Secret History of the Mongols
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The Secret History of the Mongols is a Mongol chronicle dating to the mid-13th century. It is a key source for understanding the early life of Genghis Khan and the unification of the Mongol tribes. The text provides insights into Mongol society, including its nomadic lifestyle, clan structures, and military organization based on the decimal system. It also details Genghis Khan's rise to power, his campaigns, and the establishment of the Mongol Empire, which eventually stretched across Asia. The Secret History is written in Middle Mongol and preserved in a Chinese transcription. It is one of the few near-contemporary sources available, alongside non-Mongol accounts that often emphasize the destruction caused by Mongol invasions.12
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Genghis KhanHistorical background…the exception of the saga-like Secret History of the Mongols (1240?), only non-Mongol sources provide near-contemporary information about the life of Genghis Khan. Almost all writers, even those who were in the Mongol service, have dwelt on the enormous destruction wrought by the Mongol invasions. One Arab historian openly expressed…
Read More…the exception of the saga-like Secret History of the Mongols (1240?), only non-Mongol sources provide near-contemporary information about the life of Genghis Khan. Almost all writers, even those who were in the Mongol service, have dwelt on the enormous destruction wrought by the Mongol invasions. One Arab historian openly expressed…
Read More- Genghis KhanUnification of the Mongol nation
The Secret History reports it was only after the war against the Muslim empire of Khwārezm, in the region of the Amu Darya (Oxus) and Syr Darya (Jaxartes), probably in late 1222, that Genghis Khan learned from Muslim advisers the “meaning and importance of towns.” And…
Read MoreThe Secret History reports it was only after the war against the Muslim empire of Khwārezm, in the region of the Amu Darya (Oxus) and Syr Darya (Jaxartes), probably in late 1222, that Genghis Khan learned from Muslim advisers the “meaning and importance of towns.” And…
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- Mongolian literatureOrigins through the 19th century
…anonymous Mongqolun niuča tobča’an (Secret History of the Mongols), a chronicle of the deeds of the Mongol ruler Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan) and of Ögödei, his son and successor. Written in prose, it features alliterative verse, myths, legends, epic fragments, songs, eulogies, dialogues, army regulations, and proverbs. Internal evidence…
Read More…anonymous Mongqolun niuča tobča’an (Secret History of the Mongols), a chronicle of the deeds of the Mongol ruler Chinggis Khan (Genghis Khan) and of Ögödei, his son and successor. Written in prose, it features alliterative verse, myths, legends, epic fragments, songs, eulogies, dialogues, army regulations, and proverbs. Internal evidence…
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Central Asian artsMongolian literatureMongolian literature begins with the Secret History of the Mongols, an Imperial chronicle dealing with the life and times of Genghis Khan and his successors, written about 1240. Üligers, orally transmitted epic stories in verse, form the bulk of native literary expression. Highly stylized, these tales relate adventures of legendary…
Read MoreMongolian literature begins with the Secret History of the Mongols, an Imperial chronicle dealing with the life and times of Genghis Khan and his successors, written about 1240. Üligers, orally transmitted epic stories in verse, form the bulk of native literary expression. Highly stylized, these tales relate adventures of legendary…
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