Z. V. Togan: The Origins of the Kazaks and the
ôzbeks
H. B. Paksoy
[First published in
Central Asian SurveyVol. 11, No. 3. 1992]
[Reprinted in
H. B. Paksoy, Ed. CENTRAL ASIA READER: The Rediscovery of
History (New York/London: M. E. Sharpe, 1994) 201 Pp. +
Index.
ISBN 1-56324-201-X (Hardcover); ISBN 1-56324- 202-8 (pbk.)
LC CIP DK857.C45 1993 958-dc20]
Editor's Introduction
A professor of history for over half a century, Zeki Velidi
Togan (1890-1970), a Bashkurt Turk, studied and taught in
institutions of higher learning on three continents, including
the United States.1 His first book, TÅrk ve Tatar
Tarihi
(Turk
and Tatar History), was published in Kazan in 1911. The
renowned
scholars N. Ashmarin and N. Katanov (1862-1922),2 both of Kazan
University, and V.V. Bartold (1869-1930) of St. Petersburg
University, invited Togan to study with them.
In 1913, Togan was asked by the Archeology and Ethnography
Society of Kazan University to undertake a research trip to
Turkistan. After successful completion of that endeavor, the
Imperial Russian Academy of Sciences,3 jointly with International
Central Asia Research Society, sponsored Togan for a more
extensive expedition. Portions of Togan's findings began to be
published in scholarly journals prior to the First World War. His
lifetime output approaches four hundred individual items in at
least five languages. He also had facility in several others.
Like the Ukrainian scholar Mikhail Hrushevsky (1866-1934) and
the Czech Thomas Masaryk (1850-1937), Togan was not only a
scholar devoted to writing about the history of his nation, but
also worked to secure its intellectual, cultural, civil, and
political independence. He became a leader of the Turkistan
National Liberation Movement in Central Asia (1916-1930s), called
the Basmachi Movement by the Russians. A revealing anecdote is
offered by A. Inan, a close colleague of Togan both as a
historian and as a leading member of the Turkistan National
Liberation movement. The event takes place in June 1922 in the
vicinity of Samarkand:
When a Bolshevik military unit, detailed to liquidate us, opened
fire, we took refuge in a nearby cemetery. As we began defending
ourselves, I noticed that Togan had taken out his ever-present
notebook and was busily scribbling. The circumstances were so
critical that some of those among our ranks even thought that he
was hurriedly recording his last will and testament. He kept
writing, seemingly oblivious to the flying bullets aimed at him,
and the accompanying sounds of war. I shouted at him from behind
the tombstone that was protecting me, and asked why he was not
fighting. Without looking up, continuing to write, he shouted
back: You continue firing. The inscriptions on these
headstones
are very interesting.4
Togan's investigation of the origin of the Kazaks and the
ôzbeks is adapted from his TÅrkili
TÅrkistan, a project he worked on
during the 1920s, a period when he was establishing extensive
contacts with the Central Asian population from Ferghana to the
shores of the Caspian on behalf of the Turkistan national
liberation movement. After he left Central Asia, and earned his
doctorate in Europe, he continued his research using published
sources. Though completed in 1928, the work was not published
until 1947, in Istanbul.
Togan's analysis and documentation in the excerpt printed here
may contribute to the clarification of the issues involved in
efforts to rediscover the ethnogenesis of the
Uzbeks, Kazakhs,5 and other Central
Asians. It should be recalled that these designations are
primarily geographical, tribal, or confederation names, not
ethnonyms. Often they were taken from geographic reference points
by travelers and then were mistakenly or deliberately turned into
ethnic or political classifications. Early in the eighth century,
Central Asians themselves provided an account of their identity,
history, and political order.6 Later efforts to identify and
disseminate information concerning the genealogy of Central
Asians can be traced to a wave of native Central Asian leadership
that was suppressed in the Stalinist liquidations. Examples from
the period survive in abundance, in Central Asian dialects,
published in three alphabets in various Central Asian cities.
Notes
- 1. In addition to Togan's Hatiralar (Memoirs)
(Istanbul, 1969),
this account makes use of bibliographic material appearing in
Fen-Edebiyat FakÅltesi Arastirma Dergisi,
AtatÅrk
öniversitesi, Erzurum (Sayi 13, 1985) and information
provided by Togan's
colleagues, students, and family friends.
- 2. Despite their names, neither was Russian, but both had
been
baptized. Togan calls Katanov a Sagay-Turk from the Altai region,
and Ashmarin a Chuvash-Turk.
- 3. For a description of the formation of the Academy, see
R.N.
Frye, "Oriental Studies in Russia,'' in Russia and Asia:
Essays
on the Influence of Russia on the Asian Peoples, ed. Wayne
Vucinich (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1972).
- 4. Over the years I have been told of this incident
independently by several students and friends of both Inan and
Togan. Later in life it seems to have occasioned numerous droll
exchanges between Inan and Togan; every time Inan mentioned the
incident, Togan relished recounting the story of Inan's having
been "wounded" in the same battle. The two men endured arduous
times together, both in Asia and Europe, and later in their
careers became colleagues at Istanbul University, where,
reportedly, each sent his students to the seminars of the other.
On one occasion toward the end of their lives, when Inan became
seriously ill, Togan asked his doctoral students to visit Inan at
the hospital and read him passages from Togan's
Hatiralar (which was still in manuscript),
especially the portion about "Inan's wounding." Indeed, Togan
records the fighting in his memoirs, including Inan's "wounding,"
but not his own "note-taking." He simply states that he "read the
headstones written in the Kufi script" (Hatiralar,
p. 414). Togan identifies the location of the cemetery as Qala-i
Ziyaeddin.
