Darbonah

Overview

Darbanga was a member of the Irgen Gioro clan of the Plain Red Banner during the early Qing Dynasty. His family had lived in Yarhu for generations and submitted to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty. His name is included in Volume 13 of the official clan genealogy *the Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, compiled during the Qianlong reign. The original entry did not include his official position, birth and death dates, or specific deeds; it only listed his great-grandson Zhangge as a deputy captain of the infantry, his great-great-grandson Fobao as a scribe, and his fourth-generation descendant Chang'an as a student. These three pieces of information respectively pertain to military rank, clerical official position, and academic qualification.

The infantry system was responsible for military administration affairs such as urban infantry. The deputy captain of the infantry should retain the nature of a deputy position and should not be simplified to an infantry officer. Furthermore, Zhangge's specific rank, location, or number of subordinates should not be supplemented based on later systems. The scribe was responsible for official documents, copying, and translation. Fobao's department is not recorded, and his position cannot be inferred from the fact that other members of the clan held a certain department.

The title of student pertains to qualifications within the school and imperial examination system; it cannot be written that Chang'an had already held an official position or necessarily later became a *juren* (a successful candidate in the provincial examination). The genealogy lists great-grandson, great-great-grandson, and fourth-generation descendant in relative order, without specifying each person's father's name; the short list is insufficient to connect Zhangge, Fobao, and Chang'an into a continuous father-son lineage. Darbang A'tiao can independently explain the occupational and educational clues of a Manchu family, but personal experiences, the location of Yarhu Village, and the terms of office of each generation still require further reliable historical materials to corroborate.