There have been various or presumed ethnicities of significance to the history of China, gathered through the study of Classical Chinese literature, Chinese and non-Chinese literary sources and inscriptions, historical linguistics, and archaeological research.
Among the difficulties in the study of ethnic groups in China are the relatively long periods of time involved, together with the large volume of literary and historical records which have accompanied the history of China. Classical Chinese ethnography (like much premodern ethnography) was often sketchy, leaving it unclear as to whether Chinese-depicted names referred to a true ethnic group or a possibly multiethnic political entity. Even then, ethnonyms were sometimes assigned by geographic location or surrounding features, rather than by any features of the people themselves, and often carried little distinction of who the Han Chinese authors considered Chinese and non-Chinese for differences such as lifestyle, language, or governance. Many of the ethnonyms were historically used in such a way as to invite comparison with the word barbarian.
English names
The Chinese exonyms of various ethnic groups encountered in Chinese history can be rendered into English either by transliteration or translation; for instance, Dí 狄 is transliterated as Di (or Ti) or translated as "Northern Barbarians". In some cases authors prefer to transliterate specific exonyms as proper nouns,For instance, see Wu (1982), passim. and in other cases to translate generic ones as English "barbarian" (for instance, "Four Barbarians"). The American sinologist Marc S. Abramson explains why "barbarian" is the appropriate translation for general terms like fan 番 and hu 胡, but not specific ones like fancai 番菜 "foreign-style food". Translations such as "foreigner" and "alien," though possessing an air of scholarly neutrality, are inappropriate as a general translation because they primarily connote geographic and political outsiderness, implying that individuals and groups so designated were external to the Tang Empire and ineligible to become subjects of the empire. This was frequently not the case with many uses of fan and related terms — most common among them were hu (often used in the Tang to denote Central Asians) and four ethnonyms of great antiquity that, by the Tang, were mostly used generically with implicit geographic connotations: yi (east), man (south), rong (west), and di (north) — that largely connoted cultural and ethnic otherness but did not exclude the designated persons or groups from membership in the empire. Although the term barbarian has undergone many transformations from its Greek origins to its current English usage, not all of which are relevant to the Tang (such as its use in medieval Europe to denote religious difference, marking non-Christians of various ethnic, geographic, and political affiliations), its consistent association with inferiority, lack of civilization, and externality in the broadest sense often make it the most appropriate choice, including some cases when it is placed in the mouths of non-Han referring to themselves or others. However, its pejorative connotations make it inappropriate as a general translation. Thus, I have chosen not to translate these terms when they designate particular groups, individuals, or phenomena and do not refer to a specific ethnic group, language, geographic place, or cultural complex.Abramson (2008), p. 3.
List of ethnic groups
The following table summarizes the various ethnic groups and/or other social groups of known historical significance to the history of China (any non clear-cut connection is denoted by a question mark): Pinyin RomanizationNames in Chinese characters and pronunciationApproximate residence according to Chinese textsTime of appearance in the history of ChinaEquivalence(s) of non-Chinese namesTime of appearance outside ChinaPossible descendant(s)Miao苗 (Miáo)Name applied to peoples in various areas stretching from provinces (Hebei, Shanxi) north of the Yellow River to Yunnan provinceAs early as 25th century BC to presentHmong, Hmu, Xong, A HmaoN/AModern Miao, HmongYuezhi月氏 (Yuèzhī)Tarim basinc. 6th century BC to 162 BC, then driven out by Xiongnu.Kushans, Tocharians Mid-2nd century BC in Central AsiaNo known descendants, but possibly absorbed into the Uyghurs, who now show a large plurality of Indo-European DNA. Maybe the descendants of the Kushan Empire are the Pashtuns.Huaxia 華夏 (Huáxià)漢人 (Hànrén)Guanzhong and Yellow River basins in Northern ChinaFrom earliest history or prehistorical (name comes from the Han dynasty)Yanhuang, Zhonghua, Zhongguo, Huaxia, Hua, Xia, Han,"Han". Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary. Han Chinese, ChineseWho are the Chinese people? . Huayuqiao.org. Retrieved on 2013-04-26. Han dynastyModern Han ChineseBaiyue百越 (Bǎiyuè)Name applied to various peoples residing in East China, South China, and North Vietnam8th century BC to 1st century AD, assimilated into HansBách ViệtEarly 6th Century BC to 3rd century ADPart of Cantonese, along with various ethnic minorities such as the Zhuang, Dai, Tai, Bouyei, Aisui, Kam, Hlai, Mulam, and Maonan.Wu and Yue吴越 (Wúyuè)Present-day Southern Jiangsu province, Northern Zhejiang province, Shanghai8th century BC to 5th century BCNgô ViệtN/AWu Chinese peopleMinyue閩越 (Mǐnyuè)Present day Fujian province4th century BC to 2nd century BCMân ViệtN/AMin Chinese peopleLuoyue雒越 (Luòyuè)Present day Northern Vietnam,Southern Guangxi province8th century BC to 1st century ADLạc ViệtN/AZhuang people, Hlai peopleOuyue甌越 (Ōuyuè)Present day Northern Vietnam, western Guangdong, and northern Guangxi4th century BCÂu ViệtN/ACantonese, ZhuangYelang夜郎(Yèláng)Guizhou 3rd century BC to 1st century BC Zangke, Dạ Lang N/APossibly YiS.P. Chen (Jan 2005). "The Yelang Kingdom and the Yi People", Journal of Guizhou University For Nationalities, College of Cultural Communication de l'Université de Guizhou, Guiyang. Download links: 1 Wuhuan烏桓 (Wūhuán)Western portions of Manchuria (Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning provinces) and Inner Mongolia4th century BC to late 3rd century BC, assimilated into HansNo known equivalenceN/APossibly Kumo Xi;New Book of Tang vol. 219 "奚，亦東胡種，爲匈奴所破，保烏丸山。漢曹操斬其帥蹋頓，蓋其後也。" translation: "Xī, another kind of Eastern Hu; defeated by the Xiongnu, [their] refuge [was] Wuwan mountains. Han [general] Cao Cao executed their leader Tadun. [The Xī] are possibly their descendants. the rest were presumably assimilated into Hans.Xianbei鮮卑 (Xiānbēi)Manchuria (Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning provinces), Mongolia, and Inner Mongolia. Moved into areas north of the Yellow River and founded a dynasty there.c. 4th century BC to mid-6th century, some Xianbeis assimilated into HansN/AN/APossibly some of the Mongols, Tibetans, Monguor people, Sibe people, Evenks, and Chinese (some Chinese people today have the sinicised presumably Xianbei surnames such as Yuwen, Yuchi, Zhangsun, Tuoba, Murong and Huyan)Qiang羌 (Qiāng)Gansu, Qinghai, western portion of Sichuan, eastern portion of Xinjiang, and northeastern portion of TibetMentioned in oracle bone inscriptions of the Shang dynasty, c. 14th century BC to c. 1050 BC.