- 5. Note that Togan and other historians spell these words
ôzbek and Kazak, respectively. "ôzbek" is the only
form encountered in the material published in Tashkent during the
1928-39 period, when a subset of the Latin alphabet was used. The
term "Cossack" (Russian: Kazak), incidentally, is a corruption of
"Kazak" (Russian: Kazakh), though there is little, if any,
ethnic relation between them. Similarly, the term "Tatar," as
found in the KÅltigin (of the Orkhon group) stelea of the
eighth century A.D., is a correct rendition. During the Mongol
irruption of the thirteenth century, Western authors inaccurately
used "Tartarus" (which actually refers to "the infernal
regions of Roman and Greek mythology," hence, hell), yielding
the form "Tartar." By that time "Tartarus" had already been
assimilated into Christian theology in Europe. Possibly St. Louis
of France was the first, in 1270, to apply this unrelated term
and spelling to the Chinggisid troops of Jochi.
- 6. These were recorded on scores of stelea, written in their
unique alphabet and language, and erected in the region of
Orkhon-Yenisey. See Talat Tekin, A Grammar of Orkhon Turkic.
Indiana University Uralic and Altaic Series, vol. 69
(Bloomington/The Hague: Mouton, 1968) (contents dating from the
eighth century).
THE ORIGINS OF THE KAZAKS AND THE ôZBEKS
The Concepts of Tatar, Kipchak, Togmak, and ôzbek
Tatar, Kipchak, Togmak, and ôzbeks:
The nomadic populace of the entire Desht-i Kipchak [Kipchak
steppe], from the Tarbagatay mountains to the Syr Darya River,
and from Khorezm to the Idil [Volga] basin and Crimea, were
termed "Togmak" during the era of the Mongols, prior to the
spread of Islam. Among the Khiva ôzbeks, the term (in
EbÅlgazi)a known as "Togma"; Baskurts "Tuvma;" Nogay
(according to the Cevdet Pasha history),b "Tokma"
designated individuals without a known lineage, or fugitives to
be sold as slaves, being offenders of the law. The negative
connotation ascribed to this term, generally referencing the
Kipchaks and Altin Orda (Golden Horde) Tatars, must have occurred
after the spread of Islam. It is not known that the Jochi Ulus
utilized that appellation. It appears that this tribe, known as
"Togmak," had been designated as "ôzbek" after "ôzbek
Khan" (1312-1340). According to Bartold, the terms "ôzbek"
and "ôzbek Ulus" have been utilized in Central Asia to
distinguish this tribe and its entire military population from
the "Chaghatay"; until the dissolution of the Altin Orda during
the fifteenth century, and the dissemination of its uruk as
ôzbek, Kazak, and Nogay Ulus. Their identifying battle cry
was the word alach.
It is necessary to define some of the ethnic terms in use in the
Jochi Ulus: The ôzbeks of today, living in Transoxiana and
Khorezm, comprise the dominant group known under the general
rubric "tatar" in the Jochi Ulus. However, it is possible that
the term "tatar" was used in a wider context, applying not only
to the dominant group but perhaps also to the dominated. The term
Kipchak also has dual connotations, applying narrowly and
specifically to the Kipchak lineage as well as generally and
broadly to the entire populace of the Kipchak steppe, including
the ôzbeks. According to our findings, the term "tatar"
earlier applied within the Jochi Ulus only to the Turk and Mongol
elements issuing from the east, to the dominant component, and
"kipchak" to the subject nomadic tribes of the steppe. The term
"Togmak" became the general term of reference to all. After the
ôzbek Khan, the word "ôzbek" applied to all "Tatar"
and "Kipchak" in their totality, replacing "Togmak." However, the
Kipchak and the "Tatar," arriving from the east during the age
of the Mongols, mixed with the elements of the older civilization
of the land, as opposed to the nomadic tribes, and started
forming, let us say, the "Yataq Tatar" or "Yataq Kipchak."*
Then, "Tatar" began to assume a wider meaning than "ôzbek,"
and the term "ôzbek" became the appellation of the nomadic
aristocraciese of the ôzbek, Nogay, Kazak, and Baskurt
[confederations] that separated from the Tatar and the Kipchak
societies. Nevertheless, although the word "Tatar" had lost its
previous meaning, in the vernacular of the people it continued to
be utilized as "Elin Tatari," meaning the "Aristocracy of the
Land." Moreover, since the trade was in the hands of the Tatar
"Ortaq"f firms during the Mongol period (especially Mongol and
Uyghur), "Tatar" also meant "merchant." During the fourteenth
and fifteenth centuries, when the dominant military-nomadic Tatar
and Kipchak amalgamation of the Jochi Ulus emerged as the
ôzbeks, those not belonging to the ruling tribes formed
other strata as follows:
- 1. "As," of the old civilization of the Kipchak steppe,
in the vicinity of Astrakhan and Saray; "Bulgar-Kazan"
Turks of the Middle Idil; Burtas and Mokshi (in Islamic and
Mongolian sources, "Mîks"); in the Crimea region, "Tat" and
the remnants of the old Khazars; Istek and Ibir-Sibir tribes in
western Siberia;
- 2. Kipchak and Bashkurt, who were settled. Those among them
in the region of the Urals are also known as "Tepter" (defter),
having been so recorded in registers;
- 3. Some portions of today's Kazak and Baskurt, who stayed
away from political life, living from earlier times as neighbors
of the Siberian tribes of "Istek."
Even today, it is possible to distinguish the dominant and
subject Turks within the Jochi Ulus: the dominant uruks remember
the dastans of historical personages and the traditions of the
steppe aristocracy, while the subject uruks remember only the
dastans of the shamanistic mythology and traditions of
"charva" and are unaware of the political and historical
dastans.
