Sibe people

The Sibe are known by several variations of their name. The self-appellation of the Sibe people is pronounced Śivə, the official Chinese term is Xibo, in Russian literature the terms Сибинцы (sibintsy) and Шибинцы (shibintsy) are used, while in English works the name Sibe has been established, which corresponds to the written form. ==History==

with south on top showing the Sibe Eight Banners () stationed across the Ili River from the Manchu Fort Huiyuan (), exactly where Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County is nowadays According to the Russian scholar Elena P. Lebedeva, the Sibe people originated as a southern, Tungusic-speaking offshoot of the ancient Shiwei people. They lived in small town-like settlements, a portion of them nomadic, in the Songyuan and Qiqihar areas of what is now Jilin. When the Buyeo kingdom was conquered by the Xianbei in 286 AD, the southern Shiwei started practicing agriculture. The Han dynasty, Cao Wei and the Jin dynasty (266–420) at times controlled the Sibe until the advent of the Göktürks, who accorded the Sibe lower status than did the Chinese dynasties. In 1700, some 20,000 Qiqihar Sibes were resettled in Hohhot (modern Inner Mongolia); 36,000 Songyuan Sibes were resettled in Shenyang, Liaoning. The relocation of the Sibe from Qiqihar is believed by Gorelova to be linked to the Qing's complete annihilation of the Manchu clan Hoifan (Hoifa) in 1697 and the Manchu tribe Ula in 1703 after they revolted against the Qing. According to Jerry Norman, after a revolt by the Qiqihar Sibes in 1764, the Qianlong Emperor ordered an 800-man military escort to transfer 18,000 Sibe to the Ili River of Dzungaria. In Ili, the Xinjiang Sibe built Buddhist monasteries and cultivated vegetables, tobacco and poppies. The Sibe population declined after the Qing used them to suppress the Dungan Revolt (1862–77) by the Hui During the Republic of China (1912–49) period, many northeastern Sibe joined anti-Japanese volunteer armies, while northwestern Sibe fought against the Kuomintang during the Ili Rebellion. After the Chinese Communist Revolution in 1949 established the People's Republic of China (PRC), large-scale educational and hygiene campaigns increased Sibe literacy and resulted in the eradication of Qapqal disease (a form of type A botulism). In 1954, the PRC established the Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County to replace Ningxi County in Xinjiang, in the group's area of highest ethnic concentration. ==Culture==

Most historical analyses indicate that the Sibe people were never treated as part of the Manchu proper, nor do they ever perceive themselves as being the same as the Manchu people. The Sibe garrisons were administered separately from those of the Manchu and did not enjoy the same rights as them. The Sibe soldiers had to earn their living by squatting on land to become self-sufficient, while the Manchu garrisons were supplied by the Qing state. Possibly due to the unequal administrative treatment in the history, alongside their late incorporation into the Eight Banners, there is both a Sibe self-perception and state recognition of the Sibe people in more recent times as a national minority that is distinct from the Manchu. Historical religions of the Sibe included shamanism and Buddhism. Customary Sibe attire included short buttoned jackets and trousers for men and close-fitting, long and lace-trimmed gowns for women. Arranged marriage was common and women had low social status, including no right to inherit property. == Distribution ==

According to the 2010 Chinese Census, there were 190,481 Sibe people in China: 99,571 males and 90,910 females. The largest Sibe population within China was in the province of Liaoning, home to 132,431 Sibe people, 69.52% of all Sibe people in China, but just 0.30% of Liaoning's total population. As of 2018, 19,984 Sibe people live in the autonomous county, comprising 10.28% of its total population, which is dominated by larger groups, such as the Han Chinese, Uyghurs, and Kazakhs. In 2015, 20,426 Sibe people lived in the autonomous county, comprising 10.38% of its total population. ==Notable individuals==

• Tong Liya (), actress • Wu Qian (), retired basketball player == Notes ==