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QR4i-SwdhsoC }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Psarras |first=Sophia-Karin |title=Han and Xiongnu: A Reexamination of Cultural and Political Relations (I) |journal=Monumenta Serica |volume=51 |pages=55–236 |year=2003 |doi=10.1080/02549948.2003.11731391 |jstor=40727370 |s2cid=156676644 }}</ref>

===Horses===
The nomadic traditions of the Xianbei inspired them to portray horses in their artwork. The horse played a large role in the existence of the Xianbei as a nomadic people, and in one tomb, a horse skull lay atop Xianbei bells, buckles, ornaments, a saddle, and one gilded bronze stirrup.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Albert E. |last=Dien |title=The Stirrup and Its Effect on Chinese Military History |journal=Ars Orientalis |volume=16 |year=1986 |pages=33–56 |jstor=4629341 }}</ref> The Xianbei not only created art for their horses, but they also made art to depict horses. Another recurring motif was the winged horse. It has been suggested by archaeologist Su Bai that this symbol was a "heavenly beast in the shape of a horse" because of its prominence in Xianbei mythology.<ref name=nomadic/> This symbol is thought to have guided an early Xianbei southern migration, and is a recurring image in many Xianbei art forms.

===Figurines===
Xianbei figurines help to portray the people of the society by representing pastimes, depicting specialized clothing, and implying various beliefs. Most figurines have been recovered from Xianbei tombs, so they are primarily military and musical figures meant to serve the deceased in afterlife processions and guard their tomb. Furthermore, the figurine clothing specifies the according social statuses: higher-ranking Xianbei wore long-sleeved robes with a straight neck shirt underneath, while lower-ranking Xianbei wore trousers and belted tunics.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dien |first=Albert E. |title=Six Dynasties Civilization |location=New Haven, CT |publisher=Yale UP |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-300-07404-8 }}</ref>

===Buddhist influences===
Xianbei Buddhist influences were derived from interactions with Han culture. The Han bureaucrats initially helped the Xianbei run their state, but eventually the Xianbei became Sinophiles and promoted Buddhism. The beginning of this conversion is evidenced by the Buddha imagery that emerges in Xianbei art. For instance, the included Buddha imprinted leaf headdress perfectly represents the Xianbei conversion and Buddhist synthesis since it combines both the traditional nomadic Xianbei leaf headdress with the new imagery of Buddha. This Xianbei religious conversion continued to develop in the Northern Wei dynasty, and ultimately led to the creation of the [[Yungang Grottoes]].<ref name=dawn/>

{{Clear}}

== Language ==
{{see also|Para-Mongolic languages}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Xianbei
| familycolor      = Altaic
| altname          = Serbi
| states           = Xianbei
| ethnicity        = Xianbei
| region           = [[Mongolian–Manchurian grassland]]
| era              = {{c.|3rd century BC|3rd century AD}}
| fam1             = [[Serbi–Mongolic languages|Serbi–Mongolic]]?
| fam2             = [[Para-Mongolic languages|Para-Mongolic]]?<ref name="Shimunek2017">{{cite book|last=Shimunek |first=Andrew |title=Languages of Ancient Southern Mongolia and North China: a Historical-Comparative Study of the Serbi or Xianbei Branch of the Serbi-Mongolic Language Family, with an Analysis of Northeastern Frontier Chinese and Old Tibetan Phonology |publisher=Harrassowitz Verlag |publication-place=[[Wiesbaden]] |year=2017 |isbn=978-3-447-10855-3 |oclc=993110372}}</ref>
| iso3             = none
| glotto           = none
}}
[[File:Tomb of Li Xian, panel 1.jpg|thumb|upright|Painting of the Tuoba-Xianbei [[Northern Zhou]] general [[Li Xian (Northern Zhou general)|Li Xian]] (504–569 AD)]]
The Xianbei are thought to have spoken [[Mongolic languages|Mongolic]] or [[Para-Mongolic]] languages, with early and substantial [[Turkic languages|Turkic]] influences, as Claus Schönig asserts:
{{blockquote|The Xianbei derived from the context of the [[Donghu people|Donghu]], who are likely to have contained the linguistic ancestors of the [[Mongols]]. Later branches and descendants of the Xianbei include the [[Tuoba|Tabghach]] and [[Khitan people|Khitan]], who seem to have been linguistically Para-Mongolic. [...] Opinions differ widely as to what the linguistic impact of the Xianbei period was. Some scholars (like Clauson) have preferred to regard the Xianbei and Tabghach (Tuoba) as Turks, with the implication that the entire layer of early Turkic borrowings in Mongolic would have been received from the Xianbei, rather than from the Xiongnu. However, since the Mongolic (or Para-Mongolic) identity of the Xianbei is increasingly obvious in the light of recent progress in [[Khitan language|Khitan]] studies, it is more reasonable to assume (with Doerfer) that the flow of linguistic influence from Turkic into Mongolic was at least partly reversed during the Xianbei period, yielding the first identifiable layer of Mongolic (or Para-Mongolic) loanwords in Turkic.{{sfn|Janhunen|2006||pp=405–6}}}}

