146 articles

Institutions and Titles

Titles, offices, customary law and the legitimation of rule.

Aco minimal Word the Tang histories write 阿熱 for the lord of the Yenisei Kirghiz. The Xin Tang Shu says the ruling clan took its name from it; scholars have proposed several explanations of the word.
Anchan Juni minimal Göktürk title formed on anchan, the word for meat. The Tongdian makes the anchan juni the officer who managed the affairs of the household.
Apa Tarkan minimal A compound office of the Göktürk court, and the rank the Tang history gives Tonyukuk. Apa names a command, tarkan a standing at the khan's side.
Army of the Steppe Empires How the steppe empires ordered their armies: the decimal commands of the Xiongnu, the wings and princely commands of the Göktürks, the khan's guard, the Uyghur tribes, and the sources' figures.
Atabeg Father-lord: the commander set over a Seljuk prince as guardian and tutor, who governed the province in the prince's name. In several places the office replaced the dynasty.
Avar Craftsmen Goldsmiths and metalworkers of the Avar khaganate, who worked in Byzantine techniques for Avar taste. The khagan also brought in foreign specialists, and the Avars bought arms in Constantinople.
Baga Göktürk title written 莫何 or 莫賀 in the Chinese histories. It stands in the titles of Ishbara and Bagha Khan and in Tonyukuk's own style, Boyla Baga Tarkan.
Baghatur minimal Göktürk title written 莫賀咄 in the Chinese histories. Ilig held it as Baghatur Shad before he became khan, and Tong Yabgu's murderer took the throne under it in the west.
Baidie Cotton The cotton cloth of the Turfan oasis. The Liang Shu describes a plant with a cocoon-like fruit and thread inside, woven into soft white cloth that served in trade. The Tang histories repeat it.
Beg The lord of a tribe or a clan, and the estate of such men. The rank between the khan above and the commons below, named on every face of the Orkhon stones.
Bloomery Furnaces of the South Altai Early medieval iron-smelting furnaces in the Chuya and Kurai basins of the south-east Altai, the densest cluster in the region. The excavators tie the smelting district to the Göktürks.
Bone and Horn Working Bone plates of the bow, bone arrowheads, bone fittings of the horse and horn knife handles, with the bowyers who made the composite bow. The sources name the objects and describe no workshop.
Border Markets The markets on the Chinese frontier where the Göktürks traded their herds for silk. They first came to the border for silk before 545 and asked the Sui for markets in 588 and the Tang in 624.
Böri (Guard) minimal The guard of the Göktürk khan, called 附離, fuli, in the Chinese histories. The Zhou Shu says the name means wolf, because the Göktürks were born of a wolf.
Bride-Price in Livestock Betrothal gifts paid in horses, cattle, camels and sheep among the Gaoche, Rouran, Xueyantuo, Uyghurs, Kirghiz and Oghuz. The sums range from the herds of a bridegroom's family to the 20,000 horses of the Uyghur marriage of 821, and one bride-price was lost on the road.
Bronze Mirrors of the Steppe Chinese bronze mirrors in the graves of the Xiongnu and later peoples, and the local copies cast when the supply from China stopped. They came as gifts, as trade goods and as heirlooms.
Bukhar Khuda minimal The title of the rulers of Bukhara before and under the Arab conquest, lord of Bukhara. The house survived the conquest, commanded Transoxian troops for the caliphs and lost its power in 874.
Buyruk The khan's minister. The inscriptions name the buyruks directly after the khan and make the quality of a reign depend on them; a buyruk poisoned Bilge Khan in 734.
Camels The camels of the steppe peoples in the Chinese and Muslim sources: a rare animal among the Xiongnu, a gift of tens or thousands from the Gaoche, Göktürks and Uyghurs, and the pack animal of the caravans. The Kimek kept none, because the camel did not live in their country.
Captives and the Unfree People taken in raids and wars of the steppe empires, from the Xiongnu to the Khazars: ransomed, exchanged, enslaved, sold or kept as defectors, and what the sources show about their status.
Chakar minimal Sogdian title of the sovereign's bodyguard, warriors bound to a lord. Chakar fought in the army of An Lushan, and the caliphs of the ninth century built guards on the model.
Chanyu The supreme title of the Xiongnu ruler, four centuries before Khan. The Han Shu gives the full style as Chengli Gutu Chanyu and glosses it as son of heaven.
