Khong Tayiji
Encyclopedia
Khong Tayiji is a title of the Mongols
.
Khong Tayiji derives from Chinese
Huangtaizi (皇太子; crown prince
). At first it also meant crown prince in Mongolian
. It was originally given only to descendants of Genghis Khan
. In the Mongol tradition, a khan
was unable to appoint the successor, instead the successor was elected in the kurultai
after the khan's death. However Kublai Khan
(who founded the Yuan Dynasty
) broke this tradition, and installed his second son Zhenjin
(Chingem) as Crown Prince. After Chingem died in 1286, the seal of Crown prince was passed to Chingem's third son Temür in 1293. However, Temür was never formally appointed as the Crown Prince and still not the definite successor. He was only confirmed as successor in a kurultai held after Kublai's death.
The Khong Tayiji became sub-Khan
when Altan Khan
of the Tümed tümen
installed the Khong Tayiji as assistant khan. This convention of a sub-khan spread throughout the Mongol world.
In 1630s the head of the Dzungars was given the title of Baatur Khong Tayiji by the Dalai Lama
. Since then the title of Khong Tayiji was taken over by the Dzungar chiefs. As the Dzungars got stronger, the title became higher. In the mid-18th century it became higher than khan among the Oirats
, because too many chiefs were appointed khan by the Qing Dynasty
.
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
.
Khong Tayiji derives from Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
Huangtaizi (皇太子; crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
). At first it also meant crown prince in Mongolian
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
. It was originally given only to descendants of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
. In the Mongol tradition, a khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
was unable to appoint the successor, instead the successor was elected in the kurultai
Kurultai
Kurultai is a political and military council of ancient Mongol and Turkic chiefs and khans. The root of the word "Khural" means political "meeting" or "assembly" in the Mongolian language, it is also a verb for "to be established"...
after the khan's death. However Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan , born Kublai and also known by the temple name Shizu , was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China...
(who founded the Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
) broke this tradition, and installed his second son Zhenjin
Zhenjin
Zhenjin was the second son of Kublai Khan, founder of the Yuan Dynasty. He was designated as the Crown Prince by Kublai Khan in 1273, and became the head of Zhongshusheng .The North Chinese Buddhist monk Haiyun gave him the name, Zhenjin , when he was born in 1243...
(Chingem) as Crown Prince. After Chingem died in 1286, the seal of Crown prince was passed to Chingem's third son Temür in 1293. However, Temür was never formally appointed as the Crown Prince and still not the definite successor. He was only confirmed as successor in a kurultai held after Kublai's death.
The Khong Tayiji became sub-Khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
when Altan Khan
Altan Khan
Altan Khan , whose given name was Anda , was the ruler of the Tümet Mongols and de facto ruler of the Right Wing, or western tribes, of the Mongols...
of the Tümed tümen
Tumen
Tumen or Tümen was a part of the decimal system used by Turkic and Mongol peoples to organize their armies. Tumen is an army unit of 10,000 soldiers...
installed the Khong Tayiji as assistant khan. This convention of a sub-khan spread throughout the Mongol world.
In 1630s the head of the Dzungars was given the title of Baatur Khong Tayiji by the Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
. Since then the title of Khong Tayiji was taken over by the Dzungar chiefs. As the Dzungars got stronger, the title became higher. In the mid-18th century it became higher than khan among the Oirats
Oirats
Oirats are the westernmost group of the Mongols who unified several tribes origin whose ancestral home is in the Altai region of western Mongolia. Although the Oirats originated in the eastern parts of Central Asia, the most prominent group today is located in the Republic of Kalmykia, a federal...
, because too many chiefs were appointed khan by the Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
.