View source for Oirats

{{Short description|Westernmost group of Mongols}}
{{About|the Oirat ethnic group|the obsolete term for the Turkic Altays|Altai people{{!}}Altay people}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group            = Oirats
| native_name      = 
| native_name_lang = 
| image            = Bukar', Michail - Ehepaar aus dem Volksstamm der Kalmyken in ihrer Nationaltracht (Zeno Fotografie).jpg
| caption          = Kalmyks who are subgroup of Oirats
| pop              = 758,578
| region1          = {{flag|China}}<br/>{{small|(mainly in [[Xinjiang]] and [[Qinghai]])}}
| pop1             = 272,000 (2010)
| ref1             = 
| region2          = {{flag|Mongolia}}
| pop2             = 230,000 (2010)
| ref2             = 
| region3          = {{flag|Russia}}
| pop3             = 195,500 (2021 census)
| region4          = &nbsp;'''∟''' {{flagcountry|Kemerovo Oblast}}
| pop4             = 500 (2021)
| ref4             = 
| region5          = {{flag|Tajikistan}}
| pop5             = 43,078 (2009)
| ref5             = 
| region6          = {{flag|Kyrgyzstan}}
| pop6             = 12,000 (2018)
| region7          = {{flag|Uzbekistan}}
| pop7             = 1,000
| region8          = Other
| pop8             = 5,000
| languages        = Mainly: [[Oirat language|Oirat]], Russian, other [[Khalkha Mongolian|Mongolian languages]] <br />Regional: Chinese
| religions        = [[Tibetan Buddhism]], [[Mongolian shamanism]]
Minority: [[Sunni Islam|Islam]]{{sfn|Minahan|2014|p=209}}
| related          = [[Kalmyks]], [[Altaians|Southern Altaians]], and other [[Mongols|Mongol peoples]]
}}
'''Oirats''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɔɪ|r|æ|t}}; {{langx|mn|Ойрад}} {{IPA|mn|ˈɞe̯ɾə̆t|}}) or '''Oirds''' ({{langx|mn|Ойрд|link=no}} {{IPA|mn|ˈɞe̯ɾə̆t|}}; {{langx|xal-RU|Өөрд}} {{IPA|xal|ˈøːɾə̆t|}}), formerly known as '''Eluts''' and '''Eleuths''' ({{IPAc-en|ɪ|ˈ|l|uː|t}} or {{IPAc-en|ɪ|ˈ|l|j|uː|θ}}; {{lang-zh|厄魯特}}, ''Èlǔtè'')<ref>[https://collections.nmth.gov.tw/CollectionContent.aspx?a=132&rno=2002.006.0002 Robert de Vaugondy〈亞洲圖〉] 國立臺灣歷史博物館典藏網</ref><ref>[[Owen Lattimore]], ''The Desert Road to Turkestan''. (For Lattimore, Euleuths are "the great western group of tribes which marks in all probability a primitive racial cleavage" (p. 101 in the ca. 1929 edition). Lattimore further (p. 139 refers to Samuel Couling of ''[[The Encyclopaedia Sinica]]'' (1917), according to whom the spelling "Eleuth" was due to French missionaries, representing the sound of something like [[Ölöt]]. Into Chinese, the same name was transcribed as (Pinyin: Elute; Mongolian: ''Olot'').))</ref> are the westernmost group of [[Mongols]], whose ancestral home is in the [[Altai Mountains|Altai]] region of [[Siberia]], [[Xinjiang]] and western Mongolia.{{sfn|West|2010|p=606}}

The first documented reference to '''Elut''' and '''Yelut''' was in the [[Ongin inscription|Onginsk "rune" inscriptions]] dated in the sixth century.<ref name="ref01">{{cite journal | url=https://caj.harrassowitz-library.com/article/CAJ/2023/1-2/7 |title=The Yelu Language of War and Peace: A Revised Oirad Translation of the Altai Runic Inscriptions (6th–9th centuries)|journal=Central Asiatic Journal |date=2024 |volume=66 |issue=1–2 |pages=27–46 |last1=Bougdaeva |first1=Saglar }}</ref> The dating of the Oirats to the 13th century is based on the text of the ''[[Secret History of the Mongols]]''.{{sfn|West|2010|p=606}} Historically, the Oirats were composed of four major tribes: [[Dzungar people|Dzungar]] ([[Choros (Oirats)|Choros]] or [[Olot people|Olots]]), [[Torghut]], [[Dörbet Oirat|Dörbet]] and [[Khoshut]].

The political elite of the [[Rouran Khaganate]] were [[Yelü|YELÜ]]-T Mongolic speakers. Although these two empires encompassed multilingual populations, the language of diplomacy, trade, and culture was an ÖLÜ (YELÜ) dialect of ancient Mongolic descent.<ref name="ref01"/> When the Tabgach destroyed the Rouran Empire, the Mongolic-speaking people escaped into the Caspian steppes.<ref name="ref01"/>

The modern [[Kalmyks]] of [[Kalmykia]] on the Caspian Sea in southeastern Europe are Oirats.{{sfn|West|2010|p=606}}

== Etymology ==
[[File:Mongol Empire c.1207.png|thumb|The [[Mongol Empire]] c. 1207]]
[[File:Fragment of medieval Oirat map shows Lake Balkhash, Ob, Irtysh and Ili rivers.jpg|thumb|A fragment of a medieval map of [[Dzungar Khanate]]]]
The name derives from [[Mongolic languages|Mongolic]] ''{{ill|ой#Mongolian|wikt|lt=oi}}'' < *''hoi'' ("forest, woods") and ''{{ill|ард#Mongolian|wikt|lt=ard}}'' < *''harad'' ("people"),<ref name="Volume I">M.Sanjdorj, History of the Mongolian People's Republic, Volume I, 1966</ref> who were counted among the "forest people" in the 13th century.<ref name="Guo1984">{{cite Q|Q114696375}}</ref> An opinion believes the name derives from the Mongolian word ''oirt'' meaning "close" (in distance) as in "close/nearer ones."

The name Oirat may derive from a corruption of the group's original name ''Dörben Öörd'', meaning "The Allied Four". Perhaps inspired by the designation Dörben Öörd, other Mongols at times used the term "Döchin Mongols" for themselves ("Döchin" meaning forty), but there was rarely as great a degree of unity among larger numbers of tribes as among the Oirats.

