A preliminary study on the nomadic way of grassland ethnic groups in historical period

(This is my academic paper by Ms. Han Maoli. This academic paper by Ms. Han Maoli is also the foundation for my thinking on the stability strategy of Mobei, and it is also the basic knowledge of the birth of the Four Metrics of Mobei in the novel and the later refinement of the nomadic scope.)

Abstract: Nomadism is the basic economic lifestyle of grassland people, including the nomadism method with the basic characteristics of living by water and grass, and the nomadic space determined based on the principle of separate land. Within thousands of years, grassland people have established living order and spatial order on the grassland based on these two benchmarks, and based on this, they promote the development of grassland social politics, economy and even military.

Keywords: nomadic ways of grassland ethnicity in historical period

The central Eurasia is covered by a grassland that stretches thousands of miles from the east and west sides of the Greater Khingan Mountains in China to the Danube River in Europe. This grassland is located in the depths of the Eurasian continent. It is difficult to reach here whether it is wind from the south or water from the Arctic Ocean. Drought and rain have become the basic natural geographical feature here. Except for a few oasis moistened by alpine ice and snow melting water and rivers traveling through the hinterland of the mainland, most areas are not suitable for agricultural reclamation. For a long time, this place can only be used as a pasture for sheep, horse, cattle, and camels, and is owned by nomads. People living here live on the grassland and live by water and grass, and have created a unique nomadic way and grassland culture after thousands of years.

Although the grassland ethnic groups that have been active in China in history have changed in generations, the nomadic methods of these ethnic groups are almost common. From the Huns, Turks to the Mongols, they not only follow the path of conquerors from the grassland ethnic group, one of the world, but also rely on the grassland to move with the sun to live a traditional nomadic life. Therefore, nomadic people are not only the basic economic lifestyle of the grassland ethnic group, but also one of the ways to understand grassland society. This article is based on this basis and based on various documentary records and social investigations, we explore the nomadic methods of grassland ethnic group in historical periods.

The Huns were the earliest grassland nomads in Chinese history, and their development and lifestyle were formed under the background of grassland environment. The Book of Han Dynasty. Biography of the Huns recorded: The Huns "migrated water and grass, and did not have any city walls to live in farmland, but they also had their own land. Although this record is simple, it records the basic characteristics of the nomadic life of the Huns. "Migration of water and grass" is the main link of nomadic life. The natural characteristics of the grassland ecology determine the finiteness of the livestock carrying grasslands, because no grassland can withstand long-term grazing, so when nomadic industry is born, it is accompanied by mobile life. In order to pursue the grassland with abundant water and grassland, people and livestock in nomadic society migrate regularly. This migration includes both seasonal pasture changes between winter and summer, as well as within the same season. The choice of aquatic grass camp. In the nomadic career of the Huns' "migrating water and grass" that also showed another characteristic, which is, "divided in different places". On the surface, the migration of nomadic society with the sun is a disorderly behavior in space. In fact, both families and tribes have different places. In their long-term nomadic life, they have formed a fixed pasture division through the recognition of habits and interests. Although the grassland people are not bound to small plots of land all year round, whether it is "migrating water and grass" or "divided in different places" they also associate their lives with the land. Therefore, when the Donghu people asked Maodun Shanyu to find BMWs and love concubines, the Shanyu gave it to him, but when Suo and Ou left the land, the Shanyu said angrily: "The land is the foundation of the country, how can they give it to others? ‘Sui Dong attacked Donghu, won and returned to the country①a. From this we can see that ‘the migration of water and plants’ and ‘there are different places’ are the basic links that can represent the nomadic methods. This article will discuss the nomadic methods of grassland ethnic groups in the historical period from these two aspects.

Due to the mobility of nomadic life and the cultural barrier from settled farming life, the records of nomadic life in historical periods are not only limited, but also very general. It is difficult to form a clear understanding of nomadic methods by relying solely on little literature records. Therefore, it is necessary to discuss this issue and introduce other types of data. In my study of the Northeast ethnic groups, I found that the economic lifestyle of non-agricultural ethnic groups, including nomadic peoples, has strong stability. In the context of the natural environment not fundamentally changing and the impact of heterogeneous culture, their economic lifestyles generally do not change, and their habitual life and cultural practices

The custom will continue steadily and unchanged①b. For this reason, the nomadic life in grassland lasted for thousands of years in roughly similar ways, and it still maintained the traditional nomadic way before the mid-20th century. Therefore, the travel notes of Westerners before this era and various grassland social surveys including the Manchurian Railway Survey have become the basic information of enriching and fulfilling traditional historical documents. In this context, when I was discussing the issues mentioned in this article, I took traditional historical documents as the basis, and introduced Western scriptures since the 19th century and various grassland social surveys in the early 20th century, in order to achieve the goal of understanding the nomadic way of grassland.

