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The Dingling/Gaoche/Chile/Tiele (丁零/高車/敕勒/铁勒, conventionally spelled Dinlin) are Europoid people who in the 1st millennium BC and 1st millenium AD lived in the terrotory of the Sayan-Altai mountains, Minusinsk depression, and Tuva west of Lake Baikal in ancient So.Siberia^[1][2]. Ancient Chinese viewed the northern edge of desert Gobi as the native land of Dinlins^[3]. Chinese used the term "Dinlin" as a metaphor underlining the Europoidness as distinctive feature^[4].

Dinlins are described as of average height, frequently tall, stout and strong constitution, with elongated face, white skin with rosy cheeks, blond hair, straight nose protruding forward, frequently hawk nose, light eyes. This description, drawn from the written sources, is also confirmed by archeology. Sayan-Altai was an aboriginal land of the Afanasev archeological culture dated approximately from 2000 BC. Anthropologically the Afanasevs are a distinct race. They had sharply protruding nose, relatively low face, low eye-sockets, wide forehead, all these attributes indicate their belonging to the European trunk. From modern Europeans the Afanasievs differ by considerably wider face. In that respect they are alike the Upper-Paleolithic Cromagnon skulls of the Western Europe. The successors of the Afanasievs were the tribes of Tagar Culture who lived until the 3rd century BC. The Afanasievs-Dinlins carried their culture across centuries, despite invasions of very different tribes^[5].

Dinlins were already around during the time of the Xiongnu Empire.

Contents 1 Origin and migration 2 Etymology 3 Language 4 Anthropology 5 Geography 6 Social Organization and Economy 7 Religious Beliefs 8 Initial Political Relationships 9 Ethnical Affiliations 10 Late Dinlins 11 Rulers of Gaoche 12 Notes and references 13 See also

[edit] Origin and migration

The Dinglings were a numerous, warlike, vital ethnos of hunters, fishers, and gatherers of the southern Siberian mountain taiga from the Lake Baikal to Altai Range. They dominated this area for millennia, from the Neolithic down to the founding of the Xiongnu Confederacy. Along the edges of the retreating glaciers, among grazing herds of game animals like mammoth, bison, elk, reindeer, musk ox, etc., a large part of the proto-Dingling gradually wandered along the streams of the Amur, Lena and Aldan, all the way to the Pacific coast, and further to Alaska. Another group of this ethnos migrated toward the northwest in the watersheds of the Irtysh, Ob and Yenisei.

In Chinese chronicles, the Dingling usually correspond with tribe's name like Gaoche, Chile and Tiele, and in many chronicles they were considered to be the former Dinglings under commentaries made in the later era. The Dingling are no longer mentioned by the 7th century and gradually replaced. According to the Weilue, one group of Dingling escaped to the western steppe in Kazakhstan while the remaining Dingling became absorbed into various Altaic peoples known as the Gaoche, and later, the Tiele. Groups such as Xueyantuo (Syr-Tardush), Basmil (Ch. Baximi), Oguz (Ch. Wuhu), Uyghur (Ch. Weihu), and the northern most Yakut (Guligan) from the Lake Baikal are the Tiele tribes. Section of a typical extract from the Book of Sui volume 84:

The forebear of the Tiele belonged to those of Xiongnu descendants, and had the largest divisions of tribes. They occupied along the valleys, scattering in the vast region west to the Western Sea [Black Sea]:

