Paper long abstract:

In my paper I am focusing on the role of the Uighurs in the translation and spread of Buddhist texts in the Tangut state of Western Xia. The main purpose of my paper is to present the active involvement of the Uighurs in the great translation project initiated by the first Tangut emperor Li Yuanhao. The texts were purchased from the Northern Song court and were translated into the Tangut language.

By focusing on relevant primary sources in Chinese and in the Tangut language, I will discuss some key features of the translating centers as well as requirements for Uighur translators. For example, whether or not this kind of translation activity was considered an official duty or as an action of personal merit accumulation. In addition, I will look at some particular textual examples from sūtras and demonstrate possible linguistic influences of the Uighur language on the translated text in Tangut. Finally, I am going to look at the Uighur activity after the fall of Western Xia in 1227, especially their engagement in reprinting the Tangut Tripitaka under the Mongol rule in the beginning of the fourteenth century.