- Genghis Khan had 13 officially documented children.
- He also allegedly had over 120 children from other wives and concubines.
- His four sons Jochi, Chagatai, Ögedei, and Tolui later became notable figures.
- Genghis Khan considered any child who called him ‘father’ his own.
- His daughters formed alliances through marriages, expanding Mongol influence.
Historical records on Genghis Khan’s number of children are incomplete. However, Genghis did have at least 13 children. He officially had eight sons and five daughters. His nine children (four sons and five daughters) were from his wife, Börte. Four of his sons from Börte were particularly notable, with one being the father of Kublai Khan, the greatest successor of the Great Khan. The oral tradition also claims that Genghis Khan had a total of 120 children with his many concubines and wives, who numbered 500.
Genghis Khan’s Number of Children
His Daughters
- Alakhai Bekhi (1191–1230)
- Checheikhen (died c. 1237)
- Alaltun
- Tümelün
- Qocin Beki (Huochenbieji)
Other than his five daughters, there was actually a sixth daughter named Tulgha. This lesser-known daughter of Genghis Khan was allegedly conceived by Qulan Khatun and the Qarluqs took her as a wife.
His Sons
- Jochi (1182–1227)
- Chagatai (1183–1242)
- Ögedei (1186–1241)
- Tolui (1191–1232)
- Ulugci (Wuluchi)
- Chawuer (Cha’ur)
- Kölgen (Kuoliejian)
- Shuerche
Jochi was Genghis Khan’s first child and son, followed by Chagatai, Ögedei, and Tolui, all from the same mother, Börte. In addition, Genghis Khan four more sons from other concubines named Wuluchi (Ulugci), Kölgen, Chawuer, and Shuerche. Among them, Kölgen became a notable Mongol general, and Tolui was Kublai Khan’s father.
In 1226, Genghis Khan launched his last invasion of China, and he passed away on August 18th, 1227. The Mongol Empire continued to grow under the leadership of Genghis Khan’s numerous children. Every one of his four sons created a sizable nation. His many children and other descendants ruled an area that stretched from the coast of the China Sea to the European region of Russia.
Genghis Had 500 Wives and Concubines
- Genghis Khan had 44 wives and over 500 concubines.
- His descendants comprise 0.5% of the world’s male population.
Genghis Khan’s five sons alone (including Kuoliejian) gave him 43 grandchildren. We also know that Genghis Khan had 44 documented wives and more than 500 concubines. However, only six of his wives were considered higher-ranking khatuns “great empresses”, with Börte being the highest-ranked.
His alleged 500 concubines were mostly captives from the peoples and nations Genghis conquered. That is why there is a good chance that Genghis Khan is the historical figure with the widest spread of his descendants throughout the globe.
Due to his numerous wives, Genghis Khan’s children are the ancestors of as many as 20 million males today, or around 0.5% of all men on the planet. His numerous offspring make up around 8% of the Central Asian population.
For instance, there are 43 grandchildren in the third generation of his line alone. Even Genghis Khan was unsure of his family’s size. After all, he could have slept with women everywhere he traveled toward the west, and he had no say over who gave birth to his child whatsoever.
- See also: How Tall Was Genghis Khan?
His Great Harem: Four Ordos of Genghis
- Genghis Khan’s personal harem comprised four distinct ordos (palaces).
- Börte Khatun, his first wife, held the highest rank among empresses.
The personal harem of Genghis Khan was enormous. Housing such a large number of wives and concubines presented significant challenges. Therefore, Genghis Khan had four distinct harems, which the Mongols referred to as the “Four Ordos,” so that he could better organize his spouses. These four ordos (which means “palaces”) were entrusted to Börte (Börte Üjin), Khulan, Yesui, and Yesugen, the four principal wives of Genghis Khan. Yesugen also gave birth to Chawuer (Cha’ur) who died before adulthood.
His spouses had ranks descending from great empress (khatun) to empress and concubine. All of Genghis’ wives, concubines, and children had their own yurts (households), which were overseen by the four queens. Börte Khatun, the first and greatest of the empresses, lived in the first yurt. She was the first wife of Genghis Khan, and she had the highest rank among the four queens. Also, Genghis Khan fully acknowledged Börte’s four sons as his rightful heirs. With his other children, though, he was not as involved.
