Date of Graduation

5-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

History

Advisor/Mentor

Hammond, Kelly

Committee Member/Reader

Antov, Nikolay

Committee Member/Second Reader

D'Alisera, Joann

Committee Member/Third Reader

Clay, Matt

Abstract

Aspects of the Mongol Empire have been well studied in academia, but these analyses, like much of our recording and analysis of world history overall, have largely excluded women. This thesis seeks to contribute to the effort to restore women to Mongol history, focusing on how the relationship between Mongol women and religion impacted the development of the Mongol Empire and Eurasian religions during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. With a focus on elite women due to the nature of the sources, I draw upon historical chronicles, traveler accounts, artwork, and contributions from scholars in this field to assert that Mongol women had significant influence on the development of both empire and religion. This influence is most notable in their personal, political, and patronage activities. In relation to religion, Mongol women sustained religions in the Mongol Empire through their personal religious practice and identification, their influence on those in power, their own role in administration, and through their financial support. In relation to empire, religious Mongol women aided the state in securing the support of subjects, in conducting relations with other states, and contributed to the Mongols’ ability to establish stable rule of a diverse domain, all while keeping the favor of the God in the heavens. by contributing towards Mongol political religious policy. This paper opens up avenues for future research, inviting others to continue to reveal the impact of women during the Mongol Empire.

Keywords

Mongols; women; religion; empire; Yuan; Ilkhanate

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