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Wu Hu - Origins of the various definitions

Wu Hu - Origins of the various definitions: Encyclopedia II - Wu Hu - Origins of the various definitions

Traditional historians interpreted "Hu" as "barbarians"; some further stretched this obsolete analogy to equate "Hu" with the "Xiongnu". Others objected to such similarities, stating that Wu Hu were substantially civilized before the turmoil of the Western Jin Dynasty. Xiongnu was in fact the most powerful non-Chinese ethnic group neighboring the Chinese Han Dynasty therefore the Han simply referred to them as the "Hu" (the "non-Chinese" or the "barbarian"). Both terms were used concurrently. Nevertheless, "Hu" later became the ...

Wu Hu: Encyclopedia II - Wu Hu - Origins of the various definitions

Wu Hu - Origins of the various definitions

Traditional historians interpreted "Hu" as "barbarians"; some further stretched this obsolete analogy to equate "Hu" with the "Xiongnu". Others objected to such similarities, stating that Wu Hu were substantially civilized before the turmoil of the Western Jin Dynasty.

Xiongnu was in fact the most powerful non-Chinese ethnic group neighboring the Chinese Han Dynasty therefore the Han simply referred to them as the "Hu" (the "non-Chinese" or the "barbarian"). Both terms were used concurrently. Nevertheless, "Hu" later became the collective term for non-Chinese ethnic groups and was often preceded by Chinese numerals and characters such as "Wu" (five) and "Zhu" (numerous). A diplomatic message in Han Shu defined Hu as the "proud son of heaven" (天之驕子) (Chapter 94).

The following is dedicated to the causes, course and aftermath of the war. Refer to the Sixteen Kingdoms for history of each of the Wu Hu tribes.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Origins of the various definitions", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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