It is also possible that the Xianbei spoke more than one language.<ref name="Holcombe Xianbei in Chinese History">{{cite journal |first=Charles |last=Holcombe |title=The Xianbei in Chinese History |journal=Early Medieval China |volume=2013 |year=2013 |issue=19 |pages=1–38 [pp. 4–5] |doi=10.1179/1529910413Z.0000000006 |s2cid=162191498 }}</ref><ref name = "Shimunek2018">Shimunek, Andrew. [https://www.academia.edu/37176756 "Early Serbi-Mongolic-Tungusic lexical contact: Jurchen numerals from the 室韦 Shirwi (Shih-wei) in North China"]. Philology of the Grasslands: Essays in Mongolic, Turkic, and Tungusic Studies, Edited by Ákos Bertalan Apatóczky et al. (Leiden: Brill). Retrieved 22 September 2019. quote: "Asdemonstrated by Ratchnevsky (1966: 231), the Shirwi confederation was a multiethnic, multilingual confederation of Tungusic-speaking Mo-ho 靺鞨 people (i.e. ancestors of the Jurchen), the Meng-wa 蒙瓦 ~ Meng-wu 蒙兀, whom Pelliot (1928) and others have shown were Proto-Mongolic speakers, and other groups. The dominant group among the Shirwi undoubtedly were ethnolinguistic descendants of the Serbi (鮮卑 Hsien-pei), and spoke a language closely related to Kitan and more distantly related to Mongolic."</ref><ref name = "Xu173179">Xu Elina-Qian (2005). ''Historical Development of the Pre-Dynastic Khitan''. University of Helsinki. p. 173-179</ref><ref name = "Golden2013p47"/>

However, there are no remaining works written in Xianbei, which are thought to have been written using [[Chinese characters]]. Only a few words remain, such as 啊干 'elder brother'.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Vovin |first=Alexander |title=Old Turkic Kinship Terms in Early Middle Chinese (co-athoured with David McCraw) |url=https://www.academia.edu/4208086}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Vovın |first1=Alexander |last2=Mccraw |first2=David |date=2011 |title=Eski Orta Çincedeki Eski Türkçe Akrabalık Terimleri |url=https://tdkbelleten.gov.tr/eng/abstarct/871/eng |journal=Yearbook of Turkic Studies - Belleten |volume=59 |issue=1 |pages=105–116 |issn=0564-5050}}</ref>

==Anthropology==
[[File:Xianbei warrior horsemen armed with long bows. Northern Qi dynasty (北齊 550–577 CE), Taiyuan, Shanxi Province.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Xianbei warrior horsemen armed with long bows. [[Northern Qi]] dynasty (北齊 550–577 CE), Taiyuan, Shanxi Province.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tomb Murals with Largest Known Hunting Scene of the Northern Dynasties Discovered in Shanxi, NW China (2015) |url=http://www.kaogu.cn/en/News/New_discoveries/2015/0123/49027.html?1421983660 |publisher=The Institute of Archaeology CASS}}</ref>]]

