The site of the Khazar fortress at Sarkel. Aerial photo from excavations conducted by M. I. Artamanov in the 1930's.

The Khazars were a semi-nomadic Turkic people from Central Asia, many of whom converted to Judaism. The name 'Khazar' seems to be tied to a Turkic verb meaning "wandering". In the 7th century AD they founded an independent Khaganate in the Northern Caucasus along the Caspian Sea, where over time Judaism became the state religion. At their height, they and their tributaries controlled much of what is today southern Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and the Crimea. The history of Russia begins with that of the East Slavs, the ethnic group that eventually split into the Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians. ... The East Slavs are the ethnic group that evolved into the Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian peoples. ... Kievan Rus′ (Russian: , Kievskaya Rus; Ukrainian: , Kyivs’ka Rus’) was the early, mostly East Slavic¹ state dominated by the city of Kiev (Russian: Ки́ев, Kiev; Ukrainian: Ки́їв, Kyiv), from about 880 to the middle of the 12th century. ... Vladimir-Suzdal Principality, Vladimir-Suzdal Rus (Владимирско-Суздальская Русь), or Vladimir-Suzdal Grand Duchy (Влади́миро-Су́здальское кня́жество) was one of major principalities within the Kievan Rus and after its collapse. ... Medieval walls of Novgorod City The Novgorod Feudal Republic (Новгородская феодальная республика in Russian, or Novgorodskaya feodalnaya respublika) was a powerful medieval state which stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains between the 12th and 15th century. ... Volga Bulgaria or Volga-Kama Bolghar, is a historic state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama rivers in what is now the Russian Federation. ... The Mongol Invasion of Russia was an invasion of the medieval state of Kievan Rus by a large army of nomadic Mongols, starting in 1223. ... This article refers to the Mongol state in what is now Russia. ... This article is about Muscovite Russia. ... Map of Kazan Khanate, early 1500s The Kazan khanate (Tatar: Qazan Xanlığı) (1438-1552) was a Tatar state on the territory of former Volga Bulgaria with capital in Kazan. ... Imperial Russia is the term used to cover the period of Russian history from the expansion of Russia under Peter the Great, through the expansion of the Russian Empire from the Baltic to the Pacific Ocean, to the deposal of Nicholas II of Russia, the last tsar, at the start... The Russian Revolution of 1905 was a country-wide spasm of both anti-government and undirected violence. ... The Russian Revolution of 1917 was a political movement in Russia that climaxed in 1917 with the overthrow of the Provisional Government that had replaced the Russian Tsar system, and led to the establishment of the Soviet Union, which lasted until its collapse in 1991. ... The Russian Civil War was fought between 1918 and 1922. ... Khazar fortress at Sarkel (Belaya Vyezha, Russia). ... Khazar fortress at Sarkel (Belaya Vyezha, Russia). ... Communities of nomadic people move from place to place, rather than settling down in one location. ... This is the disambiguation page for the terms Turk, Turkey, Turkic, and Turkish. ... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... The Turkic languages are a group of closely related languages that are spoken by a variety of people distributed across a vast area from Eastern Europe to Siberia and Western China. ... (6th century - 7th century - 8th century - other centuries) Events Islam starts in Arabia, the Quran is written, and Arabs subjugate Syria, Iraq, Persia, Egypt, North Africa and Central Asia to Islam. ... For the Star Trek character see Khan Noonien Singh. ... The Caucasus , a region boardering Asia Minor, is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea which includes the Caucasus mountains and surrounding lowlands. ... Caspian Sea viewed from orbit The Caspian Sea or Mazandaran Sea is a landlocked sea between Asia and Europe (European Russia). ... The Crimea (officially Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukrainian transliteration: Avtonomna Respublika Krym, Ukrainian: Автономна Республіка Крим, Russian: Автономная Республика Крым, pronounced cry-MEE-ah in English) is a peninsula and an autonomous republic of Ukraine on the northern coast of the Black Sea. ...

The Khazars were important allies of the Byzantine Empire, and were a major regional power at their height. They fought a series of successful wars against the Arab Caliphates, probably preventing an Arab invasion of Eastern Europe. By the end of the tenth century, their power was broken by the Kievan Rus, and the Khazars largely disappeared from history. The possible Khazar contribution to the bloodline of modern Ashkenazi Jews is politically sensitive and has been the subject of much discussion, but most geneticists now believe that it is not substantial. The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, a Christian state of the Greek nation, centred at its capital in Constantinople. ... The Arabs (Arabic: عرب Ê»arab) Are Originally Inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula, and This term also applies towards those who speak arabic, Or any Arabic derived languages (Re: Tebedawi,Tabadawi,Socotri and Naubtanean) // Who is an Arab? The definition of who an Arab is has three main aspects: Political: whether they... An Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah, Caliph (  listen?) is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... Eastern Europe is, by convention, that part of Europe from the Ural and Caucasus mountains in the East to an arbitrarily chosen boundary in the West. ... ( 9th century - 10th century - 11th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000. ... Kievan Rus′ (Ки́евская Ру́сь, Kievskaya Rus in Russian; Київська Русь, Kyivs’ka Rus’ in Ukrainian) was the early, mostly East Slavic¹ state dominated by the city of Kiev (ru: Ки́ев, Kiev; uk: Ки́їв, Kyiv), from about 880 to the middle of the 12th century. ... Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim (אַשְׁכֲּנָזִי אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים Standard Hebrew, AÅ¡kanazi,AÅ¡kanazim, Tiberian Hebrew, ʾAÅ¡kănāzî, ʾAÅ¡kănāzîm), are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of Germany, Poland, Austria, and Eastern Europe mostly established between the 10th and 19th centuries. ...

Origins and prehistory

The origins of the Khazars are unclear. Following their conversion to Judaism, the Khazars themselves traced their origins to Kozar, a son of Togarmeh. Togarmeh is mentioned in the Hebrew scriptures as a grandson of Japheth. It is unlikely, however, that he was regarded as an ancestor before the introduction of Biblical traditions to Khazaria. The eponymous ancestor of the Khazars. ... In the Torah, Togarmah is listed in the genealogy of nations as the son of Gomer, and grandson of Japheth (Gen. ... 11th century manuscript of the Hebrew Bible with Targum Hebrew Bible refers to the common portions of the Jewish and Christian canons. ... Japheth (יֶפֶת / יָפֶת Enlarge, Standard Hebrew Yéfet / Yáfet, Tiberian Hebrew Yép̄eṯ / Yāp̄eṯ) is one of the sons of Noah in the Bible. ...

Some historians have looked for possible connections between the Khazars and the lost tribes of Israel, but modern scholars generally consider them to be Turks who migrated from the East. Scholars in the USSR considered the Khazars to be an indigenous people of the North Caucasus. Some scholars, such as D.M. Dunlop, considered the Khazars to be connected with a Uyghur tribe called K'o-sa in Chinese sources. However, the Khazar language appears to have been an Oghuric tongue, similar to that spoken by the early Bulgars. Therefore, a Hunnish origin has also been postulated. Since the Turkic peoples were never ethnically homogenous, these ideas need not be deemed mutually exclusive. It is likely that the Khazar nation was made up of tribes from various ethnic backgrounds, as steppe nations traditionally absorbed those they conquered. Lost Ten Tribes, also referenced as the Ten Lost Tribes or the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel, usually refers to ten of the tribes of the ancient Kingdom of Israel that were reported lost after the Kingdom of Israel was totally destroyed, enslaved and exiled by ancient Assyria. ... Indigenous peoples are: Peoples living in an area prior to colonization by a state Peoples living in an area within a nation-state, prior to the formation of a nation-state, but who do not identify with the dominant nation. ... Southern Federal District ( Russian: Ю́жный федера́льный о́круг; tr. ... Douglas Morton Dunlop, b. ... Uyghurs (also called Uighurs, Uygurs, or Uigurs) (Simplified Chinese: 维吾尔; Traditional Chinese: 維吾爾; pinyin: ) are a Turkic ethnic group of people living in northwestern China (mainly in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, where they are the largest ethnic group together with Han people), Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, Russia. ... A Uyghur tribe mentioned by ancient Chinese texts. ... Language spoken by the medieval Khazar tribe. ... Many historians consider the Huns (meaning person in Mongolian language) the first Mongolian and Turkic people mentioned in European history. ... Bulgars (also Bolgars or proto-Bulgarians) a people of Central Asia, probably originally Pamirian, whose branches became Slavicized and Turkic over time. ...

