The historiography of early Islam refers to the study of the early origins of Islam based on a critical analysis, evaluation, and examination of authentic primary source materials and the organization of these sources into a narative timeline.

History of Muslim historians[link]

Science of biography, science of hadith, and Isnad[link]

Muslim historical traditions first began developing from the earlier 7th century with the reconstruction of Muhammad's life following his death. Because narratives regarding Muhammad and his companions came from various sources, it was necessary to verify which sources were more reliable. In order to evaluate these sources, various methodologies were developed, such as the "science of biography", "science of hadith" and "Isnad" (chain of transmission). These methodologies were later applied to other historical figures in the Muslim world.

Ilm ar-Rijal (Arabic) is the "science of biography" especially as practiced in Islam, where it was first applied to the sira, the life of the prophet of Islam, Muhammad, and then the lives of the four Rightly Guided Caliphs who expanded Islamic dominance rapidly. Since validating the sayings of Muhammad is a major study ("Isnad"), accurate biography has always been of great interest to Muslim biographers, who accordingly attempted to sort out facts from accusations, bias from evidence, etc. The earliest surviving Islamic biography is Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah, written in the 8th century, but known to us only from later quotes and recensions (9th–10th century).

The "science of hadith" is the process that Muslim scholars use to evaluate hadith. The classification of Hadith into Sahih (sound), Hasan (good) and Da'if (weak) was firmly established by Ali ibn al-Madini (161–234 AH). Later, al-Madini's student Muhammad al-Bukhari (810–870) authored a collection that he believed contained only Sahih hadith, which is now known as the Sahih Bukhari. Al-Bukhari's historical methods of testing hadiths and isnads is seen as the beginning of the method of citation and a precursor to the scientific method which was developed by later Muslim scientists. I. A. Ahmad writes:^[1]

"The vagueness of ancient historians about their sources stands in stark contrast to the insistence that scholars such as Bukhari and Muslim manifested in knowing every member in a chain of transmission and examining their reliability. They published their findings, which were then subjected to additional scrutiny by future scholars for consistency with each other and the Qur'an."

Other famous Muslim historians who studied the science of biography or science of hadith included Urwah ibn Zubayr (d. 712), Wahb ibn Munabbih (d. 728), Ibn Ishaq (d. 761), al-Waqidi (745–822), Ibn Hisham (d. 834), al-Maqrizi (1364–1442), and Ibn Hajar Asqalani (1372–1449), among others.

Reliability of ahadith has mostly been considered under a skeptical angle by non-Muslim historians, who have observed that forgery of the chains of transmission (isnads) may be just as frequent as inaccuracy of the content (matn).

This is, in particular, the opinion of Ignaz Goldziher, who can be considered as the first Western scholar to conduct a systematic analysis of the corpus of Islamic ahadith.

Historiography, cultural history, and philosophy of history[link]

The first detailed studies on the subject of historiography itself and the first critiques on historical methods appeared in the works of the Arab Muslim historian and historiographer Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406), who is regarded as the father of historiography, cultural history,^[2] and the philosophy of history, especially for his historiographical writings in the Muqaddimah (Latinized as Prolegomena) and Kitab al-Ibar (Book of Advice).^[3] His Muqaddimah also laid the groundwork for the observation of the role of state, communication, propaganda and systematic bias in history,^[4] and he discussed the rise and fall of civilizations.

Franz Rosenthal wrote in the History of Muslim Historiography:

"Muslim historiography has at all times been united by the closest ties with the general development of scholarship in Islam, and the position of historical knowledge in MusIim education has exercised a decisive influence upon the intellectual level of historicai writing....The Muslims achieved a definite advance beyond previous historical writing in the sociology

—sociological understanding of history and the systematisation of historiography. The development of modern historical writing seems to have gained considerably in speed and substance through the utilization of a Muslim Literature which enabled western historians, from the seventeenth century on, to see a large section of the world through foreign eyes. The Muslim historiography helped indirectly and modestly to shape present day historical thinking."^[5]

In the Muqaddimah, Ibn Khaldun warned of seven mistakes that he thought that historians regularly committed. In this criticism, he approached the past as strange and in need of interpretation. The originality of Ibn Khaldun was to claim that the cultural difference of another age must govern the evaluation of relevant historical material, to distinguish the principles according to which it might be possible to attempt the evaluation, and lastly, to feel the need for experience, in addition to rational principles, in order to assess a culture of the past. Ibn Khaldun often criticized "idle superstition and uncritical acceptance of historical data." As a result, he introduced a scientific method to the study of history, which was considered something "new to his age", and he often referred to it as his "new science", now associated with historiography.^[6] His historical method also laid the groundwork for the observation of the role of state, communication, propaganda and systematic bias in history,^[4] and he is thus considered to be the "father of historiography"^[7][8] or the "father of the philosophy of history".^[9]

World history[link]

Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838–923) is known for writing a detailed and comprehensive chronicle of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern history in his History of the Prophets and Kings in 915. Abu al-Hasan 'Alī al-Mas'ūdī (896–956), known as the "Herodotus of the Arabs", was the first to combine history and scientific geography in a large-scale work, Muruj adh-dhahab wa ma'adin al-jawahir (The Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems), a book on world history.

Until the 10th century, history most often meant political and military history, but this was not so with Persian historian Biruni (973–1048). In his Kitab fi Tahqiq ma l'il-Hind (Researches on India), he did not record political and military history in any detail, but wrote more on India's cultural, scientific, social and religious history.^[10] Along with his Researches on India, Biruni discussed more on his idea of history in his chronological work The Chronology of the Ancient Nations.^[10]

Islamic sources[link]

Traditional Islamic sources for early Islamic history[link]

See also: List of Islamic texts

• Qur'an
• Hadith
• Sīra
• Tafsir
• Fiqh
• Futūh
• Inscriptions
• Coinage
• Manuscripts
  • Sana'a manuscripts
  • Oxyrhynchus papyri (e.g. PERF 558)
  • Qur'an collections
• Archaeological records
• Non-Muslim sources

7th Century Islamic sources[link]

• 692 – Qur'anic Mosaic on the Dome of the Rock.
• The Book of Sulaym ibn Qays; by Sulaym ibn Qays(death: 75–95 AH (694–714)). This is a collection of Hadith and historical reports from first century of the Islamic calendar. Sulaym ibn Qays is the first Shia author in "al-Fihrist" of Ibn al-Nadim. Also al-Mas'udi refers to this book. A manuscript of the book survived from the early 10th.^{[citation needed]} While its the earliest available book of Shia Islam, some Shia scholars are dubious about the authenticity of some part of it.^[11] However the oldest known copy, on which the majority of modern manuscripts are based, was written in 1676 CE^[12]

7th Century non-Islamic sources[link]

There are numerous early references to Islam in non-Islamic sources many have been collected in historiographer Robert G. Hoyland's compilation Seeing Islam As Others Saw It. One of the first books to analyze these works was Hagarism authored by Michael Cook and Patricia Crone. Hagarism concludes that looking at the early non-Islamic sources provides a much different and more accurate picture of early Islamic history than the later Islamic sources do, although its thesis has little acceptance. For some, the date of composition is controversial. Some provide an account of early Islam which significantly contradicts the traditional Islamic accounts of two centuries later.

• 634 Doctrina Iacobi
• 636 Fragment on the Arab Conquests
• 639 Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem
• 640 Thomas the Presbyter
• 640 Homily on the Child Saints of Babylon
• 642 PERF 558
• 644 Coptic Apocalypse of Pseudo-Shenute
• 648 Life of Gabriel of Qartmin
• 650 Fredegar
• 655 Pope Martin I
• 659 Isho'yahb III of Adiabene
• 660 Sebeos, Bishop of the Bagratunis
• 660 A Chronicler of Khuzistan [1]
• 662 Maximus the Confessor
• 665 Benjamin I
• 670 Arculf, a Pilgrim
• 676 The Synod of 676
• 680 George of Resh'aina
• 680 The Secrets of Rabbi Simon ben Yohai
• 680 Bundahishn
• 681 Trophies of Damascus
• 687 Athanasius of Balad, Patriarch of Antioch
• 687 John bar Penkaye
• 690 Syriac Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius
• 692 Syriac Apocalypse of Pseudo-Ephraem
• 694 John of Nikiu
• 697 Anti-Jewish Polemicists

7th Century sources[link]

Analysis of the recently found sandstone inscription,^[13] determined that it reads: "In the name of Allah/ I, Zuhayr, wrote (this) at the time 'Umar died/year four/And twenty."

It is worthwhile pointing out that caliph Umar bin al-Khattāb died on the last night of the month of Dhūl-Hijjah of the year 23 AH, and was buried next day on the first day of Muharram of the new year 24 AH, corresponding to 644 CE. Thus the date mentioned in the inscription (above) is authentic and conforms to the established and known date of the death of ʿUmar bin al-Khattāb.^[14]

Famous Muslim historians[link]

• Urwah ibn Zubayr (d. 712)
  • Hadith of Umar's speech of forbidding Mut'ah
• Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri (d. 742)
  • Hadith of Umar's speech of forbidding Mut'ah
  • Hadith of prohibition of Mut'ah at Khaybar
• Ibn Ishaq (d. 761)
  • Sirah Rasul Allah
• Imam Malik (d. 796)
  • Al-Muwatta
• Al-Waqidi (745–822)
  • Book of History and Campaigns
• Ali ibn al-Madini (777–850)
  • The Book of Knowledge about the Companions
• Ibn Hisham (d. 834)
  • Sirah Rasul Allah
• Dhul-Nun al-Misri (d. 859)
• Muhammad al-Bukhari (810–870)
  • Sahih Bukhari
• Muslim b. al-Hajjaj (d. 875)
  • Sahih Muslim
• Ibn Majah (d. 886)
  • Sunan Ibn Majah
• Abu Da'ud (d. 888)
  • Sunan Abi Da'ud
• Al-Tirmidhi (d. 892)
  • Sunan al-Tirmidhi
• Abu al-Hasan 'Alī al-Mas'ūdī (896–956)
  • Muruj adh-dhahab wa ma'adin al-jawahir (The Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems) (947)
• Ibn Wahshiyya (c. 904)
  • Nabataean Agriculture
  • Kitab Shawq al-Mustaham
• Al-Nasa'i (d. 915)
  • Sunan al-Sughra
• Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838–923)
  • History of the Prophets and Kings
  • Tafsir al-Tabari
• Al-Baladhuri (d. 892)
  • Kitab Futuh al-Buldan
  • Genealogies of the Nobles
• Hakim al-Nishaburi (d. 1014)
  • Al-Mustadrak alaa al-Sahihain
• Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī (973–1048)
  • Indica
  • History of Mahmud of Ghazni and his father
  • History of Khawarazm
• Abd al-Latif al-Baghdadi (13th century)
• Ibn Abi Zar (d. 1310/1320)
  • Rawd al-Qirtas
• Al-Dhahabi (1274–1348)
  • Major History of Islam
  • Talkhis al-Mustadrak
  • Tadhkirat al-huffaz
  • Al-Kamal fi ma`rifat al-rijal
• Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406)
  • Muqaddimah (1377)
  • Kitab al-Ibar
• Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (1372–1449)
  • Fath al-Bari
  • Tahdhib al-Tahdhib
  • Finding the Truth in Judging the Companinons
  • Bulugh al-Maram

Modern Western scholarship[link]

The earliest Western scholarship on Islam tended to be Christian and Jewish translators and commentators. They translated the easily available Sunni texts from Arabic into European languages including German, Italian, French, or English, then summarized and commented in a fashion that was often hostile to Islam. Notable Christian scholars include:

• William Muir (1819–1905)
• Reinhart Dozy (1820–1883) "Die Israeliten zu Mecca" (1864)
• David Samuel Margoliouth (1858–1940)
• William St. Clair Tisdall (1859–1928)
• Leone Caetani (1869–1935)
• Alphonse Mingana (1878–1937)

All these scholars worked in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Another pioneer of Islamic studies, Abraham Geiger (1810–1874), was a prominent Jewish rabbi and approached Islam from that standpoint in his "Was hat Mohammed aus dem Judenthume aufgenommen?" (1833). Geiger's themes were continued in Rabbi Abraham I. Katsh's "Judaism and the Koran" (1962)^[15]

Other scholars, notably those in the German tradition, took a more neutral view. The late 19th century scholar Julius Wellhausen (1844–1918) is a prime example. They also started, cautiously, to question the truth of the Arabic texts. They took a source critical approach, trying to sort the Islamic texts into elements to be accepted as historically true, and elements to be discarded as polemic or pious fiction. These scholars might include:

• Michael Jan de Goeje (1836–1909)
• Theodor Nöldeke (1836–1930)
• Ignaz Goldziher (1850–1921)
• Henri Lammens (1862–1937)
• Arthur Jeffery (1892–1959)
• H. A. R. Gibb (1895–1971)
• Joseph Schacht (1902–1969)
• Montgomery Watt (1909–2006)

In the 1970s, what has been described as a "wave of sceptical scholars" (Donner 1998 p. 23) challenged a great deal of the received wisdom in Islamic studies. They argued that the Islamic historical tradition had been greatly corrupted in transmission. They tried to correct or reconstruct the early history of Islam from other, presumably more reliable, sources such as coins, inscriptions, and non-Islamic sources. The oldest of this group was John Wansbrough (1928–2002). Wansbrough's works were widely noted, but perhaps not widely read. Donner (1998) says:

Wansbrough's awkward prose style, diffuse organization, and tendency to rely on suggestive implication rather than tight argument (qualities not found in his other published works) have elicited exasperated comment from many reviewers. (Donner 1998 p. 38)

Wansbrough's scepticism influenced a number of younger scholars, including:

• Martin Hinds (1941–1988)
• Patricia Crone (b. 1945)
• Michael Cook

In 1977, Crone and Cook published Hagarism: The Making of the Islamic World, which argued that the early history of Islam is a myth, generated after the conquests of Egypt, Syria, and Persia to prop up the new Arab regimes in those lands and give them a solid ideological foundation. According to their theory the Qur'an was composed later, rather than early, and the Arab conquests may have been the cause, rather than the consequence, of Islam. The main evidence adduced for this thesis was based upon a contemporary body of non-Muslim sources to many early Islamic events. If such events could not be supported by outside evidence, then (according to Crone and Cook) they should be dismissed as myth.

Crone and Cook's more recent work has involved intense scrutiny of early Islamic sources, but not total rejection of those sources. (See, for instance, Crone's 1987 publications, Roman, Provincial, and Islamic Law and Meccan Trade and the Rise of Islam, both of which assume the standard outline of early Islamic history while questioning certain aspects of it; also Cook's 2001 Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong in Islamic Thought, which also cites early Islamic sources as authoritative.)

In 1972 a cache of ancient Qur'ans in a mosque in Sana'a, Yemen was discovered – commonly known as the Sana'a manuscripts. The German scholar Gerd R. Puin has been investigating these Qur'an fragments for years. His research team made 35,000 microfilm photographs of the manuscripts, which he dated to early part of the 8th century. Puin has not published the entirety of his work, but noted unconventional verse orderings, minor textual variations, and rare styles of orthography. He also suggested that some of the parchments were palimpsests which had been reused. Puin believed that this implied an evolving text as opposed to a fixed one.^[16]

Contemporary scholars have begun to turn to the study of the Islamic sources in a sceptical mood. They tend to use the histories rather than the hadith, and to analyze the histories in terms of the tribal and political affiliations of the narrators (if that can be established), thus making it easier to guess in which direction the material might have been slanted. Notable scholars include:

• Fred M. Donner
• Wilferd Madelung
• Gerald Hawting
• Jonathan Berkey
• Andrew Rippin
• G.H.A Juynboll

Bridging the divide[link]

A few scholars have managed to bridge the divide between Islamic and Western-style secular scholarship.^{[citation needed]} They have completed both Islamic and Western academic training.

• Sherman Jackson
• Fazlur Rahman
• Suliman Bashear

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Donner, Fred Narratives of Islamic Origins: The Beginnings of Islamic Historical Writing, Darwin Press, 1998
• Hoyland, Robert G. Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam, Darwin Press, 1997
• Madelung, Wilferd (1997). The Succession to Muhammad: A Study of the Early Caliphate. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-64696-0. 
• Vansina, Jan "Oral Tradition as History," University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, 1985

External links[link]

Islam portal

• [2] and following; an Islamic view of the development of the academic study of Islam
• Muslim historiography an article by online Britannica
• Islamic Awareness, Dated Texts Mentioning Prophet Muḥammad From 1–100 AH / 622–719 CE

George Saliba is Professor of Arabic and Islamic Science at the Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies, Columbia University, New York, United States, where he has been working since 1979.

Saliba received his Bachelor of Science (1963) in mathematics and a Master of Arts (1965) from the American University of Beirut; he earned a Master of Science degree in Semitic languages and a doctorate in Islamic sciences from the University of California, Berkeley. He has received a number of awards and honors, including the History of Science Prize given by the Third World Academy of Science in 1993, and the History of Astronomy Prize in 1996 from the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Science. He was also selected as a Distinguished Kluge Chair, at the Library of Congress (2005-2006), and as a Distinguished Carnegie Scholar (2009-2010).

In his website he writes about himself: "I study the development of scientific ideas from late antiquity until early modern times, with a special focus on the various planetary theories that were developed within the Islamic civilization and the impact of such theories on early European astronomy."

Saliba has been doing research about possible transfer of mathematical and astronomical knowledge from the Islamic world to Europe during the 15-16th centuries.

In the documentary Columbia Unbecoming he, together with some other Columbia professors, including Joseph Massad, was accused of presenting anti-Israel viewpoints in their classes and stifling the dissenting opinions.^[1] Saliba rejected the accusation and published a rebuttal in Columbia Spectator (November 3, 2004) to that effect.^[2] Student Lindsay Shrier claimed that he told her that those with green eyes (like herself) are not racial "Semites", and have no valid national claim to middle-eastern lands.^[3] Saliba claims that this is a fabrication.^[2]

Bibliography[link]

• "Islamic Science and the Making of the European Renaissance", MIT Press (April 1, 2007) ISBN 0-262-19557-7 (hardcover, and in paperback as of 2011. The book has since been translated into Turkish, Arabic and Bahasa (Indonesia)
• "A History of Arabic Astronomy: Planetary Theories During the Golden Age of Islam", New York, University Press; (1994) ISBN 0-8147-7962-X (hardcover); (reissue edition: November 1995) ISBN 0-8147-8023-7 (paperback)
• (With Linda Komaroff, Catherine Hess) "The Arts of Fire : Islamic Influences on Glass and Ceramics of the Italian Renaissance", Getty Trust Publications: J. Paul Getty Museum (June 10, 2004), ISBN 0-89236-757-1 (hardcover)
• "The Crisis of the Abbasid Caliphate" (Tabari, Ta'rikh Al-Rusul Wa'l-Muluk; annotated translation), State University of New York Press (November 1985) ISBN 0-87395-883-7 (Hardcover), ISBN 0-7914-0627-X (paperback)
• "The Astronomical Work of Mu’ayyad al-Din al-’Urdi (died 1266): A Thirteenth Century Reform of Ptolemaic Astronomy", Markaz dirasat al-Wahda al-'Arabiya, Beirut, 1990, 1995
• (With Sharon Gibbs) "Planispheric astrolabes from the National Museum of American History", Smithsonian Institution Press, (1984) ISBN 0-608-11955-5 (paperback)

References[link]

1. ^ dailyprincetonian.com: "Columbia prof discusses Islamic science"
2. ^ ^{a b} Rebutting a "Misguided Political Project" by George Saliba Columbia Spectator (November 3, 2004)
3. ^ "The `Silent Jews' speak out" by Shoshana Kordova Haaretz, February 8, 2005

External links[link]

• George Saliba's home page at columbia.edu
• Daily Times report on seminar at Pakistan's Government College University

Arab Americans
عرب أمريكا

Tige Andrews Steve Jobs • John Abizaid Fredwreck • Tige Andrews Shannon Elizabeth • Tony Shalhoub George J. Mitchell • Oussama Mellouli Ralph Nader • Hoda Kotb
Total population
1,680,018[1] 0.5% of the U.S. population (2009)
Regions with significant populations
California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and scattered in others.
Languages
American English, Arabic, Syriac, Kurdish, French and others.

This article contains Arabic text, written from right to left in a cursive style with some letters joined. Without proper rendering support, you may see unjoined Arabic letters written left-to-right instead of right-to-left or other symbols instead of Arabic script.

An Arab American (Arabic: عرب أمريكا‎) is a United States citizen or resident of Arab ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage or identity, who identifies themselves as Arab. Arab Americans trace ancestry to any of the various waves of immigrants of the countries comprising the Arab World. Americans descended from immigrants of the Arab world via other countries are also included.

Countries of origin for Arab Americans include Lebanon, Syria, Palestine (mostly pre-1948 Palestine Christians as well as what since corresponds to the Gaza Strip and West Bank, plus Arab citizens of Israel), Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait in West Asia and Libya, Sudan, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Mauritania and Morocco (plus also Sahrawis from the disputed Western Sahara) in North Africa.

According to the 2008 ACS, there are 1,573,530 Arab Americans, accounting for 0.5% of the American population.^[1] The largest subgroup is by far the Lebanese Americans, with 501,907,^[1] nearly a third of the Arab American population. Over 1/4 of all Arab Americans claimed two ancestries, having not only Arab ancestry but also non-Arab. Some groups from the Arab World are non Arabs; Assyrians were listed in the US census under Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac.^[1] Arab Americans, and Arabs in general, comprise a highly diverse amalgam of groups with differing ancestral origins, religious backgrounds and historic identities. Instead, the ties that bind are a shared heritage by virtue of common linguistic, cultural, and political traditions.

Population[link]

The majority of Arab Americans, around 62%, originate from the region of the Levant, which includes Syria, Lebanon, Palestine/Israel and Jordan, although overwhelmingly from Lebanon. The remainder are made up of those from Egypt, Iraq, Libya, Morocco and other Arab nations, which are small in numbers but present nonetheless.

There are nearly 3.5 million Arab Americans in the United States according to The Arab American Institute. Arab-Americans live in all 50 states and in Washington, D.C. - and 94% reside in the metropolitan areas of major cities. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city with the largest percentage of Arab Americans is Dearborn, Michigan, a southwestern suburb of Detroit, at nearly 40%. The Detroit metropolitan area is home to the largest concentration of Arab Americans (403,445), followed by the New York City Combined Statistical Area (371,233), Los Angeles (308,295), Chicago (176,208), and Washington D.C. (168,208).^[2] (NOTE: This information is reportedly based upon survey findings, but is contradicted by information posted on the Arab American Institute website itself, which states that California as a whole only has 272,485, and Michigan as a whole only 191,607. 2010 American Community Survey information from the American Factfinder website gives a figure of about 168,000 for Michigan.)