According to Du, et al. (2024), some historians believe that the Xianbei could have had "exotic" features such as high nose bridges, blond hair and thick beards. However, other scholars have suggested the appearance of the Xianbei was not dramatically different from modern East Asians. A genetic analysis of [[Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou]] revealed that he had an East Asian appearance, consistent with the hypothesis that the Xianbei were primarily of East Asian appearance.<ref name="Du Zhu Qiao Zhang 2024">{{cite journal | last1=Du | first1=Panxin | last2=Zhu | first2=Kongyang | last3=Qiao | first3=Hui | last4=Zhang | first4=Jianlin | last5=Meng | first5=Hailiang | last6=Huang | first6=Zixiao | last7=Yu | first7=Yao | last8=Xie | first8=Shouhua | last9=Allen | first9=Edward | last10=Xiong | first10=Jianxue | last11=Zhang | first11=Baoshuai | last12=Chang | first12=Xin | last13=Ren | first13=Xiaoying | last14=Xu | first14=Yiran | last15=Zhou | first15=Qi | last16=Han | first16=Sheng | last17=Jin | first17=Li | last18=Wei | first18=Pianpian | last19=Wang | first19=Chuan-Chao | last20=Wen | first20=Shaoqing | title=Ancient genome of the Chinese Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou | journal=Current Biology | publisher=Elsevier | date=28 March 2024 | volume=34 | issue=7 | pages=1587–1595.e5 | issn=0960-9822 | doi=10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.059 | pmid=38552628 | bibcode=2024CBio...34E1587D | url=https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(24)00240-9 | access-date=28 March 2024 | quote=In addition, Xianbei’s appearance remains controversial in historical records. Some have described the Xianbei people as having some exotic characteristics with thick beards, yellow hair, and protuberant “high” noses33,34,35; others believe that most Xianbei were not visibly dramatically different from the general population of northeastern Asia.29 The latter view is in line with our genetic prediction}}</ref>

Yellow hair in Chinese sources could have meant brown rather than blonde and described other people such as the Jie rather than the Xianbei. Historian [[Edward H. Schafer]] believes many of the Xianbei were blondes, but others such as Charles Holcombe think it is "likely that the bulk of the Xianbei were not visibly very different in appearance from the general population of northeastern Asia."<ref name="Holcombe Xianbei in Chinese History" /> Chinese anthropologist Zhu Hong and Zhang Quan-chao studied Xianbei crania from several sites of Inner Mongolia and noticed that anthropological features of studied Xianbei crania show that the racial type is closely related to the modern East-Asians, and some physical characteristics of those skulls are closer to modern Mongols, [[Manchu people|Manchu]] and [[Han Chinese]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Tumen |first=D. |year=2011 |title=Anthropology of Archaeological Populations from Northeast Asia |series=東洋學 檀國大學校 東洋學硏究所 [Dankook University Asia Research Series] |volume=49 |pages=23–50 |url=http://user.dankook.ac.kr/~oriental/Journal/pdf_new/49/11.pdf |archive-date=29 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130729140858/http://user.dankook.ac.kr/~oriental/Journal/pdf_new/49/11.pdf }}</ref>

==Genetics==
{{See also|Donghu people#Genetics|Rouran Khaganate#Genetics|Xiongnu#Genetics|Huns#Genetics|Pannonian Avars#Genetics|Goktürks#Genetics}}
A genetic study published in ''[[The FEBS Journal]]'' in October 2006 examined the [[mtDNA]] of 21 Tuoba Xianbei buried at the Qilang Mountain Cemetery in [[Inner Mongolia]], China. The 21 samples of mtDNA extracted belonged to haplogroups [[Haplogroup O (mtDNA)|O]] (9 samples), [[Haplogroup D (mtDNA)|D]] (7 samples), [[Haplogroup C (mtDNA)|C]] (5 samples), [[Haplogroup B (mtDNA)|B]] (2 samples) and [[Haplogroup A (mtDNA)|A]].{{sfn|Yu et al.|2006|p=6244|loc=Table 1}} These haplogroups are characteristic of Northeast Asians.{{sfn|Yu et al.|2006|p=6244}} Among modern populations they were found to be most closely related to the [[Oroqen people]].{{sfn|Yu et al.|2006|p=6242, 6244–6245}}

A genetic study published in the [[Russian Journal of Genetics]] in April 2014 examined the mtDNA of 17 Tuoba Xianbei buried at the Shangdu Dongdajing cemetery in Inner Mongolia, China. The 17 samples of mtDNA extracted belonged to haplogroups [[Haplogroup D (mtDNA)#D4|D4]] (four samples), [[Haplogroup D (mtDNA)#D5'6|D5]] (three samples), C (five samples), A (three samples), [[Haplogroup G (mtDNA)|G]] and B.{{sfn|Yu et al.|2014|p=310|loc=Table 2}}

