Heroidi the ancien Greek historian about Epirr (Chameria, region of south Albania)
Tóka
"Epirr is populated by no Greek-people that speak one barbarian language"
So what can you say now - Heroid was one Illyrian?
ego
Chapter VIII - Iron Age in Eurasia
[Lecture 13 (continued) delivered 5 August 1991]
The Scythian Culture
Alexeev continues: the Iron Age begins in the eighth century BC and
continues
until the present. The early Iron Age period is between the eighth century
BC and
the fourth/fifth century AD. Now we have written information from Greece,
the Near
East, and China allowing us to glean ethnic links. From Greek and Near East
sources
we find that in the southern steppe zone and European Russia at the second
century,
the Scythians were replaced by Sarmatians. Greek sources have preserved
Scythian and
Sarmatian words and place names. Both tribes spoke Iranian languages.
The Greek sources, however, are contradictory. Some say the Scythians
were from
the northern Black Sea area; others say they were military campaigns in the
Caucasus
and Central Asia for the purpose of prospecting for gold. Possibly the
Scythians
were a single tribe in the mountain area of central Siberia. Archaeological
sources
and remotely sensed imagery show a great area of Scythian kurgans at the
junction of
the border with southwestern Mongolia 1. The material from here is similar
to
material from the Caucasus. From these kurgans near Mongolia, in very high
altitudes, wood and blankets have been preserved. This is the Altai region
of
Siberia. Recent excavations in the summer of 1993 produced a female corpse
frozen in
permafrost 2. "The Lady" will be submitted for DNA testing and for more
answers
regarding the origins of the Pazyryk Culture on the Eurasian steppes.
Information on
the Pazyryk Culture of the Minusinsk Basin in Siberia can be found in
Frozen Tombs
of Siberia by S.I. Rudenko 3.
Greek Colonies
The ancient Greeks colonized in coastal areas around the Black Sea from
the first
age of the great Greek Culture until the end of the first century BC. Three
Greek
Colonies: Olvia, Bospor, and Anapa 4 have been excavated. Olvia is located
in the
western section of the north coast of the Black Sea. Oliva has been
excavated from
the early 1900's to present day. In the territory of the Black and Azov
Seas from
eastern Crimea to the western Caucasus is a system of Greek towns called
Bospor.
Bospor was a small independent kingdom on the Balkan Peninsula. Anapa is a
Greek
town situated in the western sector of the central Caucasus; Anapa is
therefor
located on the territory of Asia.
Numerous artifacts have come from these excavations. A monumental stone
entrance
to a tomb is similar to the entrance to Mycinean burials in southern
Greece. A
figure of a Greek goddess has been discovered with snakes on her head and
holes in
her hair. Also uncovered is a statue of a chariot with four horses, a
statue of
Pluto the god of water, a garnet finger ring, a statue of iron which likely
was
covered with a thin layer of copper, shackles (fetters) made of iron and
used on
arrested people, and typical Greek vases from the mid second millennium BC.
A recent
discovery dating to the fourth century is a statue of Pericles.
From a Scythian kurgan comes a dagger and a gold hammer thought to be
worked by
Greeks. Scythians left only kurgans except for one town in the Dnieper
Valley (the
Kamenka Tribe is not common with other Scythian tribes; possibly it is the
tribe of
a town). Thus Scythians and Greeks were in a definite cultural
relationships for
many Greek objects have been found in Scythian kurgans.
Greek temples, as recorded in photographs, are an important archive
because many
of the temples were destroyed during the last hundred years so that the
stones could
be used for modern construction. Alexeev ends this lecture with a slide of
a Greek
arch which I think is perhaps the most significant technological
achievement by the
ancient Greeks. Other early civilizations perfected the corbeled arch which
is a
relatively simple construction in which both sides of the arch gradually
merge; the
stability of one stone being determined by that which is placed on top.
However, the
true arch is a delicate problem. The only way to achieve stability is with
the
keystone which applies a downward force so that the arch can achieve
height. This
physical concept is similar to the construction of a kite. A kite without a
tail
will not fly; it is the downward force of the tail that allows the kite to
soar.
[Lecture 14 delivered 7 August 1991]
Overview by Geraldine Reinhardt
This is the last lecture in the Summer of 1991 series on Soviet
archaeology
delivered at Harvard University by the prominent physical anthropologist
Valery P.
Alexeev of Moscow. Alexeev begins this lecture with a discussion of six
kingdoms in
Eurasia during the Iron Age: Vani, Merv, Bactria, Pazyryk Scythians, Huns,
and
Russia.
The Kingdom of Vani is located in the Caucasus in Georgia and exists
from the
seventh/sixth century BC to the first century AD. Greek inscriptions are
carved on
tombstones and the architecture is similar to that of Greece. Both iron and
bronze
metals are used, but bronze is considered more valuable.
From the Caucasus we move to Central Asia and Alexeev briefly mentions
Merv and
Bactria. The Kingdom of Merv is located in Central Asia in Turkmenistan.
The capital
of the Kingdom is also called Merv and is heavily fortified. Numerous seals
are
found that depict scenes from Iranian mythology and a sculpture uncovered
is of a
Greek wearing a helmet. Bactria, a Kingdom in Afghanistan, has its capital
on the
coast of the Amu Darya River. This site continues to be excavated by the
French.
The final two Iron Age Kingdoms are located in Siberia. The Pazyryk
Scythian
Kingdom is located in the eastern part of the Altai Mountains. These great
kurgans
have produced rich material, so rich that some think this must be the early
development of a small kingdom. The Huns Kingdom is located around Lake
Baikal and
in Mongolia; its people practice small agriculture, have domestic animals,
and live
in aesthetic places. The great wall of China was constructed to deter the
Huns. In
the fourth - fifth century AD, the Huns migrate to Central Asia, the
northern
Caucasus, western Europe, and Italy. The Huns occupy the steppes until the
sixteenth/seventeenth century.
Another migration from Central Asia to the Caucasus is by the Alans
(Alani)
people. The Alans are Iranian people who did not remain in the Caucasus but
moved to
western Asia, crossed Italy, France, southern Spain and the north coast of
Africa.
Today there remains one Iranian group in the Caucasus called the Ossets who
are
descendants of the Alans.
Another migration Alexeev discusses is that of the Slavs. Slavs are
located in
the eastern section of what is now the Republic of Czech, in southern
Poland, and in
eastern Ukraine. The Slavs begin to move in a northeasterly direction
peopling
European Russia.
The final kingdom presented is the kingdom of Russia. The beginnings of
the
Russian kingdom dates to the ninth century AD and is geographically located
in the
Dnieper Valley where present day Kiev is situated.
Alexeev mentions two additional migrations, that of Jenghiz Khan in the
beginning
of the thirteenth century and in the seventeenth century a migration of
Russians to
Siberia, Alaska, and the west coast of California in the United States.
Thus
completes the major migrations in Eurasia.
Alexeev ends the lecture with slides, information from which is included
in the
text. The final slide, indeed symbolic, is of an ancient seal in the shape
of a
cross. The seal is of silver and covered with gold.
Class ends one hour early. Alexeev gathers his map and briefcase and ...
he
leaves the room! My classmates and I stare at each other with perplexity.
We have
been informed that our final examination will be a two hour oral conducted
at 102
Quincy House. Each of us will be given one or two questions at the
beginning of the
exam, we will have a brief time to talk among ourselves and share
information, and
then we will be examined individually. We also have been told that we can
bring
whatever information we need to the exam.
Kingdom of Vani
As per Alexeev, the Kingdom of Vani 5 is in existence in the
seventh/sixth
century BC and lasts until the first century AD. This kingdom is located in
Georgia
close to the Black Sea; Vani is also the name of a town. This kingdom is
influenced
by Greece but it also has its native cultural traditions 6. Linguists do
not know
which languages were spoken [Arutiunov says the language most probably was
early
Zanic]; however, inscriptions on gravestones are in Greek. This site has
been
excavated for thirty years revealing a great square with architecture
similar to
Greece. The Vani people are metal users. Iron is used for tools, with an
occasional
implement made of bronze; bronze is considered very valuable. Thus in the
early Iron
Age there is a mixing of a new tradition of iron with the old tradition of
bronze.