Chepetukh Title of the commander of the great khagan's army in the Armenian history of Sebeos, also written Chembukh. It may be a garbled form of yabgu.
Chinese Bans on the Export of Iron Chinese measures to keep iron from the nomads, from the Han court to a Tang decree of 714. In 177 a Han councillor charged that fine iron had passed to the Xianbei.
Chinese Craftsmen at the Orkhon Monuments Carvers, builders and painters sent by the Tang court to the Orkhon for the memorials of Kül Tegin and Bilge Khan, 731 to 735. Bilge Khan asked for them, and the emperor did not refuse.
Chinese Weaponsmiths among the Xianbei minimal Chinese refugees who taught the Xianbei chief Kebineng to make weapons, armour and shields. In 177 a Han councillor had already named Han fugitives as counsellors of the Xianbei.
Chur A rank of command below the princes of the ruling house. It stands among the twenty-eight hereditary grades, names the five chiefs of the Duolu wing, and is carried in the name of Kapgan Khan.
Çigşi minimal Title that occurs seven times on five stones of the Yenisei epitaphs. It comes from the Chinese 刺史 cishi, prefect, and the Tang made the chiefs of surrendered tribes prefects of their own people.
Coinage of the Huna Peoples minimal Coins of the Kidarites, Alchons and Hephthalites in Bactria, Sogdiana and northwest India, from the late fourth century to the Göktürk conquest. They are a main source on these peoples.
Composite bow The layered bow of horn, wood and sinew that made mounted archery possible. It is the weapon on which every steppe empire from the Xiongnu to the Göktürks rested.
Craftsmen in the Steppe Empires How the steppe empires from the Xiongnu to the Uyghurs got their craftsmen: by capture, by invitation and by foreign settlers. The sources name the practice and hardly ever the craftsman.
Daguan minimal Title of the officers around the Göktürk khan, written 達官. Xuanzang saw two hundred of them at Tong Yabgu's court, and Ilig's servant, the Hulu Daguan Tuyuhun Hunye, died at his grave.
Daluobian minimal Göktürk title for the fat and stout, named after a short, thick wine vessel. The Tongdian calls it an especially noble office, held only by sons and younger brothers.
Deer stones minimal Standing stones of Mongolia and South Siberia, carved with stylised deer, from the late Bronze Age. They stand near burials and are the oldest monumental sculpture of the eastern steppe.
Dihqan minimal The landed noble of Sogdiana and eastern Iran, great or small. In the ninth century the class lost its standing; by the tenth the word meant peasant.
Diplomacy of the Steppe Empires How steppe rulers dealt with China, Persia and Byzantium: marriage alliances, hostages, titles, oaths and letters in the language of kinship, from the Xiongnu to the Uyghurs and Kirghiz.
Drums and Banners for the Khans Drums, wind instruments and banners that the courts of northern China granted to steppe rulers. The Sui gave them to Ishbara, Bagha and Yami; the Tang invested khans with a drum and a standard.
Envoys and Embassies Sogdians, princes and ministers who carried letters, tallies and gifts between steppe courts and their neighbours: how they were received, ranked and translated, the risks of the road, their numbers.
Farming among the Volga Bulgars Grain growing and food storage among the Volga Bulgars in 922. Ibn Fadlan found millet, wheat and barley, harvests that belonged to the sower, a marten skin from each house, and food kept in pits.
Farming and Taxes in Gaochang The oasis economy of Gaochang, 500 to 640: two harvests a year, an office for water and fields in each town, taxes in silver coin or hemp cloth, and a toll on merchants paid to the Tiele.
Felt minimal Matted wool, the fabric of the steppe. It makes the tent, the floor, the coat and the saddle blanket, and it is made without a loom.
Felt, Cloth, Leather and Wood in Kashgari's Dictionary Words for felt, cloth, leather and wood in Kashgari's dictionary of the 1070s: raincoat felt, an embroidered Kashgar felt, a weaver's reed, tanning, leather bags, a carpenter's axe and a resin glue.
Fulin Khan minimal Göktürk khan's title named after the wolf and its greed to kill. The Tongdian says that such a khan was set up at times.
Funi Rehan minimal Göktürk title tied to the word for wine. The Tongdian makes the rehan the officer who watched over wrongdoing and kept the order of precedence.
