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Maria Dmitrievna Sokhina
Ural Federal University, Ekaterinburg, Russia
NÜ GUO IN CHINESE HISTORIOGRAPHY: THE LOCALISATION OF TIBETAN “WOMEN’S KINGDOMS”
Part I: Possible Location of the Kingdom of Women in Eastern Tibet
For citation
Sokhina, M. D. (2024). Nü Guo in Chinese Historiography: the Localisation of Tibetan “Women’s Kingdoms.” Part I: Possible Location of The Kingdom of Women in Eastern Tibet. Voprosy onomastiki, 21(2), 51–72. https://doi.org/10.15826/vopr_onom.2024.21.2.016
Received on 26 November 2023
Accepted on 18 March 2024
Abstract: Chinese texts from the 5th to the 11th centuries, including chronicles, treatises, encyclopaedias, and travellers’ reports, frequently mention both mythical and real states ruled by a line of female monarchs (referred to as Nü guo, “Kingdom of Women,” or Nü-wang guo, “Kingdom of a Woman King”). This study aims to localize those “Kingdoms of Women” situated in or near Tibet. In doing so, it addresses whether the macrotoponyms Nü guo and Nü-wang guo refer to actual or legendary regions. Analysis of the sources reveals that the chronicles describe Kingdoms of Women located on opposite sides of the Tibetan Plateau. By synthesising information from multiple disciplines, including extensive ethnographic material, the study identifies the geographical location of a Kingdom of Women in Eastern Tibet, within the Sino-Tibetan borderlands. In this region, matrilineal families, primarily composed of women and their descendants, were prevalent. Local architecture also displays a clear connection to the Kingdom of Women described in medieval Chinese documents. Additionally, a potential cultural parallel is found in the significant role of monkeys among the Qiang, a borderland ethnic group that maintained traditional beliefs. The findings suggest that the toponyms Nü guo and Nü-wang guo correspond to a real kingdom encompassing territories in the Daduhe and Yalongjiang river basins, located at the geographical and civilizational boundary between Tibet and China.
Keywords: Nü guo; Tang Empire; Eastern Tibet; China; Sino-Tibetan borderland; Gyalrong; Qiang; historical onomastics; historical geography; medieval Chinese historiography
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by the Ural Humanities Institute of UrFU (“My First Grant” program). I extend my sincere gratitude to Professor Nadezhda V. Kabinina, whose guidance has been instrumental in building my confidence as a researcher.
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