The Language, Customs and Traditions of the Old
Kipchak-ôzbek
The fourteenth- and fifteenth-century Arab authors (Ibn Battuta,
Ibn Fadl allah al-Umari, and Ibn Arabshah) have described well
the life, mores, and character of the ôzbeks and the
Kipchaks of the Kipchak steppe. According to Ibn Arabshah, the
ôzbek Turks of the Kipchak steppe are regarded as
possessing the most lucid language, their men and women are the
most handsome, generally displaying aristocratic bearing, not
deigning to trickery or lies, being the gentlefolk of all the
Turks.h The language of these ôzbeks, living from Yedisu to
Crimea, can be observed in the poetry fragments and other
monuments coming down to us, is generally the same; and its
Kipchak characteristics have been partially preserved in the
speech of today's ôzbek, Kazak, and Mangit-Nogay. Their way
of life and customs, parallel to "TÅrk-chigil" and
"TÅrkmen-Oguz" group,i is the same. Their written
histories, folk literature, and especially heroic epics
of the Kipchak steppe such as Chinggis, Jochi and his Sons,
Edige, Toktamis, Nureddin, chora Batir,j and Koblandi, their
verse stories, Cirenche chechen recitations, and others, are the
same everywhere. The melodies of the Baskurt and nomadic
ôzbeks are today recited among the Crimean and Constanza
Nogays. The Nogay dastans are recited word for word among the
Karakalpak and the Kazak of Khorezm. The old and the new Kipchak
Turks did not engage in "black service" occupations and
considered themselves as the master; they have not made the
transition to farming except under extreme necessity, regarding
it an occupation contrary to the spirit of the steppe
aristocracy; and even under severe economic crisis they did not
allow their daughters to marry sedentary grooms. In this regard,
the Nogays had shown the greatest exaggeration, and were cut down
in their tens of thousands and even hundreds of thousands during
the Kalmak [Mongol] and Russian occupations. Among them, the
historical personae and epic heroes such as Chinggis, Toktamis,
Edige, Er Tagin, Urak Mamay, and Adil Sultan personify the spirit
and the ideals of the steppe aristocracy. In the collective and
unified dastan literature of the ôzbek of the old Jochi
Ulus, comprising the current ôzbek, Kazak, Mangit-Nogay,
and Baskurt, the following elements of ethics, moral qualities,
and characteristics are discernible: exaltation of endeavor;
readiness to die in defense of honor; the principle of espousing
society and state above all; enduring difficulties with ease;
belief that efforts expended in overcoming obstacles facilitate
progress; willingness to undertake long and arduous journeys;
women's desire only for men in possession of these qualities; and
the elevated position of noble women and mothers in the society.
These are all proclaimed in the literature of the old Tatar and
Kipchak aristocratic strata, meaning ôzbek literature.
Generally, the good and the bad customs and habits of the old
Turks are evident even more overtly among the
ôzbek-Kipchak: imperturbability (levelheadedness); dislike
of confusion; moderation; courage; an affinity for being in
charge; harshness in battle but extreme calmness in peace; not
killing but selling of prisoners; purity of heart and honesty;
their extreme sincerity taken advantage of by the enemy;
amplifying small conflicts between individuals and uruks, causing
them to drag out over years and even generations; becoming
materialistic under severe economic conditions, which culminates
in the selling of family members or stealing and selling of
others. All these are the attributes of the ôzbek and the
Kipchak, recorded by the Arab travelers beginning with Ibn
Battuta, since the time of the ôzbek Han.
Division of the "ôzbek" Society into
ôzbek, Kazak, and Mangit-Nogay
The division of the ôzbeks into "ôzbek," "Kazak," and
"Mangit-Nogay" took place not in the Idil basin but while they
were living in the Syr Darya basin. Sons of Jochi "Batu" and
"Berke" Han had influence over the chagatay Ulus; most of
Transoxiana was subject to the Altin Orda. Khorezm and the lower
Syr Darya, beginning from the Otrar region, belonged to the Jochi
Ulus according to the division of the Mongols. In the military
organization of the Jochi Ulus, this area constituted the "Sol
Kol" tribes; in the administrative division, it formed the
"Gîk Orda." During 1358-61, when the affairs of the Altin
Orda (also known as Ak Orda) became muddled, the "Kiyat" beys,
commanding all the troops of the "Sag Kol" [Right Flank] tribes,
brought them to Crimea, and the "Sol Kol" [Left Flank] tribes to
Syr Darya. At the time, since the lineage of Batu had come to an
end, according to the yasa [Mongol customary law]k and the law of
inheritance, the ultimate rule was passed on to the descendants
of Shiban Han,* Jochi's fifth son. Many ôzbek uruks in
today's Turgay province, in the vicinity of "Ak Gîl" [White
Lake], raised to the throne as Han Hizir, who was a descendant of
the Shiban. Nayman, Karluk, Uyghur, Kongrat, and Bîyrek
uruks were in favor. However, the rule of this descendant of
Shiban was confined to a portion of the "Sol Kol" confederations
and the "Tura" stronghold of the Tobol basin in western Siberia.
The uruks of the Syr Darya of the Sol Kol raised "Kara Nogay
Han," a son of SÅ Bas, descendant of "Tokay TemÅr,"
who had not until that day been involved in the affairs of
government. It appears that the "Sol" uruks of this region
comprised Shirin, Barin Kipchak, Argun, Alchin, Katay, Mangit,
and KÅrlevÅt, collectively known as "Yedi San."l The
bases of these Sol Han were in the cities of Yenikend, Cend,
Barchinlig Kent, Sabran, Otrar, and the core, Siginak. Evidently,
some of those uruks were even then involved in the affairs of the
Transoxiana. Among the soldiery of TemÅr,m the Kipchak and
the Nayman played important roles. During the era of
TemÅr's sons, ôzbeks became rather powerful (1427),
under the leadership of "Barak Han," a descendant of Tokay
TemÅr. When Barak was killed in 1429, descendants of Shiban
Han occupied Syr Darya basin. Accordingly, the real center of the
Jochi Ulus (Ak Orda) moved next to Transoxiana. At the same time,
Mangit, who were backing the descendants of Tokay TemÅr,
acquired great influence under the rule of "Edige Beg," which
means "TemÅr Bek of the Altin Orda." Other uruk joined
them, and all together became known as "Mangit," because of the
appellation of the dominant uruk, and on the other hand as
"Nogay" (probably because they raised Kara Nogay Han). Hence I
have used the appellation Mangit-Nogay throughout this work. At
the beginning of the sixteenth century, "Shiban-ôzbek" Han
and the uruks subject to them arrive and settle in Transoxiana
and Khorezm. At that time, the western regions of today's
Kazakistan, as well as Baskurt and Tura lands, became subjected
to Mangit- Nogay in their entirety. In this manner, a strong
Mangit-Nogay society is constituted as opposed to the
ôzbeks. The aforementioned rulers, Kirey and Canibek, sons
of Barak Han, were subject to the famous Ebulkhayir of Shiban
descent. In 1466 they left this Han and became "kazak," sought
asylum from the descendants of chagatay to their east (the Hans
ruling in the environs of Kashgar and Yedisu), acquired the
obedience of some uruks to themselves, and with that aid once
again obtained the allegiance of uruks that owed fealty to them
but were living in the domains of the descendants of Shiban.