==Writing system==
{{main article|Zaya Pandita|Clear Script}}
In the 17th century, [[Zaya Pandita]],<ref>N. Yakhontova, [http://www.nlc.gov.cn/service/wjls/pdf/17/16.pdf The Mongolian and Oirat Translations of the Sutra of Golden Light], 2006 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110519114321/http://www.nlc.gov.cn/service/wjls/pdf/17/16.pdf |date=May 19, 2011 }}</ref> a [[Gelug]] monk of the [[Khoshut]] tribe, devised a new writing system called [[Clear Script]] for use by Oirats. This system was developed on the basis of the older [[Mongolian script]], but had a more developed system of [[diacritics]] to preclude misreading and reflected some lexical and grammatical differences that the [[Oirat language]] has from Mongolian.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Dani|first1=Ahmad Hasan|last2=Masson|first2=Vadim Mikhaĭlovich|title=History of Civilizations of Central Asia: Development in contrast: from the sixteenth to the mid-nineteenth century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AzG5llo3YCMC&pg=PA169|year=2003|publisher=UNESCO|isbn=978-92-3-103876-1|page=169}}</ref>

Clear Script remained in use in [[Kalmykia]] until the mid-1920s when it was replaced by a [[Latin alphabet]], and later the [[Cyrillic script]]. It can be seen in some public signs in the Kalmyk capital, [[Elista]], and is superficially taught in schools. It was likewise replaced in Mongolia by the Cyrillic alphabet in 1941. Some Oirats in China still use the Clear Script as their primary writing system, as well as Mongolian script.

A monument of Zaya Pandita in Kalmykia was unveiled on the 400th anniversary of Zaya Pandita's birth, and on 350th anniversary of his creation of the Clear Script.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bassin|first1=Mark|author-link1=Mark Bassin|last2=Kelly|first2=Catriona|author-link2=Catriona Kelly|title=Soviet and Post-Soviet Identities|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2f4pSA4S8UwC&pg=PA202|year=2012|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-107-01117-5|page=202}}</ref>

==History==
{{see also|Timeline of the Oirats}}
The Oirats share some history, geography, culture and language with the [[Eastern Mongols (disambiguation)|Eastern Mongols]], and were at various times united under the same leader as a larger Mongol entity, whether that ruler was of Oirat descent or of [[Chingissid]]s.

Comprising the [[Khoshut]] ([[Mongolian language|Mongolian]]: "хошууд", H''ošuud''), [[Choros (Oirats)|Choros]] ("цорос", C''oros),'' [[Olot people|Ölöt]] ("өөлд", ''Ööld''), [[Torghut]] ("торгууд", ''Torguud''), and [[Dörbet Oirat|Dörbet]] ("дөрвөд", ''Dörvöd'') ethnic groups, they were dubbed Kalmyk or Kalmak, which means "remnant" or "to remain", by their western [[Turkic peoples|Turkic]] neighbours. Various sources also list the [[Bargut]], [[Buzava]], and [[Tumed]] tribes as comprising a part of the Dörben Öörd; some tribes may have joined the original four only in later years. This name may however reflect the Kalmyks' ''remaining'' [[Buddhist]] rather than converting to [[Islam]]; or the Kalmyks' ''remaining'' in the [[Altay Mountains|Altay]] region.

After the fall of the [[Yuan dynasty]], Oirat and Eastern Mongols had developed separate identities to the point where Oirats called themselves "Four Oirats" while they used the term "Mongols" for those under the [[Khagan]]s in the east.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=EtNVMUx9qIIC&dq=%E2%80%9CMongols%E2%80%9D+%28monggoli%29+was+their+term+for+the+eastern+alliance+under+the+Chakhar+Khaghans&pg=PA64 Crossley 2006], p. 64.</ref>

===Early history===
{{Main article|Oirat Confederation}}
[[File:Arghun in Tārīkh-i Jahān-Gushā - The History of The World Conqueror A.H. 689 A.D. 1290 - Suppl. Pers. 205 - Bibliothèque Nationale de France.jpg|thumb|upright|The Oirat ruler [[Arghun Aqa]] (damaged) in ''[[Tārīkh-i Jahān-Gushā]]'' 'The History of The World Conqueror", dated 1290. Suppl. Pers. 205 – Bibliothèque Nationale de France.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jaber |first1=Shady |title=The Paintings of al-Āthār al-Bāqiya of al-Bīrūnī: A Turning Point in Islamic Visual Representation |journal=Lebanese American University |date=2021 |page=Figure 5 |url=https://laur.lau.edu.lb:8443/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10725/13751/Shady_Jaber_Thesis_Redacted.pdf?sequence=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lane |first1=George |title=Arghun Aqa: Mongol Bureaucrat |journal=Iranian Studies |date=1999 |volume=32 |issue=4 |pages=459–482 |doi=10.1080/00210869908701965 |jstor=4311297 |issn=0021-0862 |quote= '''Juvaini's depiction of Arghun Aqa''' The picture painted of the Mongol amir in the [[Tārīkh-i Jahān-Gushā]] dates from this period.}}</ref>]]
One of the earliest mentions of the Oirat people, in a historical text, can be found in the ''[[Secret History of the Mongols]]'', a 13th-century chronicle of [[Genghis Khan]]'s rise to power.{{sfn|West|2010|p=606}}{{sfn|Minahan|2014|p=209}}

In the ''Secret History'', the Oirats are counted among the "forest people", and are said to live under the rule of a shaman-chief known as ''bäki''. They lived in [[Tuva]] and the Mongolian [[Khövsgöl Province]]; the Oirats moved south in the 14th century.<ref name="HM">History of Mongolia, Volume II, 2003</ref>

In one famous passage, the Oirat chief [[Qutuqa Beki]] used a ''yada'', or 'thunder stone', to unleash a powerful storm on Genghis' army. The magical ploy backfired, however, when an unexpected wind blew the storm back towards him. During the early stages of Genghis' rise to power, the Oirats fought against Genghis but were defeated. The Oirats would then fully submit to Mongol rule after their ally, [[Jamukha|Jumukha]], Genghis' childhood friend and later rival, was killed.

Subject to the [[Khan (title)|Khan]], the Oirats turned themselves into a loyal and formidable faction of the Mongol war machine. In 1207, [[Jochi]], the eldest son of Genghis, subjugated the forest tribes, including the Oirats and the [[Yenisei Kyrgyz]]; the [[Great Khan]] gave those peoples to his son, Jochi, and had one of his daughters, Checheygen, marry chief Khudukh-bäki (or his son). There were notable Oirats in the [[Mongol Empire]], such as [[Arghun Aqa|Arghun Agha]] and his son, [[Nawrūz (Mongol emir)|Nawruz]].

