The Wuhuan (simplified Chinese: 乌桓; traditional Chinese: 烏桓; pinyin: Wūhuán, Old Chinese: ʔˤa ɢʷˁar, Mongol romanization:Uhuan) were a Proto-Mongolic nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia.
They were descended from the Donghu, who were defeated by the Xiongnu. After the Donghu were defeated by Modu Chanyu around 209 BC, the Xianbei and Wuhuan survived as the main remnants of the confederation. The Hou Hanshu says that “the language and culture of the Xianbei are the same as the Wuhuan”. Tadun of the Wuhuan (died 207 AD) was the ancestor of the proto-Mongolic Kumo Xi (aka Tatabi). The Weishu (Description of the Khitan, Vol. 1000, 2221) records that the Kumo Xi and Khitan (descendants of the Mongolic Xianbei) spoke the same language.
The Hou Hanshu (Ch. 120) records:
The Wuhuan are skilled in mounted archery. They engage in hunting animals and birds. They nomadise from place to place in search of grass and water. Without permanent settlements they live in round yurts (穹廬 - qiónglú). The entrance of the yurt faces the sun (east). They eat meat and drink kumiss (酪 - lào). They make clothes from fine wool (máocuì - 毛毳). Youthfulness and strength are held in esteem among them while old age and weakness are not. They are brave and valorous by nature. In anger they kill each other but nobody harms mothers, because the continuation of their progeny depends on their mothers. Fathers and elder brothers on the other hand can create their own separate tribes, so the original tribe does not bear responsibility for them. Whoever is brave, strong and able to deal with contentious cases of litigation are chosen to be elders (大人 - dàren, or taijin). The office of elder is not hereditary. Each nomadic community has its own small commander (帥 - shuài). A community is composed of a hundred to a thousand yurts. When an elder makes a proclamation they carve markings on wood (刻木為信 - kèmùwéixìn), even though they have no script, and none of the tribes dare to violate it.