Armenian chronicles contain references to the Khazars as early as the late second century. These are generally regarded as anachronisms, and most scholars believe that they actually refer to Sarmatians or Scythians. Priscus relates that one of the nations in the Hunnish confederacy was called Akatziroi. Their king was named Karadach or Karidachus. Some, going on the similarity between Akatziroi and "Ak-Khazar" (see below), have speculated that the Akatziroi were early proto-Khazars. ( 1st century - 2nd century - 3rd century - other centuries) Events Roman Empire governed by the Five Good Emperors ( 96– 180) – Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius. ... An anachronism (from Greek ana, back, and chronos, time) is something that is out of its natural time or that appears to be so. ... Sarmatian Cataphract Sarmatians, Sarmatae or Sauromatae (the second form is mostly used by the earlier Greek writers, the other by the later Greeks and the Romans) were a people whom Herodotus (4. ... Scythia was an area in Eurasia inhabited in ancient times by an Indo-Aryans known as the Scythians. ... Priscus (left) with the Roman embassy at the court of Attila, holding his ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ (History, which the painter has incorrectly spelled ΙΣΤΩΡΙΑ). ... Many historians consider the Huns (meaning person in Mongolian language) the first Mongolian and Turkic people mentioned in European history. ... One of the nations in the Hunnish tribal confederacy. ... Karadach (Karidachos) was a warlord of the Akatziroi during the reign of Attila. ...

Dmitri Vasil'ev of Astrakhan State University recently hypothesized that the Khazars moved in to the Pontic steppe region only in the late 500s, and originally lived in Transoxiana. According to Vasil'ev, Khazar populations remained behind in Transoxiana under Pecheneg and Oghuz suzerainty, possibly remaining in contact with the main body of their people. Centuries: 5th century - 6th century - 7th century Decades: 450s - 460s - 470s - 480s - 490s - 500s - 510s - 520s - 530s - 540s - 550s Years: 500 501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 510 Events and Trends: Clovis I, king of the Franks, defeats the Visigoths at the battle of Vouille in 507... Transoxiana (sometimes spelled Transoxania) is the largely obsolete name used for the portion of Central Asia corresponding approximately with modern-day Uzbekistan and southwest Kazakhstan. ... Pechenegs or Patzinaks (in Hungarian: Besenyők), were a semi-nomadic steppes people of Central Asia that spoke a Turkic language. ... For all Turkic groupings and Turkic history, see Turkic peoples. ...

Tribes

The Khazars' tribal structure is not well understood. They appear, like many Turkic nations, to have been divided between Ak-Khazars ("White Khazars") and Kara-Khazars ("Black Khazars"). Writers such as Graetz mistakenly believed that these were racial designations; in fact, such distinctions have nothing to do with physical appearance or racial identification. The White-Black distinction is a common social division in Eurasian nomadic tribes, with the "White" group representing the nobility, warrior elite and ruling classes, and the "Black" group making up the commoners, tradesmen, etc. Heinrich Graetz ( October 31, 1817 - September 7, 1891) was the first historian in the modern times who wrote a comprehensive history of the Jewish people from a Jewish perspective. ...

Peter Golden speculated that the Khazar ethnos was a conglomerate of Oghuric and common Turkic nations, including the Sabirs and North Caucasian Huns as well as elements of the Gokturks. Many historians consider the Huns (meaning person in Mongolian language) the first Mongolian and Turkic people mentioned in European history. ... The Sabir people inhabited the Caspian depression prior to the arrival of the Avars. ... A branch of the Huns that established a polity in Daghestan and parts of Azerbaijan in the 500s and 600s CE. The North Caucasian Huns probably incorporated numerous indigenous Caucasian tribes following their settlement in the area. ... The Gokturks or Kokturks (Gök-Turks or Kök-Turks, with the meaning Celestial Turks), known as Tujue (突厥 tu2 jue2) in medieval Chinese sources, established the first known Turkic state around 552 under the leadership of Bumin/Tuman Khan/Khaghan (died 552) and his sons, and expanded rapidly to rule...

Rise

Formation of the Khazar state

Map of the Western (purple) and Eastern (blue) Gokturk khaganates at their height, c. 600 CE. Lighter areas show direct rule; darker areas show spheres of influence.

Early Khazar history is intimately tied with that of the Gokturk empire, founded when the Ashina clan overthrew the Juan Juan in AD 552. With the collapse of the Gokturk empire / tribal confederation due to internal conflict in the seventh century, the western half of the Turk empire itself split into two confederations, the Bulgars, led by the Dulo clan, and the Khazars, led by the Ashina clan, the traditional rulers of the Gok Turk empire. By 670, the Khazars had broken the Bulgar confederation, leaving the three Bulgar remnants on the Volga, the Black Sea and the Danube. Image File history File links Map of the Western (purple) and Eastern (blue) Gokturk khaganates at their height, c. ... Image File history File links Map of the Western (purple) and Eastern (blue) Gokturk khaganates at their height, c. ... KHAGAN, alternatively spelled Chagan, Qaqan etc, is a title of royal or imperial rank in Mongolian and Turkic languages. ... The Gokturks or Kokturks (Gök-Turks or Kök-Turks, with the meaning Celestial Turks), known as Tujue (突厥 tu2 jue2) in medieval Chinese sources, established the first known Turkic state around 552 under the leadership of Bumin/Tuman Khan/Khaghan (died 552) and his sons, and expanded rapidly to rule... Ashina (or Asena), the ruling dynasty of the ancient Turks and Mongols. ... Juan Juan ( wg), Ruanruan ( py), Ru Ru (py) or Rouran 柔然 (py) was the name of a confederacy of nomadic tribes on the northern borders of China proper from late 4th century until late 6th century. ... Events July - Battle of Taginae: The Byzantine general Narses defeats and kills Totila, king of the Ostrogoths. ... ( 6th century - 7th century - 8th century - other centuries) Events Islam starts in Arabia, the Quran is written, and Arabs subjugate Syria, Iraq, Persia, Egypt, North Africa and Central Asia to Islam. ... Bulgars (also Bolgars or proto-Bulgarians) a people of Central Asia, probably originally Pamirian, whose branches became Slavicized and Turkic over time. ... The ruling dynasty of the early Bulgars. ... Ashina (or Asena), the ruling dynasty of the ancient Turks and Mongols. ... Events On the death of his brother Clotaire, Childeric II becomes king of all of the Frankish kingdoms -- Austrasia, Neustria and Burgundy. ... Volga Bulgaria or Volga-Kama Bolghar, is a historic state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama rivers in what is now the Russian Federation. ... Satellite view of the Black Sea, taken by NASA MODIS Cities of the Black Sea The Black Sea (known as the Euxine Sea in antiquity) is an inland sea between southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. ... Length 2,888 km Elevation of the source 1,078 m Average discharge 30 km before Passau: 580 m³/s Vienna: 1,900 m³/s Budapest: 2,350 m³/s just before Delta: 6,500 m³/s Area watershed 817,000 km² Origin Black Forest (Schwarzwald-Baar, Baden- Württemberg...