Genghis Khan’s Eight Sons
- His first four sons, born to Börte, became influential Mongol leaders.
- The Great Khan also had lesser-known sons like Kuoliejian, Wuluchi, and Chawuer.
All four sons of Genghis Khan from Börte became powerful figures in the Mongol Empire. They also became the most famous of Genghis Khan’s children. Genghis Khan’s other alleged children, Kuoliejian, Wuluchi, Chawuer, and Shuerche, three of whom died young, all had different mothers. That’s why they are mentioned less frequently in history. Genghis Khan favored Kuoliejian among his secondary sons, and Kuoliejian was later blessed with four sons.
Jochi (1182–1227)
- Jochi, born to Börte, was respected in the Mongol Empire.
- His skill on the battlefield resulted in important accomplishments.
The eldest son, Jochi, born to Börte, was a general in the Mongol Empire. He is known for his participation in battles to conquer the Jin State, Western Xia, and Central Asia. Lands in the western section of the Mongol Empire were allocated to Jochi as part of Genghis Khan’s tribute.
According to legend, Börte was not pregnant when she was taken away by the rival Merkit tribe. However, when Temujin (aka Genghis Khan), with the help of his tribe, sent troops to rescue Börte, she was already heavily pregnant. She later gave birth to Jochi (also Jöchi or Juchi).
If the Mongols had placed a high value on blood, they would not have married so many women from diverse cultures. For Genghis, a child would always be considered his own son as long as the child called him ‘father’. That’s why Genghis called the baby “Jochi,” which means “guest” in Mongolian.
Among Temujin’s many sons, Jochi had the greatest battle achievements. But in 1222, Jochi stopped taking part in Genghis Khan’s wars. Genghis Khan believed that Jochi was intending to kill him, but during Temujin’s mobilization of troops, Jochi became critically ill and died at the age of 45.
After Genghis Khan’s western expedition, the hereditary territory of the Mongolian Khans of the Jochi line was established as the “Ulus of Jochi”, also referred to as the Kipchak Khanate or Golden Horde (1242–1502).
Jochi’s lands were split among his sons. His firstborn, Orda, established the White Horde, while his second, Batu, established the Golden Horde.
Jochi had a total of 14 sons:
- Orda (the eldest)
- Batu
- Berke
- Berkhechir
- Shiban
- Tangad
- Teval
- Chilagun
- Sinqur
- Chimbay
- Muhammed
- Udur
- Tuqa-Timur
- Shingum
Chagatai (1183–1242)
- Chagatai founded the Chagatai Khanate after Genghis Khan’s death.
- He had 7 sons, including Baiju and Baidar, from concubines.
Chagatai, Genghis Khan’s second son, also born to Börte, founded the Chagatai Khanate (1227–1363). After Genghis Khan died, Chagatai took over as the vassal emperor of Kashgar and much of Transoxiana (between the Amu and Syr Darya rivers).
Chagatai had 7 sons and the last four of them were from his concubines:
- Mutukan (the eldest)
- Belgesh
- Yesü Möngk
- Mochi Yebe
- Sarban
- Baidar
- Baiju.
Chagatai inherited the five modern-day nations in Central Asia. Also, Genghis Khan tasked him with seeing that his written code of law, the Yassa, was really put into practice. Chagatai was held in high regard for around 14 years as a fair and capable leader. Despite having many children, it was Qara Hülegü, his grandson, who took control after his death.
Ögedei (1186–1241)
- Ögedei was the first to use the title “khagan.”
- He had seven sons, including Güyük and Kadan, during his rule.
Ögedei, the third son of Genghis Khan, was also born to Börte. He was supported and enthroned in 1229 AD to manage the entire Mongol Empire. Throughout his father’s rise to power, Ögedei was involved in a number of conflicts. When referring to himself, he was the first Mongol leader to use the Turkic title “khagan,” which means “great khan.” He married Töregene and was a key figure in the Mongol conquest of the Khwarazmian Empire.