A genetic study published in the ''[[American Journal of Physical Anthropology]]'' in November 2007 examined 17 individuals buried at a [[Murong]] Xianbei cemetery in Lamadong, [[Liaoning]], China ca. 300 AD.{{sfn|Wang al.|2007|p=404}} They were determined to be carriers of the maternal haplogroups [[Haplogroup J (mtDNA)|J1b1]], D (three samples), [[Haplogroup F (mtDNA)|F1a]] (three samples), [[Haplogroup M (mtDNA)|M]], B, [[Haplogroup B (mtDNA)|B5b]], C (three samples) and [[Haplogroup G (mtDNA)|G2a]].{{sfn|Wang al.|2007|p=408|loc=Table 3}} These haplogroups are common among East Asians and some Siberians. The maternal haplogroups of the Murong Xianbei were noticeably different from those of the Huns and Tuoba Xianbei.{{sfn|Wang al.|2007|p=404}}

A genetic study published in the ''American Journal of Physical Anthropology'' in August 2018 noted that the paternal [[Haplogroup C-M217|haplogroup C2b1a1b]] has been detected among the Xianbei and the [[Rouran]], and was probably an important lineage among the [[Donghu people]].{{sfn|Li et al.|2018|p=1}}

A full genome analysis published in November 2023 analyzed the genomic data of nine Xianbei individuals (ca. 200 CE to 300 CE), together with previous published Xianbei samples, covering almost the entire period of Xianbei as well as pre- and post-Xianbei periods, and found that the Xianbei displayed a homogenous population with nearly exclusive [[Ancient Northeast Asian]] ancestry. The authors further remark that these results are consistent with an [[Amur|Amur River region]], specifically around the [[Greater Khingan|Greater Khingan mountain range area]], origin for the ancestral Xianbei population. Early Xianbei did not display signs of admixture from surrounding groups, while later Xianbei displayed limited amounts of admixture with "late Xiongnu-[[Sarmatians|Sarmatian-like]]" and [[Han Chinese]] ("Yellow River farmer-like") groups. Later Xianbei in Northern China adopted an agricultural lifestyle and mixed with the local population, contributing to the genetic history of Northern China.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Cai |first1=Dawei |last2=Zheng |first2=Ying |last3=Bao |first3=Qingchuan |last4=Hu |first4=Xiaonong |last5=Chen |first5=Wenhu |last6=Zhang |first6=Fan |last7=Cao |first7=Jianen |last8=Ning |first8=Chao |date=24 November 2023 |title=Ancient DNA sheds light on the origin and migration patterns of the Xianbei confederation |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-023-01899-x |journal=Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences |language=en |volume=15 |issue=12 |pages=194 |doi=10.1007/s12520-023-01899-x |bibcode=2023ArAnS..15..194C |s2cid=265381985 |issn=1866-9565}}</ref>

A 2024 study on Xianbei remains, including the remains of [[Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou]], found them to be derived primarily from [[Ancient Northeast Asian|Ancient Northeast Asians]] at c. 62–96%, with a lower amount of admixture from Neolithic 'Yellow River farmers' (associated with [[Han Chinese]]) at c. 4–32%. [[Western Steppe Herders|Western Steppe Herder]] ancestry was only found at low amounts or absent entirely among the different Xianbei remains (average at c. 2–7%). The analysed Xianbei remains display their closest genetic affinities to ancient [[Khitan people|Khitan]] and [[Mohe people]], as well as modern-day [[Mongolic peoples]]. The amount of Ancient Northeast Asian and Yellow River farmer ancestries varied depending on geographic location, suggesting a form of heterogeneity among the ancient Xianbei. In contrast to the Xianbei, the early [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] ruling class, the [[Ashina tribe]], was found to be nearly entirely derived from Ancient Northeast Asians without significant Yellow River ancestry.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Du |first1=Panxin |last2=Zhu |first2=Kongyang |last3=Qiao |first3=Hui |last4=Zhang |first4=Jianlin |last5=Meng |first5=Hailiang |last6=Huang |first6=Zixiao |last7=Yu |first7=Yao |last8=Xie |first8=Shouhua |last9=Allen |first9=Edward |last10=Xiong |first10=Jianxue |last11=Zhang |first11=Baoshuai |last12=Chang |first12=Xin |last13=Ren |first13=Xiaoying |last14=Xu |first14=Yiran |last15=Zhou |first15=Qi |date=March 2024 |title=Ancient genome of the Chinese Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou |url=https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.059 |journal=Current Biology |volume=34 |issue=7 |pages=1587–1595.e5 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.059 |pmid=38552628 |bibcode=2024CBio...34E1587D |issn=0960-9822}}</ref>
{{Panorama
|image      = File:Tomb of Northern Qi Dynasty in Jiuyuangang, Xinzhou, Mural 01 large.jpg
|height     = 250
|caption    = [[Northern Qi]] hunting scene
}}
{{Panorama
|image      = File:Tomb of Northern Qi Dynasty in Jiuyuangang, Xinzhou, Mural 02 large.jpg
|height     = 250
|caption    = [[Northern Qi]] hunting scene
}}