1. Nomadic ways to live by water and plants

Living through water and grasslands is the basic production and survival method of grassland nations. This has left a clear record in various historical documents. From Table 1, it can be seen that the commonality of the major grassland nations in history is in this basic issue.

Table l Main grassland ethnic groups and nomadic methods

Ethnic data content source

The Huns lived in the Northern Barbarians and moved with the livestock. Volume 110 of "Records of the Grand Historian" "Biography of the Huns"

Wuhuan grazed with the water and grass, and lived in an unpredictable place. He used the dome as a house and opened east to the sun. He ate meat and drank cheese, and used wool as his clothes. Volume 90 of "Book of the Later Han Dynasty" "Biography of Wuhuan"

The vast desert of Xianbei, animal husbandry and hunting are the business of hunting. Volume 1 of "Book of Wei"

Tuyuhun always lives in the dome, and follows the water, grass and animal husbandry. Volume 101 of "Book of Wei" "Biography of Tuyuhun"

Turkic hair was left-sided, and felt tents were hiding with water plants. They were engaged in animal husbandry shooting and hunting, eating meat and drinking cheese, and wearing fur and brown clothes. Volume 99 of "Northern History" (Biography of the Turkic Republic)

The Uighurs lived in Wuheng's place and moved with the water and grass. (Old Book of Tang) Volume 195 (Biography of the Uighurs)

Tubo's livestock and grass is chasing the impermanence of water and grass. "New Book of Tang" Volume 216 "Tubo Biography"

Khitan conquers cold and heat, and follows the aquatic plants and animal husbandry. Volume 94 of "Biography of Khitan"

Xi followed the water plants and was quite similar to the Turks. (Northern History) Volume 94 (Biography of Xi)

Mongolia is suitable for the summer and winter, and it is suitable for the land to follow the water and plants. (History of Yuan Dynasty) Volume 100 "Military Chronicles III"

Living through water and grass is the way for herders to adapt to the grassland ecological environment, and environmental adaptation is directly related to resource characteristics. Although grasslands are renewable resources, no pasture can withstand long-term grazing. If we want to ensure that the forage that has been eaten by livestock in the ecological background of grassland can be restored in time and that the livestock grazing on the grassland can reproduce continuously, we must transfer grazing land in time to pursue abundant pastures to grazing, and meet the livestock's demand for grass and water in nomads, and the herder's demand for livestock. Therefore, in this sense, living through water and grassland not only includes the choice of livestock's pastures to move according to time, but also includes the utilization characteristics of various types of pastures under different environmental backgrounds.

According to historical records and various Western languages, ethnology and sociological investigations, nomadic life represented by living by water and grass includes demarcating seasonal pastures and prescribing nomadic routes. These two have different meanings and complement each other.

(I) Delineate seasonal ranches

When shepherds demarcate seasonal pastures, two principles are generally required to meet. One is to ensure that the pasture has good regeneration ability and that the plant components are not destroyed; the second is that drinking water conditions and grass growth conditions can meet seasonal requirements. Under such basic principles, the seasonal adaptability of the grassland's natural terrain, climatic conditions, water source conditions, grass growth conditions, feed management conditions, etc. The seasonal adaptability of the pasture utilization often plays an important role in the division of pastures. Generally, under the control of the above principles, according to the natural environment of the pasture, it can be divided into four-season camps, three-season camps and two-season camps.

