Oghuz Turks

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A Seljuk Prince.
A Seljuk Prince.

The Oghuz Turks (variously transliterated Oguz, Oğuz, Uguz, Uğuz, Ouz, Okuz, Oufoi, Guozz, Ghuzz, Kuz and Uz) are regarded as one of the major branches of Turkic peoples.

The Oghuz Turks are ancestors of today's Southwestern Turks,[1][2][3][4] totalling a combined population of 100 million and ranging from eastern Europe to western Asia. The peoples who identify themselves as descendants of the Oghuz Turks include the Azerbaijanis, Turks (of Turkey), Turkish Cypriots, Balkan Turks, Turkmens, Qashqai, Khorasani, Gagauz and Salar.

During the Turkic mass-migrations of the 9th through the 12th century, the Oghuz were among the indigenous Turks of Central Asia who migrated towards western Asia and eastern Europe via Transoxiana. From the 5th century onward, the Oghuz were the founders and rulers of several important Turkic kingdoms and empires, the most notable of which were the Seljuks and Ottomans.

In later centuries, they adapted and applied their own traditions and institutions to the ends of the Islamic world and emerged as empire-builders with a constructive sense of statecraft.

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[edit] Name

The name Oghuz is derived from the word ok, which means "arrow" or "tribe". The depiction of an archer shooting an arrow was the flag of the Seljuk Empire, founded by the Oghuz Turks in the 10th century.

The designation of "Oghuz" was given to a series of Turkic tribes in Central Asia who had united into a new confederation. This socio-political union led to the emergence of a new larger inter-tribal Turkic entity, the Oghuz. The Oghuz gradually grew larger as various other Turkic tribes united during the Göktürk Empire in the 6th and 7th centuries.

Oghuz is not an ethnic name, and it can be simply translated into "Turkic tribes". The "Oghuz Turk branch" or "Western Turk branch" is one of the traditional six branches of the modern Turkic peoples. The "Oghuz branch" is a geographical and historical designation, not a separate ethnic term since the Turkic peoples of the world share the same ethnic roots.

They are referred to as "Western Turks" because they moved west from other Turkic peoples after the Göktürk empire collapsed, and because the majority of the areas in which they inhabit today (except Turkmenistan and the Turkmen Sahra) are west of the Caspian Sea, while those referred to as "eastern Turks" live east of the Caspian Sea.

[edit] Origins

 The factual accuracy of this section is disputed.
Please see the relevant discussion on the talk page.(March 2008)

In 178-177 BC, the Xiongnu shan-yü Mao-tun subdued a people called Hu-chieh, west of Wu-sun. The early pronunciation of this transliteration suggests that they were Oghur/Oghuz.[5]

Their history as kings, statesmen, warriors, as well as an enormous tribal union and large communal branch begins in the pre-Islamic period, yet their achievements and progression in the centuries after the arrival of Islam have left their mark on history and civilization.

The original homeland of the Oghuz, like other Turks, was the Ural-Altay region of Central Asia known as Turkestan or Turan, which has been the domain of Turkic peoples since antiquity. Although their mass-migrations from Central Asia occurred from the 9th century onwards, they were present in areas west of the Caspian Sea centuries prior, although smaller in numbers and perhaps living with other Turks.[citation needed] For example, the Book of Dede Korkut, the historical epic of the Oghuz Turks, was written in Central Asia at least from the ninth and tenth centuries.[6]

According to many historians, the usage of the word "Oghuz" is dated back to the advent of the Huns (220 BC). The title of "Oghuz" (Oguz Khan) was given to Mau-Tun[citation needed], the founder of the Hun Empire, which is often considered the first Turkic political entity in Central Asia.

Also in the 2nd century BC, a Turkic tribe called O-kut or Wuqi 呼揭, 呼得, 乌揭, 乌护 who were described as a western hostility of Huns (referred to in Chinese sources, Shiji, 110 and Suishu, 84) were mentioned in the area of Irtysh River, in present-day Lake Zaysan. It must be noted that the Greek sources used the name Oufi (or Ouvvi) to describe the Oghuz Turks, a name they had also used to describe the Huns centuries earlier.[citation needed]

A number of tribal groupings bearing the name Oghuz, often with a numeral representing the number of united tribes in the union are noted.

