In a.d. 1644, the Qing army entered the customs with fighters. After that, China was gradually unified, and Manchu began to rule the whole country. Among the 55 ethnic minorities in China, the Manchu population is more than 1000 million, ranking second, and has its own spoken and written language. It must be said that Manchu is a brave and intelligent nation. Most of our knowledge of Manchu is concentrated in the Qing Dynasty, but what we don't know is that Manchu had a very bumpy history before entering the customs.

First, the hometown of Manchu

1. Northeast of Baishuibulake Mountain

Manchu, formerly known as "Manchuria", wrote "the dew of longevity" in Manchu. Before entering the customs, Manchu came from a semi-nomadic people in the northeast of China and was called "Nuzhen". In 1635, Huang taiji changed "Ligustrum lucidum" to "Manchuria", which was the earliest origin of Manchu.

Dating back more than 2,000 years ago, Manchu ancestors lived in the northeast of Baishan Heishui since the Paleolithic Age. In the Qing dynasty, there was a study on the origin of Manchuria, in which it was recorded that "Is it called Manchuria today?" It can be seen that Sushen people are the earliest ancestors of Manchu recorded in historical materials.

As one of the three basic ethnic groups in Northeast China, Su Shenren is distributed in Wusuli River Basin, Changbai Mountain, Heilongjiang and other places. Their main means of survival is nomadic hunting, so they are very good at riding and shooting. According to historical records, in the above-mentioned distribution areas, there are vessels unique to the Central Plains, such as Ding. At the beginning of the 0 th century BC, that is, during the Western Zhou Dynasty, the Su Shenren presented "carved stone tablets" and other artifacts to the Zhou Dynasty. It can be seen that as early as Yu and even Shun times, Sushen people had close and frequent contacts with the people of the Central Plains in economy and culture.

The Han and Wei dynasties of Sushen were renamed as "Lou", which is the second surname after the title of Sushen. A * * * has been used for about 600 years until the Jin Dynasty.

2. Formally establish contact with the Central Plains

According to the reflection? According to records, "Lou is more than a thousand miles northeast of Fuyu", which shows that they still live in the northeast at this time. As for the meaning of the name Loulou, it is said that there are two meanings. First, it is said that the pronunciation of the word "Loulou" in Tungusic language is close to the word "deer", which means deer.

The second view is that "the first floor" originated from Manchu "Lu Ye", which means rock cave. But what it means is still inconclusive. Lou people love to raise pigs, eat pork and wear pigskin clothes, so the latter seems more credible.

During this period, the lifestyle of Lou people has made essential progress.

In addition to traditional nomadism, they developed fisheries, agriculture, animal husbandry and even handicrafts through their own wisdom. They used their bows and arrows to hunt wild animals in the mountains and fish in the rivers. "The bow is four feet long and as strong as a crossbow." It can be seen that the weapons at that time were very developed compared with Su Shen's period, and even the arrows were smeared with poison to attack the enemy.

The famous "Lou mink" in history also came from this era. Lou people used mink as an exchange item with the Central Plains, which was popular all over the world for a time. In agriculture, at this time, the Gulou people had planted grains and hemp as the main crops, and millet, beans, millet and other grains were also found in the subsequent funerary objects, indicating that the agricultural production at that time was relatively mature and developed.

However, economically and culturally, the social form of Loulou at that time was still a primitive production form, because their main production tool was stone tools, so they did not form a very advanced economic form. In 236 A.D., Lou formally established a vassal-vassal relationship with the Cao Wei regime, and since then he has been attached to the Central Plains. This is also the first direct contact between the Lou people and the Central Plains after the cautious in the Spring and Autumn Period. Since then, the Yilou people have maintained a harmonious subordinate relationship with the Central Plains.

Second, the ancestors of the same strain.

Manchu people have always had the same ancestry. In the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Lou was gradually replaced by Buji.

Buji nationality began in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. In Manchu, it is a transliteration of "Woji", which means deep forest, and the northeast people call it "Shuwozi". Buji people refer to people in the Woods. Northeast China is a very cold place, so people gather in the forest to keep warm. While providing shelter, the forest can also be a place for them to hunt. At first, Buji people lived in the Songhua River valley and once joined the Yilou people.

However, due to the perennial campaign, the Yilou people suffered heavy losses and the troops of this department consumed a lot. The Sushendi tribe in the old society gradually found it difficult to restrain their ambitions. In the 5th century, Wujin people replaced Yilou people. According to Shu Wei? According to the records in the Biography of Buji, Buji is an "ancient country in Su Shen", which shows that Buji is actually a part of Su Shen, and even lived with Su Shen for a period of time, living together on both sides of the Songhua River.