Kingdom of Merv
The Kingdom of Merv 7 is located in Central Asia south- east of the
Caspian Sea
in the geographic area known as Turkmenistan. Merv is both an oasis and a
town
situated on the southern edge of the Kara-kum desert. The great mountain
chains of
the Hindu-Kush and the Paropamisus that extend from the Caspian to the
Pamirs are
interrupted 180 miles south of Merv. Near this gap and flowing northwards
in
parallel courses are the rivers Tejend and Murghab. These rivers lose
themselves in
the Kara-kum desert. Thus Merv becomes a watch tower over the entrance into
Afghanistan in the northwest and a stepping stone between Persia and
Bokhara/Samarkand.
Merv is inhabited by Turkomans of the Tekke tribe. The oasis is
irrigated by an
elaborate system of canals stemming from the Murghab River. The oasis is
known for
its fertility and produces wheat, millet, barley, melons, rice, and cotton.
As well,
silk worms are bred. The Turkomans herd horses, camels, sheep, cattle,
asses, and
mules and are superior silversmiths and carpet weavers (their carpets are
finer than
the Persian). Summer heat is very oppressive and a gentle breeze fills the
air with
clouds of fine dust obscuring visibility.
In Hindu, Farsi, and Arab tradition, Merv is regarded as the ancient
Paradise,
the cradle of the Aryan families. As "Mouru", Merv is mentioned in the
Zend-Avesta
and under the name Margu it occurs in the Behistun inscriptions of Darius
where it
is referred to as one of the satrapies of ancient Persia. It afterwards
becomes
Margiana, a province of the Graeco-Syrian, Parthian, and Persian Kingdoms.
In the
fifth century during the rule of the Persian Sassanian dynasty, Merv is the
seat of
a Christian archbishopric of the Nestorian Church. In 646 Merv is occupied
by the
caliph Othman and becomes the capital of Khorasan. In the middle of the
eleventh
century Merv is overrun by the Turkish tribes of the Ghuzz from beyond the
Oxus. In
1221 Tule, son of Jenghiz Khan and chief of the Mongols, butchers most of
the
inhabitants. From this time forward Merv begins to decline.
On the death of the grandson of Jenghiz Khan in 1380, Merv is included
in the
possessions of Tamerlane, Mongol prince of Samarkand. Merv is occupied for
a brief
time by the Uzbegs but remains in the hands of Persia until 1787 when it is
captured
by the emir of Bokhara and is razed to the ground by the Bokharians. With
the
destruction of the irrigation system, Merv is converted into a wasteland.
The Oasis
is occupied by the Russians in 1883.
The ruins of Merv consist of the Bairam Ali Khan "kalah" (citadel) built
by a son
of Tamerlane and destroyed by the Bokharians and another "kalah", a walled
enclosure, called Abdullah Khan. North is the old capital of the Seljuks,
the Sultan
Kalah, which is destroyed by the Mongols in 1219. The most significant
feature is
the burial mosque of Sultan Sanjar. East of this capital is Giaur Kalah,
the Merv of
the Nestorian era and the capital of Arab princes. North of Giaur Kalah are
the
ruins of Iskender Kalah, likely the capital of the Seleucid dynasty.
From Merv comes the sculpture of a Greek male wearing a helmet.
Excavations also
have revealed a great number of clay seals possibly used as signs of
property. Other
seals depict animals, in particular a fantastic figure with a mammal's body
and the
head of a bird. This creature is typical of Iranian mythology and is called
Senvurv-Paskudge 8. Two main principles in ancient Iranian religion are the
Ormuzd
(god) and Arman (devil); the former representing good and Arman bringing
evil. The
Senvurv-Paskudge is used to bring Ormuzd. These seals are located in many
places.
Other seals depicting mythological animals are also found; one seal depicts
a seated
figure with a staff in hand. There are no letters on this seal.
Kingdom of Bactria
Bactria 9 is located in Afghanistan. Bactria or Bactriana is the ancient
name of
the country between the mountain range of the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya
(Oxus)
River. The capital city is Balkh. The country is mountainous, the climate
moderate,
water is abundant, and the land is fertile.
Bactria is the homeland to one of the Iranian tribes. It is here that
the prophet
Zoroaster preaches and gathers his disciples; his religion spreads from
here to the
western parts of Iran. The language in which "Avesta" the holy book of
Zoroastrianism is written is often referred to as "old Bactrian".
Bactria is also regarded as the cradle of the Indo-European people based
on the
theory that the nations of Europe immigrated from Asia and that the Aryan
languages
(Indian and Iranian) are prototypes for the Indo-European. In opposition to
this
theory is another which states that the Aryans came from Europe, lived in
the
eastern part of Iran as one people, and then divided into Indians and
Iranians.
Currently, archaeological evidence seems to support the former.
The "Avesta" locates its heroes and myths in eastern Iran and transforms
the old
gods who fight with the great snake into kings of Iran who fight with the
Turanians.
The Avesta also details the conflict between the peasants of Iran and the
nomads of
Turan (Turkistan). Turan is the region north of the Oxus and is peopled by
those of
Ural-Altaic stock who as nomads displace and/or assimilate earlier
populations (i.e.
Iranians and others). These people are also known as Turkic or Tartaric;
Tartars are
of Turkic origin such as Kazan Tatars and are members of one of the
numerous Turkic
peoples originating in Manchuria and Mongolia and now found mainly in the
Tatar
republic of the former USSR, the northern Caucasus, Crimea, and sections of
Siberia.
At no time did a great Bactrian empire exist; the Bactrians have always
been
ruled by petty local kings. Bactria is subjugated by Cyrus and becomes one
of the
satrapies of the Persian empire. When Alexander defeats Darius III, the
satrap of
Bactria tries to organize a resistance movement but to no avail. Bactria is
conquered by Alexander without much difficulty. Bactria then becomes a
province of
the Macedonian empire and comes under the rule of the Seleucis, king of
Asia. The
Macedonians, especially Seleucis I and his son Antiochus I, founded many
Greek towns
in eastern Iran and for some time the Greek language becomes dominant. Due
to the
many difficulties presented to the Seleucid kings including the attacks by
Ptolemy
II, Diodotus, a satrap of Bactria, declares independence c 255 BC and
Diodotus
conquers Sogdiana and establishes the Graeco-Bactrian kingdom. Diodotus and
his
successors are able to contend with the attacks by the Seleucids. Finally,
when
Antiochus III is defeated by the Romans in 190 BC, the Bactrian king
Euthydemus and
his son Demetrius cross the Hindu Kush and begin the conquest of eastern
Iran and
the Indus valley. A great Greek empire has arisen in the far East. Soon
many
usurpers arise in many of the Bactrian provinces undermining the efforts of
the
Greeks to maintain a centralized control. The weakness of the
Graeco-Bactrian
kingdoms is shown by their complete overthrow.
In the west the Arsacid empire has risen and Mithradates I and Phraates
II begin
to conquer areas to the west, especially Areia (Herat). In the west a new
group of
Mongolian tribes called Scythians by the Greeks appear. The most important
of these
Scythian tribes is the Tochari (also known as the Yueh-Chi of the Chinese).
In 159
BC, according to Chinese sources, the Tochari enter Sogdiana, in 139 BC
they conquer
Bactria, and during the next generation they end Greek rule in eastern
Iran. Only in
India do the Greek conquerors, Menander and Apollodotus, maintain
themselves for a
while longer.
In the middle of the first century BC, eastern Iran and western India
belong to
the Indo-Scythian empire. The ruling dynasty is the Kushan (Kushana). The
most
famous of the Kushan kings was Kanishka the protector of Buddhism. The
principal
seat of the Tochari and Kushan dynasty is in Bactria, but they also
maintain eastern
Afghanistan and Baluchistan while the western regions of Areia (Herat),
Seistan, and
part of the Helmund valley are conquered by the Arsacids. In the third
century AD
the Kushan dynasty begins to decay and in 320 AD the Gupta empire is
founded in
India. Thus the Kushanas are reduced to eastern Iran where they have to
fight
against the Sassanids. In the fifth century a new people come from the
east, the
Ephthalites (Huns), who conquer Bactria c 450 AD. The Ephthalites are
followed by
the Turks who appear in 560 AD and subjugate the country north of the Oxus.
Most of
the Kushan and Tochari principalities are overthrown by the Ephthalites.
When the
Sassanian empire is overthrown by the Arabs, the conquerors move eastward
and
subjugate Bactria and the entirity of Iran to the banks of the Jaxartes.
The entire
region thus is under control of the rule of the caliph and of Islam.
The capital is located in northern Bactria on the coast of the Amu Darya
River
which marks the border between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan. The
capital is
possibly in the town of Ai-Hanum, a site excavated in the early 1920's by
M.I.
