Köktürks

The Köktürks or Göktürks (“Blue Turks”, i.e. Celestial in Turkish), known under the name of Tujue (突厥 tújué) in Chinese, conceived a powerful empire in 552 under the cane of Bumin Khan, which quickly extended in all the Central Asia. They were the first people of Turkish language to name politically " Turcs". The word türk means “extremely”, and the Chinese name tujue probably comes from a plural türük . According to the Chinese, Köktürks bore family name Ashina.

The creation of this empire marks a decisive step in the expansion of the people Turkish towards the Western Turkestan. Two centuries and half after the end of the empire of Köktürks (which were replaced by another Turkish-speaking people, the Ouïgours, in 745), the Turkish tribes would reach the Anatolia, country where one then spoke Greek and who was going to become the Turkey.

At the beginning of the 8th century, the Turks created a writing known as “runic” because it resembles the Runes. They are the first nomads of the Central Asia to have left inscriptions. Those which were written by Köktürks come from the valley of the Orkhon, in Mongolia septentionale. The heart of their empire was there. Inscriptions of southernmost Siberia are ascribable to other people Turkish. Those of the valley of the Ienisseï, of short inscriptions funénaires, must be written by the Kyrgyz.

Köktürks accepted Buddhist missionaries , Manicheans and nestoriens, but mainly remained chamanists. They also had an imperial religion, based on the veneration of Tängri , the God-Sky.

History

Origins

The oldest known territory of the Blue Turks is the south of the Altaï, in Western Mongolia. They were then known to be vassal Ruanruan, people which occupied the essence of the territory of current Mongolia. They worked for their suzerains as blacksmiths.

The myth of their origins arises thus. They were a branch of the Xiongnu. Nearby people exterminated them all, except for a young boy. The soldiers did not want to kill it, have regard to its young age, but they cut the feet to him and threw it in a marsh. There, a she-wolf nourishes it meats. As it is linked later with it, it became full. The enemy king, having intended to say that he still lived, sent his men to kill it. The she-wolf managed to take refuge in a mountain in the north of Tourfan. Inside, there was an immense papered cave of a bulky grass. The she-wolf gave rise to ten boys, who took women with-outside. Their descendants multiplied, and after several generations, they left the cave to be established in the south of the Altaï.

General opinion, this myth is composite. Its first part is Indo-European. It is about identical to a myth of the Wusun attested much earlier, as of second century BC. Wusun were Indo-European, perhaps Iranian nomads but more probably Tokhariens, which lived in the north of the Tian Shan, between the Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyzstan. A king baby is saved of an attack of enemy people thanks to a dignitary. He is then nourished by a she-wolf and corbels. This myth is related with the history of Romulus and Rémus, the mythical founders of Rome, who were also nourished by a she-wolf. It is perhaps not in Wusun that the Turks took this legend, but with nomads tokhariens which lived in the north of Tourfan, at the place even where they located their cave.

What is sure, it is that people speaking the language called Tokharien have or agnéen exerted its influence as of a high time on the Turks. It was, on their premises, a language of prestige. Loans were carried out. For example, the Turkish compound At kü “name + glory, reputation” is a copy of made up the agnéen ñom klyu “name + glory, reputation”, and moreover, kü comes from klyu . The Turkish word išič “pot, pot out of ground”, comes by Synecdoque from the word agnéen * išäč “clay”. Later, the agnéen was used for the propagation of Buddhism among Turks. Those ordered texts in agnéen and left there sometimes their names or their titles.

The myth of the cave from where a whole people emerge, on the other hand, is purely Turkish. The Turks were to also have a wolf ancestor, like the Mongolian . This ancestor had to change sex, i.e. to become a she-wolf, so that this myth can be combined with the Indo-European myth.

