Xianbei

The Xianbei were an ancient people of the eastern Eurasian steppe who became major political and military powers in northern China from the first centuries CE.

Donghu: The Donghu were an ancient confederation of eastern steppe peoples known from Chinese histories. Chinese accounts place the Xianbei among peoples who emerged from the Donghu after their defeat by the Xiongnu.
Tanshihuai: A third-century Xianbei leader who united multiple groups into a powerful confederation. His confederation marked a high point of early Xianbei political unity.
Northern Wei: A dynasty founded by the Tuoba Xianbei that ruled much of northern China from 386 to 534. It converted Tuoba military power into an enduring imperial government.
Northern and Southern dynasties: A period from 420 to 589 when northern and southern Chinese regimes ruled separately. Xianbei-founded Northern Wei and its successor states defined much of the northern half of this era.
Xiongnu: The Xiongnu were a powerful confederation of nomadic peoples who dominated the eastern Eurasian steppe for centuries. Their defeat of the Donghu reshaped the political landscape from which Xianbei groups rose.
Tuoba Xianbei: A Xianbei group whose ruling house founded the Northern Wei dynasty in northern China. The Tuoba built the most consequential Xianbei-led state.
Sixteen Kingdoms: A period of competing states in northern China from 304 to 439. Xianbei-led regimes were among the principal states competing during this era.
Sinicization of the Xianbei: The transformation of Xianbei elites through adoption of Chinese surnames, language, dress, and institutions. This process altered elite identities and relations between rulers and subjects.
Eastern Eurasian Steppe: The grassland belt stretching across eastern Eurasia, supporting mobile pastoralist societies and long-distance exchange. Its ecology and routes formed the setting for Xianbei mobility and power.
Murong Xianbei: A Xianbei group that founded several states in northeastern China during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. Their regimes show that Xianbei political power extended beyond the Tuoba.

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