The first significant appearance of the Khazars in history is their aid to the campaign of the Byzantine emperor Heraclius against the Sassanid Persians. The Khazar ruler Ziebel (sometimes identified as Tong Yabghu Khagan of the West Turks) aided the Byzantines in overrunning Georgia. A marriage was even contemplated between Ziebel's son and Heraclius' daughter, but never took place. The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, a Christian state of the Greek nation, centred at its capital in Constantinople. ... Flavius Heraclius Augustus (c. ... Sassanid Empire at its greatest extent The Sassanid dynasty (also Sassanian) was the name given to the kings of Persia during the era of the second Persian Empire, from 224 until 651, when the last Sassanid shah, Yazdegerd III, lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the Umayyad Caliphate... Iran (Persia) (Persian: ايران) is a Middle Eastern country located in Southwest Asia. ...

During the 7th and 8th centuries the Khazar fought a series of wars against the Umayyad Caliphate, which was attempting simultaneously to expand its influence into Transoxiana and the Caucasus. The first war was fought in the early 650 and ended with the defeat of an Arab force led by Abd ar-Rahman ibn Rabiah outside the Khazar town of Balanjar, after a battle in which both sides used siege engines on the others' troops. A number of Russian sources give the name of a Khazar khagan, Irbis, from this period, and describe him as a scion of the Gokturk royal house, the Ashina. Whether Irbis ever existed is open to debate, as is the issue of whether he can be identified with one of the many Gokturk rulers of the same name. (6th century - 7th century - 8th century - other centuries) Events Islam starts in Arabia, the Quran is written, and Arabs subjugate Syria, Iraq, Persia, Egypt, North Africa and Central Asia to Islam. ... (7th century — 8th century — 9th century — other centuries) Events The Iberian peninsula is taken by Arab and Berber Muslims, thus ending the Visigothic rule, and starting almost 8 centuries of Muslim presence there. ... The Courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, one of the grandest architectural legacies of the Umayyads. ... An Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah, Caliph (  listen?) is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... Transoxiana (sometimes spelled Transoxania) is the largely obsolete name used for the portion of Central Asia corresponding approximately with modern-day Uzbekistan and southwest Kazakhstan. ... The Caucasus , a region boardering Asia Minor, is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea which includes the Caucasus mountains and surrounding lowlands. ... Events Arab conquest of Persia, establishment of Islam as state religion Hindu empire in Sumatra Croats and Serbs occupy Bosnia Khazars conquer Great Bulgarian Empire in southern Russia building of St. ... Arab general of the early Caliphate. ... Balanjar (also Belendzher) was a city in Khazaria near the Caspian Sea, north of the Caucasus. ... A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. ...

Several further conflicts erupted in the decades that followed, with Arab attacks and Khazar raids into Kurdistan and Iran. There is evidence from the account of al-Tabari that the Khazars formed a united front with the remnants of the Gok Turks in Transoxiana. Kurdistan is an area in the Middle East, inhabited mainly by the Kurds, covering parts of Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Armenia, and Syria. ...

Khazars and Byzantium

Khazar overlordship over most of the Crimea dates back to the late 600s. In the mid 700s the rebellious Crimean Goths were put down and their city, Doros (modern Mangup-Kale) occupied. A Khazar tudun was resident at Cherson in the 690s, despite the fact that this town was nominally subject to the Byzantine Empire. The Crimea (officially Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukrainian transliteration: Avtonomna Respublika Krym, Ukrainian: Автономна Республіка Крим, Russian: Автономная Республика Крым, pronounced cry-MEE-ah in English) is a peninsula and an autonomous republic of Ukraine on the northern coast of the Black Sea. ... Centuries: 6th century 7th century 8th century Decades: 550s - 560s - 570s - 580s - 590s - 600s - 610s - 620s - 630s - 640s - 650s Years: 599 600 601 602 603 604 605 606 607 608 609 Events: Births: Deaths: 604 - Pope Gregory I the Great Categories: 600s ... Centuries: 7th century - 8th century - 9th century Decades: 650s - 660s - 670s - 680s - 690s - 700s - 710s - 720s - 730s - 740s - 750s Years: 700 701 702 703 704 705 706 707 708 709 Events: Categories: 700s ... The least-powerful, least-known, and paradoxically longest-lived Gothic communities were those that remained in the lands around the Black Sea, especially in the Crimea. ... City in the Crimea, located on a plateau about 9 miles due east of Chersones (modern Sevastopol. ... City in the Crimea, located on a plateau about 9 miles due east of Chersones (modern Sevastopol. ... Tauric Chersonesos, Greek Χερσονασος (Chersones, Khersones, Korsun, Russian: Херсонес) was the Greek settlement founded approximately 2500 years ago in the southwestern part of Crimean (Taurian) Peninsula. ... Centuries: 6th century 7th century 8th century Decades: 640s - 650s - 660s - 670s - 680s - 690s - 700s - 710s - 720s - 730s - 740s Years: 690 691 692 693 694 695 696 697 698 699 700 Births: Chinese poet Wang Wei. ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, a Christian state of the Greek nation, centred at its capital in Constantinople. ...

They are also known to have been allied with the Byzantine Empire during at least part of the 700s. In 704/705 Justinian II, exiled in Cherson, escaped into Khazar territory and married the sister of the Khagan, Busir. With the aid of his wife, he escaped from Busir, who was intriguing against him with the usurper Tiberius III, murdering two Khazar officials in the process. He fled to Bulgaria, whose Khan Tervel helped him regain the throne. The Khazars later provided aid to the rebel general Bardanes, who seized the throne in 711 as Emperor Philipicus. The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, a Christian state of the Greek nation, centred at its capital in Constantinople. ... Events Justinian II re-takes the throne of the Byzantine Empire Cenred succeeds to the throne of Mercia after his uncle Aethelred abdicates to become abbot of Bardney Births Deaths Adamnan, abbot of Iona (b. ... Alternate meaning: Area code 705 Events End of the short-lived Zhou Dynasty in China Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik succeeded by al-Walid I ibn Abd al-Malik. ... Justinian II, known as Rhinotmetus (the Split-nosed) (669-711) was Byzantine emperor from 685 to 695 and again from 704 to 711. ... Tauric Chersonesos, Greek Χερσονασος (Chersones, Khersones, Korsun, Russian: Херсонес) was the Greek settlement founded approximately 2500 years ago in the southwestern part of Crimean (Taurian) Peninsula. ... Busir or Busir Glavan (in Greek, Ibouzir or Ibousiros Gliabanos, Khagan of the Khazars in the late 600s and early 700s. ... Tiberius III (d. ... Khan Tervel or Tarvel, or Terbelis in some Byzantine sources, was the khan of the Bulgars from 700 or 701- 718. ... Philippicus, Eastern Roman emperor, 711– 713, was the son of the patrician Nicephorus, and became distinguished as a soldier under Justinian II. His proper name, which indicates his Armenian origin, was Bardanes. ... See also: phone number 711. ... Philippicus, Eastern Roman emperor, 711– 713, was the son of the patrician Nicephorus, and became distinguished as a soldier under Justinian II. His proper name, which indicates his Armenian origin, was Bardanes. ...

