Kalku Clan

Overview

The Kalku clan is a Manchu surname recorded in Volume 62 of the *Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, with their ancestral home in the Ula region. The genealogy records that the Alha family belonged to the Plain Blue Banner and submitted to the Qing Dynasty at its beginning. Grandson Dalantai served as a scribe, as did his great-grandson Luozang, and another great-grandson, Ayandai, served as a vanguard officer when the genealogy was compiled.

Ula is a historical geographical name in Northeast China, related to the present-day Ula region in the Songhua River basin of Jilin Province. Its scope varied with the times and the context of historical documents. The genealogy states that the family has lived in Ula for generations, but does not specify a village or settlement with a modern address. The scribe positions held by Dalantai and Luozang across two generations indicate that the family had members continuously involved in clerical and administrative work. The scribe (bihesi) in Manchu refers to a position related to copying, translation, and handling official documents.

The vanguard officer was a junior officer in the vanguard organization. During the Qing Dynasty, the vanguard served as the lead force and sentry during campaigns and escort duties, and was part of the Eight Banners military system. Ayan Dai's official post and Luo Zang's clerical position belonged to different posts and cannot be confused as the same person's concurrent postings. Alha's own official position, the specific terms of office of his three descendants, and the location of Ula's ancestral village still need to be verified.