Accordingly, next to the "Shiban ôzbek," a "Kazak
ôzbek" society was established.
Thus, the ôzbek society comprised three powerful groups
during the second half of the fifteenth century. What earlier
belonged to the Gîk Orda Han and the descendants of Tokay
TemÅr became the domains of Shiban Han. The possessions of
the Shiban are taken over by the Nogay princes. Kazaks, on the
other hand, demanded shares in both as well as in the chagatay
domains. During the mid-sixteenth century, the "Mangit-Nogay"
princes were situated in "Arka" and "Ulu Tav," which constitutes
the center of today's Kazakistan; began meddling in the affairs
of lands west of Idil, even the shores of Azak; and slowly
shifted westward. The lands in contention, the lower Syr Darya
basin and Arka regions, became depopulated. As a result, these
regions came under the rule of Kazak Hans, who previouly had
lived in Talas and chu. During the second half of the seventeenth
century, first the "Nogay" and later, during the first half of
the eighteenth century, "Kalmak" matters became upset, and Kazak
Hans became the sole ruler of all steppes east of the Yayik
[Ural] river. Nogay withdrew toward Crimea and the northern
Caucasus. Kazak Hans, after separation from the Shiban
ôzbeks, began referring to their neighboring Kazaks as
"Kazak ôzbekleri." In Haydar Mirza Douglat's history, they
are also so termed.n Kazaklar
The Word "Kazak" and the Concept of Being a "Kazak"
The name "Kazak" was at first reserved for the rulers; later,
it also applied to tribes owing fealty to them and to the states
they wished to establish. Prior to that time the name "Kazak"
did not even apply to a tribal confederation, let alone to the
state. Generally, the term "Kazak" was employed to designate
those who were left without a family (boydak) due to a rebellion
of political nature; sometimes those who withdrew from society,
to the mountains and wildernesses, to await more favorable times
before taking over governmental matters, without the benefit and
protection of the tribe; to adolescent boys who had been
separated to help them become accustomed to life; and to those
who left their lands to become ordinary brigands. Under the
influence of the Turk, the tradition of sending the sons out with
a weapon also became accepted among the Russians and recorded in
Islamic sources, and is referenced as "Kazak" in Turkish even
today as well as in the past. A political person becoming Kazak
leaves that designation after settling down in a land following
conquest, or joining another political personage to legitimize
himself. He remembers his "Kazak" past as days of his youth
when he learned to endeavor and endure difficulties (like
TemÅr, and among his sons Ebu Sait Mirza, HÅseyin
Baykara, BabÅr Mirza, and, from among the ôzbeks,
Shiban Han and his followers). Of course, a man can be a Kazak
only for a few years in his lifetime. In that context, the
concept of "Kazak" is in opposition to statehood. Kasim Han and
his son Hak Nazar, descendants of Canibek and Giray, who had
become kazak toward the end of the fifteenth century, tended to
view their own states in that way, as temporary.
At the end of the sixteenth century (1599), the Kazak rulers
left the "chu" region under pressure from the northeastern
Kalmaks, and took refuge in the strongholds of Tashkent and
environs. Until 1723 and another Kalmak rout, they settled in
those regions and attempted to have the steppe tribes convert to
sedentary agriculture. In pursuit of that policy, "Tug
Baglayip," which means announcing the official flag of the
state, established some sort of administrative apparatus and
attempted to establish a state "devlet tÅzÅmek" by
grouping the troops into "YÅz" [hundred] and "Bin"
[thousand]. The Orda (headquarters) of the Han was divided into
three, namely "UluyÅz," "OrtayÅz," and
"KichiyÅz." Among the ôzbek, the terms "Han" and
"Kalgay" were used to designate the ruler, the first heir, and
the second heir; among the Nogay, "Bek," "Nuradin," "Keykubad"
signified the same ranks. It is though that the act of dividing
the Han Orda into three (names alternately used were "Ulugorda,"
"Ortaorda," and "Kichikorda") was inherited from a time when an
experiment in pursuit of establishing a governmental structure
was conducted.
However, the pressure of the Kalmaks, and later, the Russians
(from Siberia), did not allow them to establish a permanent
government and live under that structure, encompassing the
elements of all the tribes. The tribes living in the territories
northeast of the steppes, having termed themselves "Kazak,"
adopted the ôzbek and Nogay aristocracy's equivalent of an
"animal husbandry, tent-dwelling" way of life. The weakness of
the Kazak statehood was of course affected by that.
The Growth of Kazaks
The portion of the steppe inhabited by the ôzbeks became
the domains of the Nogay, who became subject to the Kazak Hans.
During the sixteenth century (at the time of the Saydak and Yusuf
Mirza), the Mangit-Nogay on the eastern side of the Idil alone
numbered about two million. The formation of the TemÅr
state in the east and conquest of Istanbul and the annexation of
Crimea in the west forced the tribes of the Idil to choose
between "Bukhara" (Transoxiana) and "Rum" [Asia Minor]; I shall
return to [this matter] in the history section below. This did
not allow the retention of the tribes in the lower Idil and Yayik
in order to structure a powerful state. When in 1558 the Russians
intruded into these domains, depriving the tribes of their herds
and forcing them to live under individuals such as Alchi Ismail,
who worked with the Russians, the tribes were dispersed.
