The Wanyan (; Manchu: ''Wanggiyan'';

Jurchen script The Jurchen script (Jurchen: ) was the writing system used to write the Jurchen language, the language of the Jurchen people who created the Jin Empire in northeastern China in the 12th–13th centuries. It was derived from the Khitan script, ...

) clan was among the clans of the

Heishui Mohe The Heishui Mohe (; mnc, Sahaliyan i Aiman or ), also known as the , rendered in English as Blackriver Mohe or Blackwater Mohe, were a tribe of Mohe people in Outer Manchuria along the Amur River () in what is now Russia's Khabarovsk Krai, Amur Ob ...

tribe living in the drainage region of the Heilong River during the time of the Khitan-led

Liao dynasty The Liao dynasty (; Khitan language, Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that exi ...

. Of the Heishui Mohe, the clan was counted by the Liao dynasty among the "uncivilized Jurchens" (生女真) indicating that the clan was not subject to the direct rule of the Liao emperors. Those Heishui Mohe clans ruled by the Liao dynasty were referred to as "civilized Jurchens" (熟女真). The Wanyan clan later founded the Jin dynasty.

Origins

The origins of the clan are obscure. According to sources such as the ''

History of Jin The ''History of Jin'' (''Jin Shi'') is a Chinese historical text, one of the ''Twenty Four Histories'', which details the history of the Jin dynasty founded by the Jurchens in northern China. It was compiled by the Yuan dynasty historian and mi ...

'' (''Jinshi'' 金史) and the '' Research on the Origin of the Manchus'' (''Manzhou yuanliu kao'' 滿洲源流考), the clan's progenitor

Hanpu Hanpu (), later Wanyan Hanpu (), was a leader of the Jurchen Wanyan clan in the early tenth century. According to the ancestral story of the Wanyan clan, Hanpu came from Goryeo when he was sixty years old, reformed Jurchen customary law, and then ...

emigrated from the kingdom of

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificat ...

Silla Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms ...

at the age of sixty and married a sixty-year-old local woman who bore him three children. However, controversy exists as to the ethno-cultural identity of Hanpu, and the factual validity of the story itself. However Wanyan Yingge initiated an invasion of the Korean peninsula and Yingge's paternal nephew Wanyan

Wuyashu Wuyashu (1061–1113) was a chieftain of the Wanyan tribe, the most dominant among the Jurchen tribes which later founded the Jin dynasty (1115–1234). He was the eldest son of Helibo and the elder brother of Aguda (Emperor Taizu), the founder a ...

fought against the Koreans, forcing them to submit and recognize Jurchens as overlords after "pacifying" the border between the Koreans and Jurchens. Yingge died during the conquest of Helandian (曷懶甸; present-day

Hamgyong Province Hamgyong Province () was one of the Eight Provinces of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. Hamgyŏng was located in the northeast of Korea. The provincial capital was Hamhŭng. Names The province was first established as Yonggil ( ko, 영길, , '' ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

) after pacifying the

Tumen River The Tumen River, also known as the Tuman River or Duman River (), is a long river that serves as part of the boundary between China, North Korea and Russia, rising on the slopes of Mount Paektu and flowing into the Sea of Japan. The river ha ...

basin. Wuyashu resumed the project in the next year. Under his order, Shishihuan (石適歡) led a Wanyan army from the Tumen River basin to subdue rival Jurchen tribes in Helandian and advance southward to chase about 1,800 remnants who defected to the Korean kingdom

. Goryeo did not hand them over but sent Im Gan (林幹) to intercept the Wanyan army. However, Shishihuan defeated Im Gan north of the Chŏngp'ŏyng wall and invaded northeastern frontier of Goryeo. Goryeo dispatched

Yun Gwan Yun Gwan (윤관, 尹瓘; 12 July 1040 – 15 June 1111) was a general of Goryeo who was known for training the Byeolmuban and leading it to victory against the Jurchen tribes. Family * Grandfather ** Yun Geum-kang (윤금강, 尹金剛) * ...

