Introduction
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Michal Biran
Abstract
The Mongol empire (1206–1368) caused massive transformations in the composition and functioning of elites across Eurasia. While the Mongols themselves obviously became the new Eurasian elite, their small number as compared to the huge territory over which they ruled and their initial inexperience in administrating sedentary realms meant that many of their subjects also became part of the new multi-ethnic imperial elite. Mongol preferences, and the high level of mobility—both spatial and social—that accompanied Mongol conquests and rule, dramatically changed the characteristics of elites in both China and the Muslim world: While noble birth could be instrumental in improving one’s status, early surrender to Chinggis Khan; membership in the Mongol imperial guards (keshig); and especially, qualifications—such as excellence in warfare, administration, writing in Mongolian script or astronomy to name but a few—became the main ways to enter elite circles. The present volume translates and analyzes biographies of ten members of this new elite—from princes through generals, administrators, and vassal kings, to scientists and artists; including Mongols, Koreans, Chinese and Muslims—studied by researchers working at the project “Mobility, Empire and Cross Cultural Contacts in Mongol Eurasia” at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The annotated biographies assembled here not only add new primary sources—translated from Chinese, Persian and Arabic—to the study of the Mongol Empire. They also provide important insights into the social history of the period, illuminating issues such as acculturation (of both the Mongols and their subjects), Islamization, family relations, ethnicity, imperial administration, and scientific exchange.
Funding statement: The research leading to this publication has received funding from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP/2007-2013)/ERC Grant Agreement n. 312397.
References
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© 2017 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Introduction
- Malik Ṣadr al-Dīn Tabrīzī and the Establishment of Mongol Rule in Iran
- Niẓām al-Dīn Yaḥyā al-Ṭayyārī – An Artist in the Court of the Ilkhans and Mamluks
- Kingship away from Kingdom: The Life of King Ch’ungsŏn (1275–1325)
- Mongol Imperialism in the Southeast: Uriyangqadai (1201–1272) and Aju (1127–1287)
- A Judge at the Crossroads of Cultures: Shi Tianlin
- ‘Han’ Cultural Mobility under Mongol Rule: Biographies of the Jia 賈 Family
- Prince Manggala – The Forgotten Prince of Anxi
- Türaqai Güregen (d. 1296–7) and His Lineage: History of a Cross-Asia Journey
- From Military Leaders to Administrative Experts: The Biography of the “Treacherous Minister” Temüder and his Ancestors
- From the West to the East, from the Sky to the Earth: A Biography of Jamāl al-Dīn
- Aufsätze – Articles – Articles
- Faeces and the Old Sole of a Shoe: Remedies of the Dreckapotheke
- Energy for Tourists and for Pilgrims: Khamaryn Khiid and the Shambhala Energy Centre in Mongolia
- Miszellen – Mélanges – Miscellanea
- Un Temoignage au Temps de L’Imperatrice Catherine II
- Rezensionen – Comptes rendus – Reviews
- Time Subsumed or Time Sublated?
- Übersetzt und kommentiert von Eva Lüdi Kong: Die Reise in den Westen=[Xi You Ji]=西遊記: Ein klassischer Chinesischer Roman: Mit 100 Holzschnitten nach alten Ausgaben
- Rawski, Evelyn S.: Early Modern China and Northeast Asia: Cross-Border Perspectives
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Introduction
- Malik Ṣadr al-Dīn Tabrīzī and the Establishment of Mongol Rule in Iran
- Niẓām al-Dīn Yaḥyā al-Ṭayyārī – An Artist in the Court of the Ilkhans and Mamluks
- Kingship away from Kingdom: The Life of King Ch’ungsŏn (1275–1325)
- Mongol Imperialism in the Southeast: Uriyangqadai (1201–1272) and Aju (1127–1287)
- A Judge at the Crossroads of Cultures: Shi Tianlin
- ‘Han’ Cultural Mobility under Mongol Rule: Biographies of the Jia 賈 Family
- Prince Manggala – The Forgotten Prince of Anxi
- Türaqai Güregen (d. 1296–7) and His Lineage: History of a Cross-Asia Journey
- From Military Leaders to Administrative Experts: The Biography of the “Treacherous Minister” Temüder and his Ancestors
- From the West to the East, from the Sky to the Earth: A Biography of Jamāl al-Dīn
- Aufsätze – Articles – Articles
- Faeces and the Old Sole of a Shoe: Remedies of the Dreckapotheke
- Energy for Tourists and for Pilgrims: Khamaryn Khiid and the Shambhala Energy Centre in Mongolia
- Miszellen – Mélanges – Miscellanea
- Un Temoignage au Temps de L’Imperatrice Catherine II
- Rezensionen – Comptes rendus – Reviews
- Time Subsumed or Time Sublated?
- Übersetzt und kommentiert von Eva Lüdi Kong: Die Reise in den Westen=[Xi You Ji]=西遊記: Ein klassischer Chinesischer Roman: Mit 100 Holzschnitten nach alten Ausgaben
- Rawski, Evelyn S.: Early Modern China and Northeast Asia: Cross-Border Perspectives
