Upper Mongols

Regions with significant populations
China	100,000(2009)
Languages
Khoshut dialect ofOirat Mongolian
Religion
Tibetan Buddhism andShamanism
Related ethnic groups
Oirats,Mongols,Mongols in China

TheUpper Mongols, also known as theKöke Nuur Mongols orQinghai Mongols, are ethnicMongol people ofOirat andKhalkha origin who settled around theQinghai Lake in so-called Upper Mongolia (present-dayQinghai). As part of theKhoshut Khanate ofQaidam Basin and theQinghai Lake, they played a major role inSino–Mongol–Tibetan politics during the 17th and 18th centuries. The Upper Mongols adoptedTibetan dress and jewelry despite still living in the traditional Mongolianger and writing in thescript.

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After the disintegration of the Proto-Mongolic^[1][2][3]Xianbei state, nomadic groups such as the (Monguor) migrated under the rule of their Khan, Tuyuhun, from their original settlements on theLiaodong Peninsula to the western region of modernQinghai.^[4] TheTuyuhun Empire (284–670) stretched 1,500 kilometers from east to west and 1,000 kilometers from north to south.

Although, theMongols of theGansu–Qinghai Lake areas under the rule of theYuan dynasty submitted to theMing dynasty after the Yuan dynasty's fall in 1368, the Upper Mongols came there in 16th and 17th centuries. Many Mongol emperors and rulers of theNorthern Yuan dynasty such asDayan Khan,Ligdan Khan, theOrdos andTümed princes invaded, or took refuge, inQinghai from 1509 to 1632. The Tümed Mongols ruled in theOrdos region and they gradually extended their domain into northeastern Qinghai.^[5]

TheKhoshut's leader Toro BaikhuGüshi Khan defeated all theDalai Lama V's enemies in 1637–1642. He was enthroned by the Dalai Lama as Khan of Tibet. His grandson and second successorGonchug Dalai Khan (1669–98) welcomed dissidentDzungars whenGaldan Khan began persecuting Guushi Khan's relatives and descendants.^[6]

With the defeat of Galdan in 1697, Dalai Khung Taiji Dashi Batur submitted to theKangxi Emperor of theQing dynasty in a personal audience. In 1705, with the approval of the Kangxi Emperor of theManchu Qing dynasty,Lha-bzang Khan of the Khoshud deposed the regent and sent the 6th Dalai Lama to Beijing; the 6th Dalai Lama died soon after, probably near Qinghai Lake (Koko nur) inAmdo. TheDzungar Mongols invaded Tibet in 1717, and held the entire region until their final defeat by the Qing imperial army in 1720,^[7] thus began the period ofQing rule of Tibet.

The Upper Mongolia or theKhoshut Khanate was conquered in 1717 and 80,000 people were killed.^[8] By that period, Upper Mongolian population reached 200,000. The Upper Mongols revolted against the Manchu Qing dynasty under rule of the prince Lubsan Danzan in 1723 but they were defeated. Lubsan Danzan fled to the Dzungar Khanate and eventually surrendered to the Qing dynasty in 1755.^[9]

The Upper Mongols inNorthwest China revived their cultural ties withInner Mongolia with the liberalization in 1979. TheTibetan culture strongly influenced them, however they useMongolian script unlike other major Oirat tribes that use Zaja Pandita's Todo BichigClear script.

The separation of theTibetans from the Mongolian banners weakened the Upper Mongols. After 1775, the Tibetans made increasingly bold attacks on the Mongols. Hence, small group of the Upper Mongols fled toGansu to escape the Tibetan nomads and they formedSubei Mongol county. In 1821 the Tibetan nomads made a mass migration north, sweeping away theQinghai Mongol banners between theYellow River andQinghai Lake due to the internal strife between the Tibetans. In 1897 theHui Muslims plundered the Upper Mongols.

Not all Upper Mongols are Khoshut Oirats; there are a fewKhalkha,Choros andTorghuts. TheLigdan Khan came to Upper Mongolia with 150,000–200,000Chahar people (30,000–40,000 soldiers) and his allyTsogt Taij came with 40,000Khalkha soldiers, but 70%–90% of them were killed by disease and by theGüshi Khan's army. Upper Mongolia had 29hoshuns^[10] (21 Khoshut, 2 Choros, 4 Torghut, 1 Khalkha) in the early 20th century. Now there are 9 hoshuns of the Upper Mongols. 80,000–90,000 Upper Mongols live in the Qinghai region and 10,000 Upper Mongols live inSubei Mongol Autonomous County (2010).

• Choros-Western Mongols
• Khalkha-Eastern Mongols
• Khoshut-Western Mongols
• Torghut-Western Mongols

• Mongols
• Mongol peoples
• History of Tibet
• Oirats

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