The mention of the "six Oghuz tribal union" in the Turkic Orhun inscriptions (6th century) pertains to the unification of the six Turkic tribes which became known as the Oghuz. This was the first written reference to Oghuz, and was dated to the period of the Göktürk empire. The Oghuz community gradually grew larger, uniting more Turkic tribes prior and during the Göktürk establishment.[7]

Prior to the Göktürk state, there are references to the Sekiz-Oghuz ("eight-Oghuz") and the Dokuz-Oghuz ("nine-Oghuz") union. The Oghuz Turks under Sekiz-Oghuz and the Dokuz-Oghuz state formations ruled different areas in the vicinity of the Altay mountains. During the establishment of the Göktürk state, Oghuz tribes inhabited the Altay mountain region and also lived in northeastern areas of the Altay mountains along the Tula River. They were also present as a community near the Barlik River in present-day northern Mongolia.

Their main homeland and domain in the ensuing centuries was the area of Transoxiana, in western Turkestan.

This land became known as the "Oghuz steppe" which is an area between the Caspian and Aral Seas. Ibn al-Athir, an Arab historian, declared that the Oghuz Turks had come to Transoxiana in the period of the caliph Al-Mahdi in the years between 775 and 785. In the period of the Abbasid caliph Al-Ma'mun (813 – 833), the name Oghuz starts to appear in the works of Islamic writers. By 780, the eastern parts of the Syr Darya were ruled by the Karluk Turks and the western region (Oghuz steppe) was ruled by the Oghuz Turks.

[edit] Anthropology

The land that now forms the nation of Turkey (Anatolia) has seen many different civilizations. The Turkic speaking people arrived there from Central Asia and successfully spread throughout the land. Turkish eventually became the dominant language, replacing the Indo-European languages which were present earlier. Turks are, as the authors state, "the only major group in the region that speak a language which originated from a great geographic distance (probably in the Altaic region)." The pre-existing people in Anatolia, however, did not physically disappear. Genetic studies show that the majority became part of the new Turkish population. The genetic constitution of modern-day Turks is much closer to their nearest geographic neighbors than to the Turkic-speaking populations that still dwell in Central Asia. The authors interpret this to mean that "The Turkish language was imposed on a predominantly Indo-European-speaking population" and "The number of Turkish invaders was probably rather small and was genetically diluted by the large number of aborigines".[8]

However, genetic studies vary on the percentage of Turkic genes in Turkey. For example it is reported in a recent academic paper titled "DNA Diversity and Population Admixture in Anatolia" from the Universita` di Bologna, Bologna, Italy that:

“ "The most reliable estimates suggest roughly 30% Central Asian admixture for both mitochondrial and Ychromosome loci (in Anatolia-Turkey). That (admittedly approximate) figure is compatible both with a substantial immigration accompanying the arrival of the Turkmen armies (which is not historically documented), and with continuous gene flow from Asia into Anatolia, at a rate of 1% for 40 generations." [2] ”

Furthermore another recent study from the University of Chicago has shown that:

“ "The present results show that sequences that were found in the mtDNA pool of Turkey were also found in the Turkic central Asian peoples, implying that ancestors of these Central Asians may have brought the Asian mtDNA sequences to Anatolia." [3] ”

It is evident from these papers that those recent conquests and migrations also lasted steadily and for a long period of time, in fact for 40 generations.[2]

[edit] Social unit

The militarism that their empires were very well known for was rooted in their centuries-long nomadic lifestyle. In general they were a herding society which possessed certain military advantages that other societies did not have, particularly mobility. Alliances by marriage and kinship, and systems of "social distance" based on family relationships were the connective tissues of their society.