Rostovtsev (Rostovzeff) 10 of Harvard University. Today the site continues
to be
excavated by the French.
Scythian Kingdom of Pazyryk
The Kingdom of Pazyryk is located in the eastern section of the Altai
Mountains
close to the border of Mongolia 11. This kingdom has great kurgans with
such rich
material that many believe that it had to have been the first step in the
political
organization of a small kingdom. This is likely a Scythian kingdom.
The burial ground at Kuturguntas, located 2,090 m above sea level, is
located in
a small mountain valley where the rivers Ak-Alaka, Kara-Bulak, and Ak-Kil
merge.
Kuturguntas is being excavated by the Russian archaeologist, N. Polos'mak
12 and
contains five kurgans dating to Scythian times.
The burial ground of Ak-Alaka, also excavated by Polos'mak, contains six
kurgans
and one funeral complex consisting of seven stone rings arranged one
adjacent to
another. Each ring consists of seven stones. These rings form a chain which
ends in
the southwest in a structure of small stones arranged in a radial fashion
with a
diameter of 5 m. To the northeast are two "Balbals" (gravestones) of
grey-black
flagstone. The interment at Ak-Alaka produces two larchwood coffins
containing the
"frozen" remains of a 45 year old male of the European type and a 16 year
old
female, also of the European type.
The interment at Kuturguntas also produces a female corpse preserved in
permafrost. Known as "The Lady", she has been submitted for DNA testing.
This
excavation has been the subject of a documentary filmed by The National
Geographic
Society and first televised by The Society in 1994. "The Lady" is also a
feature
article in the Society's journal, October 1994. It is hopeful that the DNA
test
results will answer significant questions concerning the origins of the
Pazyryk
Culture on the Eurasian steppes.
Kingdom of Huns
Located in Mongolia and around Lake Baikal is the Huns Kingdom 13. This
kingdom
is known from both it graves and settlements. The Huns Kingdom has domestic
animals,
practices small agriculture, and its people live in aesthetic places.
Because the
Huns are so rich and strong, they pose a serious danger to China. China
constructs
the Great Wall to serve as protection against the Huns.
The Hsiung-nu (early Huns), according to Chinese chronicles, battle the
Chinese
in the Ordos area of Inner Mongolia. This occurs at the close of the Zhou
(Chou) in
the third century BC i.e. the eastern Zhou Dynasty ends in 221 BC giving
way to the
Qin and Han Dynasties.
The Hsia dynasty is the first of the dynasties at 2205-1766 BC according
to Li
Chi (record of rites); Mo Ti; Lu Pu-wei; and Shu Ching (book of history).
These are
the earliest historical references [As per Arutiunov, the Hsia dynasty is
legendary
and precedes the Shang]. After this time there are fragmentary accounts of
wars and
migrations until the close of the Zhou Dynasty 2000 years later when the
nomadic
tribes in the Ordos are the Hsiung Nu. HOLLIS relates Huns to Hsiung-nu and
Arutiunov confirms that the initial Huns are Hsiung-Nu.
In 771 BC the Quanrong Tribes from the Ordos force the Zhou to move
their capital
eastward from Shaanxi to Luoyang. This marks the decline of centralization
and the
rise of regional power i.e. a large number of feudal states. During the
Shang and
western Zhou, the northern tribes are agricultural. During the eastern
Zhou, the
tribes practice husbandry and decorated their artifacts with zoomorphic
motifs.
Shang: 1700 - 1050 BC
Western Zhou: 1050 - 771 BC
Eastern Zhou: 771 BC - 221 BC
Qin and Han: 221 BC - AD 220
The term "Huns" applies to at least four different people: those under
the
leadership of Attila who invade the East Roman empire from about 372 - 453
AD; the
Hungarians (Magyars); the White Huns (Ephthalites) who trouble the Persian
empire
from c 420 - 557 AD; and the Hunas 14 who invade India during the same
period. The
Huns appear in Europe at the end of the fourth century and the Ephthalites
and Hunas
in western Asia about fifty years later. Likely some defeat in China had
sent them
westward some time earlier. One group push their way through the mountains
into
Afghanistan and India, as the Yueh-Chi have done before them. Another group
moves
westward and settles in the northern end of the Caspian Sea and the
southern section
of the Ural Mountains. It is from here that the Huns under leadership by
Attila
invade Europe.
The physical characteristics of the Huns is very variable since they
continually
increase their number by adding slaves, women, and mercenaries. The
language of the
Magyars is Finno-Ugric and most nearly allies with the speech of the
Ostiaks now
found east of the Urals [HOLLIS relates the Ostiaks of the Ob with the
Khanty; and
the Ostiaks of the Yenissei with the Kets]. The warlike temper of the Huns
has led
many scholars to regard them as Turks.
HOLLIS lists Yueh-Chih (Yue-Chi) and relates Yueh-Chih to both the
Ephthalites
(White Huns) and Kushans (Kushans in Afghanistan and India). HOLLIS relates
Tokhari
with the Yueh-Chih and the Tokharian language with the Yueh-Chih language
15.
Backtracking, HOLLIS relates Indo-Scythians with Yueh-Chih and Saka.
Hollis
relates Saka with the ancient city of Khotan (in Chinese Turkestan) 16 and
relates
the Saka Language with the Khotanese language. HOLLIS also categorizes
Khotan China,
Khotan Saka language, and Khotan Sinkiang (Xingjiang) 17.
Backtracking again, HOLLIS relates Scythians to the Alani and Indo
Scythians (the
Alani or Alans are synonymous with the eastern Sarmatians and the Ossets in
the
Caucasus).
As per Arutiunov: "very often similar names are applied to slightly or
totally
different people. Huns of Attila are probably a separate part of Hsiung-Nu
(Khunnu)
of northern China. White Huns (Ephthalites) and Hunas are probably
interacting; they
speak either Tokharic or Scythian. Huns of Attila and Hsiung-Nu are
probably Turkic
at the core, but their league of tribes certainly include other tribes who
speak
Uranian, Ugric, south Samodic, maybe Ket and other languages. Physically
there are
both Mongoloids and Europoids among them. The Saka definitely speak
Scythian (North
Iranian), the component "SK" is determinant in all Scythian ethnonyms.
Ostiaks are
Khanty par excellence but Selkups are often called Ostiak-Samoyeds, and
Kets are
called Yenissei-Ostiaks. Please do not mix identically sounding names of
Khotan
Indians of Hsiunguiang (Xingjiang) and Khotana Indians of Alaska".
In the fourth - fifth century AD, the Huns migrate to Central Asia, the
northern
Caucasus, western Europe, and to Italy. This is the first of the migrations
in the
Christian era. Following this first migration, there are two or three other
migrations from southern Siberia and eastern Russia. These peoples occupy
the
steppes and live there until the sixteenth/seventeenth century.
Alans People
As per Alexeev, there is one migration of Iranian people from Central
Asia to the
northern Caucasus. These Iranian people are called the Alans (Alani) People
18. The
Alans are the easternmost division of the Sarmatians and are Iranian nomads
with
some Altaic admixture. From north of the Caspian and spreading into the
steppes of
Russia, the Alans make incursions into the Danubian and Caucasian provinces
of the
Roman empire. The Alans are cut into two sections by the Huns: the western
group
joins the Germanic nations in their invasion of southern Europe, and
following the
fortunes of the Vandals, disappear in North Africa; the eastern section is
dispersed
on the steppes until late medieval times and by invading hordes are forced
into the
Caucasus where they remain as the Ossetes. At one time partially
Christianized by
Byzantine missionaries, they almost relapse into heathenism, but under
Russian
influence return to Christianity.
The Sarmatae (Sarmatians) 19 are a people whom Herodotus locates on the
eastern
boundary of Scythia beyond the Don. He says they are not pure Scythians but
are
descended from young Scythian men and Amazons, speak an impure dialect, and
allow
their women to take part in war. Later writers call some of them
"woman-ruled
Sarmatae". Hippocrates clasifies them as Scythian. The barbarian names
occurring in
the inscriptions of Olbia, Tanais, and Panticapaeum are likely Sarmatian.
By the
third century BC the Sarmatae appear to have supplanted the Scyths in the
plains of
south Russia where they remain dominant until the Gothic and Hunnish
invasions.
Their chief divisions are the Phoxolani, the Iazyges, and the Alani. The
term
Sarmatia is applied by later writers to what is now Russia, including that
which
older authorities called Scythia. The term Scythia is then transferred to
regions
farther east.
