N. Y. Acpd^myr of FkiiVtrees 

 Bec'd Jude 7-SeptvlS.,1898 



1896-97.] THE DENES OF AMERICA IDENTIFIED WITH THE TUNGUS OF ASIA. 167 



THE DENES OF AMERICA IDENTIFIED WITH THE 

 TUNGUS OF ASIA. 



By Rev. John Campbell, LL.D. 



(Read 2nd February, iSgj.) 



GUTZLAFF writes: "The Mantchoos, a Tongoosian race, have, since their 

 conquest of China, become a civiHzed people. Those who remain in 

 their original country form, nevertheless, a portion of the imperial forces. 

 Every male is obliged to enlist under one of the royal standards, of 

 which there are eight. Many thousands are dispersed throughout the 

 whole Chinese empire, where they are either soldiers or hold the highest 

 offices in the state. They were originally Nomades, in manner not 

 unlike the Mongols, though inferior in courage. The inhabitants of the 

 northern provinces are a miserable race, living almost exclusively upon 

 dried fish." Klaproth says : " All the Tungusian stocks under Chinese 

 sway bear the common name Mandju." The Mantchus, therefore, are 

 simply a section of the Tungus, of whom Klaproth further remarks : 

 " The Tungus have no common or national name, yet most who dwell 

 in Siberia call themselves Boye, Boya or Bye, that is, men (Mantshu 

 beye, body, self). Some give themselves the name Donki, people, whence 

 the name Tungus appears to have arisen. * * * However this may 

 be, it is acknowledged without doubt that the Tungus' name is already 

 very old, for we find it amiong the Chinese as early as the birth of Christ, 

 when they called this people the Tungchu." Among their tribes, which 

 I shall enumerate later, are those called Djan, Donggo, Djanggia, Dung- 

 gia, Dung, and Djang. 



Father Morice's able, interesting, and instructive monographs on the 

 Denes of the far Northwest have had the effect of reviving my interest 

 in the extensive and widely scattered aboriginal population so-called. 

 Just sixteen years ago, within a few days, for it was on the 17th of 

 December, 1880, and I write now on the 22nd, of 1896, I read a paper 

 before the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec, in which, among 

 other things, a comparison was instituted between the Denes of America 

 and the Tungus of Asia. These peoples are so well differentiated in 

 Asia and in America from neighboring tribes as to make the task of 

 comparison void of much difficulty, the chief want being material on both 