In Oghuz traditions, "society was simply the result of the growth of individual families". But such a society also grew by alliances and the expansion of different groups normally through marriages. The shelter of the Oghuz tribes was a tent-like dwelling, erected on wooden poles and covered with skin, felt, or hand-woven textiles, which is called a yurt.

Their cuisine included yahni (stew), kebabs, Toyga çorbası (lit. wedding soup; a soup made from wheat flour and yogurt), Kımız (traditional drink of the Turks, made from horse milk), Pekmez (a syrup made of boiled of grape juice and helva made with cornflour), tutmac (noodle soup), yufka (flattened bread), katmer (layered pastry), chorek (ring-shaped bun), bread, clotted cream, cheese, milk and ayran, as well as wine.

Social order was maintained by emphasizing "correctness in conduct as well as ritual and ceremony". Ceremonies brought together the scattered members of the society to celebrate birth, puberty, marriage, and death. Such ceremonies had the effect of minimizing social dangers and also of adjusting persons to each other under controlled emotional conditions.

Patrilineally related men and their families were regarded as a group with rights over a particular territory and were distinguished from neighbours on a territorial basis. Marriages were often arranged among territorial groups so that neighbouring groups could become related, but this was the only organizing principle that extended territorial unity. Each community of the Oghuz Turks was thought of as part of a larger society composed of distant as well as close relatives. This signified "tribal allegiance". Wealth and materialistic objects were not commonly emphasized in Oghuz society and most remained herders, and when settled they would be active in agriculture.

Status within the family was based on age, gender, relationships by blood, or marriageability. Males as well as females were active in society, yet men were the backbones of leadership and organization. According to the Book of Dede Korkut which demonstrates the culture of the Oghuz Turks, women were "expert horse riders, archers, and athletes". The elders were respected as repositories of both "secular and spiritual wisdom".

[edit] Homeland in Transoxiana

In the 8th century, the Oghuz Turks made a new home and domain for themselves in the area between the Caspian and Aral seas, a region that is often referred to as Transoxiana, the western portion of Turkestan. They had moved westward from the Altay mountains through the Siberian steppes and settled in this region, and also penetrated into southern Russia and the Volga.

In his accredited work titled Diwan Lughat al-Turk, Mahmud of Kashgar, a Turkic scholar of the 11th century, described the Karachuk Mountains which are located just east of the Aral Sea as the original homeland of the Oghuz Turks. The Karachuk mountains are now known as the Tengri Tagh (Tian Shan in Chinese) Mountains, and they are adjacent to Syr Darya.

The extension from the Karachuk Mountains towards the Caspian Sea (Transoxiana) was called the "Oghuz Steppe Lands" from where the Oghuz Turks established trading, religious and cultural contacts with the Abbasid Arab caliphate who ruled to the south. This is around the same time that they first converted to Islam and renounced their shamanist belief system. The Arab historians mentioned that the Oghuz Turks in their domain in Transoxiana were ruled by a number of kings and chieftains.

It was in this area that they later founded the Seljuk Empire, and it was from this area that they spread west into western Asia and eastern Europe during Turkic migrations from the 9th until the 12th century. The founders of the Ottoman Empire were also Oghuz Turks.

[edit] Oghuz and Yörüks

According to Ottoman archives Kayılar Yörüks were an Oghuz tribe. E.g., Kozlu Köy (or locally Kuzlu Küy or ""Ğuzlu Küy") which in Kayılar Kaza of Rumelia Vilayet was a village that officially written as "Oguzlu Karye" in Ottoman archives. Those populations were also Yörüks of Rumelia.[9] Oghuz Turks are same pronansition Kabuguz (or officially Kaba Oğuz)village in Gümüşhacıköy in Amasya.

[edit] Oghuz Turk dynasties

[edit] Traditional tribal organization

Bozoklar (Grey Arrows)

Üçoklar (Three Arrows)

[edit] Turcoman & Turkmen

The terms "Turkmen" and "Turcoman" were often used as a designation for the Muslim-Oghuz Turks (Azerbaijanis, Turks of Turkey, Central Asian Turks) in periods of history although other Turkic factions described as Turks (Kumans, Khazars, Uyghurs, etc), and the ethnic name that the modern Turkmens of Central Asia use to designate their nationality was formed later.