Even today there is one group of Iranian people in the Caucasus called
the
Ossetes 20. Most of the Alans People did not stay in the Caucasus; rather,
they
moved to western Asia, crossed into Italy, France, and southern Spain, and
the north
west coast of Africa. Thus, as per Arutiunov, "the Alans (Alani) were first
displaced by Huns in the 4-6 centuries AD and later in the 13-14 century
AD. The
Alani were later diplaced by Mongols in the 13-14 century AD".
Slav People
According to Alexeev, the Slavs are located in the eastern part of the
Czech
Republic, southern Poland, and western Ukraine in the Karplash Mountains;
they are
the most numerous people in Europe. Also they are the Russians of Eurasia
and many
have migrated to the United States.
Geographically and linguistically the Slavs are divided into three
groups:
Eastern, North-Western, and Southern. The Eastern group is comprised of
Russians and
extends from the East European plain to the Urals (Finnish and Tatar tribes
are only
a small proportion of the population). Further east the Slavs are located
in central
Siberia and in narrow bands along the rivers to the Pacific. To the west,
the
Ruthenians of Galicia form a wedge between the Poles and Magyars.
The North-Western group includes the Poles, Kashubes, High and Low
Sorbs, Czechs,
and Moravians. In the north of Hungary, are the Slovaks who are related to
the
Ruthenians and Poles but most closely akin to the Moravians. As well are
the now
teutonized Slavs of central Germany. Historically the North-Western group
has been
surrounded by Germans.
The southern Slavs: Slovenes, Serbo-Croats, and Bulgarians are seperated
from the
main body by the Germans of Austria and the Magyars both of whom occupy
soil once
Slavonic. Also Slavic are the Rumanians of Transylvania and the Lower
Danube. Their
southern boundary is very poorly defined with various nationalities being
closely
intermingled. To the south west the Slavs march with the Albanians and to
the south
east with the Turks. Along the Aegean coasts they have Greeks as neighbors.
Geographically, the eastern half of the Balkan Peninsula is occupied by the
Bulgarians and the western half by the Serbo-Croats. The Serbo-Croats are
the most
divided of the Slavs having three religions and three alphabets. The Serbs
and
Bosnians are mostly Orthodox and use the Cyrillic alphabet but include many
Moslim
people. Croats are Roman Catholic and use the Latin alphabet; the
Dalmatians are
also Roman Catholic but use the ancient Glagolitic script for their
Slavonic
liturgy.
Linguistically the southern Slavs are not sharply divided; however the
political
boundaries are clearly marked: the kingdom of Serbia; the kingdom of
Montenegro; the
Turkish provinces of Old Serbia and Novibazar; Bosnia and Herzegovina; the
coastline
and islands of Istria and Dalmatia; the kingdom of Croatia; and outlying
colonies in
Hungary and in Italy. In the extreme northwest of the peninsula, in
Carniola, in
southern Styria and Carinthia, and in Italy in the province of Udine and
the Vale of
Resia live the Slovenes who are much divided dialectically.
Between the Slovenes and the Croats there are transition dialects and in
c. 1840
there is an attempt to establish a common literary language called
Illyrian. In
Macedonia and along the border are varieties of Bulgarian some of which are
similar
to Serbian. Akin to the Macedonians are the Slavs who once occupied the
whole of
Greece and left traces in place names. Akin to the Slovenes are the
inhabitants of
Austria and southwest Hungary before the intrusion of the Germans and
Magyars.
When the Slavs formed one people, they settled to the northeast of the
Carpathians in the basins of the Vistula, Pripet, and Upper Dniester. To
the north,
their nearest relatives are the Baltic peoples: Prussians, Lithuanians, and
Letts.
To the east are the Finns. To the southeast are the Iranian population of
the
steppes of Scythia. To the southwest and on the other side of the
Carpathians are
various Thracian tribes. To the northwest are the Germans. Between the
Germans and
the Thracians the Slavs seem to have some contact with the Celts, but their
first
contact in this area is with the Illyrians, Greeks, and Italians.
There is no evidence that the Slavs make any considerable migration from
their
first home in the region of the Carpathians until the first century AD.
Their first
Transcarpathian seat is, in fact, remote from the Mediterranean peoples.
Herodotus
possibly mentions the Slavs a people whose home is on the upper waters of
the
Dniester. Other classical writers including Strabo tell us nothing of
eastern Europe
beyond the immediate area of the Euxine.
The sudden appearance of names for the Slavs in sixth century writers
means that
at this time the Slavs become familiar with the Graeco-Roman world. The
gradual
spread of the Slavs is masked by the huge migrations of Goths. Ptolemy
identifies
the Slavs as being subservient to the Goths and occupying the same
territories. This
domination of the Slavs by the Goths may explain the large number of
Germanic loan
words common to all the Slavonic languages including: "King, penny, house,
loaf,
earring".
The Huns succeed the Goths as masters of central Europe and when the
Hunnish
power wanes, the eastern Goths and Gepidae move southwards and westwards,
and the
Lombards and Heruli follow in their tracks. In this early half of the first
century
AD, the whereabouts of the Slavs are difficult to ascertain due to the
ethnocentricity of the historians. German writers deny the possibility of
the Slavs
having forced German tribes to leave their homes and assume that the riches
of
southern Europe attracted the Germans and that they willingly gave up the
northern
plains. Most Slavonic authors have also taken the same view and preserve
this
idealistic picture of the peaceful, kindly, and democratic Slavs who
contrast so
well with the savage Germans.
The Slavonic languages belong to the Indo-European family. Within this
family
they are closely related to the Baltic group: Old Prussian, Lithuanian, and
Lettish.
The Balto-Slavs have much in common with the northerly or German group and
with the
easterly or Aryan group. The Aryans likewise split into two divisions,
Iranian and
Indian. The Iranians as Sarmatians remain in contact with the Slavs until
after the
Christian era and the southeastern or Thracian group (Armenian) and the
Illyrian
(Albanian) share common linguistic specializations not present in other
European
groups.
The Baltic group and the Slavs are separated by the marshes of White
Russia and
do not have much communication until the Slavs begin to spread. After the
Aryans
move eastwards, Slavonic is left in contact with Thracian. On the other
side, the
Germans, neighbors to the Balto-Slavs, never cease to influence them and
give them
loan words and receive a few in return. In 6-7 centuries, they begin to
move to the
northeast, peopling European Russia.
Russian Kingdom and Mongol Conquests of Eurasia
As per Alexeev, the Russian Kingdom begins in the tenth century AD in
the Dneiper
Valley where Kiev, the capital of the Ukraine is located. Archaeology in
Kiev
reveals that the area is inhabited in the mid first millennium BC; however,
Bzyantine and Greek sources and Russian writers of the twelvth century
inform us
that a kingdom is not established until the tenth century. When Kiev is
actually
established, there remain several different independent kingdoms in the
southern
part of European Russia.
In the beginning of the thirteenth century there are still migrations,
possibly
conquests, from western Europe. A conquest by the Mongol troops of Jenghiz
Khan
occurs in the thirteenth century AD. Mongols are one of the main
ethnographic
divisions of Asiatic peoples; however, the early history of the Mongols is
very
obscure. From Chinese histories of the seventh century AD, the original
Mongol
campgrounds are located along the banks of the Kerulen, Upper Nonni, and
Argun
rivers. As to the origins of the Mongols people, legends are created when
history is
lacking and legend has it that they sprang from a blue wolf. This origin
plus the
authority given to Budantsar, from whom Yesukai, father of Jenghiz Khan,
was eighth
in descent, paves the way for the great Mongol conqueror, Jenghiz Khan.
When Jenghiz
Khan is laid to rest in 1227 he leaves to his sons an empire that extends
from the
China Sea to the banks of the Dnieper.
To the family of his deceased eldest son Juji, Jenghiz Khan leaves the
country
from Kayalik and Khwarizm to the borders of Bulgar and Saksin; to his
eldest
surviving son, Jagatai, he gives the territory from the borders of the
Uighur
country to Bokkara; to Tule his youngest son, he leaves the home country of
the
Mongols, the care of the imperial encampment, and the state archives. As
chief khan
(khakan) he places his second surviving son Ogotai as ruler over the entire
region.
True to Mongol tradition, when Ogotai ascends to the throne he distributes
presents
from his father's treasures to his peoples and in his father's honor he
sacrifices
forty maidens and numerous horses.