==Notable people==
[[File:CMOC Treasures of Ancient China exhibit - figure of a female warrior.jpg|thumb|Female Xianbei figure]]

===Pre-dynastic===
* [[Tanshihuai]] (檀石槐, 136–181), Xianbei leader who led the Xianbei confederation
* [[Kebineng]] (軻比能, died 235), Xianbei chieftain who lived during the late [[Han dynasty|Eastern Han dynasty]] and [[Three Kingdoms]] period
* [[Tufa Shujineng]] (禿髮樹機能, died 279), Xianbei chieftain who lived during the Three Kingdoms period

===Sixteen Kingdoms===

==== Yan and Tuyuhun ====
* [[Murong Hui]] (慕容廆, 269–333), chieftain of the [[Murong|Murong tribe]] and Duke of Liaodong
* [[Murong Tuyuhun]] (慕容吐谷渾, 246–317), founder of the [[Tuyuhun]]
* [[Murong Huang]] (慕容皝, 297–348), founder of the [[Former Yan]]
* [[Murong Chui]] (慕容垂, 326–396), a general of the [[Former Yan]] and founder of the [[Later Yan]]
* [[Murong Ke]] (慕容恪, died 367), a general and statesman of the [[Former Yan]]
* [[Murong Chong]] (慕容沖, 359–386) second ruler of the [[Western Yan]]
* [[Murong De]] (慕容德, 336–405), founder of the [[Southern Yan]]

==== Dai ====
* [[Tuoba Yilu]] (拓跋猗盧, died 316), founder of the [[Tuoba Dai]]
* [[Tuoba Shiyijian|Tuoba Shiyiqian]] (拓跋什翼犍, 320–376), last ruler of the [[Tuoba Dai]]

==== Southern Liang ====

* [[Tufa Wugu]] (禿髮烏孤, died 399), founder of the [[Southern Liang (Sixteen Kingdoms)|Southern Liang]]
* [[Tufa Rutan]] (禿髮傉檀, 365–415), last ruler of the [[Southern Liang (Sixteen Kingdoms)|Southern Liang]]

==== Western Qin ====

* [[Qifu Gangui]] (乞伏乾歸, died 412), second ruler of the [[Western Qin]]
* [[Qifu Chipan]] (乞伏熾磐, died 428), third ruler of the [[Western Qin]]

===Northern dynasties===
[[File:MurongPainting.jpg|thumb|right|Painting depicting a [[Murong|Xianbei Murong]] archer in a tomb of the [[Former Yan]] (337–370).]]
* [[Tuoba Gui]] (拓跋珪, 371–409), founding emperor of the [[Northern Wei]]
* [[Tuoba Tao]] (拓拔燾, 408–452), third emperor of the [[Northern Wei]]
* [[Yuan He|Tufa Poqiang]] (禿髮破羌, 407–479), a paramount general of the [[Northern Wei]]
* [[Yuwen Tai]] (宇文泰, 507–556), a paramount general of the state [[Western Wei]], a branch successor state of [[Northern Wei]]
* [[Dugu Xin]] (独孤信, 503–557), a paramount general of the state [[Western Wei]]
* [[Yuchi Jiong]] (尉遲迥, died 580), a paramount general of the states [[Western Wei]] and [[Northern Zhou]]
* [[Lou Zhaojun]] (婁昭君, 501–562), an [[empress dowager]] of the state [[Northern Qi]]
* [[Lu Lingxuan]] (陸令萱, died 577), a [[lady in waiting]] in the palace of the state [[Northern Qi]]
* [[Yuwen Hu]] (宇文護, 513–572), a [[regent]] of the state [[Northern Zhou]]
* [[Emperor Xiaojing of Eastern Wei]] (魏孝靜帝, 524-550) founder and only emperor of the state [[Eastern Wei]]
* [[Mu Tipo]] (穆提婆, 527–577), a paramount official of the state [[Northern Qi]]
* [[Mu Sheli|Mu Yeli]] (穆邪利, 557–577), an empress of the state [[Northern Qi]]
* [[Gao Anagong]] (高阿那肱, died 580), a paramount official and general of the state [[Northern Qi]]
* [[Empress Dugu (Northern Zhou)|Queen Dugu]] (獨孤王后, 536–558), a queen of the state [[Northern Zhou]]
* [[Yuwen Yong]] (宇文邕, 543–578), emperor of the state [[Northern Zhou]]