Sorting by American states, according to the 2000 U.S. Census, 48% of the Arab-American population - 576,000 - reside in California, Michigan, New York, Florida, and New Jersey, respectively; these 5 states collectively have 31% of the net U.S. population. Five other states - Illinois, Texas, Ohio, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania - report Arab-American populations of more than 40,000 each. Also, the counties which contained the greatest proportions of Arab-Americans were in California, Michigan, New York, Florida, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

The cities with 100,000 or more in population with the highest percentages of Arabs are Sterling Heights, Michigan 3.69%; Jersey City, New Jersey 2.81%; Warren, Michigan 2.51%; Allentown, Pennsylvania 2.45%; Burbank, California 2.39% and nearby Glendale, California 2.07%; Livonia, Michigan 1.94%; Arlington, Virginia 1.77%; Paterson, New Jersey 1.77%; and Daly City, California 1.69%.^[3]

Arab Americans in the 2000 U.S. Census^[4]

Ancestry	2000	% of population
Lebanese	440,279	0.2%
Syrian	142,897	0.1%
Egyptian	142,832	0.1%
Palestinian	72,112	0.04%
Jordanian	39,734	0.03%
Moroccan	37,462	0.03%
Iraqi	37,714	0.01%
Yemeni	15,000	0.005%
Other Arabs	424,807	0.2%
TOTAL	1,500,641	0.42%

Religious background[link]

The religious affiliations of Arab Americans

While the majority of the population of the Arab World is composed of people of the Muslim faith, most Arab Americans, in contrast, are Christian.^[5]

According to the Arab American Institute, the breakdown of religious affiliation among Arab Americans is as follows:

• 63% Christian
  • 35% Catholic (Roman Rite Catholics & Eastern Catholics — Maronites and Melkites)
  • 18% Orthodox (Eastern Orthodox or Oriental Orthodox)
  • 10% Protestant
• 24% Muslim
• 13% Other; Jewish, No Affiliation^[6]

The percentage of Arab Americans who are Muslim has increased in recent years, because most new Arab immigrants tend to be Muslim; this stands in contrast to the first wave of Arab immigration to the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, during which almost all immigrants were Christians. Most Maronite Catholics tend to be of Lebanese or Syrian extraction; those Christians of Palestinian background are often Eastern Orthodox. A small number are Protestants, either having joined a Protestant denomination after immigrating to the U.S. or being from a family that converted to Protestantism while still living in the Middle East (European and American Protestant missionaries were fairly commonplace in the Levant in the late 19th and early 20th centuries).

There are substantial numbers of American Jews originating from the Arab World, notably of Mizrahi Jewish extraction. Most migrated from their respective countries of origin to the United States during the late 20th century. The number of Arab Jewish-Americans is difficult to determine. Overlapping identification as Jewish Americans (along with other American Jews of various backgrounds) and Arab Americans (along with other American Arabs of various religious traditions) seldom occurs for political reasons.

Arab Christians continue to immigrate into the U.S. in the 2000s and continue to form new enclaves and communities across the country. ^[7]

Census category[link]

The Arab American National Museum celebrates the history of Arab Americans

The current U.S. Census definition includes white "people having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East or North Africa."^[8] However, just like different groups within each country, some of the ancestral and racial heritage of the peoples of not only each Middle East and North African country (Arab or otherwise) is a complex mosaic of elements indigenous to their respective regions, influenced to varying degrees by other elements introduced from historic interactions with Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, South Asia, and Europe, either because of conquests, slave trade, or simply due to proximity.

In 2010, a group of Arab-Americans in Orange County, California, launched a campaign with the slogan "check it right, you ain't White"^[9] to encourage Arabs to check the box that says "Other" when filling out their 2010 United States Census form and identify themselves as "Arab" or their specific country of origin.

Many Arab Americans, especially those with darker complexions (irrespective of their religious tradition), have been increasingly targeted for discrimination and hate crimes after the September 11 attacks.^[10]

A new Zogby Poll International found that there are 3.5 million Americans who were identified as "Arab-Americans", or Americans of ancestry belonging to one of the 23 UN member countries of the Arab World (these are not necessarily therefore Arabs). Poll finds that, overall, a majority of those identifying as Arab Americans are Lebanese Americans (largely as a result of being the most numerous group), although proportionally, as a group by national origin, Lebanese Americans identifying as Arab Americans may be smaller than, for instance, Yemeni Americans.

Politics[link]

Arab Americans tend to vote more Democratic than Republican. In a recent 2007 Zogby poll 62% of Arab Americans vote Democratic, while only 25% vote Republican.^[11] The percentage of Arabs voting Democratic increased sharply after the Iraq War and is likely to have increased further since the Obama election. However, a number of prominent Arab American politicians are Republicans, including former New Hampshire Senator John E. Sununu, and California Congressman Darrell Issa, who was the driving force behind the state's 2003 recall election that removed Democratic Governor Gray Davis from office. The strong sense of family values characteristic of Arab Americans does not necessarily translate to Republican values in Arab American statesmen, however; the first woman Supreme Court Chief Justice in Florida, Rosemary Barkett, is known for her dedication to progressive values and has been publicly criticized by Republican politicians at various stages of her career. Ralph Nader is another example of a liberal Arab American politician.

Arab Americans gave George W. Bush a majority of their votes in 2000. However, as a group they backed John Kerry in 2004 and Barack Obama in 2008.

According to a 2000 Zogby poll, 52% of Arab Americans are pro-life, 74% support the death penalty, 76% are in favor of stricter gun control, and 86% want to see an independent Palestinian state.^[12] Arab American Republicans often view the GOP as more in line with Arab culture, which tends to be more socially conservative and values entrepreneurship and free enterprise. Arab American members of the Democratic party may choose to do so through a sense of social justice and traditional values of tolerance, or because of concerns over foreign policy and, in recent years, the Iraq War, Racial Profiling and the War on Terror.

Festivals and pageants[link]

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2009)

While the spectrum of Arab heritage includes 22 countries, their combined heritage is often celebrated in cultural festivals around the United States.

Pageants[link]

Miss USA Pageant[link]

On May 16, 2010 Lebanese American Rima Fakih won the 2010 Miss USA title, after winning the Miss Michigan USA title.

Miss Arab USA Pageant[link]

In 2010 Mr. Ashraf Elgamal has founded the first Miss Arab USA Pageant. The Annual Pageant is founded on the basis of advancing the cause for women of Arab descent. The Pageant is a charity event for the community, uniting Arabs and friends of Arabs in celebrating the Arab cultural heritage in the great nation of The United States of America.

The Miss Arab USA Pageant is managed and produced by The Arab American Association (AAA), a Non-profit organization headquartered in the State of Arizona. The Mission of AAA is a Non-political, Non-religious, Non-profit Organization established to serve and present the Arab American Community, the mission is to document, preserve, celebrate, and educate the public on the history, life, culture and contributions of Arab Americans. AAA strive to serve as a central resource to the public and media to enhance knowledge and understanding about Arab Americans and their presence in USA.

The pageant is just one out many existing development projects that the AAA embarks on. The AAA takes Pageantry to the next level for young Arab women by grooming Arab Queens as great Ambassadors for humanity. The pageant redefines the image of the Arab woman as a leader and a vital partner in the development of The Middle East and the world.

Festivals[link]

New York City[link]

The Annual Arab-American & North African Street Festival was founded in 2002 by the Network of Arab-American Professionals of NY (NAAP-NY). Located in downtown Manhattan, on Great Jones Street between Lafayette & Broadway, the Festival attracts an estimated 15,000 people, in addition to over 30 Arab and North African vendors along with an all-day live cultural performance program representing performers from across the Arab world.

The New York Arab-American Comedy Festival was founded in 2003 by comedian Dean Obeidallah and comedienne Maysoon Zayid. Held annually each fall, the festival showcases the talents of Arab-American actors, comics, playwrights and filmmakers, and challenges as well as inspires fellow Arab-Americans to create outstanding works of comedy. Participants include actors, directors, writers and comedians, including director Piter Marek.

Seattle[link]

Of particular note is ArabFest in Seattle, begun in 1999. The festival includes all 22 of the Arab countries, with a souk marketplace, traditional and modern music, an authentic Arab coffeehouse, an Arabic spelling bee and fashion show. Lectures and workshops explore the rich culture and history of the Arab peoples, one of the world's oldest civilizations. Also of new interest is the Arabic rap concert, including the NW group Sons of Hagar, showcasing the political and creative struggle of Arabic youth.

Phoenix[link]

In 2008, the first annual Arab American Festival in Arizona was held on November 1 and 2 in Glendale, Arizona. More than 40,000 attendees over the two-day event, More than 35 international singers, dancers and musicians from all over the Arab World perform 20 Hours of live entertainment on stage. Activities include folklore shows, an international food court, hookah lounge, kids rides and booth vendors, open to the public, Free Admission, Official web site http://ArabAmericanFestival.Com

California[link]

The Annual Arab American Day Festival is a three-day cultural and entertainment event held in Orange County. Activities include book and folk arts exhibitions, speeches from community leaders in the county, as well as music and poetry, dancing singing, traditional food, hookah and much more. Official website http://www.aafestival.com

• 

  Arab American Festival - Arizona

Famous Americans of Arab descent or from Arab nations[link]

Here are a few examples of famous Arab Americans. Arab Americans are also involved in politics.^{[citation needed]}

Entertainment[link]

• Ferras, (Jordanian) Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter.
• RedOne, (Moroccan) Producer, Songwriter, Music Executive.
• Jerry Seinfeld, (Syrian Jewish mother) Comedian.
• Najee Mondalek, (Lebanese) Actor/Producer/Playwright.
• Moustapha Akkad, (Syrian) film producer and director.
• Malek Jandali, (Syrian) recording artist, composer and pianist.
• DJ Khaled, (Palestinian) rapper, music producer.
• Frank Zappa, (half Arab father) musician.
• Mohammed Fairouz, (Arab) musician/composer.
• Kassem Gharaibeh, (Jordanian) comedian and actor and the 18th Most Subscribed of all time on YouTube.
• Paul Anka, (Lebanese) singer/songwriter.
• Vince Vaughn, (partially Lebanese) actor.
• Danny Nucci, (Moroccan mother) actor.
• Ronnie Khalil, (Egyptian) stand-up comedian.
• Alia Shawkat, (Iraqi father) actress
• Valerie Domínguez Tarud, (Lebanese) previous Miss Colombia.
• Shannon Elizabeth, (Syrian father) actress.
• Tony Shalhoub, (Lebanese) executive producer and actor of Monk.
• Fredwreck, (Palestinian) hip hop producer.
• Hoda Kotb, (Egyptian) television news personality for Dateline NBC and the Today Show.
• Jamie Farr, (Lebanese) Hollywood actor especially famous for his role as Klinger (also Lebanese) in the TV series "M*A*S*H".
• Danny Thomas, (Lebanese) actor and his daughter Marlo Thomas, actress.
• Casey Kasem, (Lebanese) radio personality and voice actor.
• Anissa Jones, {Lebanese maternal grandparents} actress Family Affair.
• Vic Tayback, (Syrian), actor.
• Michael Ansara, (Syriac), actor.
• Fawaz Gerges, (Lebanese) ABC analyst and regular guest on Oprah's Anti-war series.
• Kathy Najimy, (Lebanese) actress in many American films that include Sister Act.
• Wafah Dufour, (Saudi Arabian Father) supermodel and singer
• Lorraine Ali, (Iraqi) reporter, editor, culture writer, and music critic for Newsweek.
• Wentworth Miller, (Part Syrian/Lebanese) actor.
• Sanaa Hamri, (Moroccan) music video and movie director; her films include the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2.
• George Noory, (Lebanese) radio host, host of Coast To Coast AM with George Noory.
• Hala Gorani, (Syrian) CNN International news correspondent.
• Yousef Abu-Taleb, (Jordanian) actor Lonelygirl15, Film Producer
• Rima Fakih, (Lebanese) Miss USA 2010
• Remy Munasifi, (Iraqi father/Lebanese mother) comedian also known an GoRemy
• Sahar Dika, (Lebanese) MTV's The Real World: New Orleans (2010) participant
• Salma Hayek, (Lebanese), Actress, director and producer
• Paula Abdul, ( Syrian Jewish father), recording artist, dancer, choreographer, actress and television personality
• Wendie Malick, (Egyptian), actress and fashion model
• Sean Yazbeck, (Lebanese), winner of Donald Trumps 'The Apprentice', NBC (2006)
• Yasmine Bleeth, (Algerian mother), actress
• Dick Dale, (Part Lebanese), musician, known as the "King of the Surf Guitar."
• French Montana,(Moroccan) New York rapper

