Chuge

The Chuge (Chinese: 屠各; pinyin: Chúgè; Wade–Giles: Ch'u-ko), also known as Xiuchuge (Chinese: 休屠各; pinyin: Xiūchúgè; Wade–Giles: Hsiu-ch'u-ko) or Xiuchu (Chinese: 休屠; pinyin: Xiūchú; Wade–Giles: Hsiu-ch'u) were a Xiongnu tribe and later ethnic group that lived in ancient China. They were described as the most influential among the Xiongnu tribes that resettled within the Great Wall, and a branch of them, the Liu clan, founded the Han-Zhao dynasty in 304 AD during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. The Chuge's influence were as such that by the 4th century, they were seen as a distinct ethnic group from the rest of the Xiongnu, and they continued to appear in history until the late Northern Wei period of the 6th century. Their name can also be transcribed as Tuge, Xiutuge, and Xiutu.

According to the Book of Jin, the Chuge were one of the nineteen recorded Xiongnu tribes that resettled in northern China. By the Jin dynasty period, they rose to be the most honored and prestigious among the Xiongnu, and members of the Chuge were elected by the tribes to become chanyus.^[1] The name "Chuge" (屠各) is an abbreviation for "Xiuchuge" (休屠各) and can be used interchangeably.^[2] They were spread out in the north and most prevalent in the areas around modern-day Shanxi and eastern Gansu. The Chuge were also distinct from the Southern Xiongnu that migrated into China in 50 AD.

One common theory among modern Chinese historians is that the Chuge were descendants of the Xiutu tribe (休屠; also transcribed as Xiuchu), who lived around Wuwei in the Hexi Corridor and were among the earliest of the Xiongnu to surrender to the Han dynasty in 121 BC. After their surrender, the Xiutu were relocated into five commanderies, namely Longxi, Beidi, Shang, Shuofang and Yunzhong; the suffix of "ge" (各) may have been the result of a language habit of the Bingzhou (present-day Shanxi) dialect at the time.^[3]

In 156, the Xiuchuge were first mentioned rebelling with the Wuhuan of Shuofang Commandery against the Han dynasty, but were defeated by the Han general, Zhang Huan. They later acted as auxiliaries for the Han general, Xia Yu who attacked the marauding Xianbei at Beidi Commandery in 174.

The Xiuchuge in Bingzhou rose to power during the final decades of the Han. In 188 AD, they rebelled and killed the Han provincial inspector, Zhang Yi (張懿). They then proceeded to ally themselves with the Xiluo clan (醯落) of the Right Division of the Southern Xiongnu and killed the chanyu, Qiangqu. They elected a noble from the Xubu clan as the new chanyu, while Qiangqu's son, Yufuluo went into exile. After the marquis of Xubu's death, the chanyu position became vacant and a nominal king was installed instead. In the 190s, the Chuge allied with Zhang Yan of the Heishan bandits, who controlled the Taihang Mountains, and they later killed Gongsun Xu (公孫續), the son of the defeated Jizhou warlord, Gongsun Zan.^[2]

The Chuge eventually retreated west as Cao Cao and Yuan Shao established control in the north. In 214, they were attacked and defeated at Gaoping County (高平縣; present-day Guyuan, Ningxia) by Cao Cao's general Xiahou Yuan. In 216, Cao Cao had the Southern Xiongnu in Bingzhou divided into Five Divisions in Taiyuan Commandery and formally abolished the rank of chanyu.

In the 250s, the Five Divisions were unified by one of their leaders, Liu Bao before being forced to divide again by the Cao Wei and Western Jin courts. In 304, Bao's son, Liu Yuan led the Southern Xiongnu to rebel against the Jin and founded the Han-Zhao dynasty, one of the first of the Sixteen Kingdoms. Several passages in records refer to Liu Yuan and his family members as "Chuge", but at the same time, he claimed to be the grandson of Yufuluo and a direct descendant of the Southern Xiongnu chanyus, who were of the Luandi clan. Modern scholars such as Tang Changru have cast their doubt on Liu Yuan's lineage from the Southern Xiongnu chanyus and believe it to be a fabrication for legitimacy.^[2][4][5]

Aside from the Liu clan of Han-Zhao, there were many recorded Chuge-Xiongnu leaders during the Sixteen Kingdoms and as far as the late Northern Wei period. Unlike most of their Xiongnu counterparts, records often simply address them as "Chuge", treating them as if they were a distinct ethnic group, and they had various Chinese surnames such as Bi (畢), Zhang (張), Li (李), Guo (郭), Dong (董), Cheng (成) and Huang (黃). Wang Zhuo, a general notable for serving five different dynasties, was a Chuge from Qin province in the northwest, and his sons, Wang Tong and Wang Guang became officials for the Former Qin dynasty. The Chuge eventually became subjects of the Northern Wei dynasty and were mentioned during Northern Zhou dynasty in the late 6th-century before disappearing from history, presumably assimilating into the rest of Chinese society.^[5]