Camps refer to places where livestock are concentrated grazing, which is the common name for pastures by herders. Four-season camps generally divide pastures into spring camps, summer camps, autumn camps and winter camps, which change in seasons, and are grazing in sequence. Spring camps in northern China have a long time to use, and it is the time when livestock are weak and spring lambs are collected. For this reason, grazing areas are often selected in places where the sun is open, the plants germinate early, and there are drinking water conditions on the same day or the next day; summer camps are mostly selected in pastures with high terrain, ventilation and mosquito-proof, and grass species are conducive to fat-catching; autumn camps are often selected in open rivers or beach areas; winter camps are used for a long time, and generally in pastures with leeward and well-preserved grass. The grasslands that have the conditions to form four-season camps often have a wide area, large vegetation coverage, and abundant water sources. According to Manchu Iron

According to the investigation department's "Hulunbuir Animal Products Events", some Mongolians living in the Hulunbuir grassland implemented four-season camps. With the transformation of spring, summer, autumn and winter, four major migrations were carried out in the year. Because Hulunbuir spring and autumn are very short, people often regard the year as summer, winter, summer and winter grazing lands are very important. Summer grazing lands are often close to water sources, with rich grass, and are at the northernmost end of the grazing circle. The winter grazing lands emphasize temperature more. Generally, the warmest place in the grazing circle, that is, the southernmost end, is the place with the least snowfall. The camps were determined. The Mongolians grazing in spring, summer, autumn and winter, and live a nomadic life. As long as there is no special event every year, they move within the specific circle according to a certain period①c.

The three-season camp generally divides the pasture into winter and spring camps, summer camps and autumn camps. In addition to the above forms, there are also cases where summer and autumn are first-season ranches. Manchurian Railway survey pointed out that some herders in the Alkorqin Banner adopted the nomadic form of three-season camps, starting to migrate northward in April and May every year. It takes about two or three days to reach the plain more than 70 miles north, and from here again move north to the near Huolin River to spend the summer; in September, it gradually moves to the winter camp, and the next year, 4

, in May, we return to the spring camp ②c. Two-season camp often divides the pasture into winter and spring camps and summer and autumn camps. Based on natural conditions, many pastures in China adopt the form of two-season camps. Winter and spring camps mostly choose grasslands with high grass, shelter and wind, and close to settlements, while summer and autumn camps are selected in hills, hills or open plains. Herders living in Arukorqin Banner divide the pasture into winter camps, summer camps, and summer camps are selected in places with abundant water and grass, usually in grazing areas.

North; winter camps are chosen in places with less snowfall, usually in the south. Every year, from May of the Old Calendar, the herdsmen gradually moved from the winter camp to the north. From July to August, they arrived at Kundulun, which is more than 60 miles north. They gradually moved south from September. In October, they returned to the hilly areas near the winter camp. In November, they entered the bumpy mountains of the winter camp until April of the following year. ③c. Herdsmen who grazed in the Tianshan Mountains and Kunlun Mountains also adopted two seasons of camping.

, Due to the temperature difference between the valley and the mountain, the herdsmen here generally choose summer camps on cool and windy mountains, while the winter camps are placed at the bottom of the mountain and facing the sun. In the mid-19th century, Russian scholar Semenov recorded the situation of a clan winter camp in the nomadic Atban tribe south of the Ili River. This clan summer camp is in the cool alpine area in the southern part of the outer Yili Alata; the winter camps are selected in the deep valley in Yili Alata.

It should be pointed out that although winter camps in non-mountain areas are generally chosen in the south of the grazing ground, there are sometimes special circumstances due to the different pasture environment. The "Mongolian Muye Survey Report" points out that the herdsmen on the Xilingol grassland focus more on whether it is easy to collect grass, while the orientation is less important. In late winter and early spring, due to sunlight on the south side of the pasture, there is a small part of the snow melting on the surface of the residual snow. After cooling at night, it immediately freezes, the snow is hard, and it is difficult to pick grass. The snow in the north is softer, and it is easy to dissipate under the blow of the north wind, and it is convenient to pick grass. On the contrary, many families gather in the north side of the hills.②d

The seasonal pastures change due to cold and heat, which is a common nomadic way for grasslands to pass through water and grasslands in historical periods, and all kinds of historical documents are reflected. For example, "The Book of Han·; Biography of the Western Regions" records: "Kangju, Wang Dong governs Leyue Hidden... When he arrived at Yue Hidden, he traveled for seven days, and then Wang Xia lived in the 9,140 miles of the brink of the brink of the brink of the Qian River Basin during the Western Han Dynasty. Regarding this passage, Yan Shigu notes: "The King moved to different places every winter, summer and summer. "Further affirmed the phenomenon that people in Kangju migrated to pastures due to different seasons. "Book of Wei."