Sport[link]

• Robert Saleh, NFL Coach Houston Texans Linebackers, 2011 to Present Seattle Seahawks.
• Abe Gibran, former Cleveland Brown
• Ahmed Kaddour, (Lebanese) professional boxer, from NBC show The Contender
• Bill George, NFL player and Hall of Famer
• Drew Haddad, (Jordanian) of the Indianapolis Colts
• Doug Flutie, (Lebanese father) NFL Player of the Buffalo Bills and San Diego Chargers.
• Gavin Maloof, own the Sacramento Kings
• George Maloof, Sr. owned the NBA’s Houston Rockets
• Isra Girgrah, female boxer.
• Jeff George, quarterback for several NFL teams
• Jim Harrick, UCLA’s coach
• Joe Maloof, own the Sacramento Kings
• Joe Robbie, former owner and founder of the NFL's Miami Dolphins.
• John Jaha, sports athlete, of the MLB Milwaukee Brewers.
• Justin Abdelkader, (Jordanian) an American ice hockey forward playing for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).
• Khalid Khannouchi, (Moroccan) marathon world record holder.
• Nader Abdallah, (Palestinian) NFL Player of the Baltimore Ravens.
• Omar Sheika, (Palestinian) professional boxer, four-time world title challenger.
• Rich Kotite, NFL coach
• Rocco Baldelli, (Syrian) professional baseball Red Sox.
• Rony Seikaly,(Lebanese) Former NBA Player, now DJ
• Ramsey Nijem (Palestinian) Mixed Martial Artist and UFC fighter.
• Amir Khillah (Egyptian) Mixed Martial Artist and The Ultimate Fighter Contestant

Writers and thinkers[link]

• Gibran Khalil Gibran, (Lebanese) writer, philosopher, and painter.
• Edward Said, (Palestinian) literary theorist and outspoken Palestinian activist.
• Diana Abu-Jaber, (Jordanian) novelist, and professor.
• Anouar Majid, (Moroccan) critic, essayist, novelist, and professor.
• Helen Thomas, (Lebanese) reporter, columnist and White House correspondent.
• Ismail al-Faruqi, (Palestinian) philosopher and authority on Islam and comparative religion.
• Laila Lalami, (Moroccan) novelist, journalist, essayist, and professor.
• Mona Simpson, (Syrian father Abdulfattah Jandali) novelist.
• Susie Gharib, co-anchor of the Nightly Business Report, 100 most influential business journalists.
• Hala Gorani, (Syrian) journalist and anchor of CNN's International Desk.

• Jordan Elgrably, (Moroccan American) journalist, editor and founder of the Levantine Cultural Center.

Public figures and politicians[link]

• Saint Raphael of Brooklyn, (Syrian) The first Orthodox bishop to be consecrated in North America.
• Victor G. Atiyeh, (Syrian) former Governor of Oregon.
• Victoria Reggie Kennedy, (Lebanese) attorney and widow of late Senator Ted Kennedy.
• Selwa Roosevelt, (Lebanese) former Chief of Protocol of the United States and wife of the late Archibald Bulloch Roosevelt, Jr., grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt.
• Mitch Daniels, Assyrian governor of Indiana.
• John E. Sununu, (Palestinian) senator from New Hampshire.
• Spencer Abraham, (Lebanese) senator from Michigan and Secretary of Energy under Bush.
• Nick Rahall, (Lebanese) congressman from West Virginia.
• Ralph Nader, (Lebanese) consumer advocate, politician, first Arab American to run for President of the United States.
• Justin Amash (Palestinian/Syrian) United States Congressman from Michigan
• John H. Sununu, (Palestinian) Governor of New Hampshire and White House Chief of Staff under George H. W. Bush.
• George J. Mitchell, (Lebanese) United States of America special envoy to the Middle East under the Obama administration, U.S. senator from Maine, Senate Majority Leader.
• John Abizaid, (Lebanese), retired general.
• George Joulwan, (Lebanese), retired general, former NATO commander-in-chief.
• Zainab Salbi, (Iraqi), co-founder and president of Women for Women International.
• Rosemary Barkett, (Syrian), U.S. federal judge and the first woman Supreme Court Justice and Chief Justice for the state of Florida.
• James Zogby, (Lebanese) founder and president of the Arab American Institute.
• Nadya Suleman, (Iraqi father), "Octomom"

Business[link]

• Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc. (Syrian biological father Abdulfattah Jandali).^[13]
• Kaysar Ridha, (Iraqi) businessman and contestant on reality series Big Brother.
• John Zogby, (Lebanese) founder and current President/CEO of Zogby International.
• Najeeb Halaby, (Syrian) father of Queen Noor of Jordan Lisa Elhalabi, Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. CEO, and chairman of Pan Am.
• Manuel Moroun, owner of CenTra, Inc., the holding company which controls the Ambassador Bridge and Michigan Central Depot.
• Jacques Nasser, (Lebanese) former president and CEO of Ford Motor Company.
• John J. Mack, (Lebanese) Chairman of the Board and CEO of Morgan Stanley.
• Ray R. Irani, (Palestinian) Chairman and CEO of Occidental Petroleum.

Scientists[link]

• Mohammed Adam El-Sheikh, (Sudanese) executive director of the Fiqh Council of North America.^[14]
• Mohammad S. Obaidat, (Jordanian) President of and a Fellow of the Society for Modeling and Simulation International (SCS). Obaidat has received many awards, including the SCS McLeod Founder's Award for his outstanding technical contribution to Computer modeling and simulation.
• Charles Elachi, (Lebanese) director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
• Elias Zerhouni (Algerian) current director of the National Institutes of Health.
• Ahmed Zewail (Egyptian) winner of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
• Farouk El-Baz Egyptian American scientist who worked with NASA to assist in the planning of scientific exploration of the Moon.
• Fawwaz T. Ulaby (Syrian) winner of the 2006 IEEE Edison Medal and former Vice President of Research for the University of Michigan.
• Nawal M. Nour, (Sudanese) an obstetrician and gynecologist and 2003 Genius Award winner (Sudanese).^[15]

See also[link]

• American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
• Arab American Institute
• Arab lobby in the United States
• Arab immigration to the United States
• Arab diaspora
• Diaspora politics in the United States
• Hyphenated American
• Iraqi diaspora
• Refugees of Iraq
• Western Muslims
• Arabs in Europe

References[link]

External links[link]

• Us4Arabs.com - Arab American Community Website
• Arab American List - Classified Ads and Jobs
• 2000 U.S. Census Report on the Arab-American population
• Learn more at the Arab American Museum located in Dearborn, Michigan.
• 100 Questions and Answers about Arab Americans
• A full definition of Arab Americans
• Arab American Demographics
• A collection of readings and A/V materials on Arab Americans
• Comprehensive demographics of Arab Americans
• ArabAmerican.Net
• "What's Happening TV Show" Arab Americans in the News
• "Arabic social network and music video web site"
• Arab American Outreach
• Arab Christians Minorities reshaping U.S. enclaves

Books[link]

• The Arab Americans (The New Americans) High-school level look at Arab Americans

Festival Links[link]

• Arab American Festival
• New York Arab American Comedy Festival
• Seattle ArabFest
• Concert of Colors: Metro Detroit's Diversity Festival (ACCESS/AANM)
• Dearborn Arab International Festival

Arab American Organizations[link]

• Arab Center of Washington
• Arab American Association
• List of Arab American Organizations
• American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
• Arab American Institute
• Arab Artists Resources & Training
• Arab American National Museum
• Association of Patriotic Arab Americans in Military
• The Arab American Council Of Trade
• Levantine Cultural Center
• Network of Arab-American Professionals (NAAP)

v t e Arab diaspora Africa Côte d'Ivoire Americas Argentina Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Haiti Mexico Peru United States Venezuela Asia Afghanistan Indonesia Iran Pakistan Philippines Singapore Sri Lanka Turkey Europe Bulgaria France Germany (Berlin) Greece Netherlands United Kingdom Oceania Australia

v t e Asian Americans East Asian Chinese (Tibetan1) Japanese Korean Mongolian Taiwanese South Asian2 Bangladeshi Indian Indo-Caribbean Nepalese Pakistani Sri Lankan Tamil Southeast Asian Burmese Cambodian Filipino Hmong Indonesian Laotian Mien Singaporean Thai Vietnamese Other Afro-Asian Amerasian Asian Hispanic and Latino Americans Eurasian Multiracial American Punjabi Mexican History General Immigration Military Topics Arts and Entertainment Demographics Politics Stereotypes 1 The US Census Bureau reclassifies anyone identifying as "Tibetan American" as "Chinese American".[4] 2 The US Census Bureau considers Afghanistan a South Asian country, but does not classify Afghan Americans as Asian.[5]

Huang Kan (Chinese: 黃侃) (1886 - 1935), courtesy name: Jigang (季剛), was a Chinese philologist.

Biography[link]

A native of Hubei, he made the acquaintance of Zhang Binglin in Japan, who shared with him the same passion for revolution and philology. Huang became Zhang's comrade and student. Huang and Zhang were the last great masters in the Chinese philological tradition, and helped lay the foundation of modern Chinese linguistics. Huang was the first to propose a convincing initial systems of Old Chinese. He published very little during his lifetime, but his notebooks, published posthumously, are highly regarded for their philological value.

References[link]

• He Jiuying 何九盈 (1995). Zhongguo xiandai yuyanxue shi (中囯现代语言学史 "A history of modern Chinese linguistics"). Guangzhou: Guangdong jiaoyu chubanshe.

External links[link]

• Works by or about Huang Kan in libraries (WorldCat catalog)

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

Kublai Khan
Khagan of the Mongol Empire Founder of the Yuan Dynasty Emperor of China
Portrait of Kublai Khan during the Yuan era.
Reign	May 5, 1260 – February 18, 1294 (&1000000000000003300000033 years, &10000000000000289000000289 days)
Coronation	May 5, 1260
Predecessor	Mongke Khan
Successor	Temur Khan
Consort	Tegulen, Chabi, Nambui
Full name
Mongolian： ᠻᠬᠦᠪᠢᠯᠠᠢ Chinese： 忽必烈 Setsen Khan (Цэцэн хаан)
Era dates
Zhongtong (中統) 1260–1264 Zhiyuan (至元) 1264–1294
Posthumous name
Emperor Shengde Shengong Wenwu (聖德神功文武皇帝)
Temple name
Shizu (世祖)
Dynasty	Yuan
Father	Tolui
Mother	Sorghaghtani Beki
Born	23 September 1215
Died	18 February 1294 (aged 78) Dadu (Khanbalic)
Burial	Burkhan Khaldun, Khentii province

Kublai Khan ( /ˈkuːblə ˈkɑːn/; Mongolian: Хубилай хаан, Xubilaĭ xaan; Middle Mongolian: Qubilai Qaγan, "King Qubilai"; September 23, 1215 – February 18, 1294),^[1][2] born Kublai (Mongolian: Хубилай, Xubilaĭ; Middle Mongolian: Qubilai; Chinese: 忽必烈; pinyin: Hūbìliè; also spelled Khubilai) and also known by the temple name Shizu (Chinese: 元世祖; pinyin: Yuán Shìzǔ; Wade–Giles: Yüan Shih-tsu), was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China.