Chief khan Ogotai, following the lead of his father, gathers a large
army and
marches southwards into China to complete the ruin of the Kin or "Golden"
dynasty.
The Kin dynasty falls in 1234 after ruling over the northern portion of
China for
more than a century.
Continuing his exploits, Ogotai focuses his attention on the kingdom of
Khwarizm
which his father had captured from Jelal ed-din, after driving him into
India.
Apparently Jelal ed-din had returned to Khwarizm with the support of the
sultan of
Delhi. With force, power, and might Ogotai descends upon Khwarizm, forces
Jelal
ed-din into the Kurdish Mountains and establishes his sovereignty over
Khwarizm.
Without a moments delay, Ogotai and his army pushes still farther
westward and
with little opposition overruns the districts of Diarbekr, Mesopotamia,
Erbil, and
Kelat and then marches upon Azerbaijan. At the same time Ogotai dispaches
three
armies each in a different direction. One he directs against Korea, another
against
the Sung dynasty which rules over the provinces of China south of the
Yangtsze
Kiang, and the third is sent westward into eastern Europe.
The campaign against eastern Europe is executed with savage cruelty.
This force
is commanded by Batu, the son of Juji, Ogotai's deceased elder brother. The
army
captures Bolgari, the capital city of the Bulgars, and pushes on over the
Volga to
the "beautiful city" of Ryazan where the inhabitants and the city are
ravaged in a
most cruel way. The horrors of Ryazan are repeated at Kozelsk and Kiev
("the mother
of cities") as Batu continues his "carnival of death". The army then splits
into two
divisions. One goes to Pest, Hungary which Batu takes with the same savage
bloodshed
as before, and on Christmas Day 1241 crosses the Danube on the ice and
takes
Esztergom by assault. The second division plunders Poland. While Batu's
army is
laying waste to the country, they recieve the announcement of the death of
Ogotai
and a summons for Batu to return to Mongolia.
Succeeding Ogotai to the throne is his son Kuyuk about whom little is
known
except that he reigns for only seven years, two of his ministers are
Christians, and
a Christian chapel stands before his tent. Upon the death of Kuyuk
dissentions
between the houses of Ogotai and Jagatai break out into an open war and
after the
short and disputed reigns of Kaidu and Chapai, grandsons of Ogotai, the
lordship
passed away forever from the house of Ogotai and goes not to the house of
Jagatai
but to that of Tule.
On 1 July 1251 Mangu, eldest son of Tule is elected khakan and among his
subjects
are Christians, Mahommedans, and Buddhists. Two years later his court in
Karakorum
is visited by Rubruquis and other Christian monks who are hospitably
received. The
description of the Khakan's palace as given by Rubruquis is much different
from the
tent-living life of Mangu's forefathers:
"surrounded by brick walls...its southern side had three doors. Its
central hall
was like a church ... here the court sat on great occasions. In front of
the throne
was placed a silver tree, having at its base four lions, from whose mouths
there
spouted fine refreshment into four silver basins. At the top of the tree a
silver
angel sounded a trumpet when the reservoirs that supplied the four
fountains wanted
replenishing".
Shortly after his ascension to the throne, Mangu receives word that
dissensions
have broken out in the province of Persia. Mangu dispatches an army under
command of
his brother Hulagu to punish the Ismailites (Assassins). Marching by
Samarkand and
Karshi, crossing the Oxus and advancing by way of Balkh, Hulagu and his
troops enter
Kohistan. The terror of the Mongol name causes the chief of the Assassins,
Rukneddin
Gurshah II, to present offers of submission including the dismantling of
fifty of
the fortresses in Kohistan. Once the country has been left to the mercy of
the
invaders, Hulagu and his men exterminate every man, woman, and child.
Hulagu then marches across the snowy mountains in the direction of
Bagdad to
attack the last Abbasid caliph and his Seljuk protectors. Hulagu arrives at
Bagdad
and demands surrender. When this is refused he lay seige to the walls.
Finding
resistance hopeless, the caliph surrenders and opens the gates to his
enemies.
Hulagu lays siege to Bagdad and then with much strength and energy moves
onward into
Syria.
Hulagu storms and sacks Aleppo, Damascus surrenders, and while plans are
being
made to attack Jerusalem and return it to the Christians, Hulagu receives
news of
Mangu's death. Hulagu leaves at once for Mongolia and places Kitboga in
command of
the Mongol forces in Syria.
Hulagu is now recognized as ruler of all the conquered provinces. He
assumes the
title of ilkhan although acknowledging the khakan as supreme lord. This
title is
borne by his successors who rule over Persia for about a century.
While Hulagu is conquering western Asia, Mangu and his next brother
Kublai are
conquering areas in southern China. Southward they avance into Tong-king
and
westward they cross the frontier into Tibet. Mangu and Kublai's campaign
differs
greatly from that of Hulagu. All indiscriminate massacres are forbidden and
the
inhabitants of captured cities are treated with humanity. While continuing
the war
in the province of Szech'uen, Mangu is taken ill with dysentery which
proves fatal.
His body is carried back to Mongolia and in pursuance of the custom of
slaughtering
every one encountered on the way, 20,000 persons are put to the sword.
At Shang-tu, Kublai is elected khakan and for thirty-five years he sits
on the
Mongol throne. Kublai Khan dies in 1294 and is succeeded by his son Timur
Khan
(Uldsheitu Khan or Chinese Yuen-cheng). Uldsheitu is able to heal the
division which
has seperated the families of Ogotai and Jagatai from that of the ruling
khakan.
Uldsheitu is succeeded by his nephew Khaissan whose reign is very brief.
His
successor is his nephew Buyantu (Chinese Yen-tsung) who was a man of
considerable
culture. Bunyantu among other things rescues the inscription-bearing "stone
drums"
from decay and ruin and places them in the temple of Confucius in Peking.
These
drums date to the Zhou Dynasty, first millennium BC.
After a reign of nine years, Buyantu is succeeded by his son Gegen
(Chinese
Ying-tsung) who is killed by the knife of an assassin. Yissun Timur
(Chinese
Tai-ting-ti) is the next sovereign who devotes himself to the
administration of his
empire. He divides China, which until this time has been apportioned into
twelve
provinces, into eighteen provinces and rearranges the system of state
granaries. His
court is visited by Friar Odoric who presents this description:
"Its basement was raised about two paces from the ground, and within
there were
twenty-four columns of gold, and all the walls were hung with skins of red
leather,
said to be the finest in the world. In the midst of the palace was a great
jar more
than two paces in height, made of the certain precious stone called
merdacas
(jade)...When the Khakan sat on his throne the queen was on his left hand,
and a
step lower two others of his women, while at the bottom of the steps stood
the other
ladies of his family. All those who were married wore upon their heads the
foot of a
man ... and at the top of the foot there were certain cranes' feathers, the
whole
foot being set with great pearls, so that if there were in the whole world
any fine
and large pearls they were to be found in the decoration of those ladies".
The following years see great natural and political devastation. Floods,
earthquakes, and in many parts of the empire, revolts occur. Under various
leaders,
the rebels capture a number of cities in the provinces of Kiang-nan and
Honan, and
take possession of Hang-chow, the capital of the Sung emperors. At the same
time
pirates ravage the coasts and eliminate imperial vessels from the sea.
In 1355 Chu Yuen-chang, a Buddhist priest, became so outraged with the
misery of
his countrymen that he throws off his vestments and enrolls in the rebel
army. His
military genius is soon recognized, he is given position of leader, and
with his
crudely trained troups he overcomes the trained legions of the Mongol
emperor.
Toghon Timur Khan is unable to deter the rebels and when they capture
Peking, Toghon
Timur hastily flees to the shores of the Donon-nor in Mongolia. In 1368 the
ex-Buddhist priest ascends the throne as the first sovereign of the Ming
dynasty. He
is called Hung-wu.
The Ordos desert of Inner Mongolia is one of the first regions of
conquest by
Jenghiz Khan; during his rule, a tribe of Mongols (Tartars) moved into this
area
from the north. They are called the Ordos Mongols. Chinese sources refer to
this
area as Honan or south of the river.
The Tatars are inhabitants of the Russian empire and are chiefly Moslem
and of
Turkish origin. The majority in European Russia are remnants of the Mongol
invasion
of the thirteenth century. Those who inhabit Siberia are descendents of the
Turkish
population of the Ural-Altaic region mixed to some extent with Finnish,
Samoyedic,
and Mongol peoples. The name is derived from that of the Ta-ta Mongols who
in the
fifth century inhabited the northeastern Gobi and after subjugation by the
Khitans
in the ninth century migrate southward and form the Mongol empire under
Jenghiz
Khan.
