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painting of a pale Asian woman with dark hair

Khitan history – a Khitan woman, ca. 1000 AD (Musee Guimet, Paris)

Who are the Khitan?

The Khitan are part of the big group of Turkic and Altaic language speakers from Central Asia who gradually got more and more power during the Middle Ages.

Central Asian history
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Where did the Khitan live?

By 300 AD, the Khitan were already living in the eastern part of Central Asia, north of China. Like other northern Asian people, they rode horses, kept herds of cattle, fished, and hunted.

More about cattle
Bows and arrows

During the Early Middle Ages, the Khitan lived in between two more powerful groups: first the Gokturks and then (after 742 AD) the Uighurs to their west and China to their south. Khitan soldiers fought as mercenaries for both the Uighurs and the Chinese. But like other mercenaries in other places about the same time, the Khitan slowly learned more about their employers, and began to think about getting some power themselves.

What is a mercenary soldier?
Who were the Gokturks?
More about the Uighurs
Three Kingdoms China

clay statue of an asian man sitting cross-legged wearing brown and green robes

Liao Dynasty Buddhist monk, ca. 1000 AD (Musee Guimet, Paris)

The Liao Dynasty

So when the Uighur empire collapsed in 841 and the T’ang Dynasty collapsed about 900 AD, the Khitan were ready to jump into power.

The T’ang Dynasty
More China articles

In 907 AD the Khitan renamed themselves the Liao Dynasty, and they gradually conquered south and west, taking over old Chinese and Uighur land. As the Liao Dynasty, the Khitan forced the Chinese Song Dynasty to pay them lots of gold every year as tribute.

More about the Song Dynasty

The Khitan got rich and learned to write Chinese (or bought enslaved Chinese people who could write). The Khitan also developed their own writing system, though nobody really knows how to read it anymore. Just like many people in China at the same time, most Khitan people now converted to Buddhism.

Writing in China
Buddhism in China

The Jurchen defeat the Khitan

Who were the Jurchen?

Western Liao Dynasty

Most of the Khitan people, under the leadership of their khan, Yelu Dashi, followed their old enemies the Uighurs further west. The Khitan settled even further west than the Uighurs, in what is now Kazakhstan. Chinese historians called this new Khitan empire the Western Liao Dynasty.
The Khitan did bring a lot of Chinese culture with them to Kazakhstan – further west than any Chinese culture had ever traveled before. The old word “Cathay” for China comes from the word “Khitai” (a variation of Khitan) from when early travelers saw these Khitan people acting like Chinese people. They used the Chinese language, the Chinese calendar, and Chinese coins, and they were Buddhists.

Women ruled the Khitan

As was usual in Central Asia, and as was common in Song Dynasty China as well, many of the Khitan rulers were women. When the khan Yelu Dashi died in 1143, his wife Xiao Tabuyan ruled as regent for their son. After their son, Yelu Yiliu, died in 1163, his sister Yelu Pusuwan ruled the Khitan.

What is a regent?
Women rulers in Song Dynasty China
More about women in Central Asia
More about women in China

silver coin of Toregene

Coin of Toregene

But to the east, the Mongols were already conquering the Jurchen and expanding their empire. By 1220 the Khitan became part of the Mongol Empire under Genghis Khan. But after Genghis Khan died, the Mongol queen Toregene also ruled the Khitan.

Genghis Khan and Toregene

So did you find out what you wanted to know about Khitan history? Let us know in the comments!

Find out about the Jurchen and the Mongols

Bibiography and further reading about Khitan history:

Main Central Asia page