As he was the second son of Tolui and Sorghaghtani Beki, and a grandson of Genghis Khan, he claimed the title of Khagan of the Ikh Mongol Uls (Mongol Empire) in 1260 after the death of his older brother Möngke in the previous year, though his younger brother Ariq Böke was also given this title in the Mongolian capital, Karakorum. Kublai won the battle against Ariq Böke in 1264 and the succession war marked the beginning of disunity in the empire.^[3] Kublai's real power was limited to China and Mongolia (which was the Yuan Dynasty, or the Mongol Dynasty) after the victory over Ariq Böke, though his influence still remained in the Ilkhanate and, to a far lesser degree, in the Golden Horde in the western parts of the Mongol Empire.^[4][5][6] If one counts the Mongol Empire at that time as a whole, his realm reached from the Pacific to the Urals, from Siberia to modern day Afghanistan – one fifth of the world's inhabited land area.^[7]

In 1271, Kublai established the Yuan Dynasty, which ruled over present-day Mongolia, China and some adjacent areas, and assumed the role of Emperor of China. By 1279, the Yuan forces had overcome the last resistance of the Southern Song Dynasty, and Kublai became the first non-Chinese Emperor to conquer all of China. He was also the only Mongol khan after 1260 to win new conquests.^[8]

The summer garden of Kublai Khan at Xanadu is the subject of Samuel Taylor Coleridge's 1797 poem Kubla Khan. Coleridge's work and Marco Polo's book brought Kublai and his achievements to the attention of a wider audience, and today Kublai is a well-known historical figure.

Early years[link]

Kublai was the second son of Tolui and Sorghaghtani Beki. As his grandfather Genghis Khan advised, Sorghaghtani chose as her son's nurse a Buddhist Tangut woman whom Kublai later honored highly. On his way home after the conquest of the Khwarizmian Empire, Genghis Khan performed a ceremony on his grandsons Mongke and Kublai after their first hunt in 1224 near the Ili River.^[9] Kublai was nine years old and with his eldest brother killed a rabbit and an antelope. His grandfather smeared fat from killed animals onto Kublai's middle finger in accordance with a Mongol tradition.

After the Mongol-Jin War, in 1236, Ogedei gave Hebei Province (attached with 80,000 households) to the family of Tolui, who died in 1232. Kublai received an estate of his own, which included 10,000 households. Because he was inexperienced, Kublai allowed local officials free rein. Corruption amongst his officials and aggressive taxation caused large numbers of Chinese peasants to flee, which led to a decline in tax revenues. Kublai quickly came to his appanage in Hebei and ordered reforms. Sorghaghtani sent new officials to help him and tax laws were revised. Thanks to those efforts, many of the people who fled returned.

The most prominent, and arguably the most influential component of Kublai Khan's early life was his study and strong attraction to contemporary Chinese culture. Kublai invited Haiyun, the leading Buddhist monk in North China, to his ordo in Mongolia. When he met Haiyun in Karakorum in 1242, Kublai asked him about the philosophy of Buddhism. Haiyun named Kublai's son, who was born in 1243, Zhenjin (True Gold in English).^[10] Haiyun also introduced Kublai to the former Taoist and now Buddhist monk, Liu Bingzhong. Liu was a painter, calligrapher, poet and mathematician, and became Kublai's advisor when Haiyun returned to his temple in modern Beijing.^[11] Kublai soon added the Shanxi scholar Zhao Bi to his entourage. Kublai employed people of other nationalities as well, for he was keen to balance local and imperial interests, Mongol and Turk.

Khagan's viceroy in North China[link]

In 1251, Kublai's eldest brother Möngke became Khan of the Mongol Empire, and Khwarizmian Mahmud Yalavach and Kublai were sent to China. Kublai received the viceroyalty over North China and moved his ordo to central Inner Mongolia. During his years as viceroy, Kublai managed his territory well, boosted the agricultural output of Henan and increased social welfare spendings after receiving Xi'an. These acts received great acclaim from the Chinese warlords and were essential to the building of the Yuan Dynasty. In 1252 Kublai criticized Mahmud Yalavach, who was never highly valued by his Chinese associates, over his cavalier execution of suspects during a judicial review and Zhao Bi attacked him for his presumptuous attitude toward the throne. Mongke dismissed Mahmud Yalavach, which met with resistance from Chinese Confucian-trained officials.^[12]

In 1253, Kublai was ordered to attack Yunnan, and he asked the Kingdom of Dali to submit. The ruling Gao family resisted and killed Mongol envoys. The Mongols divided their forces into three. One wing rode eastward into the Sichuan basin. The second column under Subotai's son Uryankhadai took a difficult route into the mountains of western Sichuan.^[13] Kublai went south over the grasslands and met up with the first column. While Uryankhadai travelled along the lakeside from the north, Kublai took the capital city of Dali and spared the residents despite the slaying of his ambassadors. The Mongols appointed King Duan Xingzhi as the local ruler and stationed a pacification commissioner there.^[14] After Kublai's departure, unrest broke out among certain factions. By 1256, Uryankhadai had completely pacified Yunnan.

Kublai was attracted by the abilities of Tibetan monks as healers. In 1253 he made Drogön Chögyal Phagpa, of the Sakya order, a member of his entourage. Phagpa bestowed on Kublai and his wife, Chabi (Chabui), a Tantric Buddhist initiation. Kublai appointed Uyghur Lian Xixian (1231–1280) the head his pacification commission in 1254. Some officials, who were jealous of Kublai's success, said that he was getting above himself and dreaming of having his own empire by competing with Mongke's capital Karakorum (Хархорум). The Great Khan Mongke sent two tax inspectors, Alamdar (Ariq Böke's close friend and governor in North China) and Liu Taiping, to audit Kublai's officials in 1257. They found fault, listed 142 breaches of regulations, accused Chinese officials and executed some of them, and Kublai's new pacification commission was abolished.^[15] Kublai sent a two-man embassy with his wives and then appealed in person to Mongke, who publicly forgave his younger brother and reconciled with him.

The Taoists had obtained their wealth and status by seizing Buddhist temples. Mongke repeatedly demanded that the Taoists cease their denigration of Buddhism and ordered Kublai to end the clerical strife between the Taoists and Buddhists in his territory.^[16] Kublai called a conference of Taoist and Buddhist leaders in early 1258. At the conference, the Taoist claim was officially refuted and Kublai forcibly converted 237 Taoist temples to Buddhism and destroyed all copies of the Taoist texts^{[17][18][19][20]}. Kublai Khan and the Yuan dynasty, clearly favored Buddhism, meanwhile his counterparts in the Chagatai Khanate, Golden Horde and the Ilkhanate would convert to Islam.

In 1258, Möngke put Kublai in command of the Eastern Army and summoned him to assist with an attack on Sichuan. As he was suffering from gout, Kublai was allowed to stay but he moved to assist Möngke. Before Kublai arrived in 1259, word reached him that Möngke had died. Kublai decided to keep the death of his brother secret and continued to attack Wuhan, near Yangtze. While Kublai's force besieged Wuchang, Uryankhadai joined him.^{[citation needed]}

Enthronement and civil war[link]

The Mongol Empire in 1259–60

The Song Dynasty minister Jia Sidao secretly approached Kublai to propose terms and asked whether the Song could pay an annual tribute of 200,000 taels of silver and 200,000 bolts of silk, in exchange for the Mongols agreement that the Yangtze River should be the frontier between the states.^[21] Kublai first declined but reached a peace agreement with Jia Sidao. Kublai returned north to the Mongolian plains because he received a message from his wife that Ariq Böke had been raising troops.^[22]

He soon received news that Ariq Böke had held a political and military council, called a kurultai, at Karakorum and was pronounced Great Khan by Mongke's officials. Most of Genghis Khan's descendants favored Ariq Böke as Great Khan; however, his two brothers Kublai and Hulegu opposed this. Kublai's Chinese staff encouraged Kublai to ascend the throne, and almost all of the senior princes in North China and Manchuria supported his candidacy.^[23] Upon returning to his own territories, Kublai summoned his own kurultai. Few members of the royal family supported Kublai's claims to the title, though the small number of attendees included representatives of all the Borjigin lines except that of Jochi. This kurultai proclaimed Kublai Great Khan, on April 15, 1260, despite Ariq Böke's apparently legal claim.

This led to warfare between Kublai and Ariq Böke, which resulted in the destruction of the Mongolian capital at Karakorum. In Shaanxi and Sichuan, Mongke's army supported Ariq Böke. Kublai dispatched Lian Xixian to Shaanxi and Sichuan, where they executed Ariq Böke's civil administrator Liu Taiping and won over several wavering generals.^[24] To secure the southern front, Kublai attempted a diplomatic resolution and sent envoys to Hangzhou, but Jia broke his promise and arrested them.^[25] Kublai sent Abishqa as new khan to the Chagatai Khanate. Ariq Böke captured Abishqa, two other princes and 100 men and had his own man, Alghu, crowned khan of Chagatai's territory. In the first armed clash between Ariq Böke and Kublai, Ariq Böke lost and his commander Alamdar was killed at the battle. In revenge, Ariq Böke had Abishqa executed. Kublai cut off supplies of food to Karakorum with the support of his cousin Khadan, son of Ogedei Khan. Karakorum quickly fell to Kublai's large army, but following Kublai's departure it was temporarily re-taken by Ariq Böke in 1261. Yizhou governor Li Tan revolted against Mongol rule in February 1262 and Kublai ordered his Chancellor Shi Tianze and Shi Shu to attack Li Tan. The two armies crushed Li Tan's revolt in just a few months and Li Tan was executed. These armies also executed Wang Wentong, the father-in-law of Li Tan who had been appointed the Chief Administrator of the Zhongshusheng ("Department of Central Governing") early in Kublai's reign and became one of Kublai's most trusted Han Chinese officials. The incident instilled in Kublai a distrust of ethnic Hans. After becoming emperor, Kublai banned the titles of and tithes to Han Chinese warlords.^{[citation needed]}

The Chagatayid Khan Alghu declared his allegiance to Kublai and defeated a punitive expedition sent by Ariq Böke against Alghu in 1262. Ilkhan Hulegu also sided with Kublai and criticized Ariq Böke. Ariq Böke surrendered to Kublai at Xanadu on August 21, 1264. The rulers of western khanates acknowledged Kublai's victory and rule in Mongolia.^[26] When Kublai summoned them to organize another kurultai, Alghu Khan demanded security for his illegal position from Kublai in return. Despite tensions between them, both Hulegu and Berke, khan of the Golden Horde, at first accepted Kublai's invitation.^[27][28] However, they soon declined to attend the new kurultai. Kublai pardoned Ariq Böke, although he executed Ariq Böke's chief supporters.

