Nayan-Nava and the Ethnogenesis Problem of the Buryat Tribal Community of Khori

Abstract

The ethnogenesis of the leading Buryat tribal community of the Khori is investigated. It was established that their ethnic ancestors were the Mongol-speaking Syanbi ethnic group of the khor-toba. It was determined that in the 4th century in the south-west of China, in Amdo, a group of tribes, called the Khoir (Khori), emerged from the composition of the khori-toba. It settled in Tsaidam near lake Sadamtyn-Sagan-nur. Much attention is paid to the identification of early Tsaidam versions of the Khorin legend about the ancestor of Khoridoy and his wife, Maiden Swan Khoboshi. An analysis of legends, combined with data from various sources, testified that the territory adjacent to Sadamtyn-Sagan-nur was the ancient ancestral home of the Khorintsy, which remained in their memory as Nayan-Nava. It is proved that the main character of the Khorin legend Khorida is the personification of the Tsaidam Mongol-speaking clans - Khoboshi, who came from the Sayano-Altai in the VI century with the Mongolized Turkic-speaking ethnic components. It was established that the interaction and merger of these groups led to the formation of the Khori tribe in Tsaidam. It was found that approximately at the turn of the I-II thousand n. e. the Khorintsy, leaving Nayan-Nava, went to Lake Baikal.

Keywords

• community of khor-toba
• khori tribe
• khorida khoboshi
• amdo
• tsaydam
• lake sadamtyn-sagan-nur
• nayan nava
• baikal