Furs and Musk among the Turkic Peoples Sable, squirrel, ermine, fox and musk from the forests north and east of the steppe. The Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam of 982 lists them people by people, and Bilge Khan's inscription names sables among the gifts.
Geli Daguan minimal Göktürk title formed on geli, the word for old, and the rank daguan. The Tongdian gives it among the early titles that took their names from age.
Ghulam minimal The slave soldier of the caliphs and of the eastern Muslim dynasties, bought as a boy and trained as a page. Most were Turks from beyond the Syr Darya, sold through the markets of Samarkand and Chach.
Göktürk Dress and Hair Clothing and hair of the Göktürks as their neighbours saw them: robes closed on the left, furs and coarse wool, hair worn long or plaited. In 585 a khan called the plaits too old a custom to change.
Göktürk Ironworking The ironwork of the Ashina, smiths of the Rouran on the Altai before 546. Anagui called Bumin his smith slave, and in 569 Göktürks offered iron for sale to a Roman embassy in Sogdiana.
Göktürk Weapons The arms of the Göktürks: bows and whistling arrows, armour, lances, sabres and swords, as the Chinese histories list them. A Zhou general who fought beside them in 564 called their armour poor.
Gold and Silver in the Orkhon Inscriptions Gold and silver in the Orkhon inscriptions. Chinese envoys bring them to the funerals of Kül Tegin and Bilge Khan, and Bilge Khan names them among the gifts that draw in distant peoples.
Gold and Silver Vessels as Tang Gifts to the Uyghurs Gold and silver vessels that the Tang court gave to the Uyghurs in 757, 758 and 813. In 758 the Uyghur khan shared the whole gift among his officers and chiefs.
Gold of the Xiongnu Court Gold in the Xiongnu sources: burials with gold and silver, and a gold-adorned belt with a gold belt ornament that the Han emperor sent the chanyu in 174 BC. The gift of 51 BC again names gold.
Great Khan Title by which the Chinese histories set one Göktürk khan above the others, written 大可汗. Tulan claimed it in 597, and the Sui promised it to Shegui in 610 to split the west.
Han Bestowals on the Chanyu Gifts of the Han court to a chanyu at audience, 51 BC to AD 143: regalia, horses, gold, cash, grain and silk. By 1 BC the silk reached 30,000 bolts, and in AD 50 a yearly gift began.
Han Military Farms in the Western Regions Farms worked by Han soldiers and convicts at Luntai, Quli, Cheshi and Yixun. The Han and the Xiongnu fought over Cheshi's fields before the Han took the Western Regions in 60 BC.
Helan Suni Que minimal Göktürk title formed on helan, the word for horse, and suni, the officer who commanded troops. The Tongdian gives it among the early titles that took their names from animals.
Heqin The Han settlement with the Xiongnu after Baideng: an imperial bride, fixed yearly deliveries of silk and food, open frontier markets, and an oath that made the two rulers brothers.
Honour of Death in Battle minimal The value the Chinese histories ascribe to the Göktürks: death in battle was an honour, death from illness a shame, and men in their prime counted for more than the old.
Horse harness Bridle, bit, saddle and stirrup. Each addition changed what a rider could do, and the bridle is dated to about the seventh century BC in the Altai.
Horses in Göktürk Law The penalties of the Göktürks that name the horse: death for stealing a horse's tether, a repayment of ten times or more for stolen horses, and a horse as the price of a broken limb. The Chinese histories give the rules in one sentence, and the Tuyuhun had a harsher one.
Hunnic Cauldrons Cast copper cauldrons with solid conical stands and scalloped lugs, found from Silesia to the High Altai. They were cooking vessels cast by Hunnic smiths and have close kin in the Xiongnu cauldrons.
Hunnic Diadems minimal Headbands of gold sheet over bronze plaques, set with almandines or glass in cells, from graves between Hungary and Kazakhstan. They are the finest goldwork that archaeology ties to the Huns.
Idi minimal Old Turkic word for a lord or master. The Kül Tegin inscription uses it in the formula that land and water must not be left without one, and Rashīd ad-Dīn names it a rank of Kirghiz nobles.
Illig minimal Element of the title Illig Khan, written 伊利, which Bumin took in 552 after the fall of the Rouran. Ishbara's title begins with the same word.
