A Genealogical Study of Ch'i-T'ung-Man during The Sung Period

Abstract

Historical studies of China and Southeast Asia have recently focussed on South China and Southwest China. In particular, much work has been done on the history and culture of non-Chinese groups, that is, ethnic groups in South China.This is not to say that there is no room for more study. Much of what has been done is rough as yet, and requires organization and synthesis. Understanding of the racial structure of ethnic groups in South China is especially complicated as the genealogies of the, Yao the Miao, the Liao, the Hakka and the Hung are not distinct.Professor Yoshiro Shiratori has begun to elucidate the complicated genealogical structure of ethnic groups in South China. He focussed on, the t'u-ssu system, which had been established by the Chinese in order to govern their non-Chinese conquests, and he classified and distributed the t'u-ssu clans in order to elucidate their genealogy and historical background. This is without question a pioneering effort in studies of South China tribal history and culture. Professor Shiratori believes that the study of the historical background of each racial group is invaluable in reconstructing the history of this region.In line with Professor Shiratori's point of view, the present writer proposes to inquire into the genealogy of Chi'i-t'ung-man during the Sung dynasty, to determine their racial origins, clan history and distribution.Almost all the Sung Ch'i-t'ung-man trace their descent to Yao and the Keh-lao. The Yao first inhabited the Lake Tun-t'ing region gradually spreading out until, by the Sung Period, they covered area, from the northern part of Kwangsi Province to the northern part of Kwangtung Province. The names of some Yao clans are Ch'in', Yao, Lo, Lei and Yuan; others tracing their descent to the Yao are P'eng, Su, Huang, Teng, T'ang, Pan, Fang, Zhong, Li and Ch'en. Certain others, such as T'ien, Hsian, Shu, T'an were initially barbarian chiefs mentioned in ancient documents, and became Chinese government offcials under the official chi-mi policy. Eventually their names were entered in the Chinese census register, and their barbarian origins became obscured and ultimately disappeared. Accordingly it is practically impossible to trace theirr genealogy in non-Chinese sources, although they invariably do derive from the Yao.The Keh-iao, on the other hand, produced such clans as Yang, Wu and Wei, of which Yang was an eminent barbarian clan remarkably active in the period of the Southern Sung dynasty. The eh-lao was more advantaged by its contact with Chinese civilization than other tribes, and developed a rather high level of culture. The Keh-lao originally inhabited the boundary area of Szechwan and Hupei. Like the Yao, they also gradually spread, and by the Sung, populated as widely distant geographical Hunan and Kweichow.It was during this same Sung period that the Yao and the Keh-lao came into contact and mixed in the district of the Ch'i-t'ung-man. This inevitably resulted in change in their respective cultures, though, to be sure, they Were both heavily influenced by the dominant Chinese culture.In the same district, other tribes, such as the Miao and the T'ung, appeared subsequent to the Yuan period. Future studies will focus on the issues of racial between the Yao the Miao and the T'ung, and between the Keh-lao and the Liao.