First empire

In 552, Bumin beat the last khan Ruanruan, that the Chinese called Have-Na-kuei. It settled in central Mongolia but died one year afterwards. His/her son Mugan (553-572, called Muhan by the Chinese) succeeded to him by entrusting the Western wing of the empire to Istämi († 576), a brother of Bumin. This last was combined with the Sassanides Perse S to fight the Huns white: it gave his daughter in marriage to the Persian emperor Khosro I {{er}} Anushirvan. After having eliminated Huns Blancs, towards 563, the two allied ones divided what will become after the Russian Turkestan, in particular the territory of the Sogdiens, but they were not long in being scrambled. To take Persians out of clipper, Istämi sent in 567 Sogdien in embassy to Byzance. The following year, the Zémarque Byzantine arrived to Istämi. In spite of the wars which they carried out together, until in 630, the Turks and the Byzantines could not come to end from Persians.

The authority of Taspar (572-581), the younger brother and successor of Mugan, which reigned in Mongolia with the title of qaghan , was recognized by the Western Turks. This sovereign converts with Buddhism, like his brother Nivar (581-587, also called Ishbara according to Paul Pelliot). The yabghu Tardu , wire of Istämi, broke with Nivar and took the title of qaghan . He had been encouraged by the Chinese, who wished to break the Turkish empire. There were from now on two States, that of the Turks Eastern in Mongolia, directed by Nivar, and that of the Western Turks in the Tian Shan and with the Eastern Kazakhstan, directed by Tardu. A son of Mugan, known under the name of Apa qaghan and that the Chinese texts call Daluobian, started to covet the throne. Its interests joined those of Tardu, which also wished to cut down Nivar in order to remake the unit of the empire. To prevent that, the Chinese gave their support for Nivar. Apa qaghan was turned over then against Tardu and managed to take its place. In 585, Tardu required asylum of the Chinese.

In Nivar, two emperors called succeeded Chuluohu (587-588) and Yongyulü (588-599) by the Chinese. The first captured Apa qaghan , but the Western Turks remained separate their Eastern brothers. They élirent in 587 a qaghan that the Chinese called Nili and of which one knows almost nothing. Tardu reappeared in 594, at the time of a conflict with Yongyulü. It took again the control of the Western Turks. In 598, it sent to Constantinople a letter where it declared qaghan supreme, “big boss of the seven races and Master of the seven climates”. It attacked the Chinese, but it was overcome in 603, following the revolt of a tribe, and had to take refuge in the current Chinese province of the Qinghai, in the North-East of the Tibet. One heard never again of him.

At the end of the Dynasty Sui and at the beginning of the Dynasty Tang, the Eastern Turks attacked in their turn China, while benefitting from the interior problems which this country had. The emperor El Qaghan (620-630, called Xieli by the Chinese), arrived to the capital Chang' year on September 23rd 626 with 100.000 men. The daring emperor Taizong of Tang, in spite of the little of means of which it laid out, managed to make him turn back. Thereafter, Taizong supported the revolts of certain tribes against El Qaghan, then in 630, it sent its troops in Mongolia and captured the qaghan . Consequently, the Eastern Turks were subjected to China.

After the defeat of Tardu, the Western Turks had remained some divided time. They had then found a chief in the person of Shigui, then of his/her brother, the yabghu Tong (618-630, they are their Chinese names). This last was a powerful sovereign, who extended his capacity until on part of the Afghanistan and India of North. The Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang met it in the Tian Shan. A few months later, of the vassal tribes, Qarluq, revolted, and Tong was killed. The Western Turks lost their unit again. In the years 640, the Chinese évincèrent them rich person oasis of the Bassin of Tarim, on the Silk route, who were just in the south of their territory. In 651, the Western Turks lined up under the authority of a qan that the Chinese called Helu. After having obtained the support of the Ouïgours, the Chinese are reflected in shift against him and in 657 overcame it. Practically all the Central Asia fell to the hands from the Chinese.

Second empire

The re-establishment of the Turkish empire was the work of a dignitary ( chor ) who was called Qutlugh, the Fortunate one. It started like a simple adventurer. At the beginning, according to the inscription of Köl Tegin (cf below), it had only 27 men. It benefitted from the support not of the Turkish aristocracy, but of the people, in which a strong nationalist feeling anti-Chinese burned. A very skilful lord ( beg ) united however with him. He was called Tonyuquq (or Toñuquq). It was Turkish born in China and which had received a Chinese education, but he hated the Chinese.