The Byzantine emperor Leo III married his son Constantine (later Constantine V Kopronymous) to the Khazar princess Tzitzak (daughter of the Khagan Bihar) as part of the alliance between the two empires. Tzitzak, who was baptized as Irene, became famous for her wedding gown, which started a fashion craze in Constantinople for a type of robe (for men) called tzitzakion. Their son Leo (Leo IV) would be better known as "Leo the Khazar". Leo III (disambiguation). ... Constantine V Copronymus (The Dung-named) was Byzantine emperor from 741 to 775. ... Khazar princess, daughter of Khagan Bihar. ... Khagan of the Khazars during the 730s CE. Bihar was the father of Tzitzak, the Khazar princess who married the son of Byzantine Emperor Leo III who later ruled as Constantine V. He is called Viharos in Armenian sources. ... See: Byzantine Empress Irene 797-802 AD Eirene for the Greek goddess (one of the Horae) Irene was a Broadway musical first produced in 1919. ... Leo IV, called Chozar or the Khazar (c. ...

Second Khazar-Arab war

Expansion of the Caliphate to 750 CE.
From The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1923
Courtesy of The General Libraries, The University of Texas at Austin

Hostilities broke out again with the Caliphate in the 710s, with raids back and forth across the Caucasus but few decisive battles. The Khazars, led by a prince named Barjik, invaded northwestern Iran and defeated the Umayyad forces at Ardebil in 730, killing the Arab warlord al-Djarrah al-Hakami and briefly occupying the town. They were defeated the next year at Mosul, where Barjik directed Khazar forces from a throne mounted with al-Djarrah's severed head, and Barjik was killed. Arab armies led first by the Arab prince Maslamah ibn Abd al-Malik and then by Marwan ibn Muhammad (later Caliph Marwan II) poured across the Caucasus and eventually (in 737) defeated a Khazar army led by Hazer Tarkhan, briefly occupying Atil itself and possibly forcing the Khagan to convert to Islam. The instability of the Umayyad regime made a permanent occupation impossible; the Arab armies withdrew and Khazar independence was re-asserted. It has been speculated that the adoption of Judaism (which in this theory would have taken place around 740) was part of this re-assertion of independence. Download high resolution version (1229x1028, 292 KB)Middle East and Europe - The Caliphate in 750 (293K) The Califate in 750. ... Download high resolution version (1229x1028, 292 KB)Middle East and Europe - The Caliphate in 750 (293K) The Califate in 750. ... An Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah, Caliph (  listen?) is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... Centuries: 7th century - 8th century - 9th century Decades: 660s - 670s - 680s - 690s - 700s - 710s - 720s - 730s - 740s - 750s - 760s 710 711 712 713 714 715 716 717 718 719 Events 717 - 2nd Arab siege of Constantinople Categories: 710s ... Barjik (died 731) was a Khazar prince who flourished in the late 720s. ... The Courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, one of the grandest architectural legacies of the Umayyads. ... Ardebil is a historical city in north-western Iran. ... Events Emperor Leo III of the Byzantine Empire orders the destruction of all icons. ... Mosūl (Kurdish: Mûsil, Arabic: موصل, al Mawsil) or Nineveh (Syriac: ܢܝܢܘܐ) is a city in northern Iraq/Central Assyria. ... Marwan ibn Muhammad ibn Marwan or Marwan II ( 688 - 750) was an Umayyad caliph who ruled from 744 until 750 when he was killed. ... Events Favila becomes king of Asturias after Pelayos death Births Emperor Kammu of Japan (d. ... General who led the Khazar army in the failed defense of Atil in 737. ... Atil, also spelled Itil (Turkic for Big River), was a name of the Volga River and of the capital of Khazaria from the middle of the 8th century until towards the end of the 10th century. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... Events October 26 - An earthquake strikes Constantinople, causing much damage and death. ...

It is worth noting that around 739, Arab sources give the name of the ruler of the Khazars as Parsbit or Barsbek, a woman who appears to have directed military operations against them. This suggests that women could have very high positions within the Khazar state, possibly even as a stand-in for the khagan. Events With king Kormishosh the reign of the House of Ukil starts in Bulgaria. ...

Although they stopped the Arab expansion into Eastern Europe for some time after these wars, the Khazars were forced to withdraw behind the Caucasus. In the ensuing decades they extended their territories from the Caspian Sea in the east (Many cultures still call the Caspian Sea "Khazar Sea"; e.g. "Hazar Denizi" in Turkish, "Bahr ul-Khazar" in Arabic) to the steppe region north of Black Sea in the west, as far west at least as the Dnieper River. The Arabs (Arabic: عرب ʻarab) Are Originally Inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula, and This term also applies towards those who speak arabic, Or any Arabic derived languages (Re: Tebedawi,Tabadawi,Socotri and Naubtanean) // Who is an Arab? The definition of who an Arab is has three main aspects: Political: whether they... Eastern Europe is, by convention, that part of Europe from the Ural and Caucasus mountains in the East to an arbitrarily chosen boundary in the West. ... Caspian Sea viewed from orbit The Caspian Sea or Mazandaran Sea is a landlocked sea between Asia and Europe (European Russia). ... Satellite view of the Black Sea, taken by NASA MODIS Cities of the Black Sea The Black Sea (known as the Euxine Sea in antiquity) is an inland sea between southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. ... This article is about the river. ...

In 758, the Abbasid Caliph Abdullah al-Mansur ordered Yazid ibn Usayd al-Sulami, one of his nobles and military governor of Armenia, to take a royal Khazar bride and make peace. Yazid took home a daughter of Khagan Baghatur, the Khazar leader. Unfortunately, the girl died inexplicably, possibly in childbirth. Her attendants returned home, convinced that some Arab faction had poisoned her (not unreasonable, all things considered), and her father was enraged. A Khazar general named Ras Tarkhan invaded what is now northwestern Iran, plundering and raiding for several months. Thereafter relations between the Khazars and the Abbasid Caliphate (less expansionist than its Umayyad predecessors) became increasingly cordial. Events End of the reign of Empress Koken of Japan; she is succeeded by Emperor Junnin. ... Abbasid provinces during the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid Abbasid was the dynastic name generally given to the caliphs of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Muslim empire, that overthrew the Umayyid caliphs. ... Caliph is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... This article is about the Abbasid Caliph Al Mansur of Baghdad. ... Baghatur. ... Khazar general of the mid 700s, sometimes referred to as As Tarkhan, who led an invasion of Muslim-. Scholars have debated over whether Ras Tarkhan is a name or a title. ... Abbasid provinces during the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid Abbasid was the dynastic name generally given to the caliphs of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Muslim empire, that overthrew the Umayyid caliphs. ...

Khazar religion

Turkic shamanism

Originally, the Khazars practiced traditional Turkic shamanism, focused on the sky god Tengri, but were heavily influenced by Confucian ideas imported from China, notably that of the Mandate of Heaven. The Ashina clan were considered to be the chosen of Tengri and the kaghan was the incarnation of the favor the sky-god bestowed on the Turks. A kaghan who failed had clearly lost the god's favor and was typically ritually executed. Historians have sometimes wondered, only half in jest, if the Khazar tendency to occasionally execute their rulers on religious grounds led those rulers to seek out other religions. The shaman is an intellectual and spiritual figure who is regarded as possessing power and influence on other peoples in the tribe and performs several functions, primarily that of a healer ( medicine man). The shaman provides medical care, and serves other community needs during crisis times, via supernatural means (means... Tengri (Turkish: Tanri) is the Supreme God of the Turco-Mongol shamanist tradition. ... Confucianism (儒家 Pinyin: rújiā The School of the Scholars), sometimes translated as the School of Literati, is an East Asian ethical, religious and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of Confucius. ... The Mandate of Heaven (天命 Pinyin: Tiānmìng) was a Chinese concept used to support the rule of the kings of the Zhou Dynasty and later the Emperors of China. ... Ashina (or Asena), the ruling dynasty of the ancient Turks and Mongols. ... Human sacrifice was practiced in many ancient cultures. ...

The Khazars worshipped a number of deities subordinate to Tengri, including the fertility goddess Umay, Kuara, a thunder god, and Erlik, the god of death. In Turkic shamanism, the goddess of the earth and fertility. ... In Turkic shamanism, the god of thunder. ... In Turkic shamanism, the god of death and evil. ...