In 1256, a group of the Oirats under Bukha-Temür (Mongolian: Буха-Төмөр, Бөхтөмөр) joined [[Siege of Baghdad|Hulagu's expedition against the Abbasids]] and participated in the [[Mongol campaign against the Nizaris]] in Iran. Then, they took part in the [[Second Battle of Homs]], where the Mongols were defeated.<ref>Reuven Amitai Press, ''The Mongols and the Mamluks'', p.94</ref> The majority of the Oirats, who were left behind, supported [[Ariq Böke]] against [[Kublai]] in the [[Toluid Civil War]]. Kublai defeated his younger brother, and they entered the service of the victor.<ref>James Waterson, John Man. ''The Knights of Islam'', p.205</ref>

In 1295, more than 10,000 Oirats under Targhai Khurgen, son-in-law of the [[Borjigin]] family, fled Syria, then under the [[Mamluk]]s, as they were despised by both Muslim Mongols and local [[Turkic peoples|Turks]]. They were well-received by Egypt's [[Sultan]], [[Al-Adil Kitbugha]], himself of Oirat origin.<ref>James Waterson, John Man. ''The Knights of Islam'', p.205</ref> Ali Pasha, the governor of Baghdad and head of an Oirat ruling family, went on to murder Ilkhan [[Arpa Keun]], resulting in the disintegration of Mongol Persia. Since the Oirats were near both the [[Chagatai Khanate]] and the [[Golden Horde]], they had strong ties with them, and many Mongol khans had Oirat wives.

After the expulsion of the [[Yuan dynasty]] from China, the Oirats reconvened as a loose alliance of the four major western Mongolian tribes (Mongolian: ''дөрвөн ойрд'', ''дөрвөн ойрaд''). The alliance grew, taking power in the remote region of the [[Altai Mountains]], northwest of [[Hami City|Hami oasis]]. Gradually, they spread eastwards, annexing territories then under the control of the Eastern Mongols. They hoped to reestablish a unified, nomadic rule under their banner of the Four Oirats.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=gkptAAAAMAAJ&q=qubilaids+anti eds. Wezler, Hammerschmidt 1992], p. 194.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=-oLjAAAAMAAJ&q=qubilaids+esen Anglo-Mongolian Society 1983], p. 1.</ref>
[[File:Ойратские воины.png|thumb|Oirat warriors in the 17th century]]
The only Borjigid ruling tribe was the Khoshuts; the others' rulers were not descendants of Genghis. The [[Ming dynasty]] of China had helped the Oirats' rise over the Mongols during the Yongle Emperor's reign after 1410, when the Ming defeated the Qubilaid [[Öljei Temür Khan|Öljei Temür]] and the Borjigid power was weakened.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=JvPUAAAAMAAJ&q=qubilaids+esen A Regional Handbook on Northwest China, Volume 1 1956], p. 53.</ref> The Borjigid Khans were displaced from power by the Oirats (with Ming help), ruling as puppet-khans until the alliance between the Ming and Oirats ended, and the Yongle Emperor launched a campaign against them.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wTHjAAAAMAAJ&q=qubilaids%20esen|title=Islamic Culture|date=1 January 1971|publisher=Deccan.|access-date=4 December 2016|via=Google Books}}</ref>

The greatest ruler of the Oirat Confederacy was [[Esen Taishi]]; he led the Oirats from 1438 to 1454, a time in which he unified Mongolia (both Inner and Outer) under his puppet-khan [[Taisun Khan]]. In 1449, Esen Taishi and Taisun Khan mobilised their cavalry along the Chinese border and invaded [[Ming China]], defeating and destroying the Ming defences at the [[Great Wall]], along with the reinforcements sent to intercept his cavalry. In the process, the [[Emperor Yingzong of Ming|Zhengtong Emperor]] was [[Tumu Crisis|captured at Tumu]]. The following year, Esen returned the emperor after an unsuccessful ransom attempt. After claiming the title of Khan (something which only blood descendants of Genghis Khan could do), Esen was killed; shortly afterwards, Oirat power declined.

From the 14th until the middle of the 18th century, the Oirats were often at war with the [[Khalkha Mongols|Eastern Mongols]], but reunited with them during the rule of [[Dayan Khan]] and [[Tümen Zasagt Khan]].

===The Khoshut Khanate===
{{Main article|Khoshut Khanate}}
{{See also|Upper Mongols}}
[[File:Huang Qing Zhigong Tu, 1769, Tayiji (prince) of the Torghuts and his wife (土爾扈特台吉(婦).jpg|thumb|Taiji (prince) of the [[Torghuts]], one of the main Oirat tribes, and his wife (土爾扈特台吉). [[Huang Qing Zhigong Tu]], 1769.]]
The Oirats converted to [[Tibetan Buddhism]] around 1615, and it was not long before they participated in the conflict between the [[Gelug]] and [[Karma Kagyu]] schools. At the request of the Gelug school, in 1637, [[Güshi Khan]], the leader of the [[Khoshut]]s in [[Qinghai Lake|Koko Nor]], defeated [[Choghtu Khong Tayiji]], the Khalkha prince who supported the Karma Kagyu school, and conquered [[Amdo]] (present-day [[Qinghai]]). The unification of Tibet followed in the early 1640s, with Güshi Khan proclaimed Khan of Tibet by the [[5th Dalai Lama]] and the establishment of the [[Khoshut Khanate]]. The title "[[Dalai Lama]]" itself was bestowed upon the third lama of the Gelug [[tulku]] lineage by [[Altan Khan]] (not to be confused with the [[Altan Khan of the Khalkha|Altan Khans of the Khalkha]]), and means, in Mongolian, "Ocean of Wisdom".

Amdo, meanwhile, became home to the Khoshuts. In 1717, the [[Dzungars]] invaded Tibet and killed [[Lha-bzang Khan]] (or Khoshut Khan), a grandson of Güshi Khan and the fourth Khan of Tibet, and conquered the [[Khoshut Khanate]].
[[File:Zunghar Khanate at 1760.jpg|thumb|200px|The Zunghar Khanate at 1750 (light-blue color)]]

The Qing Empire defeated the [[Dzungars]] in the 1750s and proclaimed rule over the Oirats through a Manchu-Mongol alliance (a series of systematic arranged marriages between princes and princesses of Manchu with those of Khalkha Mongols and Oirat Mongols, which was set up as a royal policy carried out over 300 years), as well as over Khoshut-controlled Tibet.

