Sha Jing'a

Overview

Sha Jing'a was a member of the Balda clan, belonging to the Bordered Red Banner. His family had lived in Balda for generations and submitted to the Qing dynasty at its beginning. Volume 49 of the official Qing dynasty compilation, *The Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, states that the surname originated from a place name, focusing on the military achievements and hereditary titles of Sha Jing'a's descendants. However, clan, ancestral home, and banner affiliation reflect different social statuses, and Balda cannot be directly interpreted as a banner name.

Sha Jing'a's fourth-generation descendant, Dandali, participated in the Shandong campaign as a non-official. During the siege of Chaocheng County, he was the second to scale the city walls, earning the title of Yunqiwei (a military rank). He was later promoted to Third-Class Qingche duwei by imperial decree. After Dandali's death, his son, Suiha, inherited the title. Later, when Dahan inherited it, the additional imperial decree was removed, and he inherited only the title of Yunqiwei. Afterwards, it passed to Suding, the son of his uncle, through Volume 59. This process involved both direct and collateral line inheritance and cannot be simply written as father-to-son succession. The titles of Yunqiwei and Qingche duwei were hereditary, primarily used to record ranks of merit and their continuation; however, the records of fifth-generation descendant Sundali serving as Langzhong and sixth-generation descendant Suerhe serving as Dianbu, among others, indicate actual official positions. The main text uses these records to explain the subsequent development of the Shajinga family, suggesting that the military achievements did not belong to Shajinga himself. The original names, generations, and location of Balda still require verification.