Conversion to Judaism and relations with world Jewry

Jewish communities had existed in the Greek cities of the Black Sea coast since late classical times. Cherson, Sudak, Kerch and other Crimean cities possessed Jewish communities, as did Gorgippa, and Samkarsh / Tmutarakan was said to have had a Jewish majority as early as the 670s. The original Jewish settlers were joined by waves of immigration fleeing persecution in the Byzantine Empire, Sassanid Persia (particularly during the Mazdak revolts, and later within the Islamic world. Jewish merchants such as the Radhanites regularly traded in Khazar territory, and may have wielded significant economic and political influence. Though their origins and history are somewhat unclear, the Mountain Jews also lived in or near Khazar territory and may have been allied with or subject to Khazar overlordship; it is conceivable that they too played a role in the conversion. The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... Satellite view of the Black Sea, taken by NASA MODIS Cities of the Black Sea The Black Sea (known as the Euxine Sea in antiquity) is an inland sea between southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. ... Tauric Chersonesos, Greek Χερσονασος (Chersones, Khersones, Korsun, Russian: Херсонес) was the Greek settlement founded approximately 2500 years ago in the southwestern part of Crimean (Taurian) Peninsula. ... Sudak is city in the Crimea. ... Kerch (in Russian Керчь; in Ukrainian Керч; in Turkish and Crimean Tatar Kerç) is a city (2001 pop 157,000) on the Kerch Peninsula of eastern Crimea, an important industrial, transportation and tourist centre of Ukraine. ... Anapa is a Russian seaport town, found on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. ... Tmutarakan is an ancient city that controlled the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. ... Tmutarakan is an ancient city that controlled the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. ... Centuries: 6th century 7th century 8th century Decades: 620s - 630s - 640s - 650s - 660s - 670s - 680s - 690s - 700s - 710s - 720s Years: 670 671 672 673 674 675 676 677 678 679 680 Events 674-677 - Arab army first besieges Constantinople Categories: 670s ... The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ... Sassanid Empire at its greatest extent The Sassanid dynasty (also Sassanian) was the name given to the kings of Persia during the era of the second Persian Empire, from 224 until 651, when the last Sassanid shah, Yazdegerd III, lost a 14-year struggle to drive out the Umayyad Caliphate... Iran (Persia) (Persian: ايران) is a Middle Eastern country located in Southwest Asia. ... Mazdak (born 1987) was a proto-socialist Persian philosopher who gained influence under the reign of the Sassanian king Kavadh I. He was hanged and his followers were massacred by Khosrau I, Kavadhs son. ... Islam ( Arabic al-islām الإسلام,  listen?) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith and the worlds second-largest religion. ... Radhanites (also Radanites, Arabic al-Radhaniyya) The Radhanites were a medieval group or guild of Jewish merchants. ... Mountain Jews, or Juhurim, are Jews of the eastern Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan. ...

At some point in the last decades of the 8th century or the early 9th century, the Khazar royalty and nobility converted to Judaism, and part of the general population followed. The extent of the conversion is debated. Historically, most scholars believed that only the upper classes converted to Judaism; there is some support for this in contemporary Muslim texts. However, recent archeological excavations have uncovered widespread shifts in burial practices. Around the mid 800s burials in Khazaria began to take on a decidedly Jewish flavor. Grave goods disappeared almost altogether. Judging by interment evidence, by 950 Judaism had become widespread among all classes of Khazar society. (7th century — 8th century — 9th century — other centuries) Events The Iberian peninsula is taken by Arab and Berber Muslims, thus ending the Visigothic rule, and starting almost 8 centuries of Muslim presence there. ... ( 8th century - 9th century - 10th century - other centuries) Events Beowulf might have been written down in this century, though it could also have been in the 8th century Reign of Charlemagne, and concurrent (and controversially labeled) Carolingian Renaissance in western Europe Viking attacks on Europe begin Oseberg ship burial The... Royalty may refer to either: the royal family of a country with a monarchy royalties the payment made to the owner of a copyright, patent, or trademark, for the use thereof This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The Lords and Barons prove their Nobility by hanging their Banners and exposing their Coats-of-arms at the Windows of the Lodge of the Heralds. ... Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... Events Duke Boleslav of Bohemia is subjugated. ...

Essays in the Kuzari, written by Yehuda Halevi, details a moral liturgical reason for the conversion which some consider a moral tale. Some researchers have suggested part of the reason for this mass conversion was political expediency to maintain a degree of neutrality: The Khazar empire was between growing populations; Muslims to the east and Christians to the west. Both religions recognized Judaism as a forebear and worthy of some respect. The exact date of the conversion is hotly contested. It may have occurred as early as 740 or as late as the mid 800s. Recently-discovered numismatic evidence suggests that Judaism was the established state religion by c. 830, and though St. Cyril (who visited Khazaria in 861) did not identify the Khazars as Jews, the khagan of that period, Zachariah, had a biblical Hebrew name. Some medieval sources give the name of the rabbi who oversaw the conversion of the Khazars as Isaac Sangari or Yitzhak ha-Sangari. The Kuzari is the most famous work by the medieval Spanish Jewish writer Yehuda Halevi. ... Judah Ha-Levi, also Yehudah Halevi, or Judah ben Samuel Halevi (c. ... Neutral means balanced between two or more opposites. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life, teachings, death by crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ... Centuries: 8th century - 9th century - 10th century Decades: 750s 760s 770s 780s 790s - 800s - 810s 820s 830s 840s 850s Years: 800 801 802 803 804 805 806 807 808 809 Significant Events and Trends Swedish town of Birka founded as a centre of trade on the island of Björk... Numismatics (ancient Greek: νομισματική) is the scientific study of money and its history in all its varied forms. ... Events Christian missionary Ansgar visits Birka, trade city of the Swedes. ... See Saint Cyril (disambiguation) for other persons with this name. ... Events Carloman revolts against his father Louis the German. ... Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbÄ«; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbÄ«) in Judaism, means teacher, or more literally great one. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root-word RaV, which in biblical Hebrew means great or distinguished,. In the ancient Judean schools the sages were addressed as רִבִּי (Ribbi or Rebbi... According to medieval Jewish sources, the name of the rabbi who converted the Khazars to Judaism. ... According to medieval Jewish sources, the name of the rabbi who converted the Khazars to Judaism. ...

The first Jewish Khazar king was named Bulan which means "elk", though some sources give him the Hebrew name Sabriel. A later king, Obadiah, strengthened Judaism, inviting rabbis into the kingdom and building synagogues. Jewish figures such as Saadia Gaon made positive references to the Khazars, and they are excoriated in contemporary Karaite writings as "bastards"; it is therefore unlikely that they adopted Karaism as some (such as Abraham Firkovitch) have proposed. For other uses of this term, see Bulan Bulan was a Khazar king who led the conversion of the Khazars to Judaism. ... The word Elk has several possible meanings: In Europe, Elk is the animal known in North America as the Moose (Alces alces). ... Sabriel is a fantasy novel by Garth Nix, first published in 1995. ... Obadiah was the name of a Khazar ruler of the late eighth or early ninth century. ... Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbī; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbī) in Judaism, means teacher, or more literally great one. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root-word RaV, which in biblical Hebrew means great or distinguished,. In the ancient Judean schools the sages were addressed as רִבִּי (Ribbi or Rebbi... A synagogue (from Greek συναγωγη, transliterated sunagoge, place of assembly literally meeting, assembly) is a Jewish house of prayer and study. ... Saadia Ben Joseph Gaon ( 892- 942), the Hebrew name of Said al-Fayyumi, was a rabbi who was also a prominent Jewish exilarch, philosopher, and exegete. ... Karaite Judaism is a Jewish denomination characterized by reliance on the Tanakh as the sole scripture, and rejection of the Oral Law (the Mishnah and the Talmuds) as halakha (Legally Binding, i. ... Abraham (Avraham) Firkovitch (1786-1874) was a Lithuanian Karaite of Crimean Karaite (Karaim) descent, born in Lutsk, Volhynia. ...

