Tangut
/ˈtæŋɡʊt/noun
A member of a historical people of northwestern China, or the extinct Sino-Tibetan language they spoke.
Did you know?The Tanguts created the Western Xia state and devised their own complex script, whose characters can resemble Chinese while encoding a different language.
Etymological Timeline
7th Century
Chinese
Dangxiang (党项)
“The Chinese name for the people later known in the West as the Tanguts.”
Medieval period
Tibetan
Tangut
“A Tibetan ethnonym for the Tangut people; the precise original meaning is uncertain.”
13th Century
Mongolian
Tangγud
“The Mongolian plural ethnonym used for the Tanguts, especially in accounts of the Western Xia realm.”
13th Century
Latin/European
Tangut
“The form transmitted into European historical and travel writing for the people and their country.”
Modern English
English
Tangut
“A historical name for the people, their language, and the civilization associated with Western Xia.”
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