Ögedei had seven sons in total:
- Güyük (the eldest)
- Koden
- Köchü
- Qarachar
- Qashi
- Kadan
- Melig
He inherited his father’s mandate to expand the territory and went south to destroy the Jin Dynasty of North China, also sending his nephew, Batu Khan (1205–1255), the founder of the Golden Horde, to conquer Europe. During his reign, his territory expanded to include Central Asia, North China, and Eastern Europe. In 1271, Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan Dynasty, listed Ögedei as “Taizong” on his official record.
Tolui (1191–1232)
- Tolui, Genghis Khan’s youngest son, supervised the country after Ögedei’s reign.
- Tolui had 11 sons, including Möngke Khan and Kublai Khan.
Mongol culture emphasized the need to keep the youngest child on the main base since he was not capable enough for an expedition yet. Tolui, the fourth son of Genghis Khan and also born to Börte, stayed with his parents and inherited his father’s offices, pastureland, and army. When Ögedei succeeded to the throne, Tolui supervised the country. Kublai Khan, the greatest successor of Genghis Khan, was Tolui’s fourth child.
Tolui had a total of 11 sons:
- Möngke Khan (the eldest)
- Kublai Khan
- Hulagu Khan
- Ariq Böke
- Qutuqtu
- El-Temür
- Jörike
- Möge
- Böchök
- Sögetei
- Sübügetei
Tolui’s son Kublai posthumously bestowed upon him the title of Chinese emperor, though he never used it in his lifetime, even if he had never used the title of Khagan himself. His father’s sister-in-law, Altani, saved Tolui from a Tatar who was ready to murder him when he was five. In 1213, Tolui and his brother-in-law, Chiqu, participated in their first battle against the Jin dynasty by storming the walls of Dexing.
Prior to his death, Genghis Khan designated his own son, Ögedei, as his successor. At the time of his passing in 1227, Genghis Khan commanded a formidable army of 129,000 soldiers. Upon his death, a portion of these troops, totaling 28,000, were distributed among his many siblings and children. The lion’s share of these soldiers, numbering over 100,000, were bequeathed to his youngest son, Tolui, since he was a skilled military leader. Notably, this group also included the vast majority of the elite Mongolian cavalry.
Wuluchi (Ulugci)
It is likely that Wuluchi’s (or Ulugci’s) mother, a Tatar woman, was the khatun Yesui, one of Genghis Khan’s principal khatuns. Since she was a queen of Genghis, it is clear that Wuluchi did not have a particularly low social standing among Genghis Khan’s many other sons. But he did not appear to be a general in the Mongol army, unlike Kölgen, another son of Genghis.
Chawuer
Not much is known about Chawuer. However, Chawuer was born into a royal mother too; her mother was a queen of Genghis Khan, and she ranked fourth among the four queens that managed Genghis Khan’s great harems (the Four Ordos) and the concubine yurts.
Kölgen (Kuoliejian) (1188–1238)
From a position of standing, he was not a “nobody” as well. Kölgen was Khulan Khatun’s only son, the youngest khatun of Genghis Khan. She was Genghis’ second favorite wife. Therefore, Kölgen was second only to Genghis Khan’s other sons from Börte. He accompanied Genghis Khan on one of his famous western expeditions.
Khulan Hatun of Uvas Merkits, a Tatar by birth and a Mongolian by adoption, gave birth to Kölgen during the Mongol invasions in 1188. In 1238, in the Siege of Kolomna, he met his demise while leading the army under Batu Khan in the Kipchak campaign.
During the conquest of the Russian Principalities, he was the only börçigin to lose his life. The oldest of Kölgen’s four sons, Kucha, was also the most famous. During the Mongol era in China, Hucha’s son Uguday received a royal title in 1265, and his son Ebugen succeeded him.
In 1287, he was stripped of the royal title and executed because of his participation in the rebellion against Kublai Khan. In 1313, a man named “Grandson of the Kölgen” was given the title “Khan”, and his son Dorjban succeeded him.
Kölgen is also called Kyul Khan, Kulkan, Kuoliejian, Gelejian, and Küregen, depending on the source. The character Kulkan appears in the book “Baty” by Vasili Yang.
Shuerche
For Shuerche, things were quite different. It is unknown who his mother was; however, she was a member of the medieval Naiman tribe, a notorious Genghis Khan adversary that Genghis first defeated in 1199 and later in 1203, ending their last khan.
