or Anda
died 1583, Mongolia
Mongol khan who terrorized China in the 16th century.
He established a Chinese-style government in his homeland and concluded a peace treaty with Ming-dynasty China in 1571. He converted the Mongol s to the reformed, or Dge-lugs-pa , sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In 1578 Altan granted the head of the sect the title of Dalai Lama . With Mongol military aid, later Dalai Lamas crushed the more established Karma-pa (Red Hat) sect in Tibet to become Tibet's spiritual and temporal rulers. See also Gtsang dynasty .