In 1723 Lobzang Danjin, another descendant of Güshi Khan, took control of Amdo and tried to assume rule over the Khoshut Khanate. He fought against a [[Qing army]], and was defeated only in the following year with 80,000 people from his tribe executed by Manchu army due to his "rebellion attempt".<ref name="montaa.mn">[http://montaa.mn/content/view/73/ БУЦАЖ ИРЭЭГҮЙ МОНГОЛ АЙМГУУД] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131115172101/http://montaa.mn/content/view/73/ |date=2013-11-15 }} '''(Mongolian)'''</ref> By that period, the Upper Mongolian population reached 200,000 and were mainly under the rule of Khalkha Mongol princes who were in a marital alliance with Manchu royal and noble families. Thus, Amdo fell under Manchu domination.

===The Dzungar Khanate===
{{Main article|Dzungar Khanate}}
[[File:Pays des calmoucs.gif|thumb|This map fragment shows territories of the [[Zunghar Khanate]] as in 1706 (Map Collection of the Library of Congress: "Carte de Tartarie" of Guillaume de L'Isle (1675–1726)).]]
The 17th century saw the rise of another Oirat empire in the east, known as the Khanate of [[Dzungaria]], which stretched from the [[Great Wall of China]] to present-day central [[Kazakhstan]], and from present-day northern [[Kyrgyzstan]] to southern [[Siberia]]. It was the last empire of [[Eurasian nomads|nomads]], and was ruled by [[Choros (Oirats)|Choros]] noblemen.

The [[Transition from Ming to Qing]] dynasties in China occurred during the mid-17th century, and the Qing sought to protect its northern border by continuing the divide-and-rule policy their Ming predecessors had successfully instituted against the Mongols. The Manchu consolidated their rule over the Eastern Mongols of [[Manchuria]]. They then persuaded the Eastern Mongols of Inner Mongolia to submit themselves as [[vassals]]. Finally, the Eastern Mongols of Outer Mongolia sought the protection of the Manchu against the Dzungars.

The [[Kazakh–Dzungar Wars]] (1643–1756) were a series of long conflicts between the [[Zhuz|Kazakh Juzes]] and Dzungar Khanate. The strategic goal for the Dzungars was to increase their territories by taking lands of the [[Kazakhs]]. Under the leadership of [[Abul Khair Khan]], the Kazakhs won major victories over the Dzungars at the Bulanty River in 1726 and at the [[Battle of Añyraqai]] in 1729.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.economist.com/node/2282291?zid=306&ah=1b164dbd43b0cb27ba0d4c3b12a5e227 |title=Country Briefings: Kazakhstan |newspaper=The Economist |access-date=1 June 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208113054/http://www.economist.com/node/2282291?zid=306&ah=1b164dbd43b0cb27ba0d4c3b12a5e227 |archive-date=8 December 2015}}</ref>
[[File:Qing Dzungar wars.jpg|thumb|[[Dzungar–Qing War]] from 1688 to 1757]]
In the 17th century, the Dzungar pioneered the local manifestation of the 'Military Revolution' in central Eurasia after perfecting a process of manufacturing indigenously created gunpowder weapons. They also created a mixed agro-pastoral economy, as well as complementary mining and manufacturing industries on their lands. Additionally, the Zunghar managed to enact an empire-wide system of laws and policies to boost the use of the Oirat language in the region.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Haines |first=Spencer |date=2017 |title=The 'Military Revolution' Arrives on the Central Eurasian Steppe: The Unique Case of the Zunghar (1676–1745) |journal=Mongolica: An International Journal of Mongolian Studies |volume=51 |pages=170–185}}</ref>

Some scholars estimate that about 80% of the [[Dzungar people|Dzungar population]] was [[Dzungar genocide|wiped out by warfare of the Manchu Qing conquest of Dzungaria in 1755–1757]].<ref>[http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/uploads/approved/adt-QGU20061121.163131/public/02Whole.pdf Michael Edmund Clarke, ''In the Eye of Power'' (doctoral thesis), Brisbane 2004, p37] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706114903/http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/uploads/approved/adt-QGU20061121.163131/public/02Whole.pdf |date=July 6, 2011 }}</ref> The Zunghar population reached 600,000 in 1755.

Most of the Choros, Olot, Khoid, Baatud, and [[Zakhchin]] Oirats who battled against the Qing were killed by Manchu soldiers and, after the fall of the [[Dzungar Khanate]], became small ethnic groups.

===Kalmyks===
{{Main article|Kalmyks|Kalmyk Khanate|Kalmykia}}
[[File:Mongolia XVII.png|thumb|The [[Kalmyk Khanate]] (1630–1771), [[Dzungar Khanate]] (1634–1758), and [[Khoshut Khanate]] (1642–1717)]]
Kalmyks live on the Caspian steppe. Their settlement and relationship with the Caspian steppes has a long history.

In early modern times, [[Kho Orlok]], tayishi of the [[Torghut]]s, and Dalai Tayishi of [[Dorbet]]s, led the Oirats (200,000–250,000 people, mainly Torghuts) west to the [[Volga|Volga river]] in 1607 where they established the Kalmyk Khanate. By some accounts this move was precipitated by internal divisions or by the Khoshut tribe; other historians believe it more likely that the migrating clans were seeking pastureland for their herds, scarce in the central Asian highlands. Some of the Khoshut and Ölöt tribes joined the migration almost a century later. The Kalmyk migration had reached as far as the steppes of southeastern Europe by 1630. At the time, that area was inhabited by the [[Nogai Horde]]. But under pressure from Kalmyk warriors, the [[Nogais]] fled to [[Crimea]] and the [[Kuban River]]. Many other nomadic peoples in the Eurasian steppes subsequently became vassals of the Kalmyk Khanate, part of which is in the area of present-day [[Kalmykia]].<ref>René Grousset ''The Empire of the Steppes'', p.521</ref>
[[File:Kalmyk warriors.jpg|thumb|Kalmyk nobles in the 18th century]]
The [[Kalmyks]] became allies of [[Tsardom of Russia|Russia]] and a treaty to protect southern Russian borders was signed between the Kalmyk Khanate and Russia. Later they became nominal, then full subjects of the Russian Tsar. In 1724 the Kalmyks came under control of Russia. Russia gradually reduced the autonomy of the Kalmyk Khanate. Tsarist policies encouraged establishment of Russian and German settlements on pastures where the Kalmyks formerly roamed and fed their livestock. The [[Russian Orthodox Church]], by contrast, pressed [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] Kalmyks to adopt Orthodoxy. In January 1771 the oppression by the tsarist administration forced a larger part of Kalmyks (33,000 households or approximately 170,000 individuals) to migrate to Dzungaria.<ref>[http://www.kalm.ru/en/hist.html Government of the Republic of Kalmykia: Kalm.ru] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613195921/http://www.kalm.ru/en/hist.html |date=June 13, 2013 }}</ref>

