Khitai

ḲARA KHITĀI (or ḲARĀ KHIṬĀI), the usual name since the viᵗʰ (xiiᵗʰ) century in Muḥammadan sources for the Kitai people, mentioned by the Chinese from the eighth century A. D. onwards, who were probably Tunguz (according to another view Mongol)... From the beginning of the tenth century the Kitai carried on a campaign of conquest, conquered the northern part of China and founded a dynasty which as a Chinese ruling house was called Liao (916).

At the head of the Qara Khitai administration stood the Gürkhan, the Khan of Khans or universal Khan. The Gürkhan also bore the title of Chinese emperor (or empress) and maintained the Chinese custom of assigning reign titles (nian hao).

When the Liao dynasty collapsed, a member of the royal house, Yelü Dashi (1087–1143), led a remnant force westward and established the Kara Khitai (Black Khitans), or Western Liao, dynasty (1132–1218, in modern Kazakhstan), whose chief opponents were the Seljuk Turks.