Biography of the Western Regions records: "The Kingdom of Da... has no cities, and it depends on the water and plants, and uses felt as houses. It moves to cool soil in summer and moves to warm places in winter. "History of Liao.

The Bingwei Zhi records the Khitans' "to keep up with the cold and heat, and chase water, grass and animal husbandry". The "History of Liao·Yingwei Zhi" contains the "Dawang and Dujian" and the Dujian live next to the Five Departments' courtyard in spring and summer, and in Yangmendian in autumn and winter. The "Dawang and Dujian live north of Taide Spring in spring and summer, and in Dulujin in autumn and winter". The "History of Yuan Dynasty.

"The Military Records" records that the Mongolians "from summer to winter, they were suitable for the land, and they went to the local area in October". Wang Yun, a native of the Yuan Dynasty, left a similar record: the Mongolian shepherds "when they encountered summer, they would go to the high and cold places, and when they were in winter, they would go to the warmth of the sun and the easy-to-get the food to avoid it... They would just pass through water and grass to live in animal husbandry. Marco Polo also described this phenomenon, saying: "The Tatar lives in the plain in winter, with a mild climate and abundant water and grass, which is enough for the land of animal husbandry. In the summer, they live in cold places.

, The land is in the mountains or in the valley, with water, forests, and pastures. ④d’The Western missionary Rumuluqi, who entered the Mongolian grassland in the 13th century, recorded the same nomadic way. He wrote: The Tartars had no fixed residence. In winter, they went to warmer areas in the south: in summer, to colder places in the north. In winter, they drove cattle and sheep to places without water to grazed. At this time, there was snow there, and the snow could provide them with water. ⑤d’

In the nomadic career of the shepherd, the choice of seasonal camps is only one aspect. In fact, during each seasonal camp, the shepherd also needs to migrate multiple times according to the grassland and livestock conditions. For example, although the Mongols living in Hulunbuir implemented four-season camps and carried out four major migrations a year, during the shepherds of each camp, they also had to move short distances and small areas nearby⑥d. There are various movement cycles on the grassland, some depend on the geographical environment, and some are related to the herding livestock. Some tribes move very far, and some only move dozens of miles a year; some pastures include good grass and bad grass. Some tribes move very far away, and some only move dozens of miles a year; some pastures include good grass and bad grass.

Some are completely on barren grasslands. Animal Husbandry researchers generally call the number of grazing and utilization times that a certain pasture can grazing during the grazing season called the grazing frequency. The grazing frequency depends on the regeneration ability of the forage, and the grazing frequency with strong regeneration ability is high; conversely, the grazing frequency is low. The grazing frequency is generally the number of grass regeneration times plus 1. Forage grass in northern China can generally be regenerated 2-3 times during the growing season, and the grazing frequency can reach 3-4 times; desert areas can generally only be regenerated once, and the grazing frequency is 2⑦d. Therefore, in grasslands with lower grazing frequency, the more times the herdsmen migrate; conversely, the fewer migrations.

Migration in nomadic life is sometimes related to the species of livestock. Sheep and camels grow poorly in wet pasture land; calcareous soil is beneficial to horses; salt-containing soil is suitable for camels; goats and sheep are very capable of gnawing grass and can eat grass roots all the time. Therefore, the grasslands eaten by cattle and horses can continue to herd sheep, but the places where sheep have just eaten can no longer shed any livestock. The frequency of nomadic frequency is not only related to the species of livestock, but sometimes it is also influenced by the social and living customs of the nation. Some surveys during the Republic of China have proved that the Tibetans and Mongolians in the Gansu and Qinghai area are also grassland ethnic groups, but the social and family organizations of the two are different, and the convenience of movement is also different. Tibetan tents are crudely organized, simple in setting up, very light in quality, and small in volume, so it is easy to move. Yurts are not the case.

,The organization is exquisite, the installation is complex, the quality is heavy, the capacity is large, and it is not convenient to move. Therefore, the movement of Mongolian families is not as convenient as that of Tibetans. For this reason, when Tibetans nomads a certain place, they can carry their households to another excellent grass place with only a few cows or horses. The grass recovers quickly and the pastures are better than Mongolian people's pastures. However, Mongolian people must use a considerable number of camels or cattle and horses to move, and their family organization is very complex and difficult to move. Therefore, the place where Mongolian people live has almost no grass to be herded and is in a state of overgrassing①e. Since migration is directly related to the ecological environment of the grassland and the growth and reproduction of livestock, the right to move in the nomad industry is more important than the right to live. The stronger the mobility is, the more beneficial it is to maintain the ecological environment of the grassland and the more beneficial it is to grow and reproduce livestock.