1. At the area north of the Duluo River [Tuul River], are the Pugu, Tongluo, Weihu [Uyghur], Bayegu, Fuluo, which are composited into the Sijin legion, other tribes such as Mengchen, Turuhu, Sijie, Hun, Hu, Xue and so forth, also dwelled in this area. They have a 20,000 invincible armies.
2. In the regions west of Yiwu [Kumul], the north of Yanqi [Karashahr], near the edge of the White Mountains [Tian Shan], come to the abodes of Qipi, Boluozhi, Yizhi, Supo, Nahe, Wuhu [Oguz], Hugu [Kirgiz], Yezhi, Yunihu and so forth. They have a 20,000 invincible armies.
3. After passing the south west from the Gold Mountains [Altay Mountains], are the Xueyantuo [Syr-Tardush], Zhileer, Shipan [Yueban], Daqi and so forth. They have a 10,000 invincible armies.
4. Leaving these, we come to the regions north of Kang [Samarkand], near the river of Ade [Volga], here, dwell the Hezhi, Bahu, Bigan [Pecheneg], Juhai, Hebixi, Hecuo, Suba, Yemo, Keda and so forth. They have a 30,000 invincible armies.
5. At the western portion, from the east to the west of the De Yi Sea [Caspian Sea], are the Sulu, Hesan [Hazar], Suoye, Miecu, Longhu and so forth. They have a 8,000 invincible armies.
6. Until we reach to the east of Fulin [the Byzantine Empire], are the Enqu, Alan [Alans], Beiru, Jiuli, Fuwahun and so forth. They have a nearly 20,000 invincible armies.
7. And lastly, in the regions south of the Northern Sea [Lake Baikal], dwell the Dubo [Tuva] and also some other tribes.

The names of these tribes are different, but all of them can be classified as Tiele. The Tiele don't have a master, they are subjected to the both Eastern and Western Göktürks separately. They don't have permanent residence, and moved with the changes of grass and water. Their main characteristics are: [1] they possessed great ferocity, and yet showed tolerance, [2] they were good riders and archers, and [3] they showed greed without restraint, for they often made their living by looting. These tribes toward the west were more cultivated, for they bred cattle and sheep, but fewer horses. Since the Göktürks had established a state, they were recruited as the auxiliary of empire and conquered both east and westard, thus annexing all of the northern regional lands.

The customs of the Tiele and Göktürks are not much different. However a man of the Tiele lives in his wife's home after marriage and will not return to his own home with his wife until the birth of a child. In addition, the Tiele also bury their dead under the ground.

[edit] Etymology

Although the words dingling, gaoche, chile and tiele (as in modern Mandarin pronunciation of pinyin romanisation) are often used interchangeably, this usage is erroneous as pointed out by modern academia. Dingling refers to an extinct ethnic group. The Gaoche was an ethnic-tribe that expelled by Juan Juan from Mongolia and founded a state (487-541) at Turpan, which was descended in part from the Dingling. The Tiele was a collection of tribes of different Altaic ethnic-origins which largely descended from the Chile. All four groups somewhat happened to occupy quite a similar geographical area in succession of each other with an exception for the first one.

[edit] Language

According to Russian linguist experts on Slavic languages, proposed that probably, the Proto-Dinglings spoke a polysynthetic language with an active typology, and exhibited, linguistically and culturally, a unified ethnic community. Heinrich Werner's Zur jenissejisch-indianischen Urverwandtschaft, (Concerning Yeniseian-Indian Word Origins) developed a new genealogical concept, which he terms “Baikal-Siberic,”in which the Yeniseian peoples (Arin, Assan, Yugh, Ket, Kott, and Pumpokol), the Na-Dene “Indians,” and the Ding-ling folk of the ancient Chinese chronicles can all be traced back to “Proto-Dingling.” The linguistic comparison of Na-Dene and Yeniseian shows that the quantity and character of the correspondences point unequivocally to common origin (Urverwandtschaft).”

Ding-ling can be seen to resemble (1) the Yeniseian word *dzheng ‘people’ > Ket de?ng, Yug dyeng, Kott cheang; and (2) the Na-Dene word *ling or *hling ‘people’, as manifested in the name of the Tlingit (properly hling-git ‘son of man, child of the people’), etc.

[edit] Anthropology

In antiquity in Eastern Asia were two Europoid races of the 2-nd order, Dinlins and Di. The dolichocranial Dinlins of Cromagnon type lived in So.Siberia since prehistoric times^[6]. Chinese in antiquity called the Sayan mountains Dinlin, emphasizing location of the strange people ^[7]. The presence of different type Europoids, dolichocranial Dinlins in Siberia and long-headed brachicranial Di in China shows two branches of the European racial trunk from different racial types, they were similar, but not identical. The southern branch of Dinlins, coaching south from Sayan mountains, intermixed with the ancestors of the Huns, and Chinese noted high noses to be a distinctive attribute of the Huns^[8].

Anthropologically, in the antique time the Europoid short-headed type were intermixing with Chinese Mongoloid narrow-faced type. The Mongoloid wide-faced type at that time was located to the north from Gobi. From analysis of the historical events it is clear that the difference of Dinlins and Di from the Chinese inside China and from Huns outside of it was obvious to the contemporaries^[9].