Under the leadership of Jenghiz Khan's grandson, Batu, the Mongols move
westward
driving with them many of the Turkish Ural-Altaians toward the plains of
Russia. The
ethnographical features of the present Tatar inhabitants of European Russia
as well
as their language show that they contain no admixture of Mongolian blood,
but belong
to the Turkish branch of the Ural-Altaic stock. Thus only Batu, his
warriors and a
limited number of his followers were Mongols; the great bulk of the
thirteenth
century invaders are Turks.
Thus the name Tatars is originally applied to both the Turkish and
Mongol peoples
who invaded Europe in the thirteenth century and gradually extend to the
Turkish
people who mix with the Mongols or Finns in Siberia. In a more restricted
sense, the
term refers to Mahommedan Turkish-speaking tribes, especially in Russia,
who never
form part of the Seljuk or Ottoman Empire, but make independent settlements
and
remained cut off from the politics and civilization of the rest of the
Mahommedan
world.
The term "Turk" ("Turkish") is used in three ways: political,
linguistic, and
ethnological. Politically the term refers to a subject of the sultan of
Turkey. The
term is not used in speaking of Christians. Linguistically the term
references a
well established division of the Ural-Altaic languages and their speakers.
Ethnographically the use of the term is difficult because it is not easy to
differentiate the Turks by physique or customs from other tribes such as
Mongolians
or Manchus. However, until fairly recently the following practical
distinction could
be made between Turks and Mongols: Turks speak Turkish languages, are
Moslems by
religion, live in the western part of Eurasia and fall within the Arabic
and to some
extent European sphere of influence while Mongols speak Mongolian
languages, are
Buddhists by religion, live in the eastern half of Eurasia and fall within
the
Chinese influence.
Finally a great migration in the seventeenth century distributes
Russians on
Siberian territory, in Alaska, and the west coast of the United States to
California. There are some traces of Russian Culture in California and on
the
Commander Islands (the Commander Islands consist of Bering Island and
Copper [Medny]
Island).
Aleuts live on the Aleutian Islands, Pribiloff Island, and the tip of
the Alaska
Peninsula. They are brought to the Commander Islands by Russians. Today
there are
about 600 people; most of the Aleuts in America have Russian names and
practice an
Orthodox religion.
Excavations at Novgorod 21, located on the Volhov River, have been
conducted for
forty years and reveal an eleventh century town. From Novgorod comea the
first
written documents made on "beresta", the skin of a birch tree. "Beresta" is
used as
paper; pens are made of bone. More than four hundred documents have been
found, many
of personal correspondence. The language is quite similar to Russian and
can be
translated without any special training. Houses are large and constructed
of logs.
Ovens have been preserved and the streets are covered with wooden logs. The
town
also contains a church with a great dome. As per Alexeev, from Novgorod
comes an
ancient seal in the shape of a cross. Many seals have been found made of
bone, but
this cross is made of silver and covered with gold.
Back - Chapter VII: Part II: Bronze Age in Eurasia - (Lectures
11 thru 13)
Next Chapter IX: Celebration and Conclusion
Back to Table of Contents
Notes for Chapter VIII - Iron Age in Eurasia
1 These kurgans belong to the Pazyryk Culture and recently have been
investigated by N. Polosmak (see
lecture 14, Scythian Kingdom of Pazyryk).[back]
2 A recent publication on Polosmak's excavations on the Ukok (Utok)
Plateau in the Berteck Basin of the
Altai:
1994. "Siberian Mummy Unearthed" by Natalya Polosmak in "National
Geographic: 186. October. [back]
3 The text in question is:
1970. "Frozen tombs of Siberia" by Sergei Ivanovich Rudenko; published in
Berkeley (1st English edition).
1970. "[Kul'tura naseleniia Gornago Altaia v skifskoe vremia. English]
Frozen tombs of Siberia; the Pazyryk
burials of Iron Age horsemen" by Sergei I. Rudenko; translated and with a
preface by M.W. Thompson;
published in Berkeley: University of California Press (1st edition with
author's revisions).[back]
4 On the archaeology of Anapa:
1991. "Grecheskaia kolonizatsiia Severo-Zapadnogo Kavkaza" by E.M.
Alekseeva; published in Moskva:
"Nauka".[back]
5 A recent publication on Vani (Colchide) is:
1990. "Le Pont-Euxin par les grecs: sources ecrites et archeologie.
Symposium de Vani (Colchide),
septembre-octobre 1987" by Otar Lordkipanidze et Pierre Leveque; ed. par
Tea Khartchilave et Evelyne Geny;
Paris: Diffusion les Belles Lettres.[back]
6 I questioned Arutiunov whether Vani was an independent kingdom or a
Greek colony. He replied that Vani
was independent; however there were Greek colonies on the seashore, the
descendants of whom still live north
of Batumi.[back]
7 The following publications are relevent to Merv:
1883. "The Merv Oasis: travels and adventures east of the Caspian during
the years 1879-80-81, including five
months' residence among the Tekkes of Merv" by Edmond O'Donovan; New York:
G.P. Putnam's sons.
1888. "Voyage a Merv. Les Russes dans l'Asie Centrale", by Edgar
Boulangier; Paris: Hachette.
1960. "Prisoedinenie Merva k Rossii" by Mikhail N. Tikhomirov; Moskva:
Izd-vo vostochnoi lit-ry.
1990. "Merv v drevnei i srednevekovoi istorii Vostoka: tezisy dokladov
nauchnogo simpoziuma; M.A.
Annanepesov, V.M. Masson, and E.A. Muradova.[back]
8 Arutiunov identifies the terms Senvurv-Paskudge, Ormuzd,
Ormuzd-Ahura-Mazda, and Arman as gods in
ancient Iran (reference Zoroastrianism, Mazdeism, Avesta; Arman is also
spelled Ahriman).[back]
9 The following texts on Bactria should be of interest:
1985. "Bactrian gold; from the excavations of the Tillya-tepe Necropolis
in northern Afghanistan" by Victor
Sarianidi; Leningrad: Aurora Art Publishers.
1988. "Bactria: an ancient oasis civilization from the sands of
Afghanistan" edited by Giancarlo Ligabue, Sandro
Salvatori; Lamberg-Karlovsky et al.; Venezia: Erizzo.
1988. "Alexander the Great and Bactria: the formation of a Greek frontier
in central Asia" by Frank L. Holt;
Leiden; New York: Brill.
1990. "Analysis of reasonings in archaeology: the case of Graeco-Bactrian
and Indo-Greek numismatics";
translated from the French by Osmund Bopearachchi; Delhi; New York: Oxford
University Press.[back]
10 A publication by Michael Ivanovitch Rostovzeff specifically
referencing Bactria cannot be located at this
time. However, the following publications should prove useful:
1926-1928. "A history of the ancient world" by M. Rostovtzeff; published
in Oxford: The Clarendon Press.
1929. "Le centre de lAsie, la Russie, la Chine et le style animal" by
M.I.Rostovzeff; published in Prague:
Seminarium Kondakovianum.
1932. "Caravan cities" by M. Rostovtzeff; translated by D. and T. Talbot
Rice; published in Oxford: The
Clarendon Press.
1993. "Skythien und der Bosporus, Band II: wiederentdeckte Kapitel und
Verwandtes" by M.I. Rostovzeff;
published in Stuttgart: Franz Steiner.[back]
11 American scholars working with the Russians at Altai Pazyryk include
C.C. Lamberg-Karlovsky and his
associate Fredrik Hiebert from Harvard University.
Recent publications include:
1991. "The search for the Scythians in the USSR" by C.C.
Lamberg-Karlovsky in "Symbols", June 1991;
pp.14-18.
1992. "Pazyryk chronology and early horse nomads reconsidered" by Fredrik
Hiebert in "Bulletin of the Asia
Institute", vol. 6; pp. 117-129.[back]
12 Recent publications by Polos'mak include:
1991. "Un nouveau kourgane a 'tombe gelee' de l'Altai (rapport
preliminaire)" in "AAs 46, pp. 5-13.
1992. "Excavations of a Rich Burial of the Pazyryk culture" in "Altaica
1", ppl 35-42.
n.d. "Excavations of kurgans at Ak Alaka and Kuturguntas" translated from
the Russian by Raisa Tarasova;
edited by Geraldine Reinhardt.[back]
13 Several publications on the Huns are important:
1939. "The early empires of Central Asia: a study of the Scythians and
the Huns and the part they played in
world history, with special reference to Chinese sources" by William
Montgomery McGovern; Chapel Hill:
University of North Carolina Press.
