Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 February 2009
Tangut is the dead Tibeto-Burman language of the Buddhist empire of Xīxià, which was destroyed in 1227 by the Golden Horde of the Mongol warlord Temuüjin, more commonly known as Genghis Khan (c. 1162–1227). The Tangut empire was established in 1032 and comprised the modern Chinese provinces of Gānsù, Shānxī and Níngxià, extending from the Yellow River in the east to Kökö Nōr (Chinese: Qīnghăi Hù) in the west. The northern frontier of the Xīxià empire skirted the city of Qumul (Chinese: Hāmì), the river Edzin Gol (Chinese: Ruò Shuĭ), the Hèlán hills and the Yellow River. In the south, the empire extended down into the present-day province of Sichuān. The Xīxià capital was situated in what is now the city of Yinchuān (formerly Níngxiàfŭ) on the left bank of the Yellow River.