There are many grassland ethnic groups active in China in history, and the Khitans are one of them. They live a swimming life of water and grass like other grassland ethnic groups. The Oludu and Nabo systems that appeared in Khitan history are a reflection of nomadic life in the country's politics, economy and culture system. Through the study of the Oludu system, Yang Ruowei, author of the book "Research on the Political and Military System of the Khitan Dynasty", pointed out that Oludu was the palace tent of the current emperor and the deceased emperor, and it was also the political core of the Liao Dynasty. It coincided with the nomadic life of the Khitans. Zhuoludu and central officials followed the current emperor Oluduo and moved in all four seasons. Under the Oluduo system, the emperor lived in the Oluduo; where the emperor went, it was called Nabo. In this regard, "History of Liao. Yingwei Zhi" has such records: "The Liao Kingdom has a desert and is soaked in the Great Wall, so it is suitable for treatment, and it is against cold in autumn and winter, escapes the heat in spring and summer, and follows the water and grass, and then fish.

The year is normal, and each of them has its own movements in all seasons. It is called Nabo. Generally, the spring Nabo is called Yazihe River. The emperor raised his teeth tent in the early month of the first month, and it arrived about 60 days... The summer Nabo is not always... The summer Nabo is starting his teeth tent in the middle of April, and the Buji land is a place to cool down. It is late May and early June, and lives in the fifty-year-old, discussing state affairs with his ministers in the north and south, hunting on his spare time, and then leaving in the middle of July. The autumn Nabo is called Fuhulin, and the middle of July is starting from the cool down place... The winter Nabo is called Guangpingdian

...The land is sandy, the winter moon is a little warmer, and the tents are mostly here. The Nabo system of "Spring Mountains and Autumn Waters" is a reflection of the nomadic life of the Khitans and the migration of the four seasons. The Khitan people followed the nomadic livelihoods in four seasons, while the emperors and nobles accompanied the huge "Nbo" of the four seasons. Following Liao, the Nabo system of the four seasons was Jin, and the Yuan Dynasty was not replaced. After Manchu, the summer heat and autumn movements were implemented, and the Nabo system still retained the rhyme and legacy of the Nabo system.

Nabo is a water-grained activity in the upper class of Khitan, Jurchen and other ethnic groups under the nomadic background. Since the core figure of Nabo is an emperor, the distance between the four seasons Nabo is very wide. However, for grassland herders, the distance between the winter and summer camps, that is, the range of the four seasons of water-grained plants, is within a hundred miles or hundreds of miles. Persian scholar Rashit also described the Mongolians' Four Seasons Pasture in "Shi Ji", where the spring of Ogedei Khan in Mongolia is Hala and

The forest is surrounded by the forest; in summer, the moon is the grassland of the timid soil; in autumn, the place is Guszhnawuer, which is one day away from Hala and the forest; in winter, it is Wanggu. Alibugo's summer camp is in Altai, and the winter camp is in Tikke and Qiergis, which is a three-day journey between ③e. Ogedei and Alibugo are both Mongolian Khan, but their four-season camps are only 1-3 days away. Pozdneev, a 19th century Russian scholar, was in "Mongols and Mongols"

》 also records the scene of herders' transition on the Mongolian grassland. The author saw herders moving to the summer camp in a winter camp called Daran Ama Urum, which is only 4 miles away from the Orkun River. The summer camp that is about to move to is on the opposite bank of the river. The two camps are not far apart. Such a transition can be seen everywhere on the grassland. The road on the Tarayintologoyi Plain is north. A winter pasture leading to the post station, and another summer park leading to the post station.

How far is the distance between the Ji Camp, winter and summer camps? Needless to say, they are definitely on the Taraintologoyi Plain, which is only 40 rile long. It is similar to the winter and summer camps of the Taraintologoyi Plain. It belongs to the winter camps of Asus Luotu Station, and the summer camps are only about 20 rile. The 200 Arctic Soldiers camps stationed in Ulyasutai are near the post road, and the winter ranch is chosen at the mouth of the Wusong Zuyili River, which is 70 rile away.