Reign[link]

Great Khan of the Mongols[link]

The suspicious deaths of three Jochid princes in Hulegu's service, the Battle of Baghdad and unequal distribution of war spoils strained the Ilkhanate's relations with the Golden Horde. In 1262, Hulegu's complete purge of the Jochid troops and support for Kublai in his conflict with Ariq Böke brought open war with the Golden Horde. Kublai reinforced Hulegu with 30,000 young Mongols in order to stabilize the political crises in the western regions of the Mongol Empire.^[29] When Hulegu died on 8 February 1264, Berke marched to cross near Tiflis to conquer the Ilkhanate but died on the way. Within a few months of these deaths, Alghu Khan of the Chagatai Khanate also died. In the new official version of his family's history, Kublai refused to write Berke's name as the khan of the Golden Horde because of Berke's support for Ariq Böke and wars with Hulegu; however, Jochi's family was fully recognized as legitimate family members.^[30]

Kublai Khan named Abagha as the new Ilkhan (obedient khan) and nominated Batu's grandson Mongke Temur for the throne of Sarai, the capital of the Golden Horde.^[31][32] The Kublaids in the east retained suzerainty over the Ilkhans until the end of their regime.^[33][34] Kublai also sent his protege Baraq to overthrow the court of Oirat Orghana, the empress of the Chagatai Khanate, who put her young son Mubarak Shah on the throne in 1265, without Kublai's permission after her husband's death. Ogedeid prince Kaidu declined to personally attend the court of Kublai. Kublai instigated Baraq to attack Kaidu. Baraq began to expand his realm northward; he seized power in 1266 and fought Kaidu and the Golden Horde. He also pushed out Great Khan's overseer from the Tarim basin. When Kaidu and Mongke Timur together defeated Kublai, Baraq joined an alliance with the House of Ogedei and the Golden Horde against Kublai in the east and Abagha in the west. Meanwhile, Mongke Temur avoided any direct military expedition against Kublai's realm. The court of the Golden Horde promised Kublai her assistance to defeat Kaidu whom Mongke Temur called the rebel.^[35] This was apparently due to the conflict between Kaidu and Mongke Temur over the agreement they made at the Talas kurultai. The armies of Mongol Persia defeated Baraq's invading forces in 1269. When Baraq died the next year, Kaidu took control of the Chagatai Khanate and recovered his alliance with Mongke Temur.

Meanwhile, Kublai tried to stabilize his control over Korea by mobilizing another Mongol invasion after he appointed Wonjong (r. 1260–1274) as the new Goryeo king in 1259 in Kanghwa. Kublai forced two rulers of the Golden Horde and the Ilkhanate to call a truce with each other in 1270 despite the Golden Horde's interests in the Middle East and Caucasia.^[36] Kublai called two Iraqi siege engineers from the Ilkhanate in order to destroy the fortresses of Song China. After the fall of Xiangyang in 1273, Kublai's commanders, Aju and Liu Zheng, proposed a final campaign against the Song Dynasty, and Kublai made Bayan the supreme commander.^[37] Kublai ordered Mongke Temur to revise the second census of the Golden Horde to provide resources and men for his conquest of China.^[38] The census took place in all parts of the Golden Horde, including Smolensk and Vitebsk in 1274–75. The Khans also sent Nogai to the Balkans to strengthen Mongol influence there.^[39]

Kublai renamed the Mongol regime in China Dai Yuan in 1271, and sought to sinicize his image as Emperor of China in order to win control of millions of Chinese people. When he moved his headquarters to Khanbalic, also called Dadu, at modern-day Beijing, there was an uprising in the old capital Karakorum that he barely contained. Kublai's actions were condemned by traditionalists and his critics still accused him of being too closely tied to Chinese culture. They sent a message to him: "The old customs of our Empire are not those of the Chinese laws... What will happen to the old customs?".^[40][41] Kaidu attracted the other elites of Mongol Khanates, declaring himself to be a legitimate heir to the throne instead of Kublai, who had turned away from the ways of Genghis Khan.^[42][43] Defections from Kublai's Dynasty swelled the Ogedeids' forces.

Painting of Kublai Khan on a hunting expedition, by Chinese court artist Liu Guandao, c. 1280.

The Song imperial family surrendered to the Yuan in 1276, making the Mongols the first non-Chinese people to conquer all of China. Three years later, Yuan marines crushed the last of the Song loyalists. The Song Empress Dowager and her grandson, Zhao Xian, were then settled in Khanbalic where they were given tax-free property, and Kublai's wife Chabi took a personal interest in their well-being. However, Kublai later had Zhao sent away to become a monk to Zhangye. Kublai succeeded in building a powerful Empire, created an academy, offices, trade ports and canals and sponsored science and the arts. The record of the Mongols lists 20,166 public schools created during Kublai's reign.^[44] Having achieved real or nominal dominion over much of Eurasia, and having successfully conquered China, Kublai was in a position to look beyond China.^[45] However, Kublai's costly invasions of Burma, Annam, Sakhalin and Champa secured only the vassal status of those countries. The Mongol invasions of Japan (1274 and 1280) and Java (1293) failed. At the same time, Kublai's nephew Ilkhan Abagha tried to form a grand alliance of the Mongols and the Western European powers to defeat the Mamluks in Syria and North Africa that constantly invaded the Mongol dominions. Abagha and Kublai focused mostly on foreign alliances, and opened trade routes. Khagan Kublai dined with a large court every day, and met with many ambassadors, foreign merchants.

Kublai's son Nomukhan and his generals occupied Almaliq from 1266–76. In 1277, a group of Genghisid princes under Mongke's son Shiregi rebelled, kidnapped Kublai's two sons and his general Antong and handed them over to Kaidu and Mongke Temur. The latter was still allied with Kaidu who fashioned an alliance with him in 1269, although Mongke Temur had promised Kublai his military support to protect Kublai from the Ogedeids.^[46] Kublai's armies suppressed the rebellion and strengthened the Yuan garrisons in Mongolia and Uighurstan. However, Kaidu took control over Almaliq.

Extract of the letter of Arghun to Philip IV of France, in the Mongolian script, dated 1289. French National Archives.

In 1279–80, Kublai decreed death for those who performed Islamic-Jewish slaughtering of cattle, which offended Mongolian custom.^[47] When the Ahmad Teguder seized the throne of the Ilkhanate in 1282, attempting to make peace with the Mamluks, Abagha's old Mongols under prince Arghun appealed to Kublai. After the execution of Ahmad, Kublai confirmed Arghun's coronation and awarded his commander in chief Buqa the title of chingsang.^{[citation needed]}

Kublai's niece, Kelmish, who married a Khunggirat general of the Golden Horde, was powerful enough to have Kublai's sons Nomuqan and Kokhchu returned. Three leaders of the Jochids, Tode Mongke, Konchi, and Nogai, agreed to release two princes.^[48] The court of the Golden Horde returned the princes as a peace overture to the Yuan Dynasty in 1282 and induced Kaidu to release Kublai's general. Konchi, khan of White Horde, established friendly relations with the Yuan and the Ilkhanate, and as a reward received luxury gifts and grain from Kublai.^[49] Despite political disagreement between contending branches of the family over the office of Khagan, the economic and commercial system continued.^{[50][51][52][53]}

Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty[link]

The Yuan Dynasty, c. 1294 and its client state Goryeo in modern Korea

Kublai Khan considered that China was his main base; he realized within a decade of his enthronement as Great Khan that he needed to concentrate on governing China.^[54] From the beginning of his reign, he adopted Chinese political and cultural models and worked to minimize the influences of regional lords, who had held immense power before and during the Song Dynasty. Kublai heavily relied on his Chinese advisers until about 1276. He had many Han Chinese advisers, such as Liu Bingzhong and Xu Heng, and employed many Uyghur Turks, some of whom were resident commissioners running Chinese districts.^[55]

Kublai also appointed Phagspa Lama his state preceptor (Guoshi), giving him power over all of the empire's Buddhist monks. In 1270, after Phagspa created the Square script, he was promoted to imperial preceptor. Kublai established the Supreme Control Commission under Phagspa to administer affairs of Tibetan and Chinese monks. During Phagspa's absence in Tibet, the Tibetan monk Sangha rose to high office and had the office renamed the Commission for Buddhist and Tibetan Affairs.^[56][57] In 1286, Tibetan Sangha became the dynasty's chief fiscal officer. However, their corruption later embittered Kublai, after which Kublai relied wholly on younger Mongol aristocrats. Antong of the Jalayir, and Bayan of the Baarin served as grand councillors from 1265, and Oz-temur of the Arulad headed the censorate. Borokhula's descendant, Ochicher, headed a kheshig (Mongolian imperial guard) and the palace provision commission.

In the eighth year of Zhiyuan (1271), Kublai officially created the Yuan Dynasty, and proclaimed the capital to be at Dadu (Chinese: 大都; Wade–Giles: Ta-tu, lit. "Great Capital", known as Daidu to the Mongols, at modern-day Beijing) the following year. His summer capital was in Shangdu (Chinese: 上都, "Upper Capital", a.k.a. Xanadu, near what today is Dolonnur). To unify China,^[58] Kublai began a massive offensive against the remnants of the Southern Song Dynasty in the 11th year of Zhiyuan (1274), and finally destroyed the Song Dynasty in the 16th year of Zhiyuan (1279), unifying the country at last.

The Chinese opera flourished during the Mongol rule in China.

Most of the Yuan domains were administered as provinces, also translated as the "branch Secretariat", during his reign, each with a governor and vice-governor.^[59] This included China proper, Manchuria, Mongolia and a special Zhendong branch Secretariat that would extend into the Korean Peninsula.^[60][61] The Central Region (Chinese: 腹裏) was separate from the rest, consisted of much of present-day North China, was considered the most important region of the dynasty and was directly governed by the Zhongshusheng (Chinese: 中書省, "Department of Central Governing") at Dadu. Tibet was governed by another top-level administrative department called the Xuanzheng Yuan (Chinese: 宣政院).

Kublai promoted economic growth with the rebuilding of the Grand Canal, repaired public buildings, and extended highways. However, his domestic policy included some aspects of the old Mongol living traditions, and as his reign continued, these traditions would clash increasingly frequently with traditional Chinese economic and social culture. Kublai decreed that partner merchants of the Mongols should be subject to taxes in 1263 and set up the Office of Market Taxes to supervise them in 1268. After the Mongol conquest of the Song, the merchants expanded their operations to the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean. In 1286, maritime trade was put under the Office of Market Taxes. The main source of revenue of the government was the monopoly of salt production.^[62]

The Mongol administration had issued paper currencies from 1227 on.^[63][64] In August 1260, Kublai created the first unified paper currency called Chao; bills were circulated throughout the Yuan domain with no expiration date. To guard against devaluation, the currency was convertible with silver and gold, and the government accepted tax payments in paper currency. In 1273, he issued a new series of state sponsored bills to finance his conquest of the Song, although eventually a lack of fiscal discipline and inflation turned this move into an economic disaster. It was required to pay only in the form of paper money. To ensure its use in circles, Kublai's government confiscated gold and silver from private citizens and foreign merchants. But traders received government-issued notes in exchange. Kublai Khan is considered to be the first of fiat money makers. The paper bills made collecting taxes and administering the empire much easier and reduced the cost of transporting coins.^[65] In 1287, Kublai's minister Sangha created a new currency, Zhiyuan Chao, to deal with a budget shortfall.^[66] It was non-convertible and denominated in copper cash. Later Gaykhatu of the Ilkhanate attempted to adopt the system in Persia and the Middle east, which was a complete failure, and shortly afterwards he was assassinated.

Kublai encouraged Asian arts and demonstrated religious tolerance. Despite his anti-Taoist edicts, Kublai respected the Taoist master and appointed Zhang Liushan as the patriarch of the Taoist Xuanjiao order.^[67] Under Zhang's advice, Taoist temples were put under the Academy of Scholarly Worthies. The empire was visited by several Europeans, notably Marco Polo in the 1270s who may have seen the summer capital Shangdu.

