The Xiongnu were groups of nomadic tribes that are believed to have settled in what is nowadays the Eurasian Steppe (Parts of Siberia and Mongolia) from 3rd century BC to the 1st century AD. These groups would eventually form the Xiongnu Dynasty.
These groups would constantly engage into conflict with dynasties which ruled over territories down south. during the Sixteen Kingdoms Era (from 304 AD to 439 AD, the Xiongnu tribes would be known as one of the "Five Barbarians" who would uprise against the Chinese rule.