to resist the Jurchens but lost in battle again. As a result, Wuyashu subjugated the Jurchens in Helandian. In 1107, Goryeo sent a delegate, Heihuanfangshi (黑歡方石), to celebrate Wuyashu's accession to the chieftainship of the Wanyan tribe, and promised to return those Helandian Jurchens who escaped to Goryeo. However, when Wuyashu's delegates, Aguo (阿聒) and Wulinda Shengkun (烏林答勝昆), arrived in Goryeo, the Koreans killed them and dispatched five large armies led by Yun Gwan to attack Helandian. The Goryeo army destroyed a hundred Jurchen villages and built nine fortresses there. Wuyashu thought about giving up Helandian, but his brother Aguda convinced him to dispatch Wosai (斡賽), another of their brothers, to fight Goryeo. Wosai also built nine fortresses facing Goryeo's nine fortresses. After a one-year battle, the Wanyan army won two fortresses but they suffered heavy losses and seven other fortresses were still held by the Goryeo forces. Jurchens offered a truce to Goryeo and Goryeo and the Jurchens achieved a settlement. As a result, Jurchens swore not to invade Goryeo and Goryeo withdrew from the nine fortresses. Wuyashu also pacified the

Suifen River The Razdolnaya (russian: Раздольная, formerly: Суйфун ''Suyfun'') or Suifen () is a river in People's Republic of China and Russia. It flows into the Amur Bay of the Sea of Japan. The name ''Suifen'' is the Manchu word ''(suifun) ...

basin.

Founding of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty

In 1115 AD,

Wanyan Aguda Emperor Taizu of Jin (August 1, 1068 – September 19, 1123), personal name Aguda, sinicised name Min (), was the founder and first emperor of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty of China. He was originally the chieftain of the Wanyan tribe, the most ...

, the chieftain of the Wanyan clan at the time, founded the Jin dynasty. Before his death in 1123, he also ended the Liao dynasty. Two years later, his brother

Wanyan Wuqimai Emperor Taizong of Jin (25 November 1075 – 9 February 1135), personal name Wuqimai, sinicised name Wanyan Sheng, was the second emperor of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty of China. His era name was "Tianhui" (天會). During his reign, the Jin ...

invaded the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

and conquered northern China in the

Jin–Song Wars The Jin–Song Wars were a series of conflicts between the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty (1115–1234) and the Han-led Song dynasty (960–1279). In 1115, Jurchen tribes rebelled against their overlords, the Khitan-led Liao dynasty (916–1125), ...

. Thereafter the

Jurchens Jurchen (Manchu: ''Jušen'', ; zh, 女真, ''Nǚzhēn'', ) is a term used to collectively describe a number of East Asian Tungusic-speaking peoples, descended from the Donghu people. They lived in the northeast of China, later known as Manch ...

became

sinicized Sinicization, sinofication, sinification, or sinonization (from the prefix , 'Chinese, relating to China') is the process by which non-Chinese societies come under the influence of Chinese culture, particularly the language, societal norms, cul ...

; this can be seen in the sinicization of the surname "Wanyan" to "

Wang Wang may refer to: Names * Wang (surname) (王), a common Chinese surname * Wāng (汪), a less common Chinese surname * Titles in Chinese nobility * A title in Korean nobility * A title in Mongolian nobility Places * Wang River in Thai ...

" in the official Jurchen historical records.

Downfall and in the modern day

The Jin dynasty was destroyed in 1234 AD. After their victory, Mongol declared that people with the surname "Wanyan" were considered to be related to the royal line of the Jin dynasty, and therefore such individuals were to be executed immediately. For the sake of survival, those people with the surname "Wanyan" either changed the name to Wang or moved to a remote area to avoid capture and execution and used the Manchu format Wanggiyan. In present-day China, few descendants have kept the surname "Wanyan."