200,000 (170,000)<ref name="oirad.mn">[https://archive.today/20130628032215/http://www.oirad.mn/2011/12/%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B2-%D0%B4%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%81%D0%B0%D0%BD-%D0%BD%D2%AF%D2%AF%D0%B4%D1%8D%D0%BB/ ТИВ ДАМНАСАН НҮҮДЭЛ] (Mongolian)</ref> Kalmyks began the migration from their pastures on the left bank of the [[Volga River]] to Dzungaria, through the territories of their [[Bashkirs|Bashkir]] and [[Kazakhs|Kazakh]] enemies. The last Kalmyk khan [[Ubashi Khan|Ubashi]] led the migration to restore the [[Dzungar Khanate]] and Mongolian independence.<ref name="oirad.mn"/> As C. D. Barkman notes, "It is quite clear that the Torghuts had not intended to surrender to the Chinese, but had hoped to lead an independent existence in Dzungaria".<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J4L-_cjmSqoC&q=kalmyk%20migration%20ubashi&pg=PA295|title=China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia|first=Peter C.|last=Perdue|date=30 June 2009|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-04202-5|access-date=4 December 2016|via=Google Books}}</ref> Ubashi Khan sent his 30,000 cavalry to the [[Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774)|Russo-Turkish War]] in 1768–1769 to gain weapons before the migration. He led 170,000 Kalmyks on a return migration to Dzungaria where they were received as [[Qing dynasty|Qing]] subjects; after failing to stop the Kalmyk migration, the Empress [[Catherine the Great]] abolished the Kalmyk Khanate. Beset by raids by Kazakhs and Bashkirs, thirst, cold and starvation, only 70,000 survivors made it to Dzungaria.<ref name="oirad.mn"/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SyogLC4SdRsC&q=kalmyk's%20departure%20to%20dzungaria&pg=PA113|title=Kalmykia in Russia's Past and Present National Policies and Administrative System|first=Konstantin Nikolaevich|last=Maksimov|date=1 January 2008|publisher=Central European University Press|isbn=978-963-9776-17-3|access-date=4 December 2016|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>[http://new.hist.asu.ru/biblio/V2/45-54.pdf К вопросу о бегстве волжских калмыков в Джунгарию в 1771 году] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120725190713/http://new.hist.asu.ru/biblio/V2/45-54.pdf |date=2012-07-25 }} '''(Russian)'''</ref>

The Kazakhs attacked them near [[Balkhash Lake]]. About 100,000–150,000 Kalmyks who settled on the west bank of the [[Volga River]] could not cross the river because the river did not freeze in the winter of 1771 and Catherine the Great executed their influential nobles.<ref name="oirad.mn"/> After seven months of travel, only one third (66,073)<ref name="oirad.mn"/> of the original group reached Dzungaria (Balkhash Lake, western border of the Manchu Qing Empire).<ref>Michael Khodarkovsky (2002). ''[https://archive.org/details/trent_0116405117767 Russia's Steppe Frontier: The Making Of A Colonial Empire, 1500–1800]''. Indiana University Press. p.142. {{ISBN|0-253-21770-9}}</ref> The Qing Empire resettled the Kalmyks in five different areas to prevent their revolt and several Kalmyk leaders were soon killed by the Manchus. Following the Russian revolution, their settlement was accelerated, Buddhism stamped out and herds collectivised.
[[File:Le Tour du monde - 15 (page 88 crop).jpg|thumb|Kalmyks in the 19th century]]
Kalmykian nationalists and Pan-Mongolists attempted to migrate from Kalmykia to Mongolia in the 1920s when a serious famine gripped Kalmykia. On January 22, 1922, Mongolia proposed to accept the immigration of the Kalmyks but the Russian government refused. Some 71–72,000 (around half of the population) Kalmyks died during the famine.<ref name="Munkhbayar">[http://sonin.mn/blog/Munkhbayar/21142 XX зууны 20, 30-аад онд халимагуудын 98 хувь аймшигт өлсгөлөнд автсан] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131031003919/http://sonin.mn/blog/Munkhbayar/21142 |date=2013-10-31 }} '''(Mongolian)'''</ref> The Kalmyks revolted against Russia in 1926, 1930 and 1942–1943. In March 1927, Soviets deported 20,000 Kalmyks to Siberia, and [[Karelia]].<ref name="Munkhbayar"/> The Kalmyks founded the sovereign [[List of Mongol states#Modern states|Republic of Oirat-Kalmyk]] on March 22, 1930. The Oirat state had a small army and 200 Kalmyk soldiers defeated a force of 1,700 Soviet soldiers in Durvud province of Kalmykia, but the Oirat state was destroyed by the Soviet Army later that year. The Mongolian government suggested to accept the Mongols of the Soviet Union, including Kalmyks, but the Soviets rejected the proposal.<ref name="Munkhbayar"/>