===Sui dynasty===
* [[Dugu Qieluo]] (獨孤伽羅, 544–602), formally '''Empress Wenxian''' (文獻皇后), an empress of the [[Sui dynasty]]
* [[Yang Yichen (Sui dynasty)|Yuchi Yichen]] (尉遲義臣, died 617), a prominent general of the [[Sui dynasty]]
* [[Yuwen Shu]] (宇文述, died 616), a paramount general of the Sui dynasty
* [[Yuwen Huaji]] (宇文化及, 569–619), a paramount general of the Sui dynasty
* [[Yuwen Zhiji]] (宇文智及, 572–619), a general of the Sui dynasty

===Tang dynasty===
* [[Empress Zhangsun]] (長孫皇后, 601–636), an empress of the [[Tang dynasty]]. She was the wife of [[Emperor Taizong of Tang|Emperor Taizong]]
* [[Zhangsun Wuji]] (長孫無忌, died 659), a paramount official who served both as general and [[chancellor of the Tang dynasty|chancellor]] in the early [[Tang dynasty]]
* [[Yuchi Jingde]] (尉遲敬德, 585–658), a famous general who lived in the early [[Tang dynasty]], Yuchi Jingde and another general [[Qin Shubao]] are worshipped as [[door god]]s in [[Chinese folk religion]]
* [[Qutu Tong]] (屈突通, 557–628), a general in the [[Sui dynasty|Sui]] and [[Tang dynasty|Tang]] dynasties of China. He was listed as one of 24 founding officials of the Tang dynasty honored on the [[Lingyan Pavilion]] due to his contributions in wars during the [[Transition from Sui to Tang|transitional period from Sui to Tang]]
* [[Zhangsun Shunde]] (長孫顺德, ?–?), a general in the early [[Tang dynasty]]
* [[Yuwen Shiji]] (宇文士及, died 642), an official who served both as general and [[chancellor of the Tang dynasty|chancellor]] in the early [[Tang dynasty]]
* [[Yu Zhining]] (于志寧, 588–665), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reigns of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Gaozong
* [[Dou Dexuan]] (竇德玄, 598–666), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Gaozong
* [[Yuwen Jie]] (宇文節, ?–?), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Gaozong
* [[Lou Shide]] (婁師德, 630–699), a scholar-general of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of [[Wu Zetian]]
* [[Doulu Qinwang]] (豆盧欽望, 624–709), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of [[Wu Zetian]]
* [[Dou Huaizhen]] (竇懷貞, died 713), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong
* [[Yuwen Rong]] (宇文融, died 731), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong
* [[Yuan Qianyao]] (源乾曜, died 731), a chancellor of the Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong
* [[Yu Di (Tang dynasty)|Yu Di]] (于頔, died 818), a general and official of the Tang dynasty
* [[Tutu Chengcui]] (吐突承璀, died 820), a paramount [[eunuch (court official)|eunuch]] official of the middle [[Tang dynasty]]
* [[Yuan Zhen]] (元稹, 779–831), a poet and politician of the middle [[Tang dynasty]]
* [[Yu Cong]] (于琮, died 881), a chancellor of the late Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Yizong
* [[Doulu Zhuan]] (豆盧瑑, died 881), a chancellor of the late Tang dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Xizong
==Modern descendants==
{{see also|Change of Xianbei names to Han names}}
Most Xianbei clans adopted Chinese family names during the Northern Wei dynasty. In particular, [[Change of Xianbei names to Han names|many were sinicized]] under [[Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei]].

The Northern Wei's Eight Noble Xianbei surnames [[w:zh:八大贵族|八大贵族]] were the Buliugu 步六孤, Helai 賀賴, [[Dugu (surname)|Dugu]] [[w:zh:獨孤|獨孤]], Helou 賀樓, Huniu 忽忸, Qiumu 丘穆, Gexi 紇奚, and Yuchi [[w:zh:尉遲|尉遲]].