Warfare and foreign relations[link]

A Yuan Dynasty Hand cannon

Despite that Kublai restricted the functions of the kheshig, he created a new imperial bodyguard, at first entirely Chinese in composition but later strengthened with Kipchak, Alan (Asud), and Russian units.^[68][69][70] Once his own kheshig was organized in 1263, Kublai put three of the original kheshig's four shifts under the charges the descendants of Genghis Khan's four assistants, Borokhula, Boorchu and Muqali. Kublai began the practice of having the four great aristocrats in his kheshig sign all jarliqs (decree), a practice that spread to all other Mongol khanates.^[71] Mongol and Chinese units were organized using the same decimal organization that Genghis Khan used. The Mongols eagerly adopted new artillery and technologies. Kublai brought siege engineers, Ismail and Al al-Din, from present-day Iraq and Iran. ^[72] Kublai and his generals adopted an elaborate, moderate style of military campaigns in South China. Effective assimilation of Chinese naval techniques allowed the Yuan army to quickly conquer the Song.

Kublai's foreign policy was similar to those of his predecessors, whose foreign policy might be considered as imperialistic. He invaded Goryeo (Korea) and made it a tributary vassal state in 1260. After another Mongol intervention in 1273, Goryeo came under even tighter control of the Yuan.^{[73][74][75][76][77]} Goryeo became a Mongol military base and several myriarchy commands were established there. The court of the Goryeo supplied Korean troops and ocean-going naval force for the Mongol campaigns. Despite the opposition of some of his Confucian-trained advisers, Kublai decided to invade Japan, Burma, Vietnam and Java, following the suggestions of some of his Mongol officials. The attempts of subjugation also included peripheral lands such as Sakhalin, where its indigenous people eventually submitted to the Mongols by 1308, after Kublai's death. These costly conquests and the introduction of paper currency caused inflation. From 1273 to 1276, war against the Song Dynasty and Japan made the issue of paper currency expand from 110,000 ding to 1,420,000 ding.^[78]

Invasions of Japan[link]

Khubilai’s failed invasion of Japan, painting from Japanese Imperial Collection. One third of the army was drowned when a typhoon struck the invading navy.

The samurai Suenaga facing Mongol arrows and bombs. Mōko Shūrai Ekotoba (蒙古襲来絵詞), circa 1293.

The Mongolian Yuan troops. Mōko Shūrai Ekotoba (蒙古襲来絵詞).

Kublai Khan twice attempted to invade Japan. It is believed that both attempts were thwarted by bad weather or a flaw in the design of ships that were based on river boats without keels, and his fleets were destroyed. The first attempt took place in 1274, with a fleet of 900 ships. After the first Mongol attack on Japan, Japanese pirates known as Wokou raided Korea, but Mongol-Korean forces pushed them back, and the Wokou pirates decreased their activity due to the increased military preparedness of the Goryeo and the Kamakura. In 1293 the Yuan navy captured 100 Japanese people from Okinawa.^[79]

The second invasion occurred in 1281 when Mongols sent two separate forces; 900 ships containing 40,000 Korean, Chinese, and Mongol troops were sent from Masan, while a force of 100,000 sailed from southern China in 3,500 ships, each close to 240 feet (73 m) long. The fleet was hastily assembled and ill-equipped to cope with maritime conditions. In November, they sailed into the treacherous waters that separated Korea and Japan by 110 miles. The Mongols easily took over Tsushima Island about halfway across the strait and then Ika Island closer to Kyushu. The Korean fleet reached Hakata Bay on June 23, 1281 and landed its troops and animals, but the ships from China were nowhere to be seen.

The samurai warriors, following their custom, rode out against the Mongol forces for individual combat but the Mongols held their formation. The Mongols fought as a united force, not as individuals, and bombarded the samurai with exploding missiles and showered them with arrows. Eventually, the remaining Japanese withdrew from the coastal zone inland to a fortress. The Mongol forces did not chase the fleeing Japanese into an area about which they lacked reliable intelligence.

Marine archaeologist Kenzo Hayashida led the investigation that discovered the wreckage of the second invasion fleet off the western coast of Takashima. His team's findings strongly indicate that Kublai rushed to invade Japan and attempted to construct his enormous fleet in one year, a task that should have taken up to five years. This forced the Chinese to use any available ships, including river boats. Most importantly, the Chinese, under Kublai's control, built many ships quickly in order to contribute to the fleets in both of the invasions. Hayashida theorizes that, had Kublai used standard, well-constructed ocean-going ships with curved keels to prevent capsizing, his navy might have survived the journey to and from Japan and might have conquered it as intended. In October 2011, a wreck, possibly one of Kublai's invasion craft, was found off the coast of Nagasaki.^[80] David Nicolle wrote in The Mongol Warlords, "Huge losses had also been suffered in terms of casualties and sheer expense, while the myth of Mongol invincibility had been shattered throughout eastern Asia." He also wrote that Kublai was determined to mount a third invasion, despite the horrendous cost to the economy and to his and Mongol prestige of the first two defeats, and only his death and the unanimous agreement of his advisers not to invade prevented a third attempt.^[81]

Invasions of Vietnam[link]

Kublai Khan also twice invaded Đại Việt. When Kublai became the Great Khan in 1260, the Vietnamese Trần Dynasty sent tribute every three years and received a darugachi.^[82][83] But their king soon declined to attend the Mongol court in person. The first incursion (the second Mongol invasion of Đại Việt) began in December 1284 when the Mongols under the command of Toghan, the prince of Kublai Khan, crossed the border and quickly occupied Thăng Long (now Hanoi) in January 1285 after the victorious battle of Omar in Vạn Kiếp (north east of Hanoi). At the same time the Sogetu from Champa moved northward and rapidly marched to Nghe An in the north central region of Vietnam where the army of the Trần Dynasty under general Tran Kien surrendered to him. However, the Trần kings and the commander-in-chief Trần Hưng Đạo changed their tactics from defence to attack and struck against the Mongols. In April, General Trần Quang Khải defeated Sogetu in Chuong Duong and the Trần kings won a battle in Tây Kết where Sogetu died. Soon after, general Trần Nhật Duật also won a battle in Hàm Tử (now part of Hưng Yên) and Toghan was defeated by General Trần Hưng Đạo and Kublai failed in his first attempt to invade Đại Việt. Toghan hid himself inside a bronze pipe to avoid being killed by the Đại Việt archers; this act brought humiliation upon the Mongol Empire and Toghan.

After his first failure, Kublai wanted to install Nhan Tong's brother Tran Ich Tac - who had defected to the Mongols - as king of Annam, but hardship in the Yuan's supply base in Hunan, and Kaidu's invasion forced Kublai to abandon his plans. In 1285 the Brigung sect rebelled and attacked monasteries of Paghspa's sect in Tibet. The Chagatayid Khan, Duwa, helped the rebels and laid siege to Kara-Kocho and defeated Kublai's garrisons in the Tarim basin.^[84] Kaidu destroyed an army at Beshbalik and occupied the city the following year. Many Uyghurs abandoned Kashgar for safer bases back in the eastern Yuan. After Kublai's grandson Buqa-Temur crushed the resistance of the Brigung sect, killing 10,000 Tibetans in 1291, Tibet was fully pacified.

The second Mongol invasion began in 1287 and was better organized than the previous effort; a large fleet and plentiful stocks of food were used. The Mongols, under the command of Toghan, moved to Vạn Kiếp from the north west and met the infantry and cavalry of Kublai's Kipchak commander Omar (coming by another way along the Red River) and quickly won the battle. The naval fleet rapidly attained victory in Vân Đồn near Ha Long Bay but they left the heavy cargo ships, stocked with food, which General Trần Khánh Dư quickly captured and the Mongols in Thăng Long (modern-day Hanoi) suffered an acute shortage of food. With no news about the supply fleet, Toghan ordered his army to retreat to Vạn Kiếp. The Đại Việt army began their general offensive and recaptured a number of locations occupied by the Mongols. Groups of Đại Việt infantry were ordered to attack the Mongols in Vạn Kiếp. Toghan had to split his army into two and retreat.^{[citation needed]}

In early April the naval fleet, led by Omar and escorted by infantry, fled home along the Bạch Đằng river. As bridges and roads were destroyed and attacks were launched by Đại Việt troops, the Mongols reached Bạch Đằng without an infantry escort. Đại Việt's small flotilla engaged in battle and pretended to retreat. The Mongols eagerly pursued the Đại Việt troops and fell into their pre-arranged battlefield. Thousands of small Đại Việt boats quickly appeared from both banks, launched a fierce attack and broke the Mongol's combat formation. The Mongols met a sudden and strong attack and tried to withdraw to the sea in panic. The Mongols' boats were halted, and many were damaged and sank. At that time, a number of fire rafts quickly rushed toward the Mongols, who were frightened and jumped down to reach the banks where they were dealt a heavy blow by an army led by the Trần king and Trần Hưng Đạo. The Mongol naval fleet was totally destroyed and Omar was captured. At the same time, Đại Việt's army continuously attacked and smashed to pieces Toghan's army on its withdrawal through Lạng Sơn. Toghan risked his life to take a shortcut through thick forest in order to flee home. Nevertheless, the Đại Việt and the Kingdom of Champa had recognized Kublai's supremacy in order to avoid more conflicts.^[83][85]

Southeast Asia and South Seas[link]

Three expeditions against Burma, in 1277, 1283 and 1287, brought the Mongol forces to the Irrawaddy delta, and they captured Bagan, the capital of Pagan Kingdom in Burma, and established their government.^[86] Kublai had to be content with the establishment of a formal suzerainty but Burma finally became tributary state and sent tributes to the Yuan court until the Mongols were expelled from China in the 1360s.^[87] The Khmer kingdom of Cambodia and small states in Malay and South India submitted to Kublai's rule between 1278–1294. Mongol interests in these areas were commercial and tributary relationships.

