西元九世紀中葉,西遷至東部天山地區的回鶻民眾建立起以西州、北庭為中心的西州回鶻政權。囿於傳世史料失載,西州回鶻的歷史至今撲朔迷離,其統治者的事蹟僅有片斷資訊殘留史冊。本文將在前人研究的基礎上,充分發掘上個世紀以來吐魯番等地出土的古突厥語、中古伊朗語文字材料,結合漢文、伊斯蘭傳世史料和考古資料,勾稽西州回鶻統治者的稱號,並對這些材料逐條甄辨,討論其性質及年代。在此基礎上,本文將建立西州回鶻統治者的年代體系,歸納其正式稱號的結構特徵,總結其中一些因素的流變過程。西州回鶻統治者的稱號繼承了漠北回鶻汗國時代的部分傳統,又增加了新的因素和結構特徵。隨著佛教取代摩尼教成為西州回鶻的國教,稱號中的摩尼教因素雖然保留,但其含義已發生變化。
In mid 9th century, the Uighurs moved westward to areas surrounding the Tian Shan Mountains. There they established the West Uighur kingdom that centered at Xizhou (Qočo) and Beiting (Bešbalïq). Given the scarcity of relevant documents, the history of the West Uighur kingdom to date has largely remained a mystery. Records of its rulers can only be found in scattered ramnants.
On the basis of previous research, my article aims to comprehensively survey the titles of West Uighur rulers in various historical and archaeological sources, specifically those having been unearthed since the previous century in Old Turkic and Middle Iranian languages in Turfan and other regions. Their titles are examined and verified, one by one, in light of relevant characteristics and years of reign. Using the above results, the article then attempts to re-construct a chronology of the West Uighur rulers along with an analysis of the structural features of the official titles and their subsequent changes. These titles inherited traditions of the Uighur Steppe Empire, and they included new elements and structural features as well. With Manichaean being subsequently replaced by Buddhism as the kingdom’s primary religion, the significance of the titles had already undergone changes despite the existence of certain remaining Manichaean elements.
西州回鶻 可汗 統治者稱號
West Uighur, Kaghan, title of the rulers