The "[[Monguor people|Monguor]]" (Tu) people in modern China may have descended from the Xianbei who were led by [[Tuyuhun]] Khan to migrate westward and establish the [[Tuyuhun Kingdom]] (284–670) in the third century and [[Western Xia]] (1038–1227) through the thirteenth century.<ref>Lü, Jianfu [呂建福], 2002. Tu zu shi [The Tu History] 土族史. Beijing [北京], Zhongguo she hui ke xue chu ban she [Chinese Social Sciences Press] 中囯社会科学出版社.</ref> Today they are primarily distributed in Qinghai and Gansu Province, and speak a Mongolic language.

The [[Xibe people|Xibe]] or "Xibo" people also believe they are descendants of the Xianbei, with considerable controversies that have attributed their origins to the [[Jurchens]], the [[Oroqen people|Elunchun]], and the Xianbei.<ref>Liaoning Provincial Nationalities Research Institute 辽宁省民族硏究所 (1986). Xibo zu shi lun kao [Examination on the History of the Xibo Nationality] 锡伯族史论考. Shenyang, Liaoning Nationalities Press</ref><ref>Ji Nan [嵇南] and Wu Keyao [吳克尧] (1990). Xibo zu [Xibo Nationality] 锡伯族. Beijing, Nationalities Press.</ref>