During the last years of his reign, Kublai launched a naval punitive expedition of 20–30,000 men against the Javanese kingdom of Singhasari (1293), but the invading Mongol forces were forced to withdraw by the Majapahit Dynasty after considerable losses of more than 3,000 troops. Nevertheless, by 1294, the year that Kublai died, two Thai kingdoms of Sukhotai and Chiangmai had become vassal states of the Yuan Dynasty.^[86]

Europe[link]

Under Kublai, direct contact between East Asia and the West was established, made possible by the Mongol control of the central Asian trade routes and facilitated by the presence of efficient postal services. In the beginning of the 13th century, large numbers of Europeans and Central Asians – merchants, travelers, and missionaries of different orders – made their way to China. The presence of the Mongol power allowed large numbers of Chinese, intent on warfare or trade, to travel to other parts of the Mongol Empire, all the way to Russia, Persia, and Mesopotamia.^{[citation needed]}

Rabban Bar Sauma, the ambassador of Great Khan Kublai and Ilkhan Arghun, travelled from Dadu in the East, to Rome, Paris and Bordeaux in the West, meeting with the major rulers of the period in 1287–1288

Marco Polo, Niccolo Polo's son, accompanied his father and his uncle Maffeo Polo, on their second trip to China starting in 1271. Marco Polo was probably the best-known foreign visitor to China and Mongolia. After reaching China in 1275, he spent the next 17 years (1275–1292) under the administration and patronage of Kublai, including official service in the salt administration and trips through the provinces of Yunnan and Fukien.^{[citation needed]}

The capital city of the Emperor[link]

The White Stupa in Dadu (or Khanbalic)

After Kublai Khan was proclaimed Khagan at his residence in Shangdu on 5 May 1260, he began to organize the country. Zhang Wenqian, a central government official and a friend of Guo, was sent by Kublai in 1260 to Daming where unrest had been reported in the local population. Guo accompanied Zhang on his mission. Guo was interested in engineering, was an expert astronomer, a skilled instrument maker and understood that good astronomical observations depended on expertly made instruments. Guo began to construct astronomical instruments, including water clocks for accurate timing and armillary spheres which represented the celestial globe. Turkestani architect Ikhtiyar al-Din (also known as Igder) designed the buildings of the city of Khagan or Khanbalic.^[88] Kublai also employed foreign artists to build his new capital; one of them, a Nepalese named Arniko, built the White Stupa which was the largest structure in Khanbalic/Dadu.^[89]

Zhang advised Kublai that Guo was a leading expert in hydraulic engineering. Kublai knew the importance of water management for irrigation, transport of grain and flood control, and he asked Guo to look at these aspects in the area between Dadu (now Beijing) and the Yellow River. To provide Dadu with a new supply of water, Guo found the Baifu spring in the Shenshan Mountain and had a 30 km channel built to move the water to Dadu. He proposed connecting the water supply across different river basins, built new canals with sluices to control the water level and achieved great success with the improvements which he was able to make. This pleased Kublai and Guo was asked to undertake similar projects in other parts of the country. In 1264 he was asked to go to Gansu province to repair the damage that had been caused to the irrigation systems by the years of war during the Mongol advance through the region. Guo travelled extensively along with his friend Zhang taking notes of the work which needed to be done to unblock damaged parts of the system and to make improvements to its efficiency. He sent his report directly to Kublai Khan.^{[citation needed]}

Nayan's rebellion[link]

During the conquest of the Jin, Genghis Khan's younger brothers received large appanages in Manchuria.^[90] Their descendants strongly supported Kublai's coronation in 1260, but the younger generation desired more independence. Kublai enforced Ogedei Khan's regulations that the Mongol noblemen could appoint overseers and the Great Khan's special officials, in their appanages, but otherwise respected appanage rights. Kublai's son Manggala established direct control over Singan and Shansi in 1272. In 1274, Kublai appointed Lian Xixian to investigate abuses of power by Mongol appanage holders in Manchuria.^[91] The region called Lia-tung was immediately brought under the Khagan's control, in 1284, eliminating autonomy of the Mongol nobles there.^[92]

Threatened by the advance of Kublai's bureaucratization, Belgutei's fourth generation descendant, Nayan (not confused with Temuge's descendant Nayan), instigated a revolt in 1287. Nayan tried to join forces with Kublai's competitor Kaidu in Central Asia.^[93] Manchuria's native Jurchens and Water Tatars, who had suffered a famine, supported Nayan. Virtually all of the fraternal lines under Hadaan, a descendant of Hachiun, and Shihtur, a grandson of Hasar, joined Nayan's rebellion,^[94] and because Nayan was popular prince, Ebugen, a grandson of Genghis Khan's son Khulgen, and the family of Khuden, a younger brother of Guyuk Khan, contributed troops for this rebellion.^[95]

The rebellion was crippled by early detection and timid leadership. Kublai sent Bayan to keep Nayan and Kaidu apart by occupying Karakorum, while Kublai led another army against the rebels in Manchuria. Kublai's commander Oz Temur's Mongol force attacked Nayan's 60,000 inexperienced soldiers on June 14, while Chinese and Alan guards under Li Ting protected Kublai. The army of Chungnyeol of Goryeo assisted Kublai in battle. After a hard fight, Nayan's troops withdrew behind their carts and Li Ting began bombardment and attacked Nayan's camp that night. Kublai's force pursued Nayan, who was eventually captured and executed without bloodshed, a traditional way of executing princes.^[95] Meanwhile, the rebel prince Shikqtur invaded the Chinese district of Liaoning but was defeated within a month. Kaidu withdrew westward to avoid a battle. However, Kaidu defeated a major Yuan army in Khangai and briefly occupied Karakorum in 1289. Kaidu had ridden away before Kublai could mobilize a larger army.^[96]

Widespread but uncoordinated uprisings of Nayan's supporters continued until 1289; these were ruthlessly repressed. The rebel princes' troops were taken from them and redistributed among the imperial family.^[97] Kublai harshly punished the darugachis appointed by the rebels in Mongolia and Manchuria.^[98] This rebellion forced Kublai to approve the creation of the Liaoyang Branch Secretariat on December 4, 1287, while rewarding loyal fraternal princes.

Later years[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

In Ilkhanate Persia, Ghazan converted to Islam and recognized Kublai Khan as his suzerain.

Kublai Khan dispatched his grandson Gammala to Burkhan Khaldun in 1291. Because Kublai wanted to ensure that he laid claim to the sacred place (Ikh Khorig), Burkhan Khaldun, where Genghis was buried, Mongolia was strongly protected by the Kublaids. Bayan was in control of Karakorum and was re-establishing control over surrounding areas in 1293, so Kublai's rival Kaidu did not attempt any large-scale military action for the next three years. From 1293 on, Kublai's army cleared Kaidu's forces from the Central Siberian Plateau.^{[citation needed]}

Kublai's original choice of successor was his son Zhenjin, who became the head of Zhongshusheng ("Department of Central Governing"), and actively administrated the dynasty according to Confucian fashion. Nomukhan, after he returned from captivity in the Golden Horde, expressed resentment that Zhenjin had been made heir apparent but was banished to the north. An official proposed that Kublai should abdicate in favor of Zhenjin in 1285, a suggestion which angered Kublai, who refused to see Zhenjin, who died soon afterwards in 1286, eight years before his father. Kublai regretted this and remained very close to his wife, Bairam (also known as Kokejin). When Chabi died, Kublai began to withdraw from direct contact with his advisers, and issued instructions through one of his other queens, Nambui. Only two of Kublai's daughters are known by name; he may have had others. Unlike the formidable women of his grandfather's day, Kublai's wives and daughters were an almost invisible presence, possibly because Chinese court etiquette demoted females to inferior status.^{[citation needed]}

Kublai became increasingly despondent after the deaths his favorite wife and his chosen heir Zhenjin. The failure of the military campaigns in Vietnam and Japan also haunted him. Kublai turned to food and drink for comfort, became grossly overweight and suffered gout and diabetes. The emperor overindulged in alcohol and the traditional meat-rich Mongol diet, which may have contributed to his gout. Kublai sank into depression because of the loss of family, his poor health and advancing age. Kublai tried every medical treatment available, from Korean shamans to Vietnamese doctors, and remedies and medicines, but to no avail. At the end of 1293, the emperor refused to participate in the traditional New Years' ceremony. Before his death, Kublai passed the seal of Crown Prince to Zhenjin's son Temür, who would become the next Khagan of the Mongol Empire and the second ruler of the Yuan Dynasty. Seeking an old companion to comfort him in his final illness, the palace staff could choose only Bayan, more than 30 years his junior. Kublai weakened steadily, and on 18 February 1294 he died at the age of 78. Two days later, the funeral cortège took his body to the burial place of the khans in Mongolia.^{[citation needed]}

Family[link]

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Chabi, Khatun of Kublai and Empress of the Mongol Empire

Kublai first married Tegulen but she died very early. Then he married Chabi Khatun of the Khunggirat, who was was his most beloved empress. After Chabi's death in 1286, Kublai married Chabi's young cousin, Nambui, in accordance with Chabi's wish.

Kublai and his wives' children included:

• Dorji was the director of the Secretariat and head of the Bureau of Military Affairs from 1263, but was sickly and died young.
• Zhenjin was the father of Temur Khan, Kublai's successor.
• Manggala was a viceroy in Shaanxi.
• Nomukhan
• Khungjil
• Aychi
• Saqulghachi
• Qughchu
• Toghan led Mongol armies into Burma and Vietnam.
• Khulan-temur
• Tsever
• Khutugh beki married the king Chungnyeol and became the Empress of the Goryeo.^[99]
• and a further son and two daughters; names unknown.

Legacy[link]

Statue of Kublai Khan in Sukhbaatar Square, Ulaanbaatar. Together with Ogedei Khan's, and the much larger Genghis Khan's statues, it forms a statue complex dedicated to the Mongol Empire.

Kublai's seizure of power in 1260 pushed the Mongol Empire into a new direction. Despite his controversial election, which accelerated the disunity of the Mongols, Kublai's willingness to formalize the Mongol realm's symbiotic relation with China brought the Mongol Empire to international attention. Kublai and his predecessors' conquests were largely responsible for re-creating a unified, militarily powerful China. The Mongol rule of Tibet, Xinjiang, and Mongolia proper from a capital at modern Beijing were the precedents for the Qing Dynasty's Inner Asian Empire.^[100]

Cultural references[link]

• Kublai and Shangdu or Xanadu are the subject of various later artworks, including the English Romantic Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem "Kubla Khan", in which Coleridge makes Xanadu a symbol of mystery and splendour.
• Kublai Khan and Xanadu are both mentioned in the song "Xanadu" by Canadian band Rush.

In fiction[link]

• Kublai Khan is depicted in Italo Calvino's novel Invisible Cities, in which Kublai talks with Marco Polo about imaginary cities in his empire .
• Conn Iggulden's 2011 novel Conqueror follows Kublai Khan's rise to power, from the Khanate of Guyuk Khan to the surrender of Ariq Boke Khan.
• Daughter of Xanadu (2011) by Dori Jones Yang depicts war through the eyes of Kublai Khan's fictional eldest granddaughter, Emmajin Beki.

See also[link]

• History of Beijing

Notes[link]

General note: Dates given here are in the Julian calendar. They are not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar.

Weatherford, Jack 'Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World' pg.210–211

References[link]

• Weatherford, Jack. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World. 
• Man, John (2004). Genghis Khan: Life, Death and Resurrection. London; New York: Bantam Press. ISBN 0-593-05044-4. 
• Man, John (2007). Kublai Khan: The Mongol King Who Remade China. London; New York: Bantam Press. ISBN 978-0-553-81718-8. 
• Morgan, David (1986). The Mongols. New York: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 0-631-17563-6. 
• Rossabi, Morris. Khubilai Khan: His Life and Times (University of California Press (May 1, 1990)) ISBN 0-520-06740-1.
• Saunders, J.J. The History of the Mongol Conquests (University of Pennsylvania Press (March 1, 2001)) ISBN 0-8122-1766-7.
• Clements, Jonathan (2010). A Brief History of Khubilai Khan. Philadelphia: Running Press. ISBN 978-0-7624-3987-4. 

External links[link]

• Inflation under Kublai
• Relics of the Kamikaze (Archaeological Institute of America)

v t e Khagans of the Mongol Empire (1206–1370)
Genghis Khan (1206–1227) • Tolui Khan (regent) (1227–1229) • Ögedei Khan (1229–1241) • Töregene Khatun (regent) (1241–1246) • Güyük Khan (1246–1248) • Oghul Qaimish (regent) (1248–1251) • Möngke Khan (1251–1259) • Kublai Khan (1260–1294)
The Kublaid Great Khans
Temür Khan (1294–1307) • Külüg Khan (1307–1311) • Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan (1311–1320) • Gegeen Khan(1320–1323) • Yesün Temür Khan (1323–1328) • Ragibagh Khan (1328) • Jayaatu Khan (1328–1329) • Khutughtu Khan (1329) • Jayaatu Khan(1329–1332) • Rinchinbal Khan (1332) • Ukhaantu Khan (1333–1370)
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