Altan tobchi

Mongol chronicle

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June 18, 2026

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The Altan tobchi is a Mongolian historical chronicle, meaning "The Golden Button." It was composed around 1655 and provides a world history up to the reign of Ligdan Khan (1604–1634). This chronicle is one of several historical accounts that attempt to connect Indian and Tibetan rulers with the lineage of Genghis Khan. Mongolian literature, in general, began with the Secret History of the Mongols, an imperial chronicle about Genghis Khan and his successors written around 1240.1

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Mongolian literature
Origins through the 19th century
…were copied in Lubsangdandzin’s 17th-century Altan tobchi (“Golden Summary”). Likewise, the Mongol original of the history of Chinggis Khan’s campaigns was lost, but its Chinese translation survived. His sayings, which were preserved in Rashīd al-Dīn’s 14th-century universal history and, by oral transmission, in Mongol chronicles of the 17th century, also…
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…were copied in Lubsangdandzin’s 17th-century Altan tobchi (“Golden Summary”). Likewise, the Mongol original of the history of Chinggis Khan’s campaigns was lost, but its Chinese translation survived. His sayings, which were preserved in Rashīd al-Dīn’s 14th-century universal history and, by oral transmission, in Mongol chronicles of the 17th century, also…
Read More