Qi Confederation

The Qi Confederation (Qi Script: 齊盟; Latin Huajiangite: Qíméng; Latin Guavai: tshihmöoñ) is a purported prehistorical polity whose existence is used to explain the origin of the Qi people. More precisely, the groups which formed this confederation (sometimes translated as "alliance" to avoid speculation about its political structure) are said to have been exclusively Qi. The first discussion of the Qi Confederation postdates its supposed dissolution when various dynasties and factions came to power in separate regions in roughly 500BCE after the migration of Qi outside of the Bei Peninsula and their eventual split along cultural-linguistic lines.

The existence of the Qi Confederation is not accepted by all historians; however, it is the most widely accepted theory as to the origin of the Qi people and their eventual spread west. Several historical foundations have endorsed the Qi Confederation as the theory that explains the origins of the Qi people, such as the Huajiang Heritage Protection Organization and Royal Institute for History and Ethnology in Guakok.

Etymology

"Qi Confederation" is a translation of the Qi name 齊盟. The second morpheme is also sometimes translated as "Alliance" or "Union" to avoid suggesting anything about the political organisation of the polity. As the earliest descriptions mention it as being fairly decentralised, "confederation" has become the normal term for referring to the entity.

After the time period of the Qi Confederation and the subsequent Qi Golden Age, the book Qimengtang described the origins of the Qi people as a historical account. The characters 齊盟堂 (qíméngtáng) are used frequently to describe the place of origin, and people who are not referred to by name are referred to as 齊 "Qi". The first comprehensive Qi character dictionary, the Yuwen (語文) was written by the scholar Kiek Chinghei, in which Qíméngtáng is given as Qíméng (齊盟), dropping the final táng character (堂). Literally translated, Qíméng means an alliance sworn by or between the Qi people.

The term Qíméngtáng, a synonym found in the oldest texts, is disused in later texts in accordance with the definitions laid out by the Yuwen. While several other classics from this time period refer to the Qi Confederation as Qíméngtáng, the rise of Tangdi caused táng to be dropped due to the creation of Tiāntáng Dìqiú (天堂地球).