L.N. Gumilev gives a fascinating description of the Hun ancestry, noting that northern Chinese type is different from the Mongolian type, the Chinese are narrow-faced, thin, slender, and the Mongols are wide-cheeked, short, stout. The composition of the Huns defined the Huns' character, Dinlin's high noses and fierceness was combined with the Chinese love of order, and with the Mongolian endurance^[10].

According to the Chinese descriptions of the Dinlins, "the inhabitants are generally tall, with red hair, with rosy cheeks and blue eyes. Black hair was considered a bad sign, and people with brown eyes were reputed as Chinese descendants". This description correlates with the results of excavations, in the Tashtyk Epoch (2nd century BC - 4th century AD) was practiced cremation, but the remains were covered with a funeral portrait mask. The faces are of three types:

1. Large face, with week cheek bones, thick lips, straight eyes, prognathic chin and thin long aquiline noses.

2. Large face, wider, thick lips, straight eyes, straight noses.

3. Thinner face, elongated, with week cheek bones, thin lips, straight eyes, moderate chins and tiny slightly upward noses. The faces of the last group approach the masks found in the Tagar kurgans and Tashtyk underground tombs such as Oglahty. The masks were anthropologically investigated by anthropologist G.F.Debets, who characterized the Tashtyk masks as mixed Europoid and Mongoloid, most of all reminding modern Shors and Khakases^[11]. The expensive artistic masks belonged to rich people. In contrast with the Pazyryk tombs with Mongoloids adorned with chestnut toupee beards, the Dinlin elders were imitating Huns in clothing, manners, and tastes, reflected in their art. The masks are also ornamented with very graceful pattern, like tattooed faces in Hunnish tradition, exhibiting the Hun influence on Dinlins^[12].

Paleoantropology finds a complex mix of population:

1. The basic type of the Dinlin-descendent population was dolichocranial, Europoid, philogenetically connected with Proto-European type.

2. The mostly dolichocranial type is admixed with brachicranial Europoid type of Di ~ Ainu.

3. The substrate dolichocranial type has a small admixture of Mongoloid brachicranial type belonging to the Siberian branch of the Asian phylogeny. Possibly, the Mongoloid admixture is a trace of Far Eastern type of the Karasuk penetration into the Minusinsk territory^[13].

The Dinlin's forms of life established after the Hunnish conquest included intensive cultural exchange, and as a result developed a new Tashtysh Culture with sharply increased density of the Asian component^[14].

[edit] Geography

Dinlins lived north of the Huns, the ancient borders of the Huns coincided with the modern borders of the Chinese Inner Mongolia. Dinlins occupied both slopes of the Sayan ridge, from Yenisei to Selenga rivers. Kyrgyzes, a mixture of Dinlins with a unknown tribe Gyanhun (Chinese "Tsigu") lived along Yenisei, and to the west of them, on the northern slope of Altai, lived Kipchaks (in Chinese "Küeshe"), in appearance similar with Dinlins and, probably, related with them^[15]. Grumm-Grjimailo traced Kipchaks to a Boma branch of the Dinlin tribe^[16]. Chinese annals tell that Kipchaks lived in Altai, in a "Djilan" (snake) valley^[17]. This explains the Mongolian name of Kimak-Kipchak people, the Kais, a "snake" in Mongolian^[18] Kipchaks (in Chinese - "Küeshe") lived to the west from the Huns, in appearance Kipchaks were like Dinlins and, probably, related with them. Hun Shanuy and nobility collected tribute from the subordinated tribes, probably receiving furs from the northern border Kipchaks, Dinlins and Khakases^[19].

[edit] Social Organization and Economy

Dinlins lives by primitive agriculture, settled cattle breeding and hunting, they dressed in Chinese woolen and silk fabrics. Gold became common, Dinlins started mining iron, but the bronze still was in use. Among Dinlins greatly increased social stratification, tombs can be divided into rich and poor, the rich were accompanied by slaves into their graves, a custom borrowed from the Huns. From the 1st c. BC between Dinlins began to prevail the influence of the eastern Huns, and the elements of the western culture were remaining as relicts^[20].