1969. "Die Kultur der Hsiung-nu und die Hugelgraber von Noin Ulas" by
S.I. Rudenko; Bonn: Habelt.
1973. "The world of the Huns; studies in their history and culture" by
Otto J. Maenchen-Helfen; edited by Max
Knight; Berkeley: University of California Press.
1990. "Ancient chinese and ordos bronzes" by Jessica Rawson and Emma
Bunker; published in Hong Kong:
Oriental Ceramics Society of Hong Kong.
1993. "Tsui hou i ko Hsiung-nu" by Kao Chien-chun; Pei-ching: Tso chia
chu pan she: Ching hsiao Hsin hua
shu tien Pei-ching fa hsing so [on the Hsiung-nu].
1993. "Hsia Shang shih yen chiu" by Ting Su chuan; published in Tai-pei
hsien: I wen yin shu kkuan, Min kuo
82.
Recommendations by Arutiunov:
1960. "Khunnu" by Lev Nikolaevich Gumilev; published in Moskva.
1993. "Khunnu: stepnaia trilogiia" by L.N. Gumilev: Sankt-Peterbury:
Taim-aut: KOMPASS.[back]
14 A publication on the Hunas from HOLLIS:
1973. "The political history of the Hunas in India" by Atreyi Biswas;
published in Hew Delhi: Munshiram
Manoharlal Publishers.[back]
15 Two significant publications on the Tokharian/Yueh-chih are:
1987. "On the 'first' Indo-Europeans: the Tokharian-Yuezhi and their
Chinese homeland" by A.K. Narain;
published in Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University, Research Institute for
Inner Asian Studies.
1994. "Guanyu tuhuoluoren de qiyuan he qiantu wenti = On the problem of
the origins and migrations of the
Tocharians" by Xu Wenkan (Hsu, Wen-kan); published in Philadelphia, PA,
USA: University of Pennsylvania,
Dept. of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies.[back]
16 A publication on the Sakas in the ancient city of Khotan is:
1982. "The culture of the Sakas in ancient Iranian Khotan" by Harold W.
Bailey; published in Delmar, NY:
Caravan Books.[back]
17 A re-issue of Aurel Stein's archaeological work in the Sinkiang Uighur
Autonomous Region of China is:
1981. "Ancient Khotan: detailed report of archaeological explorations in
Chinese Turkestan: carried out and
described under the orders of H.M. Indian government" by M. Aurel Stein;
published in New Delhi:
Cosmo.[back]
18 HOLLIS lists one publication in English for the Alans People but
numerous publications on the Alani
presence in Hungary and Russia. HOLLIS also relates the Alani to the Jazyge
and Roxolani:
1973. "A history of the Alans in the West; from their first appearance in
the sources of classical antiquity
through the early Middle Ages" by Bernard S. Bachrach; Minneapolis,
University of Minnesota Press.[back]
19 A definitive text on the Sarmatians is:
1970. "The Sarmatians" by Tadeusz Sulimirski; published in New York:
Praeger.[back]
20 HOLLIS also relates the Alani to the Ossetes. A recent history of the
Ossetes:
1992. "Sotsial'naia sushchnost' religioznykh verovanii osetin" by
Batyrbek Khamatkanovich Bidzhelov;
published in Vladikavkaz: Ir.[back]
21 Recent publications on the archaeology of Novgorod are:
1990. "Novgorodskoe (Riurikovo) gorodishche" by E.N. Nosov; published in
Leningrad: "Nauka", Leningradskoe otd-nie.
1992. "The archaeology of Novgorod, Russia: recent results from the town
and its Hinterland" edited by Mark
A. Brisbane; translated by Katharine Judelson; published in Lincoln:
Society for Medieval Archaeology.[back]
Voyager
Anyway
Any grounds that say Epirus isn't "Greek" also applies to Athens, Sparta,
Ionia
and anything to do with the Hellenic civilisation.
The evidence belows shows what they themselves believed to be and what
others
believed them to be.
Pyrrhus of Epirus (318?-272)
King Pyrrhus of Epirus landed on the southern Italian shore with 30000 men
to
defend his fellow Greek speakers (who were resident of Tarentum) against
Roman
domination. While Pyrrhus won the first battle, he lost half his men (and
ultimately, the war). The term PYRRHIC VICTORY comes from this devastating
battle. (From Haaren's Famous Men of Greece)
Famous Men of Greece Trade Paperback, 146 Pages, Greenleaf Press, October
1989
ISBN: 1882514017 Author: Shearer, Cynthia A. / Haaren, John H. / Poland, A.
B.
Also
Pausanias, Description of Greece
XI. The Athenians have also a statue of Pyrrhus. This Pyrrhus was not
related to
Alexander, except by ancestry. Pyrrhus was son of Aeacides, son of Arybbas,
but
Alexander was son of Olympias, daughter of Neoptolemus, and the father of
Neoptolemus and Aryblas was Alcetas, son of Tharypus. And from Tharypus to
Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, are fifteen generations. Now Pyrrhus was the first
who
after the capture of Troy disdained to return to Thessaly, but sailing to
Epeirus
dwelt there because of the oracles of Helenus. By Hermione Pyrrhus had no
child,
but by Andromache he had Molossus, Pielus, and Pergamus, who was the
youngest.
Helenus also had a son, Cestrinus, being married to Andromache after the
murder of
Pyrrhus at Delphi. Helenus on his death passed on the kingdom to Molossus,
son of
Pyrrhus, so that Cestrinus with volunteers from the Epeirots took possession
of
the region beyond the river Thyamis, while Pergamus crossed into Asia and
killed
Areius, despot in Teuthrania, who fought with him in single combat for his
kingdom, and gave his name to the city which is still called after him. To
Andromache, who accompanied him, there is still a shrine in the city. Pielus
remained behind in Epeirus, and to him as ancestor Pyrrhus, the son of
Aeacides,
and his fathers traced their descent, and not to Molossus. Down to Alcetas,
son of
Tharypus, Epeirus too was under one king. But the sons of Alcetas after a
quarrel
agreed to rule with equal authority, remaining faithful to their compact;
and
afterwards, when Alexander, son of Neoptolemus, died among the Leucani,
and Olympias returned to Epeirus through fear of Antipater, Aeacides, son of
Arybbas, continued in allegiance to Olympias and joined in her campaign
against
Aridaeus and the Macedonians, although the Epeirots refused to accompany
him.
Olympias on her victory behaved wickedly in the matter of the death of
Aridaeus,
and much more wickedly to certain Macedonians, and
for this reason was considered to have deserved her subsequent treatment at
the
hands of Cassander; so Aeacides at first was not received even by the
Epeirots
because of their hatred of Olympias, and when after wards they forgave him,
his
return to Epeirus was next opposed by Cassander. When a battle occurred at
Oeneadae between Philip, brother of Cassander, and
Aeacides, Aeacides was wounded and shortly after met his fate. The Epeirots
accepted Alcetas as their king, being the son of Arybbas and the elder
brother of
Aeacides, but of an uncontrollable temper and on this account banished by
his
father. Immediately on his arrival he began to vent his fury on the
Epeirots,
until they rose up and put him and his children to death at night. After
killing
him they brought back Pyrrhus, son of Aeacides.
XXXV. The Emperor Trajan granted civic freedom and autonomy to the people of
Mothone. In earlier days they were the only people of Messenia on the coast
to
suffer a disaster like the following: Thesprotian Epirus was ruined by
anarchy.
For Deidameia the daughter of Pyrrhus, being without children, handed over
the
government to the people when she was on the
point of death. She was the daughter of Pyrrhus, son of Ptolemy, son of
Alexander,
son of Pyrrhus. I have told the facts relating to Pyrrhus the son of
Aeacides in
my account of the Athenians. Procles the Carthaginian indeed rated Alexander
the
son of Philip higher on account of his good fortune and for the brilliance
of his
achievements, but said that Pyrrhus was the better man in infantry and
cavalry
tactics and in the invention of stratagems of war. When the Epirots were rid
of
their kings, the people
threw off all control and disdained to listen to their magistrates, and the
Illyrians who live on the Ionian sea above Epirus reduced them by a raid. We
have
yet to hear of a democracy bringing prosperity to a nation other than the
Athenians; the Athenians attained to greatness by its means, for they
surpassed
the Greek world in native wit, and least disregarded the
established laws. Now the Illyrians, having tasted empire and being always
desirous of more, built ships, and plundering others whom they fell in with,
put
in to the coast of Mothone and anchored as in a friendly port. Sending a
messenger
to the city they asked for wine to be brought to their ships. A few men came
with
it and they bought the wine at the price which the inhabitants asked, and
themselves sold a part of their cargo. When on the following day a larger
number
arrived from the town, they allowed them also to make their profit. Finally
women
and men came down to the ships to sell wine and trade with the barbarians.