Notable figures

Males

*Aguda 1115–1123,founder of Jin dynasty *Wuqimai 1123–1135,emperor Taizong of Jin *Dan 1135–1149,emperor Xizong of Jin *Liang 1149–1161, fourth emperor of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty *Yong 1161–1189, Emperor Shizong of Jin *Jing 1189–1208 Emperor Zhangzong of Jin *Yungong,Emperor Shizong's second son and heir apparent *Xun 1213–1224,Emperor Xuanzong of Jin *Shouxu, Emperor Aizong of Jin *Chenglin,Emperor Mo of Jin *Xongbi,military general and civil minister of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty, also known as Wushu *Yongji *Heda *Chenheshang *Zhanhan *Hafeng'a (哈丰阿), held a title of master commandant of light chariot (轻车都尉, pinyin: qingcheduwei) *Qing'en (庆恩), served as sixth rank literary official ; Prince Consort

Females

Imperial Consort * Consort ** Consort Shu (b. 1772), the

Jiaqing Emperor The Jiaqing Emperor (13 November 1760 – 2 September 1820), also known by his temple name Emperor Renzong of Qing, born Yongyan, was the sixth emperor of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and the fifth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, from ...

's secondary consort ** Consort Zhuang (1781–1811), the

's consort * Imperial Concubine ** Imperial Concubine Jing, the

Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to ...

's imperial concubine Princess Consort * Primary Consort ** Yunti's primary consort, the mother of Hongming (1705–1767) and Hongkai (1707–1759) * Secondary Consort **

Yunreng Yunreng (6 June 1674 – 27 January 1725), born Yinreng, was a Manchu prince of the Qing dynasty. He was the second among the Kangxi Emperor's sons to survive into adulthood and was designated as Crown Prince for two terms between 1675 and ...

's secondary consort, the mother of Hongtiao (1714–1774) and Hongbing (1720–1763) **

Yongzhang Aisin Gioro Yongzhang (永璋; 15 July 1735 – 26 August 1760) was the Qianlong Emperor's third son. Life Yongzhang was born in the Manor of Prince Bao on 15 July 1735 as the third son of Prince Bao of the First Rank, Hongli. His mother, Lady ...

's secondary consort, the mother of first son (1756) **

Yongcheng Yongcheng () is county-level city in Henan province, China, and is the easternmost county-level division of the province, bordering Anhui province on all sides except the northwest and due north. Yongcheng has significant coal deposits and some ins ...

's secondary consort, the mother of Mianhui (1764–1796), second son (1766), third son (1767–1769), Princess (1769–1787), fourth son (1771) and Princess (b. 1776) **

Yicong Yicong ( Wade-Giles: ''Yi-tsung'')(23 July 1831 – 18 February 1889), formally known as Prince Dun (or Prince Tun), was a Manchu prince of the Qing dynasty. Life Yicong was born in the Aisin Gioro clan as the fifth son of the Daoguang Empero ...

's secondary consort, the mother of Zaijin (1859–1896) * Concubine ** Yunzhi's concubine, the mother of Hongyi (1715–1754) **

Yuntang Yuntang (17 October 1683 – 22 September 1726), born Yintang, was a Manchu prince of the Qing dynasty. He was the ninth son of the Kangxi Emperor and an ally of his eighth brother Yunsi, who was the main rival to their fourth brother Yinzhen i ...

's concubine, the mother of first daughter (1701–1725), Lady (1704–1727) and Hongding (1711–1782)

References

Visiting the Wanyan Village in Jingchuan, Gansu Province
(in

Chinese language Chinese (, especially when referring to written Chinese) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and many minority ethnic groups in Greater China. About 1.3 billion people (or approximately 16% of the ...

) {{wikisourcelang, zh, 金史/卷135, Canonical Records of the Jurchen Jin Dynasty, Volume 135, Explanation of Jurchen Jin Language Manchu clans Jurchens Khitan history Surnames Chinese clans Individual Chinese surnames