The Khazars enjoyed close relations with the Jews of the Levant and Persia. The Persian Jews, for example, hoped that the Khazars might succeed in conquering the Caliphate (Harkavy, in Kohut Memorial Volume, p. 244). The high esteem in which the Khazars were held among the Jews of the Orient may be seen in the application to them, in an Arabic commentary on Isaiah ascribed by some to Saadia Gaon, and by others to Benjamin Nahawandi, of Isaiah 48:14: "The Lord hath loved him." "This," says the commentary, "refers to the Khazars, who will go and destroy Babel" (i.e., Babylonia), a name used to designate the country of the Arabs (Harkavy in "Ha-Maggid." 1877, p. 357). The Levant is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in Southwest Asia south of the Taurus Mountains, bounded by the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and the north Arabian Desert and Mesopotamia to the east. ... Iran (Persia) (Persian: ايران) is a Middle Eastern country located in Southwest Asia. ... Arabic can mean: From or related to Arabia From or related to the Arabs The Arabic language; see also Arabic grammar The Arabic alphabet, used for expressing the languages of Arabic, Persian, Malay ( Jawi), Kurdish, Panjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Urdu, among others. ... Isaiah the Prophet in Hebrew Scriptures was depicted on the Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo. ... Saadia Ben Joseph Gaon ( 892- 942), the Hebrew name of Said al-Fayyumi, was a rabbi who was also a prominent Jewish exilarch, philosopher, and exegete. ... (also Benjamin ben Moses or Benyamin ben Moshe al-Nahawendi One of the greatest of the Karaite scholars of the early Middle Ages. ... Isaiah the Prophet in Hebrew Scriptures was depicted on the Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo. ... This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. ... Babylon Confusion is a later name given to the city of Babel. ...

Likewise, the Khazar rulers viewed themselves as the protectors of international Jewry. They were known to retaliate against Muslim or Christian interests in Khazaria for persecution of Jews abroad. Ibn Fadlan relates that around 920 the Khazar ruler received information that Muslims had destroyed a synagogue in the land of Babung, in Iran; he gave orders that the minaret of the mosque in his capital should be broken off, and the muezzin executed. He further declared that he would have destroyed all the mosques in the country had he not been afraid that the Muslims would in turn destroy all the synagogues in their lands. For a discussion of historical Jewish populations, along with estimates of current population from the World Jewish Population Survey, please see Jewish population. ... Ahmad ibn-al-Abbas ibn Rashid ibn-Hammad ibn-Fadlan (Aḥmad ʿibn alʿAbbās ʿibn Rasẖīd ʿibn ḥammād ʿibn Fadlān أحمد ابن العباس ابن رشيد ابن حماد ابن فضلان) was a tenth-century Arab scholar who wrote an account of his travels as a member of an embassy of the Caliph... Events The golden age of the Empire of Ghana began in Africa. ... A region referred to by ibn Fadlan, probably in Iran. ... Mosque in Aswan, Egypt, with minarets. ... A mosque is a place of worship for followers of the Islamic faith. ... The müezzin (the word is pronounced this way Turkish, Urdu, etc. ...

Other religions

Besides Judaism, other religions probably practiced in areas ruled by the Khazars include Greek Orthodox, Nestorian, and Monophysite Christianity, Zoroastrianism as well as Norse, Finnic, and Slavic cults. Religious toleration was maintained for the kingdom's three hundred plus years. Many Khazars reportedly were converts to Christianity and Islam. (See "Judiciary", below.) Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. ... Greek Orthodox Church can refer to any of several hierarchical churches within the larger group of mutually recognizing Eastern Orthodox churches: the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, headed by the Patriarch of Constantinople, who is also the first among equals of the Eastern Orthodox Communion. ... The term Nestorianism is eponymous, even though the person who lent his name to it always denied the associated belief. ... Monophysitism (from the Greek monos meaning one and physis meaning nature) is the christological position that Christ has only one nature, as opposed to the Chalcedonian position which holds that Christ has two natures, one divine and one human. ... Faravahar, The depiction of the human soul before birth and after death. ...

Government

Khazar Kingship

Khazar kingship was divided between the khagan and the Bek or Khagan Bek. Contemporary Arab historians related that the Khagan was purely a spiritual ruler or figurehead with limited powers, while the Bek was responsible for administration and military affairs. KHAGAN, alternatively spelled Chagan, Qaqan etc, is a title of royal or imperial rank in Mongolian and Turkic languages. ... Beck Hansen (born Bek David Campbell, July 8, 1970) is an American musician and songwriter. ... Title used by the Bek of the Khazars. ...

In the Khazar Correspondence, King Joseph identifies himself as the ruler of the Khazars and makes no reference to a colleague. It has been disputed whether Joseph was a Khagan or a Bek; his description of his military campaigns make the latter probable. A third option is that by the time of the Correspondence (c. 950-960) the Khazars had merged the two positions into a single ruler, or that the Beks had somehow supplanted the Khagans or vice versa. An exchange of letters in the 950s or 960s between Hasdai ibn Shaprut, foreign secretary to the Caliph of Cordoba, and Joseph, King of the Khazars. ... King of the Khazars during the 950s and 960s. ... Events Edgar the Peaceable crowned King of England. ...

for all Khazar rulers see List of Khazar rulers. List of Khazar Rulers From Bruce Gordons Regnal Chronologies - Eurasian Nomads Early Khazar rulers Khozarig (Eponymous folk-ancestor of the Khazars) Karadach. ...

Army

Khazar warrior with captive, based on reconstruction by Norman Finkelshteyn of image from an 8th-century ewer found in Romania (original at [1])

Khazar armies were led by the Bek and commanded by subordinate officers known as tarkhans. A famous tarkhan referred to in Arab sources as Ras or As Tarkhan led an invasion of Armenia in 758. The army included regiments of Muslim auxiliaries known as Arsiyah, of Khwarezmian or Alan extraction, were quite influential and exempt from campaigning against their fellow Muslims. Early Russian sources called them Khazaran, their city, Khvalisy and the Khazar (Caspian) sea Khvaliskoye, possibly referring to these Khwarezmians. Download high resolution version (718x902, 32 KB)Image of a Khazar warrior with prisoner, based on 8th century ewer found in Romania. ... Download high resolution version (718x902, 32 KB)Image of a Khazar warrior with prisoner, based on 8th century ewer found in Romania. ... Any holder of an office or of a post may bear the title officer. ... Tarkhan or Tarkhaan is an ancient Turkic rank. ... Khazar general of the mid 700s, sometimes referred to as As Tarkhan, who led an invasion of Muslim-. Scholars have debated over whether Ras Tarkhan is a name or a title. ... Arsiyah, sometimes referred to as al-Arsiyya or As-yah; name used for a group of Muslim mercenaries in the service of the Khazar Khaganate. ... Khwarezmia (also spelled Chorasmia) was a state centered around the Aral Salt Flats (formerly the Aral Sea) including modern Karakalpakstan across the Ust-Urt plateau perhaps extending to as far west as the eastern shores of the North Caspian Sea. ... Alan can refer to any of the following: Alan (Sesame Street), the character in the television series Sesame Street Alans, an ancient nomadic people Alan, Haute-Garonne, a commune in the Haute-Garonne département in France where tourists can see medieval monuments: a castel named THE COW OF ALAN and... The Russian name for Atil. ... The Russian name for the Caspian Sea. ... Khwarezmia (also spelled Chorasmia) was a state centered around the Aral Salt Flats (formerly the Aral Sea) including modern Karakalpakstan across the Ust-Urt plateau perhaps extending to as far west as the eastern shores of the North Caspian Sea. ...