[edit] Religious Beliefs

Huns borrowed their magnificent cult of personified cosmos from their western neighbors, later White Huns or Kushans (Üechji), or Dinlins, because E.Asian Mongoloids had no such cult, but were polyspiritualists. Huns also believed in spirits and existence beyond the grave, and the naive nomadic consciousness envisioned it as a continuation of life. The belief in afterlife led to magnificent funerals in double coffins, dressing the deceased in brocade and precious furs to protect the deceased from the cold, with a few hundred sacrificed friends and concubines to serve the deceased in the next world. The tradition of accompanying Shanuy or a noble into the afterlife coexisted with human sacrifice to pra-fathers of brave captives, and the spirits demanded sacrifices through the priests, a tradition of human sacrifices was connected with the Siberian component of the Hun religion, with very ancient Chinese shamanism and, probably, with the Tibetan Bon religion^[21].

The Chinese defeats of the Huns in the end of the 1st c. AD, and subsequent disintigration of the Hunnish rule lead to the changes of funeral ceremony: the ancient burial was replaced with cremation, marking a change of religious tradition, the ancient Türks (Türküts) inherited the new religion and it survived until the 9th century AD. Chinese had influenced Dinlins, Dinlin kurgans had Chinese ware just like the large Hun's kurgan in Noin-Ula. Dinlins were Sinicized along with their masters, the Huns. But the ancient Dinlin customs continued to exist along with the cultural change, like a custom of tattooing the arms of the braves. This custom was archeologically confirmed during excavation of the second Pazyryk kurgan. The Dinlin culture of the Tashtyk Epoch was a hybrid and survived to the 2nd century AD^[22].

[edit] Initial Political Relationships

By the 214 BC Huns already had Shanuy, but were subjects of Mongolian Dunhu, maybe because of failures in struggle with Üechjes or Sayan Dinlins^[23]. In 203-202 BC Hun's Khan Mode subordinated the Huns-related tribe Hunüy, the Dinlin's tribe Küeshe - Kipchaks north from Altai, and their eastern neighbors Dinlins on the northern slopes of the Sayan mountains from upper Yenisei to Angara, and Geguns - Kirgizes in the W. Mongolia territory near lake Kyrgyznor ^[24].

When Mode subordinated these tribes they belonged to the Tagar Culture in its last third stage, already passed Bronze Age and started to use iron. Their economy was agriculture and settled cattle breeding. Their kurgans contain plenty of weapons, showing that they were aggressive people. The complexity of their burials show their patriarchal social organization, just like their Hun neighbors, but without traces of a statehood. Their art was stylistically unified with the art of Altai and Scythia, indicating their belonging to the western cultural complex, but they are anything but the carriers of peripheral provincial culture. "Powerful Minusinsk cultural center influenced wide taiga-steppe areas of W.Siberia and, apparently, even the Ananian Culture in the E.Europe"^[25]. During the 90es BC attack by Chinese ruler U-Di against Hulugu-Shanuy Huns, the Shanuy summoned vassal tribes, and among his allies were Yenisei Dinlins, red-bearded giants in wooden cuirasses with infinitely sharp weapons, under command of a Chinese defector Vey Lüy. The small size of the main army of only 50 thousand Huns and Dinlins was compensated by high fighting spirit of the nomads^[26].

In the summer of 71 BC Dinlins revolted, and together with Usuns from the west, and Ühuans from the east, devastated Huns^[27]. But in 57 BC Huns again subdued Dinlins and Hagases (Khakasses, called ancient Chinese name - Gyanguns)^[28].

[edit] Ethnical Affiliations

Probably, Dinlins descended from the southern Di, and Yenisei Kyrgyzes were the Europoid natives of Siberia,^[29].

Boma were a branch of Dinlins, and Kipchaks were a branch of Boma, genetically possibly Yenisei Ostyaks, i.e. [[Kets. In antiquity Kipchaks lived in Altai, in a valley Chinese called Chjelyan, undoubtedly a transcription of word "Djilan" = snake (from there the Snake mountain and the city with Russified name Zmyoinogorsk, i.e. "Snake Mountain")^[30].

