Chanyu
Sign in to savethumb|Reconstruction of a Xiongnu chief warrior, 2nd century BC – 1st century AD, by archaeologist [[A.N. Podushkin. Central State Museum of Kazakhstan.]] Chanyu () or Shanyu (), short for Chengli Gutu Chanyu (), was the title used by the supreme rulers of Inner Asian nomads for eight centuries until superseded by the title "Khagan" in 402 AD. The title was most famously used by the ruling Luandi clan of the Xiongnu during the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). It was later also used infrequently by the Chinese as a reference to Tujue leaders.
Article
10 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- List of Xiongnu chanyus
- Notes
- Northern Xiongnu
- Southern Xiongnu
- Da Chanyu
- Chanyu family trees
- See also
- References
- Further reading
thumb|Reconstruction of a Xiongnu chief warrior, 2nd century BC – 1st century AD, by archaeologist [[A.N. Podushkin. Central State Museum of Kazakhstan.]] Chanyu () or Shanyu (), short for Chengli Gutu Chanyu (), was the title used by the supreme rulers of Inner Asian nomads for eight centuries until superseded by the title "Khagan" in 402 AD. The title was most famously used by the ruling Luandi clan of the Xiongnu during the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). It was later also used infrequently by the Chinese as a reference to Tujue leaders.
==Etymology== thumb|"Chanyu from Heaven" Tiles, Inner Mongolia Museum According to the Book of Han, "the Xiongnu called the Heaven (天) Chēnglí (撐犁) and they called a child (子) gūtú (孤塗). As for Chányú (單于), it is a "vast [and] great appearance" (廣大之貌).".