Continued attacks of the Kalmak, and finally their settling
between Idil and Yayik during 1643, forced an important portion
of the Nogay, with the political and aristocratic strata at their
head, to move to Crimea, and from there to the Caucasus and
further west. But the overwhelming majority of the two million
Nogay living to the east of Idil remained there. A portion of
them migrated to Khorezm and the Syr Darya basin. In that regard,
new tribes arrived in Transoxiana from the Kipchak Steppe at the
time of the AbdÅlaziz (1645-1680) and SÅphan Kulu
(1680-1702), the descendants of Astrakhan Hans now ruling in
Bukhara, strengthening the Kazak Hans. Likewise, the "Kazak"
tribes living in Turgay and Ural consist of those tribes earlier
included under Nogay. During the second half of the sixteenth and
the seventeenth century the evacuation by the Turk tribes of the
Idil basin was so serious, especially after the Kalmak migrations
to the west of Idil and to Jungaria, that the Idil-Yayik region
was virtually empty until the nineteenth century. The "Kazak"
tribes arriving here in 1801 under the rule of BÅkey Han of
the KichiyÅz consisted entirely of "Nogay" tribes who had
lived there earlier.
During the third quarter of the eighteenth century, the
Kazak Hans were in control of the region from "Idil" and
"Yayik" to Jungaria, receiving patents from the Russian (St.
Petersburg) and Chinese (Beijing) governments, regarding the
patents as those governments' special praises of the Kazak Hans.
The tribes, living over such a wide territory and apart from each
other on the steppes, did not distance themselves from each other
in language and customs. On the contrary, they have preserved the
unity of their dialect, customs, and traditions, despite their
illiteracy, because of their intermixing at the time of the
Kalmaks, and later during the competition of the Hans, migrating
from one region to the next, from east to west, and then again
from west to east. The emergence of their common heroic personae-
-through their struggles with the Kalmak on the steppes, through
large gatherings (for example, the wedding celebrations of the
Hans and the Beys, and "as" feasts, or "Yog" ceremonies), through
the participation of representatives of all "Kazak" tribes in the
poetic contests held at such occasions, and through the recited
poems which propagated the styles and common traits throughout
the tribes--preserved the traditions and customs. Today, from
Jungaria to the Idil basin, the dialect of the Kazaks is
altogether the same. However, their long life away from the
influence of a central Han; their nonparticipation in large
political events, resulting in isolation from international
political life; and their preoccupation with tribal politics in
addition to living with the spirit of "Kazaklik," have not failed
to influence these Turks. Generally, in political and
intellectual life the old "Kazaklik" is still regarded as a
virtue. They are also wary of other, neighboring Turks. This, of
course, is the negative aspect of Kazaklik. On the other hand,
since the Kazaks are not under the strong influence of an old
culture, they are better and speedily able to grasp the
contemporary scientific methods and ideas faster than the
neighboring cultivated Turk tribes. Kazak tribes and their
divisions: "UluyÅz" included eleven uruks: Duvlat (its
oymak are: Buptay, Cimir, Siyqim, Canis), Adban, Suvan,
chaprasti, Esti, Ochakti, Sari Uysun, Calayir, Qangli,
Chanchkili, and Sirgeli. According to old reckoning,
"UluyÅz" population totals 460,000. They live in the Yedisu
and Syr Darya provinces.
"OrtayÅz" has five uruks: Girey, Nayman, Argin, Qipchaq,
and Qongrat. Girey has two oymaks: "Uvak Girey" (aris: Cantiqay,
Cadik, chiruchi, Iteli, Qaraqas, MÅlgÅ, chobar-Aygir,
Merket, It-Imgen, Cas-Taban, Sarbas, chi-Moyun) and "Qara-Girey"
(aris: Morun [soy Bayis Morun, Siban, Qurdcay, Tuma and Baysiyiq
Semiz Nayman, Bulatchi, Toqpaq] and Bay-Ciket [soy Cumuq and
Tugas]). Girey live in the Kara Irtis, Irtis, Obagan, Kisma
Isim, and Oy river basins. "Nayman" tribe has twelve oymaks:
Aqbora, Bulatchi, Ters Tamgali, Tîrtovul, Kîkcarli,
Ergenekti, Semiz Baganali, Sadir, Matay, Sari Cumart, Qazay,
Baltali. Nayman were living in the direction of Ulutav, Balkas,
and Tarbagatay. According to old reckoning, they number 500,000.
Of their lineage, Baganali has three aris: Toqbulat (soy Ciriq,
Ibiske, Qizil Taz, Qara Bala, Sari Sargaldaq); Sustan (soy:
Boydali, Bes Bala); Aq Taz (soy Teney, Baliqchi, Qarmaqchi, Seyid
[tire: Bay Emet, churtay ara Ataliq, Mamay, Babas, Bulatchi
Nayman, Cumuq, Calman, Badana]). "Argin" tribe is divided into
three large oymak: Mumin (aris: Bigendik, chigendik [soy: Atigay,
Bagis, Qancagali, Tobuqti, Qaravul, Sari, chaqchaq Tuman,
Amancul, KÅchey, Baqay, CÅzey, Aq Nazar, Tenet,
Qarabas, Qalqaman, Bay Emet, Qochkar, Cetim], Madyar,
Tîlek); Quvandiq (aris: Altay, Qarpiq, Temes, Agis,
Qalqaman, Aydabul); SîyÅndÅk (aris: Qurucas,
Quzgan, Qusqal, Tîki); in addition, there is an independent
"Qara Qisek" aris (containing the soy Tîrtovul,
Taraqti).
According to old reckoning, Argin number 89,000. They are living
in the Irtish, Isim, Tobol basin. "Qongrat" tribe is subdivided
into two large oymak: Kîktin Ogli and KÅtenci (aris:
Cemtimler, Mangitay, Qara Kîse, Quyusqansiz, Teney,
Toqbulat, Baylar-Cancar, Busman). Qongrats are living in the Syr
Darya basin. "Qipchaq" has four large oymak: Kîk
MÅrÅn, KÅldenen, Buchay, Qara Baliq.