From 682, Qutlugh chor started to launching attacks devastators against China. This one was then controlled by a weak emperor, Gaozong, and its influence moved back in all the Central Asia. Between 687 and 691, Qutlugh, which had proclaimed emperor with the title of Ilterish Qaghan , subjected the Ouïgours and the Last nines Oghuz, other confederations of Turkish tribes, and settled with the sources of Orkhon, in what had always been, and what would remain, the heart of the empires of the steppes. In China, in 683, to died from Gaozong, the capacity fell between the hands from his/her energetic concubine, Wu Zetian. If she managed to take again the Bassin of Tarim to the Tibetans towards 692, she was impotent vis-a-vis the Turks. She was confronted with the younger brother of Ilterish qaghan , which carried the title of Qapaghan Qaghan , the qaghan Conquérant (691-716).

This emperor made pretense defend the Dynastie Tang against the wills of usurpation of Wu Zetian, but it did not continue of them less its attacks. Each time, the Chinese armies underwent crushing defeats and the Turks brought back fabulous spoils on their premises. In 699, he managed to subject the Western Turks. He gained victories against of other people Turkish and killed even the Kyrgyz king of the , which lived on the higher course of the Ienisseï in southernmost Siberia. The wind started to turn in 711, when Tonyuquq ran up against the Arab at the time of a raid in Sogdiane. It returned close to the Altaï only three years later and tried to lend strong hand to troops which besieged the town of Beshbalïq, but it was a failure. The vassal ones of the Blue Turks, whose powerful Oghuz, then started to revolt. Qapaghan qaghan was killed at the time of a campaign against the tribe of Bayirqu on July 22nd 716, close to the Tuul river which sprinkles Ulan-Bator.

The capacity should have been allocated to the oldest son of Ilterish, known since 698 by the title of shad of Tardush, then with the younger brother of this one, Köl Tegin (or Kül Tegin). Both were then famous generals. But according to the will of Qapaghan, its following helped the son of their former Master, Bögü, to go up on the throne. Köl Tegin assassinated it, with the support of many aristocrats, and made a great massacre in the family of Qapaghan, saving only Tonyuquq. It placed then his older brother on the throne. This one was called Bilgä Qaghan “the wise qaghan ” (716-734). It was necessary to reconstitute the empire, which had completely burst. It was thing made in 718. Bilgä Qaghan then planned to attack China, which had helped the rebellious tribes. The problem was that China, then controlled by the emperor Xuanzong, was in full glory. For this reason, Tonyuquq advised in Bilgä Qaghan to rather propose an peace agreement with the Chinese. Being wary, those refused any negotiation and prepared a great offensive. The Turks prevented it by crushing one their allies, Basmil, in the north of Tourfan (it was apparently about people of nonTurkish origin) then by attacking the Chinese province of the Gansu. In 721, Xuanzong accepted the peace proposal. It is remarkable that the Turks and the Chinese remained faithful to their engagements. In 727, for example, Bilgä Qaghan refused to be combined with the Tibetans against the Chinese.

With died of Köl Tegin in 731, his/her brother made engrave on a stele a funeral praise which remained famous. The wise emperor perishes in his turn three years, poisoned later by one of his servants. Of two its wire succeeded to him, Izhan qaghan (734-739) and Tängri qaghan (740-741). With dead this last, assassinated by his/her uncle Qutlugh yabghu , the empire started to disintegrate. Qutlugh, which usurped the capacity under the name of Özmish qaghan , ran up immediately against the revolt of Basmil, Ouïgours and Qarluq, and it was killed in 744 by the first. The imperial family of Köktürks being taken refuge in 743 in China, their territory returned in Ouïgours.