Ilteber The rank of a subject ruler: a man left on his own throne under a khan not of his people, with a tax officer beside him. Attested from the Caucasus to Turfan.
Inal minimal Title of the Kirghiz princes before the Mongol conquest, according to Rashīd ad-Dīn. It appears also among the Kimek and the Oghuz, and the Chinese 阿熱 has been identified with it.
Irkin A chief's rank at the lower end of the twenty-eight grades. Five irkins held the Nushibi wing of the western khaganate, and the chiefs the Tang bought carry this title most often.
Iron of the Bayegu minimal Fine iron of the Bayegu, a Tiele people east of the Pugu, in the Tang histories. The Xin Tang Shu and the Tongdian both name iron among the products of their country, beside good horses.
Ishbara (Title) Göktürk title for the brave and strong. Ishbara Khan bore it among his titles, a man on the Kül Tegin stone carried it before his name, and two western khans of the Tang era kept it.
Katun The khan's consort, named beside him in the formula of rule. The inscriptions have Heaven raise khan and katun together; a regency in her hands ended the Second Khaganate.
Keluo Chuo minimal Göktürk title formed on the word for black and the rank chur. The Tongdian calls it a very high office, held by men of great age.
Khan (Khagan) The title of the supreme ruler of the steppe, taken by Bumin from the Rouran in 552. Its forms, its history and the ranks around it are set out here, and here alone.
Khazar Customs and Tribute Revenue of the Khazar khagan: a tenth on goods that crossed his land, and tribute in kind from subject peoples, paid in swords, pelts and money. The Bulgar king passed marten skins up the same chain.
Khazar Dual Kingship The rule of the Khazars divided between a sacral khagan, who reigned, and a king, the bek, who commanded the army and governed. Its age and origin are disputed.
Khazar Mail and the Armourers of the Caucasus minimal Mail and iron arms in the Khazar lands in al-Masʿūdī. The Khazar king's Muslim guard rode as archers in cuirass, helmet and mail, and a Caucasian people made mail, stirrups, bits and swords.
Kirghiz Iron and Gold Metals of the Kirghiz on the upper Yenisei in the Tang histories: gold, iron and tin. The Kirghiz made weapons of their iron, called qiasha, and regularly delivered them to the Göktürks.
Kül Tegin's Horses The mounts that the Kül Tegin inscription names in the prince's battles: grey, white, brown and chestnut horses, three of them killed under him in one fight. The text gives the colour of each horse and sometimes its name or owner.
Külüg Chur minimal The first of the great Göktürk offices in the Tongdian and the Jiu Tang Shu, written 屈律啜. It was hereditary and had no fixed number of holders.
Kunçuy minimal Word for a woman of rank. The Orkhon inscriptions use it for the khan's sister and the princesses of his house, the Yenisei epitaphs for a man's wife, and Old Uyghur texts for princesses.
Kurgan minimal The burial mound of the steppe: a chamber under a heap of earth or stone, with grave goods, and often with horses. It is the single most continuous steppe practice from the Bronze Age to the Göktürks.
Kut Heavenly fortune granted by Tengri, which made a man fit to rule. Part of the Xiongnu ruler's title, this mystic aura enabled charismatic steppe warriors to dominate and conquer.
Lacquerware Chinese lacquered cups, weapons, drums and fans that reached the steppe as gifts and trade, from the princely graves of the Xiongnu to the gift lists of the Wei court for the Rouran and the Gaoche.
Lesser Khan minimal The second throne of the Göktürk khaganate, held under the khan. Kapgan set his own son on it, and Kül Tegin killed him on it in 716.
Levirate Göktürk marriage of a dead man's widows by his sons, younger brothers and nephews. The Zhou Shu and the Sui Shu record the rule, and Chinese princesses passed by it from khan to khan.
Livestock in the Hudud al-Alam The herds of the Turkic peoples in the Hudud al-Alam of 982: sheep in every notice, horses in all but the Kimek, cows in four of eight, no camels. Marvazi adds why the Kimek kept none.
Livestock Losses in the Annals Reports of herds lost to snow, drought, locusts and disease, from the Xiongnu of 105 BC to the Uyghurs of 839 and 840. The Chinese annals give the cause and, in several cases, the share of the herds that died.
Livestock Raids Raids for herds in the Chinese histories and the Bilge Khan inscription, from the seven commanderies of the Sui to the Tang horse pastures of Longyou. A raid for sheep and horses brought Ilterish his first following, and Bilge Khan fed a hungry people with a captured herd.
