Behind this seemingly cruel practice, there are far-reaching historical origins and reasons. In order to continue the bloodline and strengthen the group, a nomadic people have reached a unique "intermarriage" relationship with the agricultural world, which can not help but make people curious and puzzled. What is the reason for these two worlds that are far apart to tolerate and penetrate each other? And how did it lead to this seemingly "nondescript" marriage?
1. Population crisis: the survival worries of nomads
The Huns, as a nomadic people, lived in the barren steppes. They lived by hunting and herding, and wandered in the wilderness all year round. This way of life is extremely difficult, the living environment is harsh, and the population has not been able to grow effectively.
According to the "Historical Records of the Xiongnu", during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu were divided into 24 tribes. However, the total population of each tribe, including the royal relatives of the Xiongnu king, was only about 298,000. plus women, the old and the young, the total is only hundreds of thousands. This population figure is too thin for a strong nomadic people.
The lack of population has brought serious constraints to the development of the Xiongnu. Under the circumstances at that time, only sufficient manpower could ensure that the Xiongnu had enough warriors to form a cavalry regiment when they galloped across the steppe; In order to ensure that in winter and spring, there is sufficient strength to be responsible for the transition and grazing. The lack of population will inevitably cause the overall national strength of the Xiongnu to be greatly damaged, and they will lose the force to gallop across the grassland.
In addition, the lack of population can also lead to consanguineous marriages. If this continues for a long time, it will inevitably threaten the healthy reproduction of the entire nation. Once the offspring of good health is lost, it is equivalent to the loss of the foundation of the nation, which is undoubtedly a fatal blow to the Huns who live in a harsh environment.
Therefore, how to expand the number of people and increase the number of clansmen has become a major problem facing the Xiongnu. Faced with this embarrassing situation, the Huns finally made up their minds and adopted a seemingly "nondescript" approach - marrying Han people as wives and reproducing offspring to solve their urgent needs.
2. Assimilation and absorption: a remedial strategy of "strengthening the heart".
Faced with the dilemma of population shortage, the Huns began to solve this urgent need. They adopted an unprecedented approach of recruiting Han Chinese and intermarrying with them to have children in order to increase the number of their clansmen.
This method naturally feels very abnormal and rampant at first. After all, the Xiongnu and the Han people have always been enemies who have never had a bad relationship with each other. During the war years, the two sides were at loggerheads. Nowadays, the Huns have opened up their nets to the captive Han Chinese, and accepted them as wives without killing them, in order to "borrow" to reproduce their descendants, which was undoubtedly a bold practice to challenge tradition at that time.
But on closer inspection, this approach is not entirely unreasonable. First of all, the intermarriage of the Nahan people is conducive to the Xiongnu absorbing the essence of excellent Han culture and making up for the shortcomings of their own nomads in knowledge. Zhang Qian was captured for many years, and not only learned Chinese after returning, but also brought back a lot of important information about the Western Regions; Later, Li Ling was respected by the Xiongnu as the master of the horse, and it infiltrated the Han culture into the upper strata of the Xiongnu. Although these Han Chinese were initially captives, they brought intellectual and cultural delicacies to the Xiongnu.
Secondly, intermarriage helped the Xiongnu absorb the blood of excellent Han people and improve the situation of intermarriage between close relatives of the tribe at that time. For a long time, the Xiongnu have been living a closed and backward life, and most of the marriages within the clan are intermarriages. Although this practice can maintain the purity of the bloodline, it also brings some disadvantages, such as congenital diseases. As an agrarian people, the Han people pay more attention to eugenics, and they often choose their spouses. The Nahan people are wives, and they can be fused with their excellent genes to enhance the physique of their offspring.
In addition, intermarriage with the Han people is also conducive to the Huns to stay away from close relatives and avoid many problems that may be caused by blood kinship. In the history books, it is common to see the record of "marrying away from the mother's family", which also shows from the side that the Xiongnu paid great attention to preventing close relatives from marrying. Intermarriage with a foreign race like the Han people can undoubtedly keep away from close relatives to the greatest extent and prevent the occurrence of hidden dangers.
3. Political Marriage: From Captive to "Horse Master"
In the practice of "Nahan people as wives", there are some special circumstances that deserve attention. That is, once the Han nobles or imperial relatives were captured, the Xiongnu would give them more favorable treatment, and even intermarry with members of the Xiongnu royal family.
There are several typical cases in history that are enough to illustrate the existence of this practice. One is that Zhang Qian was still treated favorably and ordered by the King of the Huns to give a beautiful woman as his wife many years after he was captured. Another more famous example is Li Ling, the grandson of the famous Han Dynasty general Li Guang.
Li Ling was originally a dignitary of the dynasty and a descendant of the family Quanmen. However, in the war, he was accidentally captured by the Huns. At first, the Huns also punished him and humiliated him in every way. It wasn't until one time that the Xiongnu Shan Yu personally met him that he recognized him as a famous family in the Han Dynasty. So the Xiongnu Shan Yu changed his views on this noble captive in an instant, not only did not kill him, but married his niece to Li Ling as his wife, making him the master of the Xiongnu tribe.
Since then, Li Ling has lived a privileged life in the family of the head horn, and he is no longer treated harshly. Even when he returned to the Central Plains afterwards, he was not punished too much by the imperial court, which shows that the Han Dynasty also acquiesced in his marriage during the Xiongnu period.
