Michal Biran is a fabulous Israeli scholar. Tell us about this book and why you’ve chosen this biography above others. Let’s get on to the books, starting with Michal Biran’s Chinggis Khan.

His is a name that looms large and for a very good reason, whatever you think about him. He himself conquered the largest amount of territory by any single conqueror-larger than Julius Caesar, larger than Napoleon, larger than Alexander the Great, or anyone else.

Without him it’s really difficult to envision what Mongolia would be like or what we would call it.Īlso, the Mongol Empire became the largest contiguous empire in history. He remained illiterate, but he wanted all of his children and his people to be able to read and write. The written language came into being because Chinggis Khan made it happen. But the fact that there is a Mongolia today, that there are people who identify themselves as Mongols, that there’s a written language and a spoken language, is part of Chinggis Khan’s legacy. Those names hang around, but not all the other ones. Numerous other steppe empires or polities emerged in Mongolia, like the Turks and the Uyghurs. The ethnonyms would come and go, depending on the dynasty but, after Chinggis Khan, the Mongols, who had been around since at least the time of the Tang Dynasty, are a consistently identifiable group and they never go away. Prior to this, there were numerous tribes. But what he also did was create the Mongols or Mongolians as a people. What did he do? He created the Mongol Empire. He eventually died in 1227, while on campaign in Xi Xia, which is the modern Gansu and Ningxia provinces of China. There’s still some debate on exactly what it means, but it means someone you really don’t want to mess with.

An older view that’s hung around for a while is that it means ‘oceanic ruler’. Chinggis Khan is a title that means ‘fearless, firm, resolute ruler’. As well as Temüjin they had a few other children and Temüjin would eventually become Chinggis Khan. She was kidnapped by his father Yesugei, but she became his primary wife. Foreign Policy & International Relationsīefore we get to the books you’ve recommended, can you just tell us very briefly when Chinggis Khan was alive and, in a couple of sentences, what he did?Ĭhinggis Khan was born in 1162 as Temüjin.

Genghis khan series books