Qipchaq possess numerous aris, soy, and tire. They principally
live in the "Oy," "Tobol," and "Turgay" basins. "Kichi YÅz"
is composed of three tribes: Alimoglu (in the Kazak
pronunciation, "Elimolu"), Bayoglu (Kazak pronunciation,
"Bayoli"), Yedi Urug (Kazak pronunciation "Ceti-ru"). The
aris of "Alimoglu" are Qarasaqal (soy: chunqara [tire: Qangildi,
KÅtkÅlech, Sekerbay, Batan, Car Boldi], Saribas
[tire: Baqti-Berdi, Bavbek, Nazim], Busurman [tire: Nogay,
GasikÅr, Cekey], Tîrtqara [tire: Turum ara: chavdar,
Aviqman, Qachan, Toguz Seksen, Toqman ara: Saqal, Can-Keldi,
Sekerbay, KÅtkÅlech, Khan Geldi, Qasim ara: Ayit,
Seksek, Madi, Baqcan, Appaq ara: Qara-Kese, Ak-Bes, Batan]),
Qara-Kisek, Kite, Tîrt-Qara, chÅmekey, chekli,
Qara-Kisek, Qazan-Taban, Istek, Bayis, Esen Geldi, Cakev. Aris of
"Bayoglu" are Aday (soy: Baliqchi, Aqman, TÅbÅs
[tire: Zarubay, chunqay, Bavbek, Tabunay, chikem, Bebkey], Mugal
[tire: chavlay, chekÅy], chibeney [tire: Cumart, chelim],
Qonaq [tire: Urus, Toq-Sara], Qosay, TÅkÅchey);
Cappas (soy: Kineki, Kirman, Sumruq, Andarchay, Qoldiqay,
Qara-Kîz, Qalqaman), Alacha, Baybaqti (soy: Qanq [tire:
KÅli Sunduq, Bavbek, Aliz], El-Teke, Bataq (tire: chabachi,
Qolchiq, Sagay, Cavgati, Tuqabay, Buganay, Kîchmen,
Itemke), Masqar (soy: Qutluch-Atam, Babanazar, Masaq), Beris,
(soy: Sibaq, Nogay, Qayli-Qach, Can-Mirza [tire: Toqman,
Bes-Qasqay] Isiq), Tazlar, Isen-Temir, chirkes (soy:
KÅsÅn [tire: Samay, Umurzaq, ötegen, Ulcabay],
Cavqachiq, Qis-Kistek, KÅyÅs, Ilmen), Tana,
Qizil-Kurt (soy: El-chula, Subi), Seyikhlar, Altun, (soy:
Calabaq, Aydurgay, Sagay). The aris of "Yedi Uruk" are: Tabin,
Tama, Kirderi (soy: Yabagu), Cagalbayli, Kireyit, Tilev,
Ramazan.
Of these tribes, "Elimolu" is living in the Ural province, along
the lower reaches of the Syr Darya, southeast of Aral Lake,
on the eastern side of Khorezm and in eastern Bukhara; "Bayolu"
tribe is in Bîkey Orda, in Ural province, Mangislak, and
all of öst Yurt. "Yedi Uruklar," on the other hand, are
living in Ural and Turgay provinces. According to old reckoning,
the population of "Kichi YÅz" is shown to be 800,000.
ôzbekler
The ôzbek Tribes Arriving in Transoxiana
The ôzbek of the present day arrived with all the
organizations and institutions existing among the Shiban
ôzbeks and Transoxiana and Khorezm Jochi Ulus. In fact, the
hierarchy ("orun") occupied in government by the tribes was the
same. ôzbeks, while succeeding the descendants of the
TemÅr, replaced the existing establishments with their
own.
Also arriving were the elements close to the palace circles of
the "Ich Eli" of the Altin Orda, meaning quite civilized
components. Moreover, according to the terminology of chronicler
ôtemis Haci,* the descendants of Shiban arriving in
Transoxiana comprised the ruling elements of the old "ôzbek
Eli" (meaning Golden Horde), "famed Tura named Mangit Villages,"
meaning western Siberian "Tura" province where the settled Mangit
ulus lived.p Turgay Province, with its center in today's
"Ak-Gîl," "chalkar-Gîl," belonged to the descendants
of Shiban. Previously, Abulhayir Han, who took away the "Tura and
Baskurt" regions from the other branch of the Shiban descendants
from west Siberian Han Mahmudek, was governing these territories.
Abulhayir later obtained the lower reaches of Syr Darya and, in
1431, Khorezm. Abulhayir pursued the policy of basing the
governance of the state upon the southern and northern
agricultural and settled regions of the Jochi Ulus. HÅseyin
Khorezmi, the great scholar of the time, wrote a Turkish poem
praising this ruler, entitled "Kaside-i Burde," appended to one
of his works. Another scholar, named Mesut Kohistani, wrote a
Persian language history book depicting the life of this ruler.
During the sixteenth century a large portion of the ôzbeks
made the transition to village and agricultural life in the
Zarafshan basin and in Khorezm. They perhaps belong to the
elements arriving from the Syr Darya and "Tura" regions where
they were already making the transformation. Shiban Han was a
ruler accustomed to traversing the area between Syr Darya and
Astrakhan. Shibanli Mehdi and Hamza Sultan, who had arrived in
Transoxiana before Shiban, were the sons of Bahtiyar Sultan, the
ruler of the settled regions, strongholds, and castles of the
"Tura" province. It is thought that the ôzbek arriving with
them did so at the time of later TemÅrids.
Turning to the tribal organization: "ôzbek" are referred
to everywhere as "doksan iki boy ôzbek" [Ninety-two Tribe
ôzbek]. Here "boy" means tribe. For the Baskurt, the term
"Twelve Tribe Baskurt" is used. Among the ôzbek, there is a
"genealogy" naming their ninety two-tribes.
There are slight discrepancies between the new and the
sixteenth-seventeenth-century manuscript copies of the genealogy
(for example, the Akhund Kurbanali,
Khanikov, and
Sheykh SÅleyman published versions).