Records of the distance between grassland ethnic winter and summer camps can also be scattered in various grassland social surveys. According to the survey of the Haratokorqin tribe of the Arukorqin Banner in the early 20th century, this tribe has a distance of about 60 miles from the summer pastures. ②f. A survey of three grazing teams in Zarut Banner showed that the group started from April and May with the tribe as the starting point, and took about 2 or 3 days to reach the Aruhongdolun Plain 70 miles north, stayed here for several days, and then moved to the Maolilin near the Huolin River to the north, spending most of the summer here. When September approached winter

At that time, we moved to the south near the Baoluken Temple (arrived on about 5th) to set up a winter camp. It took about 4 days to walk more than 100 miles to return to our tribe. Obviously, this group of herders and herders in winter and summer camps were about 100 miles apart③f. Of course, the distance between herders and summer camps in winter and summer camps is not all about 100 miles. Some tribes have to migrate for a long distance. There are tribes 170 miles away on the Halatao Korqin Tribe pasture in the Arukorqin Banner. Sometimes the herders of the Halatao Korqin Tribe will also go to the pastures 200 miles away to grazing ④f.

Overall, the nomadic activities of herders to chase water and grass are completed within a circle of hundreds or hundreds of miles. This circle has both aquatic plants that meet the needs of grazing, and is also habitually regarded by others as having stable use rights.

(II) Specify nomadic routes

Although the nomadic life of herders living by pursuing water and grass is arbitrary, the nomadic routes are generally not changed easily, and are basically the same every year. The reason for this phenomenon is related to the existence of water sources, the quality of the grassland, and the manure left by the herds during the migration last year. There are few trees on the grassland, and people living here generally use cow dung, horse manure, etc. as fuel. In the mid-13th century, Western missionary Gabinni noticed in his "History of Mongolia" written by him: "Cooking food with cow dung and horse manure, the emperor and nobles, like others, used cow and horse manure to keep warm. ⑤f'

One of the Manchurian Railway investigation reports, "Hulunbuir Animal Products Events", pointed out that the Mongolians grazed livestock in spring, summer, autumn and winter, and lived a nomadic life. Every year, as long as there is no special incident, they will move in a specific circle according to a certain period. If the past nomadic routes are changed in the nomadic circle, it will cause them to solve the problem of fuel. This is because the Mongolians' fuel relies entirely on the dry livestock manure left over from the nomadic routes over the years, and the first one is cow dung, followed by sheep, horse, camel, etc. ⑥f. However, surveys on nomadic methods in other places have shown that following the cow dung last year has not become the only choice to determine the nomadic route. Herders on the Xilingol grassland pay more attention to forage and drinking water conditions. In order to find satisfactory forage and drinking water conditions, herders do not consciously take the same route. For fuel, although fresh ones cannot be used, they can be used a few years ago, so they do not necessarily need to take the same route every year⑦f.

The nomadic route is a link between camps. The herders drive the livestock to follow these routes over and over again, and come to the camps again and again, year after year, living a cycle of nomadic life. The herders of the New Barhu Left Banner usually go through the summer to the Hailar River, Urson River, Hui River, Yimin River and the numerous wetlands between these rivers, and in winter, they drive the livestock from the valley to the highlands. The natural environment around each river is different. In order to adapt to the physiological habits of livestock, the herders have different choices for pasture and grazing routes. The main summer and winter grazing sites of the New Barhu Left Banner and the adjacent banners are as follows:

New Barhu Left Banner: Xia—Urson River. Winter—Miningtala Heights (located on the right bank of Kundulun River)

New Barhu Right Banner: Xia-Kundulun River, near Dalai Lake. Dong-Yi-Yi-Highlands northwest of Dalai Lake

Chenbaerhu Banner: Summer—Hailar River Basin. Winter—The foothills of Xing'anling Mountain in the upper reaches of the Hailar River

Sauron Banner: Xia—Hao pitch Nulu. Dong—Hao pitch Nulu①g.

Nomadic routes are an important part of nomadic activities of grassland ethnic groups. Due to the lack of records related to ancient ethnic groups, although the nomadic route selection mentioned above is the nomadic method of the Mongols in the early 20th century, based on the stability of the long-term nomadic method, these surveys can still understand the traditional principles and habits of herders in choosing nomadic routes.