Turkish civilization

The company

Like all the “wandering” empires, that of the Blue Turks was a confederation of tribes. Its core was consisted twelve tribes directed by the dynastic tribe that the Chinese called Ashina. Ouigours were made up in ten tribes directed by the dynastic tribe of Yaghlakar; they lived in the north of the Mongolia, originally along the Selenge river, while the Blue Turks occupied the central part of this territory. They became prone Blue Turks during the first empire. In the west of the Blue Turks, with the Kazakhstan, were Toghuz-Oghuz, i.e. the “Last nines (tribes) oghouzes”. They formed a population more than the Blue Turks themselves but which was less plain. Two other Turkish confederations, those of Qarluq and Basmil, also played a part in the Turkish empire.

The chief of a tribe was called the irkin . The groups of tribes were directed by elteber . With the head of the imperial capacity, the qaghan and its close relatives, the shad was. The qaghan was surrounded advisers, who carried titles such as tarkhan , tudun or chor . They shared military, administrative or diplomatic functions. There were also civils servant of lower row, among which the Chinese texts distinguish 28 classes. All these loads were transmitted in a hereditary way.

The Turkish company was divided into two classes: a hereditary aristocracy, consisted the beg , and populates it ( igil will qara bodun ). Any man became a warrior, er , after an initiation consisting of an exploit achieved at the time of a battle or a hunting. He received then his er aty , i.e. his name of man or hero. Its ideal was to die in the combat. Its situation varied however much according to whether it belonged to the aristocracy or to the people.

The Turkish economy rested on the breeding, hunting and the war. The raids, carried out in theory starting from full the the Moon, were a means of acquiring cattle, especially horses, which constituted the main wealth. The beg were also supplied in invaluable objects and slaves. If one were poor, it was because one had not fought rather well. The common peoples deprived of cattle were placed in winter quarters or establishments sedentary ( balïq ), where they practiced a little agriculture. They cultivated especially millet, which was stored in forts ( qurgan ). If they wanted to remain wandering, they were to count on the assistance of rich relations. The er deprived of means became always depend on the beg , as bodyguards or that servants.

One has some representations of warrior Turkish, visible for example with the museum of history of Ulan-Bator. The men divided their chevelures in many braids which went down on their back. This hairstyle still exists at the Ouïgours, but rather among women. They carried boots, pants and long jackets similar to those of the other people, including sedentaries, of the Central Asia of this time. A sword was fixed on their belt.

To make contracts, the Turks made notches on the wood plates. They paid the taxes by giving pets. One counted them by notching a stick, then one put a wax seal at it with a spearhead.

Manners and habits

One primarily knows the Turkish habits thanks to Chinese texts gathered in dynastic annals. Annals of the Wei of North may find it beneficial to be written towards 550, before even the foundation of the Turkish empire. Many these texts were translated in 1864 by Stanislas Julien (“historical Documents on Tou-kioue (Turks) extracts of Pien-i-tien”, Asian Journal ).

The marriages were carried out without complication: if a man fell in love with an young girl, it sent somebody near his parents to ask his hand, and generally, its request was accepted. A noble woman could not bind with a man of lower condition. One practiced the Polygamie.

Justice was returned in the following way. People who had made themselves guilty of homicide, rape of a married woman or revolt were condemned to death. On the other hand, that which had raped an young girl was punished in a curious manner: it was to pay a strong fine and to marry its victim immediately. An individual who had caused a simple wound, for example in a brawl, paid a fine proportioned with the caused damage. The culprits of flight were to pay ten times the value of the animals or the stolen objects.

The men liked to play ossicles, occupation which always exists at the nomads of the Central Asia. The women preferred to play ball. The Turks drank qumis (milk of mare fermented), and when they were sufficiently drunk, they launched out in alternate songs: somebody improvised a song and another person was to answer him in the same way.

The ground of the qan (the king, before the formation of the Turkish empire), opened in the east by respect for the rising sun. This orientation differs from that of the Mongolian tents , which open all in the south. Establishment included/understood the following rites. Large officers put the king lately named on a litter of felt and made him make nine turns in front of its subjects, which greeted it each time. They then placed it on a horse and tightened to him the neck with a band of silk, but without going until strangling it. They asked him then how much years there would remain king. The qan pronounced some incomprehensible words, which one interpreted to know the length of his reign. Such a habit is also attested at the Kazakh .