Xianbei descendants among the Korean population carry surnames such as Mo 모 ({{zh|c=[[w:zh:慕姓|慕]]|p=mù|w=mu}} (shortened from [[Murong]])), 석; ([[Revised Romanization]]: Seok; [[McCune–Reischauer]]: Sŏk; {{zh|c=[[w:zh:石姓|石]]|p=shí|w=shih}} (shortened from Wushilan 烏石蘭)), 원 (Revised Romanization: Won; McCune–Reischauer: Wŏn; {{zh|c=[[w:zh:元姓|元]]|p=yuán|w=yüan}} (the adopted Chinese surname of the [[Tuoba]]) and Dokgo [[w:ko:독고|독고]] ({{zh|c=[[w:zh:獨孤|獨孤]]|p=Dúgū|w=Tuku}} (from [[Dugu (surname)|Dugu]])).<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.surname.info/dokgo/nam_won.html | title=성씨정보 &#124; 남원독고씨 (南原 獨孤氏) – 시조(始祖) : 독고신(獨孤信) :+|website=Surname.info}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.surname.info/dokgo/ingu/dokgo.html | title=성씨정보 &#124; 독고씨 (獨孤氏) – 인구 분포도 (人口 分布圖) :+ |website=Surname.info}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rootsinfo.co.kr/info/roots/view_bon.php?H=%D4%BC%CD%B5&S=%B5%B6%B0%ED |title=독고씨(獨孤氏)의 본관 :: 뿌리를 찾아서 :: |access-date=1 July 2016 |archive-date=10 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170110140705/http://www.rootsinfo.co.kr/info/roots/view_bon.php?H=%D4%BC%CD%B5&S=%B5%B6%B0%ED |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.djjunggu.go.kr/prog/fanmOrgn/hyo/sub03_04/view.do?orgnNo=339 |title=성씨유래검색> 효문화 사이트 |access-date=1 July 2016 |archive-date=15 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815045755/http://hyo.djjunggu.go.kr/html/hyo/museum/museum_040401_2.html?mng_no=339 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/1207177?availability=Family+History+Library|title=FamilySearch Catalog: 남원독고씨족보 南原獨孤氏族譜, 2권, 930–1935 |website=Familysearch.org|access-date=24 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.surname.info/dokgo/nam_won-roots.html | title=성씨정보 &#124; 남원 독고씨 (南原獨孤氏) – 상계 세계도(上系世系圖) :+ |website=Surname.info}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.surname.info/dokgo/nam_won-population.html | title=성씨정보 &#124; 남원독고씨 (南原 獨孤氏) – 인구 분포도 (人口 分布圖) :+|website=Surname.info}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin}}
*{{citation|last=Cosmo|first=Nicola di|year=2009|title=Military Culture in Imperial China|publisher=Harvard University Press}}
*{{citation|last=de Crespigny|first=Rafe |year=2007|title=A Biographical Dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms|publisher=Brill}}
*{{citation|last=de Crespigny|first=Rafe|year=2010|title=Imperial Warlord|publisher=Brill}}
*{{citation|last=de Crespigny|first=Rafe|year=2017|title=Fire Over Luoyang: A History of the Later Han Dynasty, 23–220 AD|publisher=Brill}}
* {{cite journal|last= Golden|first= Peter Benjamin|author-link=Peter Benjamin Golden|title= Some Notes on the Avars and Rouran|url= https://www.academia.edu/5580491|journal= The Steppe Lands and the World Beyond Them|year= 2013|editor1-last= Curta|editor1-first= Florin|editor2-last= Maleon|editor2-first= Bogdan-Petru|publisher= Editura Universității "A.I. Cuza" Publisher|publication-place= Iași|pages= 43–66}}
*{{citation|last=Holcombe|first=Charles|year=2014|title=The Xianbei in Chinese History}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Li |first1=Jiawei |last2=Zhao |first2=Jongbin |display-authors=1 |date=August 2018 |title=The genome of an ancient Rouran individual reveals an important paternal lineage in the Donghu population |journal=[[American Journal of Physical Anthropology]] |publisher=[[American Association of Physical Anthropologists]] |volume=166 |issue=4 |pages= 895–905|doi=10.1002/ajpa.23491 |pmid=29681138 |ref={{harvid|Li et al.|2018}}}}
*{{citation|last=Twitchett|first=Denis|year=2008|title=The Cambridge History of China: Volume 1|publisher=Cambridge University Press}}
*{{cite book|author= Janhunen|title=The Mongolic Languages|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DuCRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA364|date=27 January 2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-79690-7|page=393}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Wang |first1=Haijing |last2=Ge |first2=Binwen |display-authors=1 |date=November 2007 |title=Molecular genetic analysis of remains from Lamadong cemetery, Liaoning, China |journal=[[American Journal of Physical Anthropology]] |publisher=[[American Association of Physical Anthropologists]] |volume=134 |issue=3 |pages=404–411 |doi=10.1002/ajpa.20685 |pmid=17632796 |ref={{harvid|Wang al.|2007}}|doi-access=free }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Yu |first1=Changchun |last2=Li |first2=Xie |display-authors=1 |date=20 October 2006 |title=Genetic analysis on Tuoba Xianbei remains excavated from Qilang Mountain Cemetery in Qahar Right Wing Middle Banner of Inner Mongolia |journal=[[The FEBS Journal]] |publisher=[[Wiley (publisher)|Wiley]] |volume=580 |issue=26 |pages=6242–6246 |doi=10.1016/j.febslet.2006.10.030 |pmid=17070809 |s2cid=19492267 |ref={{harvid|Yu et al.|2006}}|doi-access= |bibcode=2006FEBSL.580.6242C }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Yu |first1=C.-C. |last2=Zhao |first2=Y. B. |display-authors=1 |date=6 April 2014 |title=Genetic analyses of Xianbei populations about 1,500–1,800 years old |journal=[[Russian Journal of Genetics]] |publisher=[[Springer Science+Business Media|Springer]] |volume=50 |issue=3 |pages=308–314 |doi=10.1134/S1022795414030119 |issn=1022-7954 |pmid=17070809 |s2cid=18809679 |ref={{harvid|Yu et al.|2014}}}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|auto=1}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20050211184004/http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/twain/1279/royalhouse/xianbei/senbeilanguage.htm 鮮卑語言 The Xianbei language] (Chinese Traditional Big5 code page) via [[Internet Archive]]
*[http://gumilevica.kulichki.net/English/hph05.html The Routes of TanShiHuai's campaigns in 156–178 AD]

{{16 Kingdoms |state=autocollapse}}
{{Historical Non-Chinese peoples in China}}
{{Donghu and Xianbei}}
{{Mongolic ethnic groups}}
{{Inner Asia}}
{{Empires}}
{{Portal bar|China|History|auto=1}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Xianbei]]
[[Category:Mongol peoples]]
[[Category:History of Manchuria]]
[[Category:Ancient peoples of China]]
[[Category:Inner Asia]]
[[Category:Agglutinative languages]]
[[Category:Unclassified languages of Asia]]
[[Category:Extinct languages of Asia]]
[[Category:Donghu people]]
[[Category:Former countries in Chinese history]]
[[Category:Nomadic groups in Eurasia]]
[[Category:States and territories established in the 2nd century]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in the 3rd century]]
[[Category:230s disestablishments]]
[[Category:Former empires]]
[[Category:Former confederations]]
[[Category:Mongol states]]