(III) Camp and Grazing

Camps and herds are important aspects of understanding nomadic methods and related geographical characteristics.

1.

Yingpan

Yingpan is a place where livestock rest overnight. Herders usually grazed within a certain range around Yingpan during the day and stayed in Yingpan at night. Due to the functional characteristics of Yingpan, they are often located in the center of the pasture. According to the type, they are divided into temporary, fixed and auxiliary camping.

The choice of Yingpan is related to the water and grass conditions. Among the two, the drinking water conditions of humans and animals seem to be more important. As for sheep, "you need to drink water 2-3 times a day in summer and 1-2 times in winter, so Yingpan must be close to the drinking water place. The water sources on the grassland are basically divided into two types, one is rivers, lakes and snow accumulation in winter; the other is water wells. Before herders master the well digging technology, natural water sources such as rivers are the only drinking water points. With wells, not only shorten the distance to grazing every day, but also add some flexibility to the nomadic life of water and grass. The grasslands around the wells have become an ideal place to choose Yingpan and grazing points. Russian scholar Pozdneev talked many times about Mongolian herders grazing around the wells in his book "Mongols and Mongolians".

In the scene, he said: "We have crossed several valleys separated by hills. On the south side of a hill, there is a small well near the side of the road. Every spring and autumn, herders with Taogong flags are nomad here. "We are going to pass through a desert, and there is a well not far from the east side of the road. The Mongolians on the post sometimes come here to graz. ②g''Water wells are especially essential for summer pastures. Those doughnuts far away from rivers and lakes are difficult to become pastures. One of the reasons is the lack of water wells. To this day, the significance of water wells to herders is still very important. Too many herds come and go around the wells. The food and trampling of livestock make the ground around the wells exposed, and the ground that has lost the protection of forage grasses has become the starting point for the desertification of the grassland.

Since drinking water is an important part of grazing, herders determine that the grazing distance within a day is basically based on the drinking water location, and the drinking water location includes rivers, bubbles and wells. Different species of livestock, their daily walking ability is also different from the grazing radius. Generally, sheep travel 5-6 kilometers, cattle 7-8 kilometers, horses 10-15 kilometers, and most camels are around the residential sites. In winter, livestock eat snow instead of water, and the grazing radius is also reduced accordingly. Salt is necessary for livestock growth. Nomadic herders do not give livestock salt. In order to supplement the salt needs, they go to Chaoda Lake to grazle every four to five months, and let them lick the salt on the surface basically meet the requirements of livestock.

The equipment in the camp is also an important part of grazing life. Temporary camps often appear in summer camps, so there is no need to install any facilities for such camps. Just because dairy cows need to take milk, it is enough to separate the calf from the calf. Fixed camps are mainly used in winter camps. In order to ensure that the sheep hide from the wind and snow, fences must be installed. The sheep are very large, so the fence is also very large①h.

In order to keep the grass around the camp pan from being eaten up immediately, most herders live alone, each family is dozens of miles apart, and fewer two families live together or within ten miles apart, and the three families live together in the same place are less visible, and they are obviously dispersed.②h. In nomadic society, not only the Mongolian camp pans have such dispersed characteristics, but Tibetans living on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau also have the same practice. Generally, there are 20 to 300 families in a tribe, and their tents are constantly scattered between 10 to 20 miles apart. If you live in one place, there are too many livestock and you can eat them in a few days. This will inevitably increase the number of migrations of the entire tribe, which is very inconvenient.

2.

Grazing and herds

The herds of nomadic society were quite large. During the Northern Song Dynasty, the Song people sent Liao to see the Khitan horses moving in thousands, and each herd was only two or three people. Even if they were chasing water plants, they were scattered by thousands of sheep. Even if they were catching water plants, they had no more pens and shelters, and they lived very extensively. About a thousand years later, the Russian scholar Pozdneev saw almost the same scene on the Mongolian grasslands as when the Song people entered Liao. There were two or three hundred horses and cattle herds, and the sheep were about ⑤h. By the beginning of the 20th century, 500-3000 horses, 100-300 cattle and 300-3000 sheep could still be seen on the Mongolian grasslands in the early 20th century. The herdsmen of 5-100 camels were grazed under the management of 2-3 horse-riding herdsmen. Of course, the herdsmen on the grasslands did not have such a number of herds, and there were also small shepherds with small livestock.