It is not known if it had remained at the time imperial. On the stele of Köl Tegin, he is written: “Tängri having seized by the top of the head my father the qaghan Ilterish and my mother the qatun El Bilgä, it raised them in top”. The turcologist Jean-Paul Roux sees there the testimony of a ceremony of sacring which consisted in placing the sovereign on a felt carpet and to raise them towards the sky. One recognizes the first part of the ceremony described above, where the king is put on a felt litter.

When a man died, his/her parents killed each one a sheep or a horse and placed the victim in front of the tent of the late one. They made then seven times the turn of this tent, assembled on a horse and while pushing cries of pain. Each time they passed in front of the door, they gashed the face with a knife. The burials were carried out only at two periods of the year: with the autumn, when the sheets fell, and in spring, when the buds opened and the plants were in flowers. One then dug a pit and one put it at it dead. Close to the tomb, one laid out of the stone statuettes of proportioned number with the number of enemies that the late one had killed. The parents offered sacrifices, ran to horse and gashed the face like the first time. Archeology showed that the warriors were buried out of weapons, with their horses saddles. The widows remariaient themselves to remain in the family of their husband. The sons married the women of their father, except of course their own mother; the younger brothers took the women of their elder (it is the Lévirat).

Chiefs ( khağan )

The dates of reigns are given mainly according to D. Sinor and S.G. Klyashtorny, “The Türk Empire”, History off Civilizations off Central Asia, vol. III, The Crossroads off Civilizations: A.D. 250 to 750 , Paris, UNESCO Publishing, 1996. The book of Rene Grousset, the empire of the steppes , Payot, 1965, is also used. The names of the sovereigns are initially given in their Chinese form (in pinyin ), then in their Turkish form when it is known.

First empire köktürk:

Tumen (Bumin Khan) 534 - 552 (one does not include/understand why the Chinese replaced the B Turkish by a T ).

Eastern Turks:

Muhan (Mugan qaghan ) 553 - 572
Tuobo (Taspar qaghan ) 572 - 581
Shaboluo (Nivar qaghan , Ishbara?) 581 - 587
Chuluohu 587 - 588
Yongyulü 588 - 599
Tuli? - 607
Shibi 607 - 619
Xieli (El qaghan ) 619 - 630

Western Turks (divided starting from 630 into two groups of five tribes, Nushibi and Dulu):

Shidiemi (Istämi yabghu , known under the name of Silziboulos by the Byzantines) 553 - 575 (completion date of reign according to Grousset, in any case before 576)
Datou (Tardu yabghu ) 575 - 603 (autoproclamé qaghan between 582 and 584)
Daluobian (Apa qaghan ) 585 - 587
Nili 587 - 604?
Chuluo (opponent with Shigui installed in China in 611)
Shigui before 611 - 618 (according to Grousset)
Tong yabghu 619 - 630 (assassinated)
Dulu 638 - 651 ( qan of Dulu, tried to gather the two groups of tribes)
Helu 651 - 657 ( qan of Dulu, imposed its authority on Nushibi)
Ashina Mishe 657 - 662 (imposed by the Chinese on Dulu)
Ashina Buzhen 659 - 665 (imposed by the Chinese on Nushibi)

The names Turkish of the sovereigns of the second empire are all known:

Ilterish qaghan (or El Terish, Chinese Guduolu, according to Turkish Qutlugh) 682 - 691
Qapaghan qaghan (or Qapghan, Mochuo in Chinese, also called Bäk Tchor in the old French books) 691 - 716
Bögü qaghan 716
Bilgä qaghan (Chinese Mojilian) 716 - 734 (assassinated, controlled with his/her brother Köl Tegin 716 - 731)
Izhan qaghan (Chinese Yiran) 734 - 739
Tängri qaghan 740 - 741
Özmish qaghan 741 - 744 (usurping)

External bonds

The Gok-Turks Khans
has German-language site

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