The End of Zhang Zhung Kingdom in the Northwestern Areaof the Qinghai―Tibet Hi

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（Southwest Nationalities Research Academy， Southwest University

for Nationalities， Chengdu， 610041， Sichuan， China）

JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGY，VOL.6，NO.5，05-27，2015（CN51-1731/C，in Chinese）

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2015.05.03

Abstract：

I.A review of the ideas regarding the end of the zhang zhung kingdom in the northwestern part of the qinghai-tibet high plateau

The historical legend of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom dates back to the time of Shenrab Miwo，the founder of Bon religion.The end of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom can clearly be regarded as the period of Trisong Detsen.In a nutshell， the history of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom merged into the history of the remnants of Tubo btsan-po.

Concerning its geographical area， it was regarded that no matter how long the history of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom lasted，or how big the territory of the Kingdom was，the center of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom historically was always in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau，and its influence historically sometimes reached the wider area to the edge of the northwestern part of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau.Sometimes it extended to the upper-reaches of the Min river at the edge of the southeastern area of the Qinghai-Tibet high plateau.In the present area of Rgyalrong，the upper reaches of the Min River，and even in the area of the Sanxingdui and Jinsha sites in the Chengdu plain，we can still find historical traces of the ancient Zhang Zhuang Kingdom.

Concerning the end of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom in the northwestern part of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau，I have written a detailed discussion in another article titled A Discussion on the Eighteen Kingdoms of Ancient Zhang Zhung and Their Destruction.In order to connect it with the following research，I would like to give a summarized explanation.

As a place where the people believed in the sacred bird khyung（Garuda），a record of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom in Tibetan sources dates back at least to literature found at Dunhuang.Through a review of representative concepts of the Zhang Zhuang Kingdom，there is a basic idea which regarded the geographical space of Zhang Zhuang as historically in the northwestern part of the Qinghai-Tibet high plateau.How can we now confirm the time coordinates of “the eighteen kingdoms of Zhang Zhung”？ According to Tibetan literary sources，at least two time coordinates are clear： 1）one of the kings of the “eighteen kingdoms of Zhang Zhung” lived at the same time as Shenrab Miwo; and，2）The last two kings of the “eighteen kingdoms of Zhang Zhung” were wiped out by Sontzen Gampo and Trisong Detsen.In other words，“the eighteen kingdoms of Zhang Zhung” date back at least to before the eight century.This is because historical studies consider that Sontzen Gampos reign lasted until at least 650 A.D.，and the specific time of Trisong Detsens reign was from 755 A.D.to 797 A.D.

II.The Continuation of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom in the southeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet high plateau

1.Fact number one： if seen from their clan origin，the Zhang Zhung kings had a direct connection with Rgyalrong;

2.Fact number two： There are words from the Zhang Zhung language found in the Rgyalrong spoken language.

3.Fact number three： Concerning the “eighteen kingdoms”of Zhang Zhung and Rgyalrong，just as the

formation history of the “eighteen kingdoms”of Zhang Zhung，the idea of “eighteen kingdoms” of Rgyalrong is not only the historical and cultural basis for the formation of eighteen tusi（native officials）of Rgyalrong，but also is a statistical result deduced by tracing backward from the line at the end of the period of Rgyalrong history.In other words，the number “eighteen” is not a result of the same historical period，but a number calculated after experiencing a long historical period.

4.Fact number four： Many newly discovered Tibetan and Han Chinese sources which provide information about the ancestral home of the Rgyalrong tusi indicate that the Rgyalrong tusi are the descendants of the royal family of Zhang Zhung.

5.Fact number five： There are many remains related to the Zhang Zhung culture in the southeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet high plateau.

6.Fact number six： Traces of Zhang Zhung culture are found in some newly discovered archaeological sites，for example，in the Sanxingdui and Jinsha sites，the tombs along the banks of the Min river and the Da Jinchuan and Xiao Jinchuan valleys，etc.

Through an analysis of the related data，we can conclude that the center of Zhang Zhung culture，as well as its general historical distribution was once clear.However，its precise boundaries were vague.Seen from the means of offering proof，our way to understand the end of the Zhang Zhung Kingdom in the northwestern part of the Qinghai-Tibet high plateau and its continuation in the southeastern part not only involves a general methodology，but also involves empirical issues concerning practical micro data.This is due to the situations involved in this topic.Speaking more specifically，1）the interpretations from ancient Tibetan literature are numerous，but these created more difficulties for non-Tibetan authors to use to reflect on Tibetan history in ancient times; 2）most ancient Tibetan literature came from the writings of professional monks，so，it was not easy to use them to reflect upon the life struggles in secular society; 3）the barrier that existed between religious sects is almost equal to that of the spatial barrier created by the vast territory with its small population; 4）related disciplinary research，especially professional disciplines such as archaeology，lags behind.

It is due to these reasons that it is still difficult for us to discern the authentic features of Tibetan culture.Even so，there is no doubt that Zhang Zhung culture is one which could reflect authentic features of Tibetan culture.Although the Zhang Zhung culture has been missing from our vision of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau for many years，and because it is very difficult to reconstruct it， if we have enough cultural awareness and confidence，the Zhang Zhung culture can be reconstructed.In addition，authentic features of Tibetan culture could be fully reflected by restoring the pieces of memory of Zhang Zhung culture found in the northwestern part of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau，as well as through a deep interpretation of the living culture of Zhang Zhung in southeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau.

Key Words： the eighteen kingdoms of Zhang Zhung; the eighteen kingdoms of Rgyalrong; Sanxingdui and Jinsha heritage sites

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