Zhuang people

Their autonym, "Cuengh" in Standard Zhuang, was originally written with the graphic pejorative Zhuàng, 獞 (or tóng, referring to a variety of wild dog).

[4] In 1949, after the Chinese civil war, the logograph 獞 was officially replaced with a different graphic pejorative, 僮 (Zhuàng or tóng, meaning "child; boy servant"), with the "human radical" 亻with the same phonetic.

In fact the opposite seemed to have occurred and the wars in the south drew more Zhuang into contact with Han Chinese as they were sought after as mercenary troops and river porters.

In theory the Song court could replace recalcitrant leaders like an ordinary official, but in practice this power was weighed against the cost to maintain tranquillity among the Zhuang and stability on the Sino-Viet border.

By the early Song, they ruled over an area known as Temo, which stretched from modern Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in the west to Jingxi in the east and Guangyuanzhou (Quảng Nguyên, now Cao Bằng province[26]) in the south.

It is not known when he was born, but a memorial in early 977 states that the "peaceful and generous" leader Nong Minfu of Guangyuanzhou had established himself over ten neighboring villages with the support of Southern Han (907-971).

[28] The Song bestowed the titles "minister of works" (sigong) and "grand master of splendid happiness bearing the golden pocket with purple trimming" (jinzi guanglu daifu) on Minfu.

[31] In 1035, Quanfu declared the founding of the Kingdom of Longevity (Changsheng Guo 長生國) and took for himself the exalted title "Luminous and Sage Emperor" (Zhaosheng Huangdi 昭聖皇帝) while A Nong became the "Enlightened and Virtuous Empress" (Mingde Huanghou 明德皇后).

The local prefect of Tianzhou requested assistance from Yongzhou to deal with the rebellion, but officials there appear to have feared involvement and refused to offer aid.

He was held prisoner for a year before he was released with an honorary title and given control of Guangyuan, Leihuo, Ping'an, Pinpo, and Silang in return for a share of their natural resources, particularly gold.

In 1052, Zhigao proclaimed the establishment of the Kingdom of the Great South (Danan Guo)[44] and granted himself the title of Benevolent and Kind Emperor (Renhui Huangdi).

Wang Anshi would comment in an essay on the administration of the Yong frontier command that the aboriginal communities of the Left and Right rivers should be relied upon for the security of both Guangxi and Guangdong.

[53]The defeat of Nong Zhigao in Quảng Nguyên (C. Guangyuan; now Cao Bằng Province) removed the tribal buffer zone between Đại Cồ Việt and the Song dynasty.

[54] Crucial influences for the lead up to war include the Song-court sponsored New Policies promoted by Wang Anshi and efforts by the Lý court to consolidate peripheral fiefdoms.

The frontier administrator Wang Han visited Zongdan's camp at Leihuo to discourage him from seeking inclusion in the Song dynasty since it would upset the Viet court.

[57] Zhigao's former generals Lu Bao (V. Lư Báo), Li Mao (V. Lê Mạo), and Huang Zhongqing (V. Hoàng Trọng Khanh) were also granted official titles.

A commissioner surveyed the region for able-bodied men to be organized under a guard commander selected from the area's prominent households, who received a specific signal banner to indicate their group's distinction.

In 1053, The ‘Great Martial Leader’ Di (Qing) put down the rebellion of the Quang Nguyên barbarian Nùng Trí Cao, the troops following the general’s expedition remained in the region to open up and settle the wasteland.

[63] Despite increased military tensions, the Lý court sought to defuse the situation by sending a delegation led by Bi Gia Dụ to Yongzhou.

On the same day the Viet envoy Lý Kế Tiên prepared to depart Kaifeng, news arrived that Thàn Thiệu Tháị had attacked settlements in Guangnan West Circuit.

[65] In late 1065, Zongdan switched allegiance from the Song and proposed an alliance with Lý Thánh Tông (r. 1054-72) and Quảng Nguyên chieftain Liu Ji (V. Lưu Ký).

By late 1067, the Guizhou prefect Zhang Tian reported that Liu Ji was in communication with Lu Bao, who had crossed into Song territory to seek personal glory.

In late 1071, the Guangnan military commissioner Xiao Gu reported that Liu Ji had been spotted near Shun'anzhou (in Quảng Nguyên) at the head of more than 200 men.

It was reported that the local chieftain of Lạng Châu, Dương Cảnh Thông, brought to court a white dear as tribute and was rewarded with the title "Grand Guardian.

[69] In the late 1060s, Wang Anshi's New Policies combined with the sentiment of irredentism in Shenzong's court to call on greater militarization and expansion of Song territory.

A Song counterattack saw the capture of Quảng Nguyên and Liu Ji before being stopped at Nhu Nguyệt River (in modern Bắc Ninh Province).

Further negotiations took place from July 6 to August 8, 1084 at Yongping garrison in southern Guangnan, where Đại Việt's Director of Military Personnel Lê Văn Thịnh (fl.

There is more evidence of the celebration of Nong Zhigao in Cao Bằng than in Guangxi, especially prior to the modern era, after which the local leader was inserted into nationalist histories as though he were a citizen of China or Vietnam.

[97][98] Many ethnic minority Zhuang families in southwest China including that of Tusi chieftains fabricated genealogies claiming their paternal ancestors were northern Han Chinese.

On that day there was strong wind and rain accompanied by deafening thunder and exploding lightning which caused Buluotuo’s shouldered pole to break and the baskets to fall to the Earth.

Zhuang woman musicians in Longzhou .
The You and Zuo rivers on the Chinese side bordering Vietnam
Nong Zhigao 's movement in the Song dynasty
Nong Zhigao depicted in a Ming dynasty painting
Zhuang mercenaries known as wolf warriors ( lang bing ) from the painting, Kang wo tu juan , Ming dynasty
Zhuang/Nung, Tay, and Bouyei distribution