Written records of the Niohuru clan dates back to the Liao dynasty (907-1125), when it was known as the Dilie clan (敌烈氏) by Chinese transliteration. The current transliteration Niohuru came into being during the Ming dynasty. The Niohuru clan inhabited the Changbai mountains region of present-day Jilin province in northeast China (otherwise known as Manchuria), and also on the banks of the Songhua River and Mudan River.