Yangsu Tegin

Yangsu Tegin was a Göktürk prince of the sixth century, the father of Niri Khan of the western Göktürks.^[1] The Chinese histories name him at one point only, where his son came to power.^[2]

Apa, the son of Mukan, had been taken prisoner by Bagha, whom the Sui Shu calls Chuluohou.^[2] Then Apa’s people raised the son of Yangsu Tegin as their khan. He was Niri Khan.^[3] The Tongdian repeats the sentence in a note to its chapter on the eastern Göktürks.^[4] The Xin Tang Shu, the Zizhi tongjian and the Cefu yuangui give the same descent.^[5] The capture of Apa is dated to 587.^[6] Through Niri, Yangsu Tegin was the grandfather of Heshana Khan.^[2] His own father, his deeds and his death are not recorded.

He may be the same man as Duliu, the son of Tardush and the father of Shegui Khan.^[7] The argument rests on the kinship the histories give.^[7] The Jiu Tang Shu calls Shegui a paternal uncle of Heshana, so that Shegui and Niri were brothers. The Sui Shu calls Shegui the son of Duliu.^[8]

Name

鞅素特勤ChineseSui Shu 84
鞅素特勒ChineseXin Tangshu 215

The title tegin was borne by the sons and younger brothers of the khan and by men of his clan.^[9] The Sui Shu, the Bei Shi and the Tongdian write it 特勤. The Xin Tang Shu and the Zizhi tongjian write 特勒.^[10] Both spell the same title, as the Chinese text of the Kül Tegin monument shows.^[11]