The Mohe, Malgal, Mogher, or Mojie were historical groups of people that once occupied parts of what is now Northeast Asia during late antiquity. The two most well known Mohe groups were known as the Heishui Mohe, located along the Amur River, and the Sumo Mohe, named after the Songhua River. They have been traditionally defined by the approximate use of what would have been Tungusic languages. The Heishui Mohe are commonly thought as being direct ancestors to the 12th century Jurchens. The Tang documented the Mohe as inhabiting the land of Sushen, to the northeast of the Tang, east of the Turks, and north of Goguryeo.
The Mohe constituted a major part of the population in the kingdom of Balhae in northeast Asia, which lasted from the late 7th century to early 10th century. After the fall of Balhae, few historical traces of the Mohe can be found, though they are considered to be the primary ethnic group from whom the Jurchen people descended. The Heishui Mohe in particular are considered to be the direct ancestors of the Jurchens, from whom the 17th century Manchu people and Qing dynasty founders originated. The Mohe practiced a sedentary agrarian lifestyle and were predominantly farmers who grew soybean, wheat, millet, and rice, supplemented by pig raising and hunting for meat. The Mohe were also known to have worn pig and dog skin coats.
The Chinese exonym Mohe (éºé¨) is a graphic pejorative written with mo éº "socks; stockings" and he é¨ "shoes". Mo (éº) (Middle Chinese: ) is an adjective, a customary expression meaning "barbarian" or Xiongnu. Before the Five dynasties period, it was recorded as "éº羯", such as on the Honglujing Stele.
He é¨ is gal (Middle Chinese gat or ), meaning "stone" by Mohe/Malgal, Jie/Gal language. The Jie ruler Shi Le (ç³åÂÂ) takes the surname shi (ç³ "stone") from gal. According to the History of Jin (Jin Shi), Shi Tumen () is the prince of the Jurchen people, whose surname shi hints to a connection with the Mohe and Jie.
The ethnonym of the Mohe bears a notable resemblance to that of the later historically attested *Motgit in Middle Chinese (; Korean: 물길 [Mulgil]; Japanese: ãÂÂã¤ãÂÂ㤠[Motsukitsu]).
The name of the Mohe also appears as "Maka" in "Shin-Maka" (Japanese æ°éºé¨, ãÂÂãÂÂã¾ãÂÂ) or "New Mohe," which is the name of a dance and the musical piece that accompanies it; the dance and song were introduced to the Japanese court during the Nara period or around the beginning of the Heian period from the Balhae kingdom. In modern Japanese historical texts, the name of the Mohe is annotated with the "kana" reading Makkatsu (ã¾ã£ãÂÂã¤), which is probably a transliteration based on the standard Sino-Japanese readings of the Chinese characters used to transcribe the ethnonym of the Mohe.
According to some records, there were seven or maybe eight Mohe tribes :