The number of livestock owned by herders is different, and the grazing distance is also different. Generally, families with considerable herds must adopt the four-season grazing form. A small shepherd with only twenty or thirty cattle or twenty or thirty sheep does not need to leave the camp and only grazing within a few miles, because such a number of livestock is not enough to cause a shortage of grass around the camp. In the early 20th century, in the survey of the Halatao Korqin tribe of the Arukorqin Banner, it was found that among the 20 residents of this tribe, 16 were small in number, and they were nomadic near the tribe throughout the winter and summer. Compared with them, the other households grazed in summer pastures in addition to winter. This phenomenon was also found in the survey of herders in Zalut Banner. The pastors with fewer livestock mostly grazed in tribes centered on the tribe and grazed within 50 miles. In order to ensure the recovery of the forage, herders had to change more than a dozen replayed pasture sites a year.

Shepherds with more livestock generally hire herds to herd herds. In early May, the grass has gradually grown. Shepherds have moved the shacks and grains they live in to the pastures, and then compiled the horse herds into an array. Generally, they have 500 horses, including 15 or 18 horses, 300 mules and horses, and about 180 horses. The herds ride fast horses and hold poles to prevent the horses from being fed. Kunlun, about 30 miles of pasture land, which is only enough for the horse herds to eat on the 15th day. After 30 days or 15th, they return to the front land. At this time, the grass in the front land is lush again, enough for the horse herds to fill.

Food. In this way, there is no need to worry about not having grass to eat in spring, summer and autumn. It is not until late September to the turn of October when the water and grass are exhausted, and the herds are stacked up and left the pasture and led the horses home. At this time, it cannot be placed far away, but can only grazed in places very close to the place of residence. Cattle cannot be as herds as horses, and are most likely to be dispersed. The herds can only monitor 20 or 30 at most. Sheep usually consists of 3-4 lambs, forty or fifty lambs, and 8-9 lambs or twelve or three lambs, and they form a group. Because the sheep are the most tame, one sheep can shepherd sheep to two or three or more groups of four or five⑨h.

2. Nomadic spaces have their own locations

Although living by water and grass is the basic nomadic way for grassland people, this does not mean that nomadic areas are absolutely random. Although the grassland does not belong to anyone, the pastures in each region are generally divided into areas and become fixed tribal or tribal pastures. The seasonal migration of grassland people and the conversion camps are basically limited to being carried out in designated areas. Crossing the boundary to grazing in other tribal pastures. Although the phenomenon of grazing in grasslands is not new on the grassland, it is a habit to use one area as the basic core to form a nomadic space.

"Records of the Grand Historian. Biography of the Huns" left a record: The Huns "violate water and grass, and do not live in the land of the city and the land often live in farming, but they also have their own land. "The so-called "separate land" refers to the grazing of various parts of the Huns. The records in "Records of the Grand Historian" are very clear, "each has its own land" is related to the territory of the leaders of all levels of the Huns. According to the Xiongnu's rule, "the left and right wise kings, the left and right Guli kings, the left and right generals, the left and right great commanders, the left and right big corpses, and the left and right bone marquis". The herds of these Xiongnu leaders were "the left and right kings were in the east, and the right and left and right kings were in the east, and the right and left and right kings were in the north.

In the past, the Shanggu was connected to the east by Feihe and Korea; the right kings lived in the west, directly west of Shangjun, Qiang and Di; and the Shanyu's courtyard was directly in the era, and each had its own place in the clouds, and migrated from the water and grass. Obviously, the Xiongnu Shanyu and the left and right wise kings and other leaders had a certain limit, and the kings and generals below the left and right wise kings were also grazing in relatively fixed places. In addition to these Xiongnu leaders whose locations were marked in the "Records of the Grand Historian", based on the investigations made by Mr. Lin Gan, clues about the "division of the land" of 16 Xiongnu kings can be found, see Table 2 for details.

Table 2 Part of the Hun Kings stationed in pasture ②I

Name of the land

King Hunxie, King Xiu Tu is now in the Hexi Corridor of Gansu

King Lifan and King Wen Ouche are north of the Hexi Corridor in Gansu.

King Guxi is now in the area of ​​Zhelim League, Zhaowuda League and Xilingol League in Inner Mongolia.

King Zuolifan is now the northern part of Tokto County, Inner Mongolia.
To be continued...