Logades minimal The leading men around Attila, so called by Priscus: Onegesius, Scottas, Edeco, Berichus and Orestes. They served as envoys and guards and governed parts of the realm.
Loose-rein prefectures The Tang device for governing surrendered steppe peoples without absorbing them: the tribe kept whole, its own chief made prefect, the unit entered on the register.
Metals and Metalworking in Kashgari's Dictionary Words for metals and metalwork in Kashgari's dictionary of the 1070s: gold, silver, copper, iron, a smelting place, bellows, a copper mountain and a fortress above gold mines.
Oghuz Herds in Ibn Fadlan's Account Sheep, horses and camels of the Oghuz in the winter of 921 and 922. Ibn Fadlan saw men with 10,000 horses and 100,000 sheep, flocks that grazed through the snow, and a trade in which merchants from Khwarezm bought sheep and left camels and horses with Oghuz hosts.
Ordos bronzes minimal The animal-style bronze plaques, buckles and fittings of the northern frontier, from about the sixth century BC. They are the material record of the Xiongnu world and of what came before it.
Ordu The ruler's camp: the moving centre of a steppe realm, where the court, the guard and the treasury were. The word reached Europe as horde.
Post and Communication How word travelled between the Göktürk khans, their men and their neighbours: envoys, letters, Sogdian and runiform writing, seals, notched wood, arrows, relay horses, and what the sources leave out.
Raw Materials and Trade among the Turkic Peoples Iron, salt, precious metals, furs, jade, horses and silk in the Turkic lands, and the markets and merchants that moved them. The Ashina worked iron on the Altai, the Uyghurs sold horses for silk.
Roof Tiles of the Uyghur Khaganate Unglazed clay tiles in the Chinese pattern, made locally for the walled seats of the Uyghur khans and for the Göktürk memorials before them. They show Chinese methods at work in the steppe.
Sabao Chinese title for the head of a foreign community, above all a Sogdian one. It renders the Sogdian sartapao, caravan master. The post is attested from the sixth century to the early eighth.
Salt among the Turkic Peoples Salt in the Turkic lands: the rock-salt deposit of Dus-Dag in Tuva, Irtysh salt lakes, and the lake of seven Karluk tribes in the Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam of 982. Merchants brought salt to the Kimak.
Saŋun minimal Title taken from the Chinese 將軍 jiangjun, general. The Orkhon form seŋün names Chinese generals and heads of delegations. The Yenisei epitaphs carry saŋun eleven times.
Seasonal Pastures The movement of the steppe peoples from winter to summer grazing, as the Chinese and Muslim sources record it. The Chinese say the peoples followed water and grass. A few sources name a winter and a summer place, and Tonyukuk gives the reason the Göktürks refused to live behind walls.
Shad The command of a wing or a subject people, reserved for princes of the Ashina. Bilge Khan's uncle made him shad over the Tarduš; the office was where a khan's heir was tried out.
Sheep The sheep of the steppe peoples in the sources: a main animal of the Xiongnu and of every people in the Hudud al-Alam, a payment in bride-prices and tribute, and the meat that the Tang and the Xi supplied to Uyghur armies. Ibn Fadlan saw Oghuz owners of 100,000.
Sifa minimal Office of the western Göktürks, written 俟發. The Sui Shu names it with the yanhongda as the council that deliberated on the affairs of state.
Silk in the Steppe Chinese silk in the steppe from the 540s to 840: bought at the frontier, paid as peace money, traded for horses, used as currency and sold on to the west by the Sogdians.
Six Garrisons minimal The Northern Wei's line of frontier posts along the Hetao plain, manned against the Rouran. Their revolt in 524 broke the dynasty and made the two Weis.
Skull Cup Drinking cup made from the skull of a slain enemy ruler. The Chinese histories record it among the Xiongnu and the Rouran, and a Byzantine chronicle among the Bulgars of Krum.
Suoge Tudun minimal Göktürk title formed on suoge, the word for hair, and the rank tudun. The Tongdian likens the office to that of an official of a Chinese prefecture.
Taisan minimal Title of the ruler of Taugast, China, in Theophylact Simocatta, who explains it as 'son of god'. The report reached Constantinople with a Göktürk embassy.
