Xiongnu Rulers’ Residences in the Historical Records of the Han Dynasty

Abstract Han Dynasty chroniclers recorded valuable information about key settlements in the Xiongnu Empire, specifically those where the residence of the Chanyu was located. Though the first nomadic empire’s political centre is linked to theories of early urbanisation in the eastern steppe, detailed examination of the historiographical terminology is lacking. We analyse the terminology to assess how settlements were perceived through the lens of Han culture and language. Six Chinese and two Xiongnu terms describing settlement form or function are identified and compared with form and function of the settlements known from archaeological materials. Some of the terms relate to traditional mobile structures, whereas others attest to substantial earthen structures of unquestionable political and ceremonial import influenced by Han technologies. We also propose a solution to the problem of when and how these technologies were introduced into nomadic society.