All rulers of the Northern Liang proclaimed themselves "wang" (translatable as "prince" or "king").
Most Chinese historians view Northern Liang as ended in 439, when its capital Guzang (姑臧, in modern Wuwei, Gansu) fell to Northern Wei forces and its prince Juqu Mujian was captured. However, some view his cousins Juqu Wuhui and Juqu Anzhou, who subsequently settled with Northern Liang remnants in Gaochang (高昌, in modern Turpan Prefecture, Xinjiang), as a continuation of Northern Liang, and thus view Northern Liang as having ended in 460, when Gaochang fell to Rouran and was made a vassal, and the remnants of the Juqu family were slaughtered.