In 1943, the entire population of 120,000 Kalmyks were [[Kalmyk deportations of 1943|deported]] to Siberia by [[Stalin]], accused of supporting invading Axis armies attacking [[Stalingrad]] ([[Volgograd]]); a fifth of the population is thought to have perished during and immediately after the deportation.<ref>[http://www.minorityrights.org/2497/russian-federation/kalmyks.html Minorityrights.org] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140118064901/http://www.minorityrights.org/2497/russian-federation/kalmyks.html |date=2014-01-18 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~taylor3/bortsiknet/culture/language.htm |title=rohan.sdsu.edu |access-date=2014-01-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201223101/http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~taylor3/bortsiknet/culture/language.htm |archive-date=2014-02-01 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.utoronto.ca/cias/kalmykia.html |title=Central and Inner Asia Studies (CIAS) – Overview |access-date=2017-09-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140121044335/http://www.utoronto.ca/cias/kalmykia.html |archive-date=2014-01-21 }}</ref> Around half (97–98,000) of the Kalmyk people deported to Siberia died before being allowed to return home in 1957.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/4580467.stm|title=Regions and territories: Kalmykia|work=BBC News|date=29 November 2011|access-date=4 December 2016}}</ref> The government of the Soviet Union forbade teaching the [[Kalmyk language]] during the deportation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.freelang.net/blog/kalmyk-an-ostracized-language-in-russia,2013-04|title=Kalmyk: An ostracized language in Russia – Language webzine by Freelang|date=17 April 2013|publisher=|access-date=4 December 2016}}</ref><ref>[http://www.ling.hawaii.edu/ldtc/languages/kalmyk/ ling.hawaii.edu] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150615053400/http://www.ling.hawaii.edu/ldtc/languages/kalmyk/ |date=2015-06-15 }}</ref><ref>[http://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/coe21/publish/no14_ses/07_guchinova.pdf Deportation of the Kalmyks (1943–1956): Stigmatized Ethnicity]</ref> Mongolian leader [[Khorloogiin Choibalsan]] attempted to arrange migration of the deportees to Mongolia and he met them in Siberia during his visit to Russia. Under the Law of the Russian Federation of April 26, 1991 "On Rehabilitation of Exiled Peoples" repressions against Kalmyks and other peoples were qualified as an act of genocide.

According to the [[Russian Census (2010)|Russian 2010 Census]] there were 176,800 Kalmyks, of whom only 80,546 could speak the Kalmyk language, a serious decline from the level of the [[Russian Census (2002)|2002 Census]], in which the number of speakers was 153,602 (with a total number of 173,996 people). The [[Soviet Census (1989)|Soviet 1989 Census]] showed 156,386 Kalmyk-speakers with a total number of 173,821 Kalmyks.

===Xinjiang Mongols===
[[File:Oirad Aristocrat's Ceremonial Hat.jpg|thumb|Oirat ceremonial hat]]
The Mongols of [[Xinjiang]] form a minority, principally in the northern part of the region, numbering 194,500 in 2010, about 50,000 of which are [[Dongxiangs]].<ref>James A. Millward ''Eurasian crossroads: a history of Xinjiang'', p. 89</ref> They are primarily descendants of the surviving [[Torghut]]s and [[Khoshut]]s who returned from [[Kalmykia]], and of the [[Chahar Mongols|Chakhar]] stationed there as garrison soldiers in the 18th century. The emperor had sent messages asking the Kalmyks to return, and erected a smaller copy of the [[Potala Palace|Potala]] in [[Chengde|Jehol]] (''[[Chengde]]''), (the country residence of the [[Qing dynasty|Manchu Emperors]]) to mark their arrival. A model copy of that "Little Potala" was made in China for the Swedish explorer [[Sven Hedin]], and was erected at the [[World's Columbian Exposition]] in Chicago in 1893. It is now in storage in Sweden, where there are plans to re-erect it. Some of the returnees did not come that far and still live, now as Muslims, at the southwestern end of [[Lake Issyk Kul|Lake Issyk-kul]] in present-day [[Kyrgyzstan]].

In addition to exiling Han criminals to Xinjiang to be slaves of the Banner garrisons there, the Qing also practiced reverse exile, exiling Inner Asian (Mongol, Russian and Muslim criminals from Mongolia and Inner Asia) to [[China proper]] where they would serve as slaves in Han Banner garrisons in Guangzhou. Russian, Oirats and Muslims (Oros. Ulet. Hoise jergi weilengge niyalma) such as Yakov and Dmitri were exiled to the Han banner garrison in Guangzhou.<ref>Yongwei, MWLFZZ, FHA 03-0188-2740-032, QL 43.3.30 (April 26, 1778).</ref> In the 1780s after the Muslim rebellion in Gansu started by [[Zhang Wenqing]] (張文慶) was defeated, Muslims like [[Ma Jinlu]] (馬進祿) were exiled to the Han Banner garrison in Guangzhou to become slaves to Han Banner officers.<ref>Šande 善德, MWLFZZ, FHA 03-0193-3238-046, QL 54.5.6 (May 30, 1789) and Šande, MWLFZZ, FHA 03-0193-3248-028, QL 54.6.30 (August 20, 1789).</ref> The Qing code regulating Mongols in Mongolia sentenced Mongol criminals to exile and slavery under Han bannermen in Han Banner garrisons in China proper.<ref>1789 Mongol Code (Ch. 蒙履 Menggu lüli, Mo. Mongγol čaγaǰin-u bičig), (Ch. 南省，給駐防爲, Mo. emün-e-tü muji-dur čölegüljü sergeyilen sakiγči quyaγ-ud-tur boγul bolγ-a). Mongol Code 蒙例 (Beijing: Lifan yuan, 1789; reprinted Taipei: Chengwen chubanshe, 1968), p. 124. Batsukhin Bayarsaikhan, Mongol Code (Mongγol čaγaǰin – u bičig), Monumenta Mongolia IV (Ulaanbaatar: Centre for Mongol Studies, National University of Mongolia, 2004), p. 142.</ref>

===Alasha Mongols===
The region bordering [[Gansu]] and west of the Irgay River{{where|date=September 2015}} is called [[Alxa League|Alxa]] or Alaša, Alshaa and Mongols who moved there are called Alasha Mongols.

Törbaih [[Güshi Khan]]'s fourth son, Ayush, was opposed to the Khan's brother Baibagas. Ayush's eldest son is Batur Erkh Jonon Khoroli. After the battle between [[Galdan Boshigt Khan]] and Ochirtu Sechen Khan, Batur Erkh Jonon Khoroli moved to [[Tsaidam]] with his 10,000 households. The fifth [[Dalai Lama]] wanted land for them from the [[Qing]] government, thus in 1686, the Emperor permitted them to reside in Alasha.

In 1697, Alasha Mongols were administered in 'khoshuu' and 'sum' units. A khoshuu with eight sums was created, Batur Erkh Jonon Khoroli was appointed Beil (prince), and Alasha was thus a 'zasag-khoshuu'. Alasha was however like an 'aimag' and never administered under a 'chuulgan'.

In 1707, when Batur Erkh Jonon Khoroli died, his son Abuu succeeded him. He was in Beijing from his youth, served as bodyguard of the Emperor, and a princess (of the Emperor) was given to him, thus making him a 'Khoshoi Tavnan', i.e. Emperor's groom. In 1793, Abuu became Jün Wang. There are several thousand Muslim Alasha Mongols.<ref>James Stuart Olson ''An ethnohistorical dictionary of China'', p. 242</ref>

====Ejine Mongols====

Mongols who lived along the [[Ruo Shui|Ejin River]] (''[[Ruo Shui]]'') descended from Rabjur, a grandson of Torghut Ayuka Khan from the Volga River.

