Yugurs

Yugur
	A Yugur family inLanzhou, Gansu,1944
Total population
	18,000 (est.)
Regions with significant populations
	Sunan Yugur Autonomous County, Gansu,China
Languages
	Western Yugur,Eastern Yugur
Religion
	Tibetan Buddhism; Tengrism(Shamanism);
Related ethnic groups
	Old Uyghurs; Salars; otherTurkicandMongolic peoples;

TheYugurs,Yughurs,Yugu(Chinese:Dân tộc Uy-cu;pinyin:Yùgùzú;Western Yugur:Sarïg Yogïr;Eastern Yugur:Šera Yogor), traditionally known asYellow Uyghurs,^[1]are aTurkic-Mongolicethnic group and one of China's 56officially recognized ethnic groups,consisting of 16,719 persons, according to the 2000 census.^[2]The Yugur live primarily inSunan Yugur Autonomous CountyinGansu.They are mostlyTibetan Buddhists.^[3]^[4]The majority of Yugurs speak aTurkic language,whileMongolicandChineseare also used in eastern provinces.

History

The Turkic-speaking Yugurs are considered to be the descendants of a group of Old Uyghurs who fled fromMongoliasouthwards to Gansu after the collapse of theUyghur Khaganatein 840, where they established the prosperousGanzhou Uyghur Kingdom(870-1036) with capital near presentZhangyeat the base of theQilian Mountainsin the valley of theRuo Shui.^[5]

In 1037, the Yugur came underTangutdomination.^[6]As a result ofKhizr Khoja’s invasion ofQumul,many residents who rejected conversion escaped to nearbyDunhuangandHunanin China proper. These became the ancestors of the modern Yellow Uyghurs, who have remained Buddhists to the present day.^[7]

In 1893, Russian explorerGrigory Potanin,the first Western scientist to study the Yugur, published a small glossary of Yugur words, along with notes on their administration and geographical situation.^[8]

Language

About 4,600 Yugurs speak Western Yugur (a Turkic language) and about 2,800 Eastern Yugur (a Mongolic language). Western Yugur has preserved many archaisms ofOld Uyghur.^[9]^[10]

Both Yugur languages are now unwritten, although theOld Uyghur Alpha betwas in use in some Yugur communities until the end of 17th century.^[11]

References

^Justin Jon Rudelson; Justin Ben-Adam Rudelson (1997).Oasis Identities: Uyghur Nationalism Along China's Silk Road.Columbia University Press. pp. 206–.ISBN 978-0-231-10786-0.
^Justin Keith Brown, Sarah Ogilvie (2009).Concise encyclopedia of languages of the world.Elsevier. p. 1142.ISBN 978-0-08-087774-7.Retrieved31 October2010.
^Justin Ben-Adam Rudelson, Justin Jon Rudelson (1997).Oasis identities: Uyghur nationalism along China's Silk Road.Columbia University Press. p. 178.ISBN 0-231-10786-2.Retrieved31 October2010.
^Wong, Edward (28 September 2016)."Modern Life Presents Nomads of China's Steppe With a 'Tragic Choice'".New York Times.
^Allworth, Edward A.(1994).Central Asia, 130 Years of Russian Dominance: A Historical Overview.Duke University Press. p. 89.ISBN 0-8223-1521-1.
^Dillon, Michael (2004).Xin gian g: China's Muslim Far Northwest.Taylor & Francis. p. 10.ISBN 978-0-203-16664-2.
^The Great Dispossession.p. 39.
^Tamm, Eric Enno (10 April 2011).The Horse That Leaps Through Clouds: A Tale of Espionage, the Silk Road and the Rise of Modern China.Catapult. p. 281.ISBN 978-1-58243-876-4.
^Aslı Göksel, Celia Kerslake, ed. (2000).Studies on Turkish and Turkic Languages: Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Turkish Linguistics.Harrassowitz. pp. 430–431.ISBN 978-3447042932.
^Lars Johanson, Éva Csató (1998).The Turkic languages.Taylor & Francis. p. 397.ISBN 0-415-08200-5.Retrieved31 October2010.
^Dru C. Gladney (2004).Dislocating China: reflections on Muslims, minorities and other subaltern subjects.C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. p. 212.ISBN 1-85065-324-0.Retrieved31 October2010.

External links

Slide shows, maps and other material on the Yugur from author Eric Enno Tamm
Original Western Yugur texts with English translation plus PDF grammar of Sarig Yugur[1]

[RudelsonRudelson1997-1] Justin Jon Rudelson; Justin Ben-Adam Rudelson (1997).Oasis Identities: Uyghur Nationalism Along China's Silk Road.Columbia University Press. pp. 206–.ISBN 978-0-231-10786-0.

[2] Justin Keith Brown, Sarah Ogilvie (2009).Concise encyclopedia of languages of the world.Elsevier. p. 1142.ISBN 978-0-08-087774-7.Retrieved31 October2010.

[3] Justin Ben-Adam Rudelson, Justin Jon Rudelson (1997).Oasis identities: Uyghur nationalism along China's Silk Road.Columbia University Press. p. 178.ISBN 0-231-10786-2.Retrieved31 October2010.

[4] Wong, Edward (28 September 2016)."Modern Life Presents Nomads of China's Steppe With a 'Tragic Choice'".New York Times.

[5] Allworth, Edward A.(1994).Central Asia, 130 Years of Russian Dominance: A Historical Overview.Duke University Press. p. 89.ISBN 0-8223-1521-1.

[6] Dillon, Michael (2004).Xin gian g: China's Muslim Far Northwest.Taylor & Francis. p. 10.ISBN 978-0-203-16664-2.

[7] The Great Dispossession.p. 39.

[8] Tamm, Eric Enno (10 April 2011).The Horse That Leaps Through Clouds: A Tale of Espionage, the Silk Road and the Rise of Modern China.Catapult. p. 281.ISBN 978-1-58243-876-4.

[9] Aslı Göksel, Celia Kerslake, ed. (2000).Studies on Turkish and Turkic Languages: Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Turkish Linguistics.Harrassowitz. pp. 430–431.ISBN 978-3447042932.

[10] Lars Johanson, Éva Csató (1998).The Turkic languages.Taylor & Francis. p. 397.ISBN 0-415-08200-5.Retrieved31 October2010.

[11] Dru C. Gladney (2004).Dislocating China: reflections on Muslims, minorities and other subaltern subjects.C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. p. 212.ISBN 1-85065-324-0.Retrieved31 October2010.

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