The nomadic empire that gave medieval Europe its most enduring name for China

History · Published 30 September 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: The Khitan people dominated the Eurasian steppe for centuries, founding the powerful Liao dynasty. Though their language is now extinct and their scripts remain largely undeciphered, their legacy persists in the very name Cathay, which became the standard medieval European term for the vast Chinese empire they once challenged.

Emerging from the Yuwen branch of the Xianbei people, the Khitans were originally a nomadic federation in East Asia. By the 4th century, they inhabited regions spanning modern Mongolia, Northeast China, and the Russian Far East. Their early history was marked by shifting tribal alliances and frequent conflicts with neighboring powers like the Northern Wei and the Sui dynasty. By the 7th century, the Dahe Confederation had unified several tribes, creating a military force of 34,000 troops, though they remained subject to the influence of the Tang dynasty.

The rise of Abaoji in 907 transformed the Khitans from a loose tribal federation into the imperial Liao dynasty. This state controlled a vast territory including parts of Siberia, Mongolia, and Northern China. The Khitans maintained a unique dual identity: while they adopted sedentary administrative practices and city-building from China, they preserved their ancestral shamanic religion, nomadic lifestyle, and hunting traditions. Their society was deeply influenced by their environment, with their name potentially linked to the concept of cold or frost in Mongolian dialects.

The Liao dynasty eventually collapsed in 1125 under pressure from the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty. While some Khitans were absorbed into the Mongol Empire, others fled westward to establish the Qara Khitai in Central Asia. Today, the Daur people of Northeast China are recognized as their genetic descendants. Despite their historical significance, the Khitan language—a Para-Mongolic tongue—is extinct, and their two independent writing systems remain only partially understood, appearing primarily on monuments and epitaphs.

The name Cathay serves as a linguistic fossil of the Khitan era. Because the Khitans dominated Manchuria and Central Asia, neighboring peoples identified them with China itself. This association traveled through Islamic and Russian trade routes, embedding the name in the European consciousness. Even today, variations of the term are used for China by several Turkic and Slavic groups, illustrating how a nomadic power from the northern steppes fundamentally shaped how the world perceived the Middle Kingdom.

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