In 1698, Rabjur, with his mother, younger sister and 500 people, went to Tibet to pray. While they were returning via Beijing in 1704, the Qing ruler, the [[Kangxi Emperor]], let them stay there for some years and later organized a 'khoshuu' for them in a place called Sertei, and made Rabjur the governor.

In 1716, the [[Kangxi Emperor]] sent him and his people to [[Hami City|Hami]], near the border of Qing China and the Zunghar Khanate, for intelligence-gathering purposes against the Oirats. When Rabjur died, his eldest son, Denzen, succeeded him. He was afraid of the Zunghar and wanted the Qing government to allow them to move away from the border. They were settled in Dalan Uul–Altan. When Denzen died in 1740, his son Lubsan Darjaa succeeded him and became Beil.

In 1753, they were settled on the banks of the Ejin River and the Ejin River Torghut 'khoshuu' was thus formed.<ref>Xiaoyuan Liu ''Reins of liberation'', p. 36</ref>

==Culture==
{{expand section|date=July 2023}}
{{Further|topic=the Mongol folk song|Bumburjan}}

==Origins and genetics==

Haplogroup C2*-Star Cluster which was thought to be carried by likely male-line descendants of Genghis Khan and Niruns (original Mongols and descendants of [[Alan Gua]]) appears in 1.6% of Oirats.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=V. Derenko|first1=M|last2=Malyarchuk|first2=Boris|last3=Woźniak|first3=Marcin|last4=Denisova|first4=Galina|last5=Dambueva|first5=Irina|last6=M. Dorzhu|first6=C|last7=Grzybowski|first7=Tomasz|last8=Zakharov-Gezekhus|first8=Ilya|date=2007-03-01|title=Distribution of the male lineages of Genghis Khan's descendants in northern Eurasian populations|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225393495|journal=Russian Journal of Genetics|volume=43|issue=3|pages=334–337|doi=10.1134/S1022795407030179|pmid=17486763|s2cid=24976689}}</ref>

The Y-chromosome in 426 individuals mainly from three major tribes of the Kalmyks (the [[Torghut]], [[Dörbet Oirat|Dörbet]] and [[Khoshut]]):<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257888924|title=Y-chromosome diversity in the Kalmyks at the ethnical and tribal levels|last=|first=|date=|website=}}</ref>

[[Haplogroup C-M48|C-M48]]: 38.7

C-M407: 10.8

N1c: 10.1

[[Haplogroup R2|R2]]: 7.7

[[Haplogroup O-M122|O2]]: 6.8

C2 (not M407, not M48): 6.6

[[Haplogroup O-M268|O1b]]: 5.2

[[Haplogroup R1|R1]]: 4.9

Others: 9.2

Haplogroup C2*-Star Cluster appeared in 2% (3% of Dörbet and 2.7% of the Torghut).

==Tribes==
Sart Kalmyks and [[Xinjiang]] Oirats are not Volga Kalmyks or Kalmyks, and the Kalmyks are a subgroup of the Oirats.

{{Div col|colwidth=25em}}
* [[Altai Uriankhai]]
* [[Baatud]]
* [[Bayads]]
* [[Buzava]]
* [[Chantuu]]
* [[Choros (Oirats)|Choros]]
* [[Dorbet]]
* [[Dzungar people|Dzungar]]
* [[Khoshut]]
* [[Khoid]]
* [[Kalmak Tatars|Kalmak]]
* [[Myangad]]
* [[Olots]]
* [[Altaians|Oirots]]
* [[Sart Kalmyks]]
* [[Torghut]]
* [[Tumed]]
* [[Zakhchin]]
* [[Kalmyks|Volga Kalmyks]]
{{div col end}}

==See also==
* [[Demographics of Mongolia]]
* [[Four Oirats]]
* [[Kalmyk people]]
* [[Dzungar people|Dzungar]]
* [[Kalmykia]]
* [[Altay people]]
* [[Al-Adil Kitbugha]] (Oirat Sultan of Egypt)

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book |last1=Minahan |first1=James B. |title=Ethnic Groups of North, East, and Central Asia: An Encyclopedia |date=10 February 2014 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA |isbn=978-1-61069-018-8 |pages=209–211 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Ethnic_Groups_of_North_East_and_Central/YhXHEAAAQBAJ |language=en |chapter=Oirat}}
* {{cite book |last1=West |first1=Barbara A. |title=Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania |chapter=Oirat |date=19 May 2010 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |isbn=978-1-4381-1913-7 |pages=606–607 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Encyclopedia_of_the_Peoples_of_Asia_and/pCiNqFj3MQsC |language=en}}