Boma can't be identified neither with Dili (Tele), nor with Dinlins. Boma, or more correct, Alakchins and Bikins are racially similar but ethnically distinct from Dinlins Probably they were spread very wide, from Altai to Baikal, in dispersed groups, as many other Siberian tribes^[31].

Kipchaks were among Türküt subject peoples, after the 630 defeat with the other defeated tribes a part of them settled in Alashan near their former Türküt masters. The other part intermixed with Kangals and formed people known under a name Kumans^[32]. Under the leadership of Ashina khans they joined a second component in the restored horde, the Sirs, descendants of Seyanto, a fact documented in the Tonyukuk inscription, where the tribal union is called "Türksir budun", i.e. Türkic-Sir people^[33].

Kipchaks were among peoples subject to Türkic Kaganate, after defeat in 630 AD a part of Kipchaks coached in Alashan, mixed with Kangals, and formed people known as Kumans. The second component in the restored Türkic Kaganate of Ashina khans were Sirs, descendants of Seyanto, expressed in the Tonyukuk inscription as "Türksir budun", i.e. Türkic-Sir people^[34].

[edit] Late Dinlins

In 48 BC Huns again had to subdue both Dinlins and Hagases (Khakasses), restoring the Hun sovereignty in the Western Mongolia and Minusinsk depression, but right after that Dinlins and Hagases (Khakasses) regained their freedom. Eventually these two peoples merged to produce Yenisei Kyrgyz people^[35]. In the middle of the 1st c. AD the Hun empire split into the Northern and Southern Hunnia. Dinlins remained in the Northern Hun state. The relations between Huns and Dinlins grew aggravated, and Syanbi concluded a union with Chinese. In the 86 AD Dinlins revolted, and in the 90 AD switched to the side of the Chinese-Syanbi coalition. Not able to battle their numerous Chinese, Syanbi, and Dinlin enemies, Huns abandoned their native land, but saved their freedom. In the Baraba and Karaganda steppes the Huns recovered from defeat, and 15 years later restarted the war for Asia. For a time, Dinlins controlled the Hin's steppes^[36]. From 155 to 166 AD reorganized Syanbi stopped Dinlins in the north and pushed them into Sayan mountains, struck Usuns in the west, drove Huns from Djungaria to Tarbagatai, taking over the lands of the Hun state for 6,5 thousand km from Ussuri to Volga and Urals. After that, Dinlins faded from the records, and the Huns started a new period in their history. The strongest reached Europe, where surrounded with new Ugrian and Caucasian allies they finished with dominance of Alans, Goths and reached Rome. The "Weak Huns" Üebans remained in Jeti-Su and established a princedom that existed up to the 5th century AD. Severe defeats from the Huns created them reputation of bandits and robbers among many western European peoples, while the Chinese authors characterized them as most cultural people of all "barbarians"^[37] By the 10th c., Kumans, the descendants of the Dinlin western Kypchak branch, had a very small population spread in the fertile Siberian lands. Direct descendants of Dinlins, Yenisei Kyrgyzes, continued to live in the fertile Minusinsk depression, engaged in irrigation agriculture and settled cattle breeding. They preserved rich cultural heritage of the ancestors, but abandoned the former bellicosity that in the 9th century drove them for a conquest of the Great steppe. Now to the south of them settled a numerous Mongolian Oirat tribe^[38] On the banks of the Nile delta accumulated a colony of descendents of the ancient Dinlin valour, Mamluk Kipchaks (Mamluks-bahrits), who ruled Egypt until 1382, when they were replaced by Caucasian Mamluks-burdjits^[39].

[edit] Rulers of Gaoche

Family names and given name	Durations of reigns
Family name and given name
副伏羅阿伏至羅 Fùfúluó Āfúzhìluó	487-?
跋利延 Bálìyán	?
彌俄突 Mí'étú	?
伊匐 Yīfú	?
越居 Yuèjū	?
比造 Bǐzào	?
去賓 Qùbīn	?-541

[edit] Notes and references

• The Peoples of the West, from the Weilue, by Yu Huan
• Suribadalaha. Mengguzu Zuyuan Xinkao, Beijing: Minzu Chubanshe, 1986.
• Gumilev, L.N. "The Huns. Central Asia in Ancient Times", (Russian: Khunnu), 1960

[edit] See also

• Wei (Dingling)
• List of indigenous peoples of Russia