Yelang
Encyclopedia
Yelang initially known as Zangke , was an ancient political entity first described in the 3rd century BC that was centered in what is now western Guizhou
province, China
. Estimated to have been active for over 200 years, it was an alliance of tribes, rather than a conventional state.
(चीन)."
, Hunan
, Sichuan
and Yunnan
.
described Yelang as west of the Mimo and Dian, south of Qiongdu (in what is now southern Sichuan
), and east of the nomadic Sui
and Kunming
. Some people have identify the seat of the kingdom as Bijie
in today's Liupanshui
area, in modern Guizhou
province, whilst others suggest the capital moved throughout the region over time.
, Dian and Bashu cultures".
man publicly disclosed his possession of an ancient seal, said to be that of the Yelang kingdom, and claimed to be the 75th descendant of the King of Yelang.
. At this time, Yelang was said to be capable of fielding 100,000 crack soldiers. The outcome of these negotiations is not known. Later, a "marquis of Yelang" is recorded as visiting the Han capital Changan. In 27 BC, there was a uprising in which King Xing was defeated and killed by Han soldiers.
("Southern Yue") kingdom and used the Zangke River (now known as the Beipan River
) as a means of inter-polity communications. The kingdom of Yelang declared their allegiance to Nanyue rule from the start of 183 BC until the end of 111 BC.
The Yi people
are possibly modern-day descendants of the Yelang kingdom.
emperor's envoy, "Which is greater, Yelang or Han?" This gave rise to the Chinese idiom "Yelang thinks too highly of itself" (夜郎自大, Yèláng zì dà). Other sources suggest that Yelang's king was simply copying an earlier statement by the ruler of from the adjacent Kingdom of Dian. Other Chinese sources describe the Yelang people as possessing supernatural powers.
Guizhou
' is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.- History :...
province, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Estimated to have been active for over 200 years, it was an alliance of tribes, rather than a conventional state.
Name
According to Geoff Wade, the inhabitants of Yelang called themselves Zina, and it is possibly the source of Sanskrit CīnaChinas
The Chinas or Chīnaḥ are a people mentioned in ancient Indian literature from the first millennium BC, such as the Mahabharata, Laws of Manu, as well the Puranic literature...
(चीन)."
Expanse
Yelang is believed to have been an alliance of tribes covering parts of modern day GuizhouGuizhou
' is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.- History :...
, Hunan
Hunan
' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
, Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
and Yunnan
Yunnan
Yunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...
.
Location
The ancient Chinese historian Sima QianSima Qian
Sima Qian was a Prefect of the Grand Scribes of the Han Dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography for his highly praised work, Records of the Grand Historian , a "Jizhuanti"-style general history of China, covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow Emperor to...
described Yelang as west of the Mimo and Dian, south of Qiongdu (in what is now southern Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
), and east of the nomadic Sui
Sui
Sui can refer to:* Sui or mizu, 水, meaning "Water" in Japanese, one of the elements in the Japanese system of five elements and representing the fluid, flowing, formless things in the world....
and Kunming
Kunming
' is the capital and largest city of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It was known as Yunnan-Fou until the 1920s. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of Yunnan, and is the seat of the provincial government...
. Some people have identify the seat of the kingdom as Bijie
Bijie
Bijie is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Guizhou province, People's Republic of China.The Daotianhe Reservoir, located to the north of the town was commissioned in 1965 with a rated annual capacity of 6.5 million cubic meters....
in today's Liupanshui
Liupanshui
Liupanshui is a city whose urban area has 251,900 inhabitants in Western Guizhou province in the People's Republic of China. The population of its jurisdictional area has exceeded 2,830,000 as of 2006, and it is the second largest city in Guizhou...
area, in modern Guizhou
Guizhou
' is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.- History :...
province, whilst others suggest the capital moved throughout the region over time.
Appearance and dress
Yelang people wore their hair up and decorated themselves with jewellery such as bracelets and necklaces.Material culture
Archaeologists have retrieved relics from Yelang graves including "bronze swords, U-shaped bronze hairclips, turquoise bracelets and jade necklaces", as well as "various bronze, porcelain and stone vessels visibly different from those belonging to other cultures studied in China, like the HanHan Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
, Dian and Bashu cultures".
Burial rites
Tomb excavations show a unique burial custom in some Yelang tombs, in which the head of the deceased is placed in to a bronze pot. This custom is unknown elsewhere in China.Government
In 2007 a MiaoMiao people
The Miao or ม้ง ; ) is an ethnic group recognized by the government of the People's Republic of China as one of the 55 official minority groups. Miao is a Chinese term and does not reflect the self-designations of the component nations of people, which include Hmong, Hmu, A Hmao, and Kho Xiong...
man publicly disclosed his possession of an ancient seal, said to be that of the Yelang kingdom, and claimed to be the 75th descendant of the King of Yelang.
Han China
Han envoy Tang Meng met with Yelang ruler Duotong to negotiate a military alliance against the Southern Yue of GuangdongGuangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
. At this time, Yelang was said to be capable of fielding 100,000 crack soldiers. The outcome of these negotiations is not known. Later, a "marquis of Yelang" is recorded as visiting the Han capital Changan. In 27 BC, there was a uprising in which King Xing was defeated and killed by Han soldiers.
Nanyue
Yelang had a close relationship with NanyueNanyue
Nanyue was an ancient kingdom that consisted of parts of the modern Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, and Yunnan and northern Vietnam. Nanyue was established in 204 BC at the final collapse of the Qin Dynasty by Zhao Tuo, who was the military commander of Nanhai Commandery at the time, and...
("Southern Yue") kingdom and used the Zangke River (now known as the Beipan River
Beipan River
Beipan River is a river in the Guizhou province, China, and part of the great Pearl River basin.-Other names:The upper reaches in Yunnan and Guizhou were once known as the Zangke River.-Course:...
) as a means of inter-polity communications. The kingdom of Yelang declared their allegiance to Nanyue rule from the start of 183 BC until the end of 111 BC.
The Yi people
Yi people
The Yi or Lolo people are an ethnic group in China, Vietnam, and Thailand. Numbering 8 million, they are the seventh largest of the 55 ethnic minority groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China...
are possibly modern-day descendants of the Yelang kingdom.
In Chinese culture
Yelang is best known to modern Chinese because of an incident said to have occurred in the 120s BC. According to the story the king of Yelang, convinced that his kingdom was the greatest in all the world, inquired rhetorically of the HanHan Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
emperor's envoy, "Which is greater, Yelang or Han?" This gave rise to the Chinese idiom "Yelang thinks too highly of itself" (夜郎自大, Yèláng zì dà). Other sources suggest that Yelang's king was simply copying an earlier statement by the ruler of from the adjacent Kingdom of Dian. Other Chinese sources describe the Yelang people as possessing supernatural powers.