Qiang (historical people)
Qiang was a name given to various groups of people at different periods in ancient China. The Qiang people are generally thought to have been of Tibeto-Burman origin, though there are other theories.
Depiction of an envoy of Dengzhi (鄧至), a Qiang ethnic group, from a Portraits of Periodical Offering painting, 6th century CE
The "City of China's Ancient Qiang" (中国古羌城), a Qiang cultural complex in Mao County, Sichuan
The Silver Turtle Temple is a complex of Qiang temples dedicated to various gods consecrated in 2013–2014. Its three temples are dedicated to Yandi, Dayu and Li Yuanhao , the most important deities of the Qiang people. It is located on Qiangshan, in Qiang City, Mao County of Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, in Sichuan.
Qiang guard tower
The Tangut people were a Sino-Tibetan people who founded and inhabited the Western Xia dynasty. The group initially lived under Tuyuhun authority, but later submitted to the Tang dynasty. After the collapse of Tang dynasty, the Tanguts established the Western Xia. They spoke the Tangut language, which was previously believed to be one of the Qiangic languages or Yi languages which belong to the Tibeto-Burman family." Phylogenetic and historical linguistic accounts, however, reveal that Tangut belonged instead to the Gyalrongic branch of Tibeto-Burman. Western Xia was annihilated by the Mongol Empire in 1227, most of its written records and architecture were destroyed. Today the Tangut language and its unique script are extinct; only fragments of Tangut literature remain.
The Golden Light Sutra written in the Tangut script
Praying Tangut man
Statue head of a Buddhist arhat, Western Xia dynasty, from Hongfo Pagoda, Helan County, Ningxia
Tangut Horseman