In addition to the Bek's standing army, the Khazars could call upon tribal levies in times of danger and were often joined by auxiliaries from subject nations. The term auxiliaries comes from latin auxilia, name for troops supporting Roman legions. ...

Other officials

Settlements were governed by administrative officials known as tuduns. In some cases (such as the Byzantine settlements in southern Crimea), a tudun would be appointed for a town nominally within another polity's sphere of influence. In pre-Islamic Turkic empires, particularly those of the Gokturks and the Khazars, a tudun was a governor resident in a town or other settlement. ... The Crimea (officially Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukrainian transliteration: Avtonomna Respublika Krym, Ukrainian: Автономна Республіка Крим, Russian: Автономная Республика Крым, pronounced cry-MEE-ah in English) is a peninsula and an autonomous republic of Ukraine on the northern coast of the Black Sea. ... A sphere of influence is a metaphorical region of political influences surrounding a country or a region of economic influence around an urban area. ...

Other officials in the Khazar government included dignitaries referred to by ibn Fadlan as Jawyshyghr and Kundur, but their responsibilities are unknown. Ahmad ibn-al-Abbas ibn Rashid ibn-Hammad ibn-Fadlan (Aḥmad ʿibn alʿAbbās ʿibn Rasẖīd ʿibn ḥammād ʿibn Fadlān أحمد ابن العباس ابن رشيد ابن حماد ابن فضلان) was a tenth-century Arab scholar who wrote an account of his travels as a member of an embassy of the Caliph... According to ibn Fadlan, the Kündür was an official in the Khazar government under the command of the Khagan Bek. ... According to ibn Fadlan, the Kündür was an official in the Khazar government under the command of the Khagan Bek. ...

Judiciary

Muslim sources report that the Khazar supreme court consisted of two Jews, two Christians, two Muslims, and a "heathen" (whether this is a Turkic shaman or a priest of Slavic or Norse religion is unclear), and a citizen had the right to be judged according to the laws of his religion. Some have argued that this configuration is unlikely, as a Beit Din, or rabbinical court, requires three members. It is therefore possible that as practitioners of the state religion, the Jews had three judges on the Supreme Court rather than two, and that the Muslim sources were attempting to downplay their influence. A Muslim or Christian court can function with only one or two judges. Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life, teachings, death by crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... The term Christian means belonging to Christ and is derived from the Greek noun Χριστός Khristós which means anointed one, which is itself a translation of the Hebrew word Moshiach (Hebrew: משיח, also written Messiah), (and in Arabic it is pronounced Maseeh مسيح). Christian is primarily an adjective, describing an object associated...

Economic position

Khazar coin minted in imitation of Caliphate dirhem and bearing the legend "Moses is the prophet of God", early 9th c. CE. Image from the website of the Swedish Economic Museum.

Khazar coin minted in imitation of Caliphate dirhem, early 9th c. ... Khazar coin minted in imitation of Caliphate dirhem, early 9th c. ... The Khazars were a Turkic semi-nomadic people from Central Asia who adopted Judaism. ... An Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah, Caliph (  listen?) is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... The dirham (درهم) is a unit of currency and a unit of the dinar. ...

Trade

The Khazars occupied a prime trade nexus. Goods from western Europe travelled east to Central Asia and China and vice versa, and the Muslim world could only interact with northern Europe via Khazar intermediaries. The Radanites, a guild of medieval Jewish merchants, had a trade route that ran through Khazaria, and may have been instrumental in the Khazars' conversion to Judaism. Look up Trade in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Trade centers on the exchange of goods and/or services. ... Radhanites (also Radanites, Arabic al-Radhaniyya) The Radhanites were a medieval group or guild of Jewish merchants. ...

No Khazar paid taxes to the central government. Revenue came from a 10% levy on goods transiting through the region, and from tribute paid by subject nations. The Khazars exported honey, furs, wool, millet and other cereals, fish, and slaves. D.M. Dunlop and Artamanov asserted that the Khazars produced no material goods themselves, living solely off of trade. This theory has been refuted by discoveries over the last half-century, which include pottery and glass factories. Honey honey comb A capped frame of honeycomb Honey is a sweet and viscous fluid produced by bees and other insects from the nectar of flowers. ... The term fur refers to the body hair of non-human mammals also known as the pelage (like the term plumage in birds). ... Long and short hair wool at the South Central Family Farm Research Center in Boonesville, AR Wool is the fiber derived from the hair of domesticated animals, usually sheep. ... Nutrition information for one cup of cooked millet Millet is the collective name of a group of genera of the grass family(Gramineae/Paniceae) widely grown around the world for food or animal feed. ... Cereal crops are mostly grasses cultivated for their edible seeds (actually a fruit called a caryopsis). ... Atlantic herring, Clupea harengus, the most abundant fish species in the world. ... A monument celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, erected in Victoria Tower Gardens, Millbank, Westminster, London Wiktionary has a definition of: Slavery Slavery can mean one or more related conditions which involve control of a person against his or her will, enforced by violence or...

Khazar coinage

The Khazars are known to have minted silver coins, called Yarmaqs. Many of these were copies of Arab dinars, which were in widespread use due to their reliable silver content. Some surviving examples bear the legend "Ard al-Khazar" (Arabic for "land of the Khazars"); others the phrase "Moses is the Prophet of God" (a modification of the Muslim coin inscription "Muhammad is the Prophet of God"). Moses or Móshe (מֹשֶׁה, Standard Hebrew Móše, Tiberian Hebrew Mōšeh, Arabic موسى), son of Amram and his wife, Jochebed, a Levite. ... Muhammad is a common male name for Muslims. ...

Extent of influence

The Khazar Khaganate was, at its height, an immensely powerful state. The Khazar heartland was on the lower Volga and the Caspian coast as far south as Derbent. In addition, from the late 600s the Khazars controlled most of the Crimea and the northeast littoral of the Black Sea. By 800 Khazar holdings included most of the Pontic steppe as far west as the Dneiper and as far east as the Aral Sea (some Turkic history atlases show the Khazar sphere of influence extending well east of the Aral). During the Khazar-Arab war of the early 700s, some Khazars evacuated to the Ural foothills, and some settlements may have remained. Darband is built around a Sassanid fortress, the only one preserved in the world. ... The Crimea (officially Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukrainian transliteration: Avtonomna Respublika Krym, Ukrainian: Автономна Республіка Крим, Russian: Автономная Республика Крым, pronounced cry-MEE-ah in English) is a peninsula and an autonomous republic of Ukraine on the northern coast of the Black Sea. ... Satellite view of the Black Sea, taken by NASA MODIS Cities of the Black Sea The Black Sea (known as the Euxine Sea in antiquity) is an inland sea between southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. ... See: Ural Mountains Ural River IMZ-Ural Russian motorcycle Ural automobile This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Khazar towns

Khazar towns included:

• Along the Caspian coast and Volga delta:

Atil; Khazaran; Samandar

• In the Caucasus:

Balanjar; Kazarki; Sambalut; Samiran

• In the Crimea and Taman region:

Kerch (also called Bospor); Feodosia; Gusliyev (modern Yevpatoria); Samkarsh (also called Tmutarakan, Tamatarkha); Sudak (also called Sugdaia)

• In the Don valley:

Sarkel

• Numerous Khazar settlements have been discovered in the Mayaki-Saltovo region. On the Dneiper, the Khazars founded a settlement called Sambat, which was part of what would become the city of Kiev. Chernigov is also thought to have started as a Khazar settlement.

