Home › Words › C › chanyuchanyuchanyu means A supreme ruler of one or more nomadic tribes of Inner Asian peoples, at some point between the 4th century BCE and the 4th century CE; most notably a ruler of the Xiongnu.EtymologyBorrowed from Mandarin 單于 (chányú); ultimately from Xiongnu.nounA supreme ruler of one or more nomadic tribes of Inner Asian peoples, at some point between the 4th century BCE and the 4th century CE; most notably a ruler of the Xiongnu.Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).Words closest in meaningBy meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.xiongnu 60% match — An ancient nomadic-based people that formed a state or confederation north of the agriculture-based empire of the Han dynasty. vs chanyu →myriarch 59% match — A ruler or commander over 10,000 people, particularly; The commander of a Mongolian tomen. vs chanyu →khagan 54% match — A khan of khans, a ruler of a khaganate; (the holder of) an imperial rank used among certain Turkic and Mongolian peoples, equal in status to an emperor. vs chanyu →anax 53% match — An Ancient Greek tribal chief or leader. vs chanyu →cuman 52% match — A member of a nomadic Turkic people of central Asia who ruled parts of Eurasia and Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages. vs chanyu →chieftain 52% match — A leader of a clan or tribe. vs chanyu →xianbei 51% match — An ancient Mongolic nomadic people who resided in what is now eastern Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and northeast China. vs chanyu →tuchun 51% match — A Chinese military governor or warlord. vs chanyu →