Tally Sticks and the Golden Arrow The Göktürk record of a levy: the number of troops, horses or livestock cut as notches in wood, sealed with wax together with an arrow whose head was of gold or metal, as a token of trust.
Tamga minimal The mark of a house or a tribe, cut on livestock, on rock and on coins. It is a sign of ownership and of descent, and related houses carry related marks.
Tarkhan A rank of command carrying exemption from tax. A Roman envoy recorded it from inside the court, and Tonyukuk held it in the compound Apa Tarkan.
Tegin Title of the sons and younger brothers of the Göktürk khan, third among the great offices of the Zhou Shu. Kül Tegin bore it in his name.
Terken minimal Title of high rank in three Yenisei epitaphs, two of them in the name Bögü Terken. Later courts used it for rulers' wives, and scholars disagree whether it belonged to women alone.
The Economy of the Steppe Empires How the steppe peoples lived, from the Xiongnu to the Uyghurs: herds and pastures, farming, iron and salt, craftsmen, markets, tribute, coins and the Sogdian merchants.
The Göktürk Oath Oath-taking among the Göktürks. Their envoys swore before Justin II with raised hands and a curse upon themselves, and Ilig Khan swore a covenant with the Tang emperor at the Bian bridge in 626.
The Iron Oath Oath of the Qirqiz, Yabaqu and Qifchaq in Kashgari's dictionary. The swearer faced a drawn sword and prayed that the iron go in blue and come out red if he broke the treaty.
The twelve-year animal cycle The Göktürk reckoning of years: a run of twelve, each named for an animal. The inscriptions attest it, and the eleventh-century dictionary lists it in full.
The Twenty-Eight Ranks The hereditary order of Göktürk offices, from the yabgu down, counted at twenty-eight grades in the Zhou Shu and the Sui Shu. The Tongdian counts ten early grades and explains their names.
The Western and Southern Khans minimal Khans named after a side of the realm, written 西面可汗 and 南面可汗. Tardush had been the Western Khan; the Sui planned a Southern Khan to divide Shibi's power.
Tölis and Tardush Two peoples of the Göktürk inscriptions, which İlteriš organised and gave a yabgu and a shad. They are taken to be the eastern and the western half of the realm.
Tongpu Duwei Xiongnu office over the oasis states of the Tarim Basin, seated between Yanqi, Weixu and Yuli. It taxed the states and drew supplies from them until the Rizhu King went over to the Han in 60 BC.
Töre The customary law of the Göktürks: succession, punishment, marriage, burial, and the limits on taking from the land. A ruler was held to it as much as anyone.
Towns and Villages of the Turks in the Hudud al-ʿĀlam The settlements of the Turkic countries in the Persian geography of 982. The Karluk had towns, villages and fields, the Yaghma little agriculture, and the Kirghiz no town but the seat of their khan.
Toy The assembly of the Ashina nobility. It raised Bumin to yabgu in 542, met each year at the ancestral cave, and in 581 elected a khan against a dead khan's wish.
Trade Routes of the Steppe The roads of the steppe and its oases as the sources give them: the northern road to Fulin, the way to Suyab, the Tarim roads, Zemarchos's road, the Uyghur roads to Chang'an, the road to the Bulgars.
Tribute Missions and Bestowals Exchange between a steppe ruler and a Chinese court. The ruler's envoys brought tribute, the court answered with bestowals and yearly payments. The words claimed rank for the court.
Tudun The overseer a khan left behind in a subject country. He supervised its own ruler and collected the tribute. The Zhou Shu ranks the office fifth among the great offices of the khaganate.
Tuğ The standard of the steppe ruler: a pole with a metal finial and horse tails, carried before the khan and counted by the tail. The visible sign of authority.
Türgesh and Karluk Coinage Copper coins with Sogdian legends and Turkic tamgas, struck in the Chu and Talas valleys in the eighth and early ninth centuries. 533 coins found at Taraz are the largest published group.
Tutuk Rank of a governor or tribal head, taken from the Chinese 都督, military governor. The Orkhon inscriptions give it to a Chinese commander and to the Az governor, and the Yenisei epitaphs carry it fourteen times.
Uyghur Farming Grain growing in the Uyghur khaganate, 744 to 840. The Uyghurs began as herders and raised towns within a generation. An Arab envoy found villages and farmland on the road to the capital.