Thereupon by a bold stroke the Illyrians carried off a number of men and
still
more of the women. Carrying
them on board ship, they set sail for the Ionian sea, having desolated the
city of
the Mothonaeans.
Also:
So Pyrrhus was the first to cross the Ionian Sea from Greece to attack the
Romans.
And even he crossed on the invitation of the Tarentines. For they were
already
involved in a war with the Romans, but were no match for them unaided.
Pyrrhus was
already in their debt, because they had sent a fleet to help him in his war
with
Corcyra, but the most cogent arguments of the
Tarentine envoys were their accounts of Italy, how its prosperity was equal
to
that of the whole of Greece, and their plea that it was wicked to dismiss
them
when they had come as friends and suppliants in their hour of need. When the
envoys urged these considerations, Pyrrhus remembered the capture of Troy,
which
he took to be an omen of his success in the war, as he was a descendant of
Achilles making war upon a colony of Trojans. Pleased with this proposal,
and
being a man who never lost time when once he had made up his mind, he
immediately
proceeded to man war ships and to prepare transports to carry horses and
men-at-arms. There are books written by men of no renown as historians,
entitled
“Memoirs.” When I read these I
marvelled greatly both at the personal bravery of Pyrrhus in battle, and
also at
the forethought he displayed whenever a contest was imminent.
So on this occasion also when crossing to Italy with a fleet he eluded the
observation of the Romans, and for some time after his arrival they were
unaware
of his presence; it was only when the Romans made an attack upon the
Tarentines
that he appeared on the scene with his army, and his unexpected assault
naturally
threw his enemies into confusion. And being
perfectly aware that he was no match for the Romans, he prepared to let
loose
against them his elephants. The first European to acquire elephants was
Alexander,
after subduing Porus and the power of the Indians; after his death others of
the
kings got them but Antigonus more than any; Pyrrhus captured his beasts in
the
battle with Demetrius. When on this occasion they came in sight the Romans
were
seized with panic, and did not believe they were animals. For although the
use of
ivory in arts and crafts all men obviously have known from of old, the
actual
beasts, before the Macedonians crossed into Asia, nobody had seen at all
except
the Indians themselves, the Libyans, and their neighbours.
This is proved by Homer, who describes the couches and houses of the more
prosperous kings as ornamented with ivory, but never mentions the beast; but
if he
had seen or heard about it he would, in my opinion have been much more
likely to
speak of it than of the battle between the Dwarf-men and cranes. Pyrrhus was
brought over to Sicily by an embassy of the Syracusans.
The Carthaginians had crossed over and were destroying the Greek cities, and
had
sat down to invest Syracuse, the only one now remaining. When Pyrrhus heard
this
from the envoys he abandoned Tarentum and the Italiots on the coast, and
crossing
into Sicily forced the Carthaginians to raise the siege of Syracuse. In his
self-conceit, although the Carthaginians, being Phoenicians of Tyre by
ancient
descent, were more experienced sea men than any other non-Greek people of
that
day, Pyrrhus was nevertheless encouraged to meet them in a naval battle,
employing
the Epeirots, the majority of whom, even after the capture of Troy, knew no
thing
of the sea nor even as yet how to use salt. Witness the words of Homer in
the
Odyssey:--
Nothing they know of ocean, and mix not salt
with their victuals.
---------------
Also
Plutarch's Lives, still inspirational after 19 centuries: 15 Ancient Greek
Heroes
(www.e-classics.com)
P Y R R H U S (319 - 272 B.C.) P U R R O S by Plutarch
In Pyrrhus' wild career of restless trouble-making, we see a soul incapable
of
satisfaction. He was a mighty man of war, and nearly conquered Rome, but he
could
never finish what he started before getting distracted by a new project.
Epirus is on the northwestern coast of Greece. The kings there were
descended
from that Pyrrhus (a.k.a. Neoptolemus) who was the son of Achilles, the
famous
Greek warrior of the Trojan War. Both Pyrrhus and Alexander were worthy
descendants of Achilles, who, like them, was a fiery warrior whose restless
soul
could never be at peace.
-------------
.....when Appius Claudius heard that the Roman senate was about to vote on
peace
with Pyrrhus, he commanded his servants to carry him there in his chair, and
his
sons and sons-in-law carried him in. Appius Claudius was very old, and he
was
blind. He had been retired for many years, and only this crisis had roused
him to
action. Out of reverence for this distinguished general, the senate was
respectfully silent.
"My blindness," he said, "has been a great annoyance to me, but now that I
hear
about these dishonorable proposals of yours, I wish I were deaf as well. Do
you
remember your brave words about Alexander? How you bragged that if he
dared to
come into Italy, he would not now be called 'the Great.' Today you prove
that
those words were nothing but foolish arrogance. You tremble at the name of
Pyrrhus, who was only a servant to one of Alexander's guards [Demetrius],
and
comes here as a fugitive from enemies at home. Do not persuade ourselves
that
making him your friend is the way to get rid of him. Oh no -- that is the
way to
invite over others from Greece, who will despise Rome as easy prey. That
is what
you can look forward to if Pyrrhus gets away unpunished."
F u s t i g a t o r
19:18:46 +0200, in littera <9ng8en$278i$1...@scavenger.euro.net> in foro
soc.culture.netherlands (et aliis) vere scripsit quod sequitur:
>The Greecs forget it that Heroidi (the ancien Greek historian)
You mean Hiródotos
>has said that
>"Epirr is populated by no Greek-people that speak one barbarian language"
>
>So what can you say now - Heroid was one Illyrian?
No the Illyrians were barbarians, like you, Vlakas!
Piyènis sto Adis (kolasi)!
>
Fusti
F u s t i g a t o r
04:04:58 +0300, in littera <9nh1r7$nl5$1...@usenet.otenet.gr> in foro
soc.culture.netherlands (et aliis) vere scripsit quod sequitur:
>Who the hell is Herodi ???
De xero akrivos, alla nomizo pou inč afto o Hiródotos
>
>Anyway
O Fousti
amir
F u s t i g a t o r <fusti...@guindaille.com> wrote in message
news:hvenpt00qodpkiibe...@4ax.com...
>
I'd rather be a barbarian than a "we Greeks invented everything" like you.
> >
> Fusti
F u s t i g a t o r
2001 22:35:31 +1000, in littera <3b9c...@news.iprimus.com.au> in foro
soc.culture.netherlands (et aliis) vere scripsit quod sequitur:
>
>F u s t i g a t o r <fusti...@guindaille.com> wrote in message
>news:hvenpt00qodpkiibe...@4ax.com...
>> Vitae forma vocatur, "Tóka" <to...@wanadoo.be>, die Sun, 9 Sep 2001
>> 19:18:46 +0200, in littera <9ng8en$278i$1...@scavenger.euro.net> in foro
>> soc.culture.netherlands (et aliis) vere scripsit quod sequitur:
>>
>> >The Greecs forget it that Heroidi (the ancien Greek historian)
>>
>> You mean Hiródotos
>>
>> >has said that
>> >"Epirr is populated by no Greek-people that speak one barbarian language"
>> >
>> >So what can you say now - Heroid was one Illyrian?
>>
>> No the Illyrians were barbarians, like you, Vlakas!
>> Piyènis sto Adis (kolasi)!
>>
>I'd rather be a barbarian than a "we Greeks invented everything" like you.
Den eimai Ellinas!
Fusti
>
F u s t i g a t o r
2001 17:44:22 GMT, in littera <slrn9pq3nh.f8.@news.xs4all.nl> in foro
soc.culture.netherlands (et aliis) vere scripsit quod sequitur:
>Op Mon, 10 Sep 2001 08:26:43 +0200 slaagde F u s t i g a t o r erin
>om dit te potsen:
>>>Who the hell is Herodi ???
>>De xero akrivos, alla nomizo pou inč afto o Hiródotos
>
>Ouhoubouros!
einai sosta, chaire synadelfe!
>q
O Fousti