Although a term most commonly used for the Oghuz of Central Asia, the name "Turkmen" or "Turcoman" once applied to Azerbaijanis and the Turks of Turkey as well, distinguishing between other Turks and non-Muslim Turks. Some western books which were written prior to the modern age use the terms "Turcoman" for the descendants of the Oghuz Turks who were not from the Turkmen nationality of Central Asia, which is one of the branches of the Oghuz.

For example, it is written in many sources prior to the modern age that the largest component of the population of Azerbaijan is composed of "Turcoman tribes". The "Turkmen" reference in history books which is often used for Azerbaijanis and Turks of Turkey simply means "Muslim Turk" or "Muslim western Turk" which means Oghuz Turk.

In Turkey the word Turkmen refers to nomadic Turkish tribes (all Muslims) some of whom still continue this lifestyle.

According to the Encyclopædia Britannica the name Turkmen is a synonym of Oghuz which includes all the Turkish (Turkic) population who live to the southwest of Central Asia:

The Turkish historian Yılmaz Öztuna presents almost the same definition to the name Turkmen. He labels the Turkmen Oghuz or western Turkish populations as:

  • Ottomans
  • Azerbaijan
  • Turkmen (Turkmenistan)

[edit] Literature

Oghuz Turkish literature includes the famous Book of Dede Korkut which was UNESCO's 2000 literacy work of the year, as well as the Oguznama and Köroğlu epics which are part of the literacy history of Azerbaijanis, Turks of Turkey and Turkmens. The modern and classical literatures of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Central Asia are also considered the Oghuz literature, since it has been produced by their descendants.

The Book of Dede Korkut is an invaluable collection of epics and stories, bearing witness to the language, the way of life, religions, traditions and social norms of the Oghuz Turks in Azerbaijan, Turkey and Central Asia.

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Olson, James Stuart. "An Ethnohistorical Dictionary of the Russian and Soviet Empires, pg. 647: "... the medieval Oghuz tribes were the direct ancestors of the Turkmen, the Seljuks, the Ottoman Turks and the Ottomans' descendants, the Anatolian Turks."
  2. ^ a b c American Journal Of Physical Anthropology 115:144–156 (2001) - "DNA Diversity and Population Admixture in Anatolia". web link
  3. ^ a b University of Chicago Journals - "Trading Genes along the Silk Road: mtDNA Sequences and the Origin of Central Asian Populations". page 10
  4. ^ Genome News Network - "Ancient DNA Tells Tales from the Grave". web link
  5. ^ Laszlo Torday , Mounted Archers: The Beginnings of Central Asian History, pp. 220-21, 1997, The Durham Academic Press
  6. ^ Lewis, Geoffrey (Ed.) (1974). The Book of Dede Korkut. Harmondsworth: Penguin.
  7. ^ Encyclopaedia Britannica Online - Oguz
  8. ^ Cavalli-Sforza, L. Luca; Menozzi, Paolo & Piazza, Alberto (1994), The History and Geography of Human Genes, Princeton University Press, p. 243, ISBN 0691087504 .
  9. ^ 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica - Macedonia
  10. ^ "Some Ottoman genealogies claim, perhaps fancifully, descent from Kayı.", Carter Vaughn Findley, The Turks in World History, pp. 50, 2005, Oxford University Press
  11. ^ Kafesoğlu, İbrahim. Türk Milli Kültürü. Türk Kültürünü Araştırma Enstitüsü, 1977. page 134

[edit] References

  • Minahan, James B. One Europe, Many Nations: A Historical Dictionary of European National Groups. Greenwood Press, 2000. page 692
  • Aydın, Mehmet. Bayat-Bayat boyu ve Oğuzların tarihi. Hatiboğlu Yayınevi, 1984. web page

[edit] External links