Apa Tarkan

Rouran epoch Göktürk epoch Uyghur epoch Kirghiz epoch

Rouran First Göktürk Tang rule Second Göktürk Uyghur Kirghiz Huns Western Göktürk Türgesh Karluk Khazar

Rouran 400–554
First Göktürk 552–630
Tang rule 630–682
Second Göktürk 682–744
Uyghur 744–840
Kirghiz 840–924
Huns 370–469
Western Göktürk 552–659
Türgesh 699–766
Karluk 766–800
Khazar 650–969

Apa Tarkan is a compound. Apa names a command or a seniority. It is joined to tarkan, which names a standing at the khan’s side. The Jiu Tang Shu gives this rank to Tonyukuk, the counsellor who made two khans and outlived three.^[1]

What apa adds is not settled. It stands in personal names as well, and Töremen Apa carries it. The literature reads it now as a command, now as a seniority within a wing. The title as a whole is one of the few Göktürk offices a foreign observer recorded from inside the court. The Tonyukuk inscription has it as well. The form is apa tarkan-garu, “to Apa Tarkan”. It stands in the sentence that reports a secret message sent to him.^[2]^[3]