Товч агуулга:Like many larger endeavors, this book, too, has its own history. In the beginning, it was the idea of two younger determined scientists to assemble the leading researchers and heads of excavations involved in the field of Xiongnu archaeology at a conference in order to exchange ideas and opinions on this subject. In general, the entire scope of research activities in a single field usually cannot be circumscribed within one conference alone, and the papers presented at the conference alone clearly would not suffice for a comprehensive work worthy of publication.
The first documented polity on Inner Asia that may be characterized as "imperial " in nature is the Xiongnu entity mentioned in Han Chinese texts of the 3rd century BC to 2nd century AD. That Xiongnu studies attract researchers from diverse fields and from many different nations attests to its rich potential. Scholarly attention is drawn toward the steppes at this time not only from the ancient accounts of powerful nomad groups bur also from the ostentatious tombs of steppe elites unearthed in Mongolia and South Siberia within the last century.
