Emperor Xingzong of Liao

Emperor Xingzong of Liao
Emperor of the Liao dynasty
Reign	25 June 1031 – 28 August 1055
Predecessor	Emperor Shengzong
Successor	Emperor Daozong
Born	Zhigu (Khitan name) Yelü Zongzhen (sinicised name) 3 April 1016
Died	28 August 1055 (aged 39)
Era dates Jingfu (景福; 1031–1032) Chongxi(重熙; 1032–1055) Posthumous name Shensheng Xiaozhang Huangdi (神聖孝章皇帝) Temple name Xingzong
Father	Emperor Shengzong
Mother	Empress Xiao Noujin

Emperor Xingzong of Liao
Traditional Chinese	遼興宗
Simplified Chinese	辽兴宗
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Liáo Xīngzōng
Zhigu (Khitan name)
Chinese	只骨
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhīgǔ
Yelü Zongzhen (sinicised name)
Chinese	耶律宗真
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yēlǜ Zōngzhēn

Emperor Xingzong of Liao (3 April 1016 – 28 August 1055), personal name Zhigu, sinicised name Yelü Zongzhen, was the seventh emperor of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty.

Life

Yelü Zongzhen was the eldest son of Emperor Shengzong. He was enfeoffed as a prince in 1021 at the age of six. When Emperor Shengzong died in 1031, Yelü Zongzhen succeeded his father as emperor.

The Sinified form of his personal name is usually given as the reason (via the Chinese naming taboo) for the variant forms of the Chinese name of the Jurchens around this time. More likely, however, the variants—which are also attested in other languages of the era lacking such a taboo—simply reflect dialectical differences among the Jurchens themselves.

Emperor Xingzong's reign was the beginning of the end for the Liao dynasty. The government was corrupt and the army started to fall apart. He attacked the Western Xia dynasty many times, and waged war against the Northern Song dynasty. However, the frequent wars were not looked kindly upon by his people, and there were much anger among them for the high taxes. Emperor Xingzong was interested in Buddhism and spent lavishly for his own pleasure. He died in 1054.