Uyghur Horse-Silk Trade Exchange of Uyghur horses for Tang silk from 757 to the fall of the khaganate in 840. The Uyghurs asked forty bolts of silk a horse. The Tang paid single sums of 200,000 bolts and more.
Wagons of the Steppe Peoples Wooden wagons of the steppe peoples: the camp wagons of the Huns, the high-wheeled carts of the Gaoche and the felt carts of the Göktürks. The sources name them and never say how they were built.
Warfare of the Steppe Empires How the steppe empires fought: horse and bow, moon and season, scouts, feigned retreat and surprise, plunder and sieges, the wolf standard, the khan's council, and what followed a battle.
Women among the Turkic Peoples Women at the courts of the steppe peoples, from the Xiongnu yanzhi to the Volga. Consorts shaped successions, princesses carried treaties, and the Orkhon stones name the khan's mother.
Wood and Woodworking Timber and wooden work among the steppe peoples: planks for coffins, felled timbers, gilded pillars at a Göktürk court, wooden cups and figures, and the khadang and khalanj woods of the Hudud.
Worthy Kings of the Left and Right The Left and Right Worthy Kings, two of the four great kingships of the Xiongnu court. The Left Worthy King ranked first, ruled the east and was usually the heir. The Right Worthy King held the west.
Xiongnu Agriculture Grain growing and storage among the Xiongnu. The Shiji denies them tilling, the Han Shu records crops, granaries and farmers, and excavated settlements hold wheat, barley and millet.
Xiongnu Herds The animals of the Xiongnu as the Shiji, the Han Shu and the Hou Han Shu give them: horses, cattle and sheep in the herds, camels, donkeys and mules besides. The annals count the herds in booty, gifts and trade, and one Han general was accused of inflating his count.
Xiongnu Ironworking Iron of the Xiongnu: knives and iron-shafted lances in the Chinese histories, a smelting furnace at Ivolga and slag at seasonal camps in the Khanui valley. Iron-making was small and widespread.
Xiongnu Pottery Grey, coil-built and partly wheel-finished household pottery of the Xiongnu, with narrow-necked jars and flat-rimmed bowls. It was made locally in the valleys where it was used.
Yabgu The second rank of the Göktürk order, held by the ruler of the western wing. Istemi bore it for fifty years without ever claiming the title of khan.
Yanhongda minimal Office of the western Göktürks, written 閻洪達. The Sui Shu names it with the sifa as the council that deliberated on the affairs of state.
Yi Khan minimal House khan, the title by which great Göktürk families addressed one another. The Tongdian derives it from yi, the Göktürk word for house.
Yinghefu minimal Göktürk word for the brave and strong, given by the Tongdian beside shiboluo. It stands among the early titles that took their names from the body.

Image credits

Deer stones: Deer stones at Uushgiin Uvur in Mongolia. Photograph: Bernard Gagnon, 2023, CC0.
Geli Daguan: An elder officer of the khaganate in a modern illustration: the age that the title names. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Helan Suni Que: A commander with his horse before his riders, in a modern illustration: the horse and the command that the title names. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Ishbara (Title): A Göktürk archer in a modern illustration: the strength and courage that the title names. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Külüg Chur: A Göktürk chur on horseback before a camp, with a golden wolf-head standard behind him, in a modern drawing. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Ordos bronzes: Bronze plaque of a tiger devouring a ram, attributed to the Xiongnu, about the second century BCE. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 49.132, Rogers Fund, 1949, Open Access, public domain (CC0).
Sifa: Two Göktürk dignitaries in conversation at the entrance of a felt tent at dusk, in a modern drawing. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Suoge Tudun: An officer with a comb at a walled market town, in a modern illustration: the hair of the title's name and the office likened to a prefect's. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
The Twenty-Eight Ranks: The officers of the khaganate before the khan's tent in a modern illustration, beneath the standard with the golden wolf's head. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Tuğ: A steppe warrior beneath a standard with a metal finial and long streamers, in a modern drawing. Drawing: signed jonele_art.
Yanhongda: Elders of the western Göktürks in council inside a felt tent, the khan listening at the back, in a modern drawing. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026
Yinghefu: A Göktürk rider at the gallop in a modern illustration: the bravery and strength that the word names. © Emre-E Yavuz 2026

Institutions and Titles

Where would you like to go?

The atlas in your language