Abaoji
| Emperor Taizu of Liao | |||||||||||||
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| Emperor of the Khitans | |||||||||||||
| Reign | 916–926 | ||||||||||||
| Successor | Emperor Taizong | ||||||||||||
| Born | Abaoji (Khitan name) Yelü Yi (sinicised name) 872 |
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| Died | 6 September 926 (aged 54) | ||||||||||||
| Spouse | Empress Shulü Ping | ||||||||||||
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| Father | Yelü Saladi | ||||||||||||
| Mother | Xiao Yanmujin | ||||||||||||
| Era dates | |
|---|---|
| Shence (神冊; 916–922) Tianzan (天贊; 922–926) Tianxian (天顯; 926) |
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| Posthumous name | |
| Dasheng Daming Shenlie Tian Huangdi (大聖大明神烈天皇帝) |
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| Temple name | |
| Taizu |
| Abaoji | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 阿保機 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 阿保机 | ||||||||
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| Emperor Taizu of Liao | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 遼太祖 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 辽太祖 | ||||||||
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| Yelü Yi (sinicised name) | |||||||||
| Chinese | 耶律億 | ||||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Ābǎojī |
| Wade–Giles | A-pao-chi |
| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Liáo Tàizŭ |
| Wade–Giles | Liao T'ai-tsu |
| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Yēlǜ Yì |
Abaoji (Mongolian: Ambagyan), posthumously known as Emperor Taizu of Liao, was a Khitan leader and founder of the Liao dynasty (907–926). He had a sinicised name, Yelü Yi; some sources suggest that Abaoji's family name, Yelü, was adopted during his lifetime, though there is no unanimity on this point.
Abaoji was born in 872 in Southern Mongolia and had a turbulent childhood. His grandfather was killed in a conflict between tribes, and his father and uncles fled. He was hidden by his grandmother for his safety. He became khagan of the Khitans on 27 February 907, and was subsequently enthroned as emperor of the Khitans in 916, proclaiming his own era name. He died on September 6, 926. He was responsible for the conquest and unification of all of Inner Mongolia, northern China, and southern Manchuria. Once the Khitan Empire became the Liao dynasty in 942, he was posthumously considered a Liao emperor.
Later generations of Chinese historians record a variety of legends that surrounded the birth of Abaoji. According to the legends, his mother dreamt that the sun fell from the sky and into her bosom, from which pregnancy followed. When she gave birth, the room is said to have become filled with a mysterious light and extraordinary fragrance. As a newborn, his body was that of a three-year-old, and the legends go on to say that he was walking at the age of three months. He is even recorded as being able to see events before they passed.
An important point to be made was the location of the Khitans in relation to the other neighbouring tribes. The Khitans resided on the east slope of the Greater Khingan Mountains. West of the mountains were other nomadic pastoral tribes such as the Shiwei, and the Xi, along with the Turkic Uighur tribe. These other tribes had inter-married with the Khitans. Further west were the Tatars, a warlike tribe on the steppes of Mongolia. East and northeast lay the Jurchens all the way to the Amur river. They were a peaceful people that resided in small villages and subsisted by hunting and fishing. Across the Liao River to the east and southeast until one reached the Yalu River lay the Balhae people, the majority of which were a settled agricultural society.
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