Terraced villages with thick stone towers on the upper Min and its side valleys (Wikipedia, Qiang people; the page gives no dates for the towers).
The Qiang worship guardian mountain gods and keep village ritual specialists; Tibetan Buddhism has touched the north-west, Chinese Buddhism and Daoism the east, in later centuries (same page). The Song hold only the towns of Maozhou and Weizhou (circles inside this province).
Who holds it
- Title
- Village headmen and clan elders of the Qiang
- Since
- not known
- Born
- not known
- Family
- not known
- Confidence
- low
No headman named (see Qiang headmen).
Overlord
None; titles from the Song prefects of Maozhou and Weizhou are nominal (general pattern).
What it holds
- Terraces, orchards and tower villages
- Summer grass on the ridges
- Passes to the Zagunao and the Songpan side
How it was acquired
By custom.
Allies and rivals
Feuds among valleys; trade with Maozhou and Weizhou.
How things stand that morning
Self-governing; no revolt or campaign known.
Wealth
Herbs, musk, furs, hemp; barley, buckwheat and peas.
Military
Village militia in towers; no numbers.
Customs
Village headmen and ritual specialists (the 'duangong' of later records).
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Wikipedia's Qiang page has no Tang to Song detail.
On the map: No source gives a boundary for 1200; the drawing follows the modern counties and valleys and the neighbouring sheets' anchors.
Sources and studies
- Wikipedia, Qiang people (read this session)
- Wikipedia, Tangut people (Minyak, Tibetan Buddhism at the Xia court; read this session)
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.