Manchu, also called Man,people who lived for many centuries mainly in Manchuria (now Northeast) and adjacent areas of China and who in the 17th century conquered China and ruled that country for more than 250 years. The term Manchu dates from the 16th century, but it is certain that the Manchu are descended from a group of peoples collectively called the Tungus (the Even and Evenk [Evenki] are also descended from that group). The Manchu, under other names, had lived in northeastern Manchuria in prehistoric times. In early Chinese records they were known as the Tung-ihuDonghui, or “Eastern Barbarians”; in the 3rd century BC they were given the name Su-shenSushen, or I-louYilou; in the 10th century 4th to 7th centuries AD Chinese historians spoke of them as Nu-chi, or Ju-chi, an attempt to transliterate the native word JuchenWuji, or Momo; and in the 10th century AD as Juchen (Nüzhen in Pinyin). These Juchen established a kingdom of some extent and importance in Manchuria, and by AD 1115 their dynasty (called Chin Jin in Chinese records) had secured control over northeastern China. The kingdom was annihilated by the Mongols in 1234, and the surviving Juchen were driven back into northeastern Manchuria. Three centuries later the descendants of these Juchen again came into prominence, but before long they dropped the name Juchen for Manchu. They regained control of Manchuria, moved south, and conquered Peking Beijing (1644); and by 1680 the Manchu had established complete control over all sections of China under the name of the Ch’ing Qing dynasty. The Manchu managed to maintain a brilliant and powerful government until about 1800, after which they rapidly lost energy and ability. It was not, however, until 1911/12 that the Ch’ing Qing dynasty was overthrown.

Modern research shows that the Juchen-Manchu speak a language belonging to the sparse but geographically widespread Manchu-Tungus subfamily of the Altaic language familylanguages. At an early date, probably about the 1st century AD, various Manchu-Tungus-speaking tribes moved from their homeland in or near northeastern Manchuria to the north and west and eventually occupied most of Siberia between the Yenisey River and the Pacific Ocean. The Manchu became established in the south, while the Even, Evenk, and other peoples predominated in the north and west.



China’s government, however, continues to identify the Manchu as a separate ethnic group (numbering about more than 10.5 million in the late 20th early 21st century), living . The Manchu live mainly in Liaoning, KirinJilin, HeilungkiangHeilongjiang, and Hupeh Hebei provinces, in PekingBeijing, and in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.