This blending phenomenon shows that this nation is the result of the development of Changji, Su Shen and Lou. As mentioned just now, the economic level of Lou nationality is not high, but the social and economic progress is very obvious when it develops to Buji nationality. He not only learned to catch mink, but also learned to "chew rice to make wine", which is a good progress compared with his predecessors. At the same time of economic development, culture is bound to progress.

During the auspicious period, a unique auspicious culture appeared. Buji people regard Changbai Mountain as a sacred mountain, which is translated into Chinese as "Tai Huang Mountain", which shows their respect for the status of Changbai Mountain. Sacrificing the sacred mountain is not an ordinary cultural worship, it lasted for a long time, until later jurchen and Manchu talents did so. Changbai Mountain is not an ordinary mountain, but the love of unlucky people for this "black mountain white water". They are willing to live here and die here, which is their wish and emotional sustenance.

It was also at this time that the Buji people had closer ties with the Central Plains. At that time, Buji fought a national war with foreigners and won a great victory. Since then, Buji people have frequent contacts with the Northern Wei and Northern Qi regimes, up to 37 times. In these political exchanges, they brought the Han culture in the Central Plains back to the Northeast. The most important thing in these cultures is the use of iron, such as iron pins, irons, iron belts and cards. These iron products have greatly improved the local agricultural production efficiency and accelerated the development and progress of the nation.

Claim for the first time

Although Manchu ancestors have been recorded in history books many times before, whether they are cautious, dismissive or unlucky, they are all given names by others. The earliest saying of Manchu ancestors is actually "cymbals", and Manchu means "people in the forest". According to the Book of Wei, it is divided into seven parts, of which Heishui is the bravest and the former Shu protoss.

The other branch is located at the southernmost tip of Mohe nationality, belonging to the Tang Dynasty, and was named the king of Bohai County by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty. Bohai Sea has a prosperous population and a very developed economy. They often send scholars to Chang 'an to learn advanced culture, bring China's books back to the local area, and then give local products such as ginseng and mink to the Han people, which is very popular. During the Five Dynasties, the Khitans called Blackwater Mohong "Jurchen". Since then, Jurchen has officially replaced "cymbals" as the surname.

Third, Manchu culture before entering the customs.

1. culture and customs

According to New Tang Book? "Biography of the Northern Emperor" records, "Blackwater? Brainware”。 This "braiding" is to braid your hair, but the specific appearance of this braid has now been lost. However, since Jurchen originated from the clan of "Blackwater Mohong", their hairstyles and customs are generally similar. According to Daikin Guozhi's record, "the hair is colored silk after coming out of the skull", which is similar to what we see in film and television dramas now.

During the Jin Dynasty, after Jurchen entered the Central Plains, she robbed many Han books and developed her own Jurchen culture. The prominent figures in the Jurchen nationality usually learn Chinese characters and all kinds of Chinese knowledge from childhood. Jurchen actually had no words at first, but communicated in Khitan. Until the middle of15th century, Mongolian culture influenced the Nuzhen people, who began to learn Mongolian and write their own language.

1234, after the state of Jin was destroyed by Mongolia, this kind of writing was still used by Nuzhen ministries in Northeast China. In addition, as early as the Bohai Kingdom, Manchu people had the custom of Spring Festival and Dragon Boat Festival. Although these customs were later influenced by Han culture, they still retained their own characteristics. For example, during the Spring Festival, in addition to eating jiaozi, we have to eat Saqima to celebrate.

2. Religious belief

Before entering the customs, Manchu people had primitive religious beliefs, similar to other nationalities in the world. At that time, Manchu people worshipped Shamanism bred by nature. The most well-known shaman is "jumping to the gods", which is a religious form that combines music and dance. Because waist drums and bells are often used in activities, it gives people a sense of madness with fierce and chaotic sounds. People often use it to worship heaven and pray for good weather.

Fourth, conclusion:

People's understanding of Manchu often comes from the rule of several famous emperors in Qing Dynasty. In fact, before entering the customs, Manchu had a bumpy historical tradition for thousands of years. For thousands of years, from Sushen people to Lou and Buji, and finally to the Jurchen people, they have been sticking to their own "Heishan White Water" and developing their own history and culture in a world.

Although Manchu absorbed a lot of knowledge of Chinese culture in the later period, it just proves that it is a nation that is good at learning from others, can tolerate and absorb foreign excellent cultures, and can combine its own characteristics to carry out integration and innovation. Riding and shooting dragons and knowing Manchu, he is a hardworking, brave and intelligent Manchu.

References:

On the origin of Manchuria

Reflection? Shu Wei

New Tang book? Biography of the Northern Emperor