Genghis Khan’s Five Daughters
- Genghis Khan’s daughters, like Alakhai Bekhi, played key roles as regents.
- Checheikhen’s marriage to Torolchi established Mongol dominance over trade routes.
Each of Genghis Khan’s known daughters married a prominent individual of the time. The candidates were hand-picked and were allies who declared their allegiance to Genghis Khan. The only fact known about Tümelün (one of Genghis’ daughters) is that she married her cousin Chigu, who was the son of Alchi, who was born to Teyin (Dei Seichen), Börte’s father.
There was also a sixth daughter named Tulgha who was allegedly conceived by Qulan Khatun and the Qarluqs took her as a wife.
Alakhai Bekhi (1191–1230)
Genghis Khan’s daughter from his first marriage to Börte, Alakhai Bekhi, was a powerful figure in the background of his rule and acted as a regent over the parts of China he conquered. To show his gratitude to the Ongud, one of Genghis Khan’s allies, Alakhai was engaged to an Ongud relative in 1206. Genghis Khan formed this alliance to further his conquests beyond the Gobi Desert.
Though her husband was killed during a revolt by the Ongud in 1211, Alakhai was able to escape and put down the uprising with the help of her father. She eventually married her stepson Jingue, and the two of them raised a child they called Negudei. Alakhai was well-known for her devotion to her family’s traditions, her interest in medical and holy books, her promotion of literacy, and her daily reading habit.
In the wake of Jingue’s death, she married another of her stepsons, Boyaohe, and saw to it that Boyaohe and his children were married off to members of the Borjigin Clan, the clan of Genghis Khan, so that they might further their own political interests.
Checheikhen (died c. 1237)
The marriage of Genghis Khan’s daughter Checheikhen to Torolchi, a descendant of the Oirat leader Khudugha Beki, took place in 1207 as part of a peace treaty between the Mongol leader and the Oirat tribe. It was through her marriage that Mongol hegemony was established over the northern trade routes, and the territories under her sisters’ control grew increasingly economically connected.
Sad to say, after Checheikhen’s death in 1237, her brother, Ögedei Khan, seized power in the Oirat territories and is suspected of having perpetrated acts of brutality against the Oirat people. Orghana was one of Checheikhen’s daughters; Oghul Qaimish could have been another.
Qocin Beki (Huochenbieji)
Qochin Beki (Bekhi or Begi) was supposedly the oldest of Genghis Khan’s daughters by Borte, but not much more is known about her. Genghis Khan gave Qocin Beki as a bride to the Ikires people, namely Butu Küregen. Butu was previously the husband of Genghis Khan’s sister, Temulin, until her death.
The Ikires were a branch of the Khongirads, one of the largest Mongol groups in the 1100s. It is often believed that the Khongirad people are descended from the long-vanished Wuku or Wugu people. Qocin Beki is also called as Khochen Beki.
Alaltun
Genghis Khan had a daughter with an unnamed concubine; she was actually known as Il-Alti, Il-Altun, or Ile Khatun (Qatun), and the name “Alaltun” was a mistake in transcription. She was one of nine half-siblings, although four of them didn’t make it to adulthood.
After Genghis Khan had won the obedience and devotion of the Uyghur leader Barjuk Idi-Qut, he promised Il-Alti to him as a reward. However, the marriage never took place since Idi-Qut already had a main spouse and Il-Alti had passed away.
The promise was tried to be fulfilled by Il-Alti’s half-brother Ögedei, who became Khan after Genghis Khan’s death, but it was too late. Some say that Il-Alti was executed by Ögedei’s supporters because she poisoned Ögedei; others say that her execution was unfair and against Genghis Khan’s Yassa (law code).
Throughout the history of the Mongol Empire, Il-Alti stood out as both the leader of the Uyghurs and a heroic figure. Rashid al-Din, a Persian historian, claims that among Genghis Khan’s 13 children, she was his favorite daughter.
References
- Genghis Khan’s Life – Google Books
- Genghis Khan’s family tree: History of International Relations – Google Books
- Some remarks on the deaths of Mongol Khans – (core.ac.uk)