In fact, the reason why the Xiongnu treated Li Ling and other Han dignitaries so favorably was very clear: they hoped to use this political marriage to firmly tie the hearts of the Han people and weaken their willingness to escape. Once the lost Han nobles were given extremely high living conditions, they would naturally become attached to the Xiongnu tribe and unwilling to leave easily. What's more, once they have a Xiongnu wife and heirs, they will be even more tied to the fate of the Xiongnu, and it is difficult to easily abandon their wives and children.
In addition, the entry of the Nahan nobles into the Han Dynasty was also a strategy of the Xiongnu who were more clever towards the Han Dynasty. Those Han captives with distinguished status, once they were given generous gifts in the hands of the Xiongnu, they were likely to become an important chess piece for the Xiongnu to influence the Central Plains and influence the government and the opposition. If something is done in the future, it will be an extremely beneficial help for clearing the Central Plains and completely conquering the Han people.
4. Assimilation and integration: a difficult choice that has to be taken
The reason why the Xiongnu adopted this practice of "Nahan people as wives" was out of desperation. This seemingly "nondescript" behavior actually contains the Xiongnu's anxiety about their own survival, as well as an instinct for self-preservation.
As a nomadic people, the population of the Xiongnu has always been very thin. They wander in the barren grasslands, the environment is harsh, and the life is hard, and it is difficult for them to reproduce on a large scale. And once the population drops sharply, it will undoubtedly make the fate of the entire nation worse.
Survival is the premise of all ambitions and ideals. The reason why the Huns had to resort to such extreme measures was that the lack of population was a real threat to their survival and development. If we continue to be complacent and insist on intermarriage, it will be difficult to effectively expand the number of people. Once the people wither, the nation is in danger of being ruthlessly swept away by the wheels of history.
Therefore, the Huns chose to open the door and accept high-quality foreign blood. This can not only effectively alleviate the dilemma of population shortage, but also enhance the vitality of the entire nation with the help of fresh blood of foreign races, and avoid the hidden danger of genetic degradation caused by intermarriage.
In fact, the practice of intermarriage with neighboring ethnic groups was not uncommon in the nomadic world at that time. For example, the Xianbei people, who are also northern nomads, have also intermarried with Han people on a large scale to supplement their own population gap. However, compared to this, this practice of the Huns is more unique and extraordinary.
The reason why the Xiongnu opened up their net to the Han captives, gave them preferential treatment, and adopted the means of political marriage was to a large extent because of their long-term consideration of expanding the ethnic group and competing for world dominance. Incorporated into the bloodline of the Han aristocracy, on the one hand, it can turn hostility into jade silk, influence and disintegrate the Central Plains; On the other hand, it also laid the foundation for the future annexation of the Central Plains. Therefore, behind this kind of behavior, there is not only a simple population supply, but also a political and strategic foresight.
Fifth, a unique cultural fusion
From today's point of view, the practice of "Nahan people as wives" adopted by the Huns is certainly somewhat unusual and unconventional. However, if we read it from the historical context of the time, this practice is actually a special form of cultural integration, which has had a profound impact on the mutual penetration and identity of the two worlds.
First of all, it added a unique bond of exchange between nomadic and agrarian civilizations. For a long time, due to the huge differences in living environment and lifestyle, there have been many ideological gaps between the two worlds of the Xiongnu and the Central Plains. But through this kinship, the exchange and integration of the two cultures is no longer achieved overnight.
The wives of the Han people entered the nomadic tribes with a strong atmosphere of farming culture, which undoubtedly influenced and infiltrated the Xiongnu group in terms of living customs and spiritual beliefs to varying degrees. Their attainments in cooking, handicrafts and other aspects also brought many new elements to the life of the Xiongnu. Similarly, the cultural concept of the Xiongnu people who are brave and good at fighting and advocating strength will also imperceptibly affect the wives of the Han people through this marriage.
Secondly, it also creates a special "blood bridge" between nomads and the agrarian world. Once the blood of the foreign race is injected into the blood of the Xiongnu through intermarriage, it means that in the newborn, the genes of the two different cultures will be permanently combined. The future descendants of the Xiongnu will inherit some of the characteristics and endowments of both civilizations at the same time.
This was not only conducive to improving the innate physique of the Xiongnu people, but also laid the foundation for mutual understanding and recognition between the two cultures. After all, when you and I have a kinship that blood is thicker than water, the degree of acceptance and tolerance for each other will naturally be greatly enhanced.
Moreover, this practice also gave some Han elites the opportunity to integrate into the upper echelons of the Xiongnu, which in turn influenced their political philosophy. For example, the aforementioned Han prisoner Li Ling, he not only became the master of the Xiongnu Dahu room, but also was once canonized as the "King of Anyuan" by the Xiongnu. This means that some elements of Han culture may also have had an impact on the Xiongnu rulers in this way.
In general, although the Xiongnu did it out of helplessness, it also opened up a unique path of exchange and integration between two completely different civilizations. It's a tortuous road, but it's a necessary path to mutual recognition and understanding. It is this special way that makes the estrangement between the Xiongnu and the Central Plains no longer so deep, so that the two cultures have an opportunity to learn from each other. From this point of view, although the practices of the Xiongnu are controversial, they have also left a valuable cultural heritage for future generations.