Altyn

Overview

Aljin is a member of the Tatara clan of the Plain Red Banner, listed in Volume 11 of the official genealogy of the Manchu Eight Banners compiled during the Qianlong reign. His family resided in Anchulaku and submitted to the Qing dynasty at its beginning. The original entry did not record his official position, but the recorded descendants are already six and seven generations removed: his sixth-generation descendant, Ajintai, served as a Shujishi (a junior official in the Hanlin Academy), while Aljintai was recorded as a Shengyuan (a student in the Hanlin Academy); his seventh-generation descendant, Mingzheng, is recorded as a current Bitieshi (a clerk in the Hanlin Academy). The generational gap is significant, making it impossible to establish a direct lineage of Aljin's descendants.

A Shujishi was a position within the Qing dynasty's Hanlin Academy system, typically selected from newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations). They studied Qing and Han texts and related political affairs, and were later assessed and discharged. Therefore, while Ajintai entered the Hanlin system, his subsequent official position, academic achievements, or specific publications cannot be solely attributed to his previous Shujishi status.

A Shengyuan was a qualification for study within the school and imperial examination system, not an official position; a Bitieshi was a government employee handling documents and translations. Altai's educational background and official position should be described separately; "current" refers to his status at the time of genealogy compilation. This information presents the family's education and paperwork activities in later generations. Altyn's own experiences and the paternal lineage of the intermediate generations still need further verification, and the exact location of Anchulaku has not yet been determined.