Undoubtedly, this genealogy lists those tribes at the time of the
Altin Orda, meaning prior to the separation of the Mangit-Nogay
and the Kazak. They are as follows: Min, YÅz, Qirq,
öngechit, Calayir, Saray, On, Qonrat, Alchin, Nayman, Argin,
Qipchaq, chichak, Qalmaq, Uyrat, Qarliq, Turgavut, Burlas,
Buslaq, chemerchin, Qatagan, Kilechi, Kineges, Bîyrek,
Qiyat, Bozay, Qatay (Khitay), Qanli, ôzce Buluci (?),
Topchi (?), Upulachi, Culun, Cit, Cuyut, Salcavut, Bayavut,
Otarchi, Arlat, Kireyit, Unqut, Mangit, Qangit, Oymavut, Qachat,
Merkit, Borqut, Quralas, Qarlap, Ilaci, GÅlegen (?),
Qisliq, Oglan, KÅdey, TÅrkmen, DÅrmen, Tabin,
Tama, Mechet, Kirderi, Ramadan, Mumun, Aday, Tuqsaba, Qirgiz,
Uyruci, Coyrat, Bozaci, Oysun, Corga, Batas, Qoysun, Suldiz,
Tumay, Tatar, Tilev, Qayan, Sirin, KÅrlevÅt, chilkes,
Uygur, Yabu(=Yabaqu), Agir(Agiran), Buzan, Buzaq, MÅyten,
Macar, Qocaliq, choran, chÅrchÅt, Barin(=Behrin),
Mogul, NîkÅs [Nukus].
Thirty-three of these tribal names belong to the Mongol,
others to the renowned TÅrk tribes of the Jochi Ulus, the
remainder to those unknown to us today. The tribes such as Barlas
and Kavchin, who were living in Transoxiana prior to the arrival
of the ôzbeks, but joined them, are not named here. Of the
stated ninety-two tribes, approximately forty-five are part of
the ôzbek today. The aforementioned Mongol tribes are of
course those constituting the Mongol units sent to the Jochi
Ulus. The majority of those tribes carrying Mongolian names are
now found in the Transoxiana and Khorezm. It appears that the
genealogy, which has been handed down traditionally, indicates
the belief of its owners, the ôzbeks of Transoxiana and
Khorezm, that they are descendants of these tribes, and therefore
represent the entire forces constituting the foundations of the
Altin Orda, and its transmission of the related organization to
Transoxiana. Today, the subdivison of the tribes are as follows:
- (1) Qongrat tribe: They have five oymak.
- The first is Qancagali, consisting of following aris: Orus,
Qara-Qursak, chîlik, Quyan, Quldavli, Miltek,
KÅr-Tugi, Gele, Top-Qara, Qara-Boz, Nogay,
Bilgelik, Dîstelik.
- The second oymak, of nine aris: Aq-Tana, Qara, churan,
TÅrkmen, Qavuk, Bes-Bala, Qarakalpaq, Qacay, Khoca-
Bece.
- Third oymak, Qostamgali, again nine aris: KÅl-Abi,
Barmaq,
KÅce-Khur, Kîl-chuburgan, Qarakalpaq, Qostamgali,
Seferbiz,
Dilberi, Cachaqli.
- Fourth, Qostamgali oymak, seven aris: Tartugli, Agamayli,
Isigali, Qazancili, öyÅkli, BÅkechli,
Qaygali.
- Fifth, Qir oymak, five aris: GÅzili, KÅsevli,
Ters,
Baliqli, Quba. All of these branches of the Kongrat uruk are
found in the Amu Derya delta, in the provinces of Khuzar (Ghuzar)
of Bukhara, Sirabad, Qurgan-Tepe. They have, to a large extent,
retained the nomadic ways in Bukhara. Those in Khorezm are
settled;
- (2) Nayman tribe. Three oymak: Qostamgali, Uvaqtamgali,
Sadir.
They live in Khorezm and Samarkand;
- (3) Kineges, made up of five oymak: Qayrasali, Taraqli,
Achamayli, chikhut, Abaqli. They live in Shehrisebz and Khiva;
- (4) Mangit, made up of three oymak: Toq-Mangit, Aq-Mangit,
Qara-
Mangit. They live in Khiva and Qarsi;
- (5) Tuyaqli, living in Samarkand and Kette-Qurgan;
- (6) MÅyten, living in Samarkand and Kette-Qurgan;
- (7) Saray, living on the borders of Shehrisebz-Yekke-Bag;
- (8) Barin, living in Ferghana province and Kette-Kurgan
tÅmen;
- (9) Khitay and (10) Qipchak: They constitute the most
important
segments of Samarkand and Kette-Kurgan. They are very numerous in
Khiva and Ferghana;
- (11) Min, living in Samarkand, Penchkent, Jiakh, and in
Ferghana;
- (12) öch Uruk: Misit, Tama, Yabu. They live in the
vicinity of
Ziyaeddin of Bukhara;
- (13) Burqut, living along the borders of chilek and Kermine;
- (14) Arlat, living in Qara-Kîl;
- (15) Qangli, living at the border of Jiakh tÅmen;
- (16) Qirk, YÅz, Min: living in Jiakh tÅmen;
- (17) Batas, living in the vicinity of Qarsi, Ghuzar;
- (18) Qaraqalpak, made up of five oymak: Qara-Qoylu,
Qara-Singir,
Oymavut, Istek, Achamayli, and living in the Amu Darya delta and
north of Samarkand, at "Ak-Tepe."
Those ôzbek who have best preserved the old dialects and
traditions are especially those living in the "Jiakh"
tÅmen (Qirq, Qangli, Saliq, TÅrk, TÅrkmen,
Nayman, Mangit, Qitay-YÅz, Solaqli, Tuyaqli, Alacha,
Burqut, Sirkeli, Baymaqli, Calayir, Qirgiz, YÅz,
Quyan-Tuyaqli, Parcha-YÅz, Qarapcha, Quschi, Oraqli,
Toqcari, Qostamgali, Saray, Qancagali). However, these tribes are
numerically small. In eastern Bukhara, those tribes maintaining
nomadic life, in the vicinity of Dushanbe, are "Laqay," "Marqa
Kichi YÅz," and, around Feyzabad, "Qarliq."
