Book of Han, Western Regions

This is the strongest Chinese reason to open the frontier room on the Scythian shelf. The Han Shu says plainly that Wusun land had formerly been Sai land. The word Sai is one of the Chinese forms normally brought into conversation with Saka.

The text still must be handled with discipline. It does not say every Wusun was Saka, nor that every Sai group was identical with every western Scythian. It records a chain of displacement: Sai, Da Yuezhi, Wusun, Daxia.

The translation below is from the Classical Chinese text of the Western Regions account.

Translation

The Wusun kingdom: the Great Kunmi governed from Red Valley City, eight thousand nine hundred li from Changan. There were one hundred twenty thousand households, six hundred thirty thousand mouths, and one hundred eighty-eight thousand eight hundred men able to bear arms. Among its offices were a minister, a Dalu, two left and right great generals, three hou, a great general and a commandant, two great inspectors, one great officer, two great officers of the inner lodging, and one cavalry lord.

Eastward it was one thousand seven hundred twenty-one li to the seat of the Protector. Westward it was five thousand li to the inner dependent territory of Kangju. The land was broad and level. There was much rain and cold. The mountains had many pines and mán-trees. They did not plough fields or plant trees, but followed their animals in pursuit of water and grass, having the same customs as the Xiongnu.

The state had many horses; rich men had as many as four or five thousand. The people were hard and fierce, greedy and cruel, without trust, and full of raiding and plunder. It was the strongest state. Formerly it submitted to the Xiongnu. Later, when it grew great, it took in subordinate peoples and would not go to court assemblies. On the east it bordered the Xiongnu; on the northwest, Kangju; on the west, Dawan; on the south, the walled states.

This had originally been Sai land. The Da Yuezhi struck westward and drove away the Sai king. The Sai king went south across Xuandu, and the Da Yuezhi dwelt in his land. Later the Wusun Kunmo struck and broke the Da Yuezhi. The Da Yuezhi moved west and made Daxia subject; the Wusun Kunmo dwelt there. Therefore it is said that among the Wusun people there are Sai stock and Da Yuezhi stock.

Colophon

This Good Works Translation was prepared for the Scythian shelf by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the source text printed below. The English is an independent rendering from the source-language Chinese, with existing public translations used only as controls for difficult or conventional passages.

Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.

🌲

Source Text: Han Shu, Western Regions, Wusun

Classical Chinese source text from the Han Shu. Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.

乌孙国，大昆弥治赤谷城，去长安八千九百里。户十二万，口六十三万，胜兵十八万八千八百人。相，大禄，左右大将二人，侯三人，大将、都尉各一人，大监二人，大吏一人，舍中大吏二人，骑君一人。东至都护治所千七百二十一里，西至康居蕃内地五千里。地莽平。多雨，寒。山多松樠。不田作种树，随畜逐水草，与匈奴同俗。国多马，富人至四五千匹。民刚恶，贪狠无信，多寇盗，最为强国。故服匈奴，后盛大，取羁属，不肯往朝会。东与匈奴、西北与康居、西与大宛、南与城郭诸国相接。本塞地也，大月氏西破走塞王，塞王南越县度，大月氏居其地。后乌孙昆莫击破大月氏，大月氏徙西臣大夏，而乌孙昆莫居之，故乌孙民有塞种、大月氏种云。

Source Colophon

Classical Chinese text inspected from Chinese Text Project, Han Shu, Western Regions, Part 2, paragraph 1. The English rendering above is newly prepared from the Chinese, with the CTP English display used only as a control.

🌲