== Further reading ==
* Kempf, Béla: 'Ethnonyms and etymology – The case of Oyrat and beyond'. In: ''Ural-Altaische Jahrbücher''. 24: 2010–11, pp. 189–203
*[http://www.bumbinorn.ru/2008/12/07/poslednie_dannye_po_lokalizacii_i_chislennosti_ojjrat_48654.html Khoyt S.K. Last data by localisation and number of oyirad (oirat) (htm republication) – in Russian] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100705162007/http://www.bumbinorn.ru/2008/12/07/poslednie_dannye_po_lokalizacii_i_chislennosti_ojjrat_48654.html |date=2010-07-05 }}
*{{cite book|title=New Qing Imperial History: The Making of Inner Asian Empire at Qing Chengde|first1=Ruth W.|last1=Dunnell|first2=Mark C.|last2=Elliott|first3=Philippe|last3=Foret|first4=James A|last4=Millward|volume=|edition=|year=2004|publisher=Routledge|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6qFH-53_VnEC|isbn=1-134-36222-6|access-date=10 March 2014}}
* {{cite journal|title=Myth, Misconception, and Motive for the Zunghar Intervention in Khalkha Mongolia in the 17th Century |journal=Paper Presented at the Third Open Conference on Mongolian Studies, Canberra, ACT, Australia |last1=Haines |first1=R Spencer |date=2015 |publisher=The Australian National University }}
* {{cite journal|title=The Physical Remains of the Zunghar Legacy in Central Eurasia: Some Notes from the Field |journal=Paper Presented at the Social and Environmental Changes on the Mongolian Plateau Workshop, Canberra, ACT, Australia |last1=Haines |first1=R Spencer |date=2016 |publisher=The Australian National University }}
* {{cite journal|title=The 'Military Revolution' Arrives on the Central Eurasian Steppe: The Unique Case of the Zunghar (1676–1745) |journal=Mongolica: An International Journal of Mongolian Studies |last1=Haines |first1=Spencer |volume=51 |pages=170–185 |date=2017 |publisher=International Association of Mongolists }}
*{{cite book|title=Beyond the Pass: Economy, Ethnicity, and Empire in Qing Central Asia, 1759–1864|first=James A.|last=Millward|volume=|edition=illustrated|year=1998|publisher=Stanford University Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MC6sAAAAIAAJ|isbn=0-8047-2933-6|access-date=10 March 2014}}
* ''Wang Jinglan, Shao Xingzhou, Cui Jing et al.'' Anthropological survey on the Mongolian Tuerhute tribe in He shuo county, Xinjiang Uigur autonomous region // Acta anthropologica sinica. Vol. XII, № 2. May 1993. p.&nbsp;137–146.
* ''Санчиров В. П.'' О Происхождении этнонима торгут и народа, носившего это название // Монголо-бурятские этнонимы: cб. ст. — Улан-Удэ: БНЦ СО РАН, 1996. C. 31—50. – in Russian
* [https://www.academia.edu/4855138/An_Asian-specific_9-bp_deletion_in_region_V_of_mitochondrial_DNA_is_found_in_Europe ''Ovtchinnikova O., Druzina E., Galushkin S., Spitsyn V., Ovtchinnikov I.'' An Azian-specific 9-bp deletion in region V of mitochondrial DNA is found in Europe // Medizinische Genetic. 9 Tahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Humangenetik, 1997, p. 85.]
* [https://www.academia.edu/4855211/Genetic_Structure_of_Mongolic-speaking_Kalmyks ''Galushkin S.K., Spitsyn V.A., Crawford M.H.'' Genetic Structure of Mongolic-speaking Kalmyks // Human Biology, December 2001, v.73, no. 6, pp.&nbsp;823–834.]
* [https://www.academia.edu/4855556/_ABO_RH_HP_TF_GC_ACP1_PGM1_ESD_GLO1_SOD-A_Genetic_Structure_of_European_Oyrat_groups_based_on_loci_ABO_RH_HP_TF_GC_ACP1_PGM1_ESD_GLO1_SOD-A_ ''Хойт С.К.'' Генетическая структура европейских ойратских групп по локусам ABO, RH, HP, TF, GC, ACP1, PGM1, ESD, GLO1, SOD-A // Проблемы этнической истории и культуры тюрко-монгольских народов. Сборник научных трудов. Вып. I. Элиста: КИГИ РАН, 2009. с. 146–183. – in Russian]
* hamagmongol.narod.ru/library/khoyt_2008_r.htm ''Хойт С.К.'' Антропологические характеристики калмыков по данным исследователей XVIII-XIX вв. // Вестник Прикаспия: археология, история, этнография. № 1. Элиста: Изд-во КГУ, 2008. с. 220–243.
* [https://www.academia.edu/4855547/_._-_2008._-_82_._ISBN_978-5-91458-044-2_Kereits_in_enthnogenesis_of_peoples_of_Eurasia_historiography_of_the_problem._Elista_Kalmyk_State_University_Press_2008._-_82_p._in_Russian_ ''Хойт С.К.'' Кереиты в этногенезе народов Евразии: историография проблемы. Элиста: Изд-во КГУ, 2008. – 82 с]. {{ISBN|978-5-91458-044-2}} (Khoyt S.K. Kereits in enthnogenesis of peoples of Eurasia: historiography of the problem. Elista: Kalmyk State University Press, 2008. – 82 p. (in Russian))
* hamagmongol.narod.ru/library/khoyt_2012_r.htm ''Хойт С.К.'' Калмыки в работах антропологов первой половины XX вв. // Вестник Прикаспия: археология, история, этнография. № 3, 2012. с. 215–245.
* [https://www.academia.edu/4855574/Y-chromosome_diversity_in_the_Kalmyks_at_the_ethnical_and_tribal_levels ''Boris Malyarchuk, Miroslava Derenko, Galina Denisova, Sanj Khoyt, Marcin Wozniak, Tomasz Grzybowski and Ilya Zakharov'' Y-chromosome diversity in the Kalmyks at the ethnical and tribal levels // Journal of Human Genetics (2013), 1–8.]
* [https://elibrary.ru/download/elibrary_32249220_21808602.pdf ''Хойт С.К.'' Этническая история ойратских групп. Элиста, 2015. 199 с. (Khoyt S.K. Ethnic history of oyirad groups. Elista, 2015. 199 p. in russian)]
* [http://emscat.revues.org/2820 ''Joo-Yup Lee'' Were the historical Oirats "Western Mongols"? An examination of their uniqueness in relation to the Mongols // Études mongoles & sibériennes, centrasiatiques & tibétaines (47/2016)]
* Хойт С.К. [https://www.academia.edu/35593677/%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%BD%D1%8B%D0%B5_%D1%84%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%BA%D0%BB%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B0_%D0%B4%D0%BB%D1%8F_%D0%B8%D0%B7%D1%83%D1%87%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%B8%D1%8F_%D0%BF%D1%83%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%B9_%D1%8D%D1%82%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B3%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%B7%D0%B0_%D0%BE%D0%B9%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%82%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D1%85_%D0%B3%D1%80%D1%83%D0%BF%D0%BF Данные фольклора для изучения путей этногенеза ойратских групп] // Международная научная конференция «Сетевое востоковедение: образование, наука, культура», 7–10 декабря 2017 г.: материалы. Элиста: Изд-во Калм. ун-та, 2017. с. 286–289. (in Russian)
* Ли Чжиюань. О происхождении хойдского народа // Международная научная конференция «Сетевое востоковедение: образование, наука, культура», 7–10 декабря 2017 г.: материалы. Элиста: Изд-во Калм. ун-та, 2017. с. 436–445. (in Mongol)

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150801210437/http://oirad.mn/ Oirat community portal] (archived 1 August 2015) (in Mongolian)
{{Ethnic groups in China}}
{{Ethnic groups in Russia}}
{{Oirats}}
{{Mongolic ethnic groups |state = expanded}}

[[Category:Oirats| ]]
[[Category:Kalmykia]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in China]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Russia]]
[[Category:Indigenous peoples of Siberia]]
[[Category:Mongol peoples]]
[[Category:Dzungar Khanate]]