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Three Mergids ᠮᠡᠷᠬᠢᠳ | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11th century–1200 | |||||||||||
 Mongol Empire c.1207 | |||||||||||
| Status | nomadicconfederacy | ||||||||||
| Capital | Not specified | ||||||||||
| Religion | Shamanism | ||||||||||
| Government | Elective monarchy | ||||||||||
| Khan | |||||||||||
| Historical era | Post-classical Central Asia | ||||||||||
• Established | 11th century | ||||||||||
• Disestablished | 1200 | ||||||||||
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| Today part of | Mongolia Russia (Buryatia) | ||||||||||
| History of Mongolia | ||||||||||||||||||
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Prehistoric period
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Ancient period
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Medieval period
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Modern period
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TheMerkit (/ˈmɜːrkɪt/;Mongolian:[ˈmircɪt];lit. 'Wise Ones') was one of the five majortribal confederations ofMongol[1][2][3][4] orTurkic origin[5][6][note 1] in the 12th-centuryMongolian Plateau.
The Merkits lived in the basins of theSelenga and lowerOrkhon River (modern southBuryatia andSelenge Province).[8] After a struggle of over 20 years, they were defeated in 1200 byGenghis Khan and were incorporated into theMongol Empire.
The wordMerkit (Merged) with a hard "g" is a plural form derived from theMongolian wordmergen (мэргэн), which means both "wise" and "skillful marksperson", e.g. adept in the use of bow and arrow. The word is also used in many phrases in which it connotes magic, oracles, divination, augury, or religious power. Mongolian language has no clear morphological or grammatical distinction between nouns and adjectives, somergen may mean "a sage" as much as "wise" or mean "skillful" just as much as "a master".Merged becomes plural as in "wise ones" or "skillful markspeople". In the general sense,mergen usually denotes someone who is skillful and wise in their affairs.[citation needed]
The Merkits were a confederation of three tribes, inhabiting the basin of the Selenga and Orkhon Rivers.
The Merkits were related to the Mongols,Naimans,Keraites, andKhitan people.[9]
Temüjin's motherHoelun, originally from theOlkhonud, had been engaged to the Merkit chiefYehe Chiledu by 1153. She was abducted by Temüjin's fatherYesugei, while being escorted home by Yehe Chiledu.
In turn, Temüjin's new wifeBörte was kidnapped by Merkit raiders from their campsite by the Onon river around 1181 and given to one of their warriors. Temüjin, supported by his brother (not blood-related)Jamukha and hiskhan etseg ('khan father')Toghrul of theKeraites, attacked the Merkit and rescued Börte within the year. The Mergids were dispersed after this attack. Shortly thereafter she gave birth to a son namedJochi. Temüjin accepted paternity, but the question lingered throughout Jochi's life. These incidents caused a strong animosity between Temüjin's family and the Merkits. From 1191 to 1207, Temujin fought the Merkits five times.
By the time he had united the other Mongol tribes and received the titleGenghis Khan in 1206, the Merkits seem to have disappeared as an ethnic group. Those who survived were likely absorbed by other Mongol tribes (Oirats,Buryats,Khalkhas) and others who fled to theKipchaks mixed with them. In 1215–1218,Jochi andSubutai crushed the remnants of them under their former leader Toghta Beki's family. The Mongols clashed with theKankalis or the Kipchaks because they had sheltered the Merkit.
Genghis Khan had a Merkitkhatun (queen) named Khulan. She died while Mongol forcesbesieged Ryazan in 1236. In 1236, during theMongol invasion of Volga Bulgaria, a body of the Merkit was found in the area of land dominated by theBulgar andKipchak.
A few Merkits achieved prominent position among the Mongols, but they were classified as Mongols in Mongolian society.Great KhanGuyuk's beloved khatunOghul Qaimish, who was a regent from 1248 to 1251, was a Merged woman. The traditionalistBayan and his nephewToqto'a served asgrand chancellors of theYuan dynasty. After the fall of the Yuan dynasty, they were a clan of a banner in theNorthern Yuan dynasty.