Concerning the ôzbek tribes in Afghanistan Turkistan, we
are only in possession of a table prepared by the Indian Mir
Ietullah at the beginning of the nineteenth century.*
Accordingly, the ôzbek tribes there are as follows: At
"SerpÅl" near "Sibirgan," "Achamayli" oymak of the "Min"
tribe; next to them, at "Sayyad," "Achamayli" and "Qazayagi" of
the "Min"; at Sencayrek, the "Qipchak" uruk; at Kunduz, all
"Qatagan"; in the vicinity of "Balkh," "Saray" and "Mîyten"
uruks. At "Eskemis" of Badakshan, "BÅrge" and "Timis" oymak
of Qatagan. In "Narin," chagatay" uruk. Mir Izetullah also
provides information on the oymak of Mîyten and Qatagan
uruk: Mîyten is made up of seven oymak: Tilikhane,
Germsili, Qazayaqli, chagar, Sum, Aqsayiq, chÅchen. Qatagan
uruk has three oymak: Bes-Qaban, Salcavut, Tîrt-Ata.
"Bes-Qaban" has five aris: Laqqa (=Laqay), Yangi-Qatagan,
Kesmever, Qayan, Manas. Kesmever has four tire: Aq-Taglik,
Endicani, Qalasi, Bomin. "Manas" has three tire: Temis,
Sar-Bagis, BÅrge. "Tîrt-Ata" has four aris:
Sariq-Qatagan, churaq, Bassiz, Mardad. "churaq" has two tire: Qiz
Atizi, Sîlen. Mardad has three tire: öchata, Bozan,
Cutuduq.
Among the ôzbek tribes, there are those adopting the
nickname of "Bekzad." In the past, those had played an active
role in the governance of the land and the army, and performed
the enthroning ceremony of the hans. Among them, in Khiva
especially Qiyat-Qongrat, Uygur-Nayman, Qangli-Qipchak,
NÅkÅs- Mangit tribes; in Bukhara, at the time of
descendants of Shiban, "Quschu," "Nayman," "Qarluq," and
"Bîyrek" tribes; at the time of the Mangit (according to
Radloff) Min, Arlat, Barin, Batas uruks were well known. The
"Qatagan" are also regarded "Bekzad." Among the uruks: Tuyaqli,
Mîyten, Khitay (Qatay), Mangit; and the majority of
Qongrats in Bukhara are among the last arriving from Desht-i
Kipchak. These were earlier members of the "Mangit-Nogay"
confederation, as well as the "Kazak," arriving later in
Transoxiana.
Editor's Notes
- a. Abulghazi Bahadir Khan (1603-1663), Secere-i
Terakime (The Lineage of the Turks), completed in 1659.
The French translation by Desmaisons is no longer satisfactory,
for it lacks critical apparatus; an English translation is long
overdue.
- b. Cevdet Pasha (1822-1895) was an Ottoman
historian, administrator, and educational and judicial reformer.
See Stanford J. and E.K. Shaw, History of the Ottoman
Empire and Modern Turkey (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1977), vol. II.
- c. In a footnote, below, Togan provides the nomenclature
applied to subdivisions from the tribal confederation down to the
smallest unit. An uruk is comprised of oymaks, which are made up
of aris, a composition of soy.
- d. Uran: the word shouted in the heat of the battle, to allow
combatants to identify and gauge the whereabouts of their fellows
without taking their eyes off the common adversary. It is an
integral part of identity in Central Asia, forming a triad, along
with tamga and dastan. The term tamga, originally referring to
the "seal" of a given group, was later borrowed by Russians to
designate customs levies (Russian: tamozhnia). The tamga was
embroidered on tents, incorporated into rugs, filigreed into
jewelry, and used as a cattle brand. A list of early tamgas is
found in Kashgarli Mahmut's Diwan Lugat at
TÅrk (twelfth century;
hereafter DLT). A dastan is an "oral history" of the origins,
customs, practices, and exploits of ancestors. See the discussion
of the Dede Korkut dastan in this collection.
- e. According to a popular etymology of the designation
ôzbek, it is derived from "ôzÅm Bek," meaning
"My Essence is Princely."
- f. Ortaq: "partner." Among the Mongols, the khan provided
capital to his "partners" so that they could take caravans from
one end of the Mongol domains to other, to trade with neighbors.
Elizabeth Endicott-West and Thomas Allsen have been jointly
exploring this topic.
- g. On the Bulgar Turks see O. Pritsak, "Kultur und Sprache
der Hunnen," Festschrift fÅr Dmytro Cyzev'ky
(Berlin, 19540; and R.N. Frye, "City Chronicles of Central Asia:
Kitab-e Mullazade," Avicenna Commemoration Volume
(Calcutta, 1956).
- h. Here Togan provides the Arabic quotation in a footnote.
- i. The lineages, inter alia, of the chigil and the Oguz Turks
are outlined in DLT.
- j. See H.B. Paksoy, "Chora Batir: A Tatar Admonition to
Future Generations," Studies in Comparative
Communism, vol. 19, nos. 3 & 4 (Autumn/Winter 1986).
k. The original compilation of Mongol customary law was
designated Altan Tobchi. See The Secret
History of the Mongols, translated, inter alia, by F.
Cleaves. For a later survival of the yasa, see V.A. Riasanovsky,
Customary Law of the Nomadic Tribes of Siberia.
Indiana University Uralic Altaic Series, vol. 48 (Bloomington,
1965).
- l. Yedi San: Seven Reputations. The term "san" may also
signify surname, or even the manner with which those tribes may
have presented themselves in a gathering or in battle.
- m. Togan uses this spelling. The name of TemÅr (Timor)
(d. 1405) was corrupted in Western languages as Tamerlane,
Tamburlane, and so forth.
- n. See N. Elias and E. Denison Ross, eds., The Tarikh-i
Rashidi of Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat (London 1898),
pp. 119, 122, 272-74.
- o. For the significance of the "as" and "Yog" ceremonies,
see A.T. Hatto, The Memorial Feast for
Kîkîtîy Han (Oxford, 1977).
- p. Another relevant history on the region, compiled from
several manuscript sources and edited by Y. Bregel, was published
as Firdaws al-ikbal: History of Khorezm (Leiden,
1988).
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