Atil, also spelled Itil (Turkic for Big River), was a name of the Volga River and of the capital of Khazaria from the middle of the 8th century until towards the end of the 10th century. ... Khazaran was a city east of Atil in the Khazar kingdom, connected to the latter by a pontoon bridge. ... Samandar (also Semender) was a city in Khazaria on the western edge of the Caspian Sea, south of Atil and north of the Caucasus. ... The Caucasus , a region boardering Asia Minor, is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea which includes the Caucasus mountains and surrounding lowlands. ... Balanjar (also Belendzher) was a city in Khazaria near the Caspian Sea, north of the Caucasus. ... Sambalut was a Khazar settlement in the Caucasus from roughly the 7th through the 10th centuries. ... Samiran was a Khazar settlement in the Caucasus from roughly the 7th through the 10th centuries. ... The Crimea (officially Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukrainian transliteration: Avtonomna Respublika Krym, Ukrainian: Автономна Республіка Крим, Russian: Автономная Республика Крым, pronounced cry-MEE-ah in English) is a peninsula and an autonomous republic of Ukraine on the northern coast of the Black Sea. ... 1. ... Kerch (in Russian Керчь; in Ukrainian Керч; in Turkish and Crimean Tatar Kerç) is a city (2001 pop 157,000) on the Kerch Peninsula of eastern Crimea, an important industrial, transportation and tourist centre of Ukraine. ... Feodosiya ( Russian: Феодосия; Ukrainian: Феодосія) is a port and resort city in southern Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of Crimea at coordinates 45. ... Also Eupatoria or Evpatoria; town in the Crimea. ... Also Eupatoria or Evpatoria; (Crimean Tatar: Kezlev) town in the Crimea. ... Tmutarakan is an ancient city that controlled the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. ... Tmutarakan is an ancient city that controlled the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. ... Sudak is city in the Crimea. ... This article is about the river in Western Russia. ... Sarkel (or Şarkil; Turkic for White Fortress) was a large limestone-and-brick fortress built by the Khazars with Byzantine assistance in the 830s. ... Name given by archeologists to the early medieval culture of the Pontic steppe region roughly between the Don and the Dnieper Rivers. ... Motto: Oblast Municipality Municipal government City council (Київська Міська рада) Mayor Oleksandr Omelchenko Area 800 km² Population  - city  - urban  - density 2,642,486 100% 3,299/km² Founded City rights around 5th century 1487 Latitude Longitude 50°27′ N 30°30′ E Area code +380 44 Car plates  ? Twin towns Athenes, Brussels, Budapest... Chernihiv (Чернігів in Ukrainian) is an ancient city in northern Ukraine, the central city of Chernihivska oblast. Some common historical spellings of the name are Polish: Czernichów, and Russian: Чернигов, Chernigov. ...

Tributary and subject nations

Map showing approximate extent of the Khazar Khaganate (light blue) and its sphere of influence (dark blue) at its height, c. 820 CE. Polity names in white indicate client-states or tribes of Khazaria.

Numerous nations were tributaries of the Khazars. A client-king subject to Khazar overlordship was called an "Elteber". At various times, Khazar vassals included: Image File history File links Map showing approximate extent of the Khazar Khaganate (light blue) and its sphere of influence (dark blue) at its height, c. ... Image File history File links Map showing approximate extent of the Khazar Khaganate (light blue) and its sphere of influence (dark blue) at its height, c. ... The Khazars were a Turkic semi-nomadic people from Central Asia who adopted Judaism. ... KHAGAN, alternatively spelled Chagan, Qaqan etc, is a title of royal or imperial rank in Mongolian and Turkic languages. ... In the hierarchy of the Gokturk and Khazar empires, an Elteber was the client-king of an autonomous but tributary tribe or polity. ...

In the Pontic steppes, Crimea and Turkestan

The Pechenegs ; the Oghuz; the Crimean Goths; the Crimean Huns (Onogurs?); the early Magyars

In the Caucasus Pechenegs or Patzinaks, also known as Besenyők, were a semi-nomadic steppes people of Central Asia that spoke a Turkic language. ... For all Turkic groupings and Turkic history, see Turkic peoples. ... The least-powerful, least-known, and paradoxically longest-lived Gothic communities were those that remained in the lands around the Black Sea, especially in the Crimea. ... Many historians consider the Huns (meaning person in Mongolian language) the first Mongolian and Turkic people mentioned in European history. ... Onogur or Onoghur was the name of the European Avar federation spreading from Pannonia to the Kuban during their 2nd Dynasty under the rule of the Bolgar house of Dulo (also Dub or Dubo, of the Unogundur tribe of Bolgars) from 635– 685 CE. It was during this dynasty that... Árpád Feszty and assistants vast (over 8000 m2) canvas, painted to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of the Magyar conquest of Hungary, now displayed at Ópusztaszer National Memorial Site in Hungary Magyars are an ethnic group primarily associated with Hungary. ...

Georgia; Abkhazia; various Armenian principalities; Arran; the North Caucasian Huns; Lazica; the Caucasian Avars; the Kassogs; and the Lezgins.

On the Upper Don and Dneiper Abkhazia (Abkhaz Аҧсны/Apsny, Georgian აფხაზეთი/Apkhazeti, Russian Абха́зия/Abkhazia) is a region of 8,600 km² (3,300 sq. ... A toponym designating two different regions: The Aran Islands or the largest island in that group Aran, a historical region that is a part of modern Republic of Azerbaijan ( Caucasia) The Isle of Arran in Scotland. ... A branch of the Huns that established a polity in Daghestan and parts of Azerbaijan in the 500s and 600s CE. The North Caucasian Huns probably incorporated numerous indigenous Caucasian tribes following their settlement in the area. ... Official language Georgian Capital Batumi ISO code GE.AJ Head of the Council of MInisters of Adjara Levan Varshalomidze Area  - Total  - % water 2,900 km² n/a Population  - Total ( 1989)  - Density 392,432 135. ... Avars or Caucasian Avars are a modern people of Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan, in which they are the predominant group. ... The term Circassians is a Western term derived from the Turkic Cherkess, and is not the self-designation of any people. ... Flag of the Lezgian people The Lezgins, also called the Lezgin, Lezgi, Lezgis, Lezgs, and Lezgians are an ethnic group who live mainly in southern Dagestan and northern Azerbaijan who speak the Lezgi language. ...

Various East Slavic tribes such as the Derevlians and the Vyatichs; various early Rus polities

On the Volga The East Slavic languages constitute one of three regional subgroups of Slavic languages, currently spoken in Eastern Europe. ... The Drevlians (Древляне, Drevlyane in Russian; Деревляни, Derevliany in Ukrainian) were a tribe of Early East Slavs between the 6th and the 10th century, which inhabited the territories of Polesie, Right-bank Ukraine west of Polans, down the stream of the rivers Teteriv, Uzh, Ubort, and Stviga. ... The Vyatichs (Вятичи in Russian) were a tribe of Early East Slavs, which inhabited a part of the Oka basin. ... The word Rus or Rus (Русь in Cyrillic Alphabet) may refer to: the Rus (people) of disputed origin who were at the roots of the statehood of Eastern Slavic peoples; the territories they ruled, also known by the Latinized name, Ruthenia; Kievan Rus, the most powerful of early Ruthenian (Eastern...

Volga Bulgaria; the Burtas; various Finno-Ugrian forest tribes such as the Mordvins and Ob-Ugrians; the Bashkir; the Barsils

Volga Bulgaria or Volga-Kama Bolghar, is a historic state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama rivers in what is now the Russian Federation. ... Burtas or Bortas (plural Bortaslar) were a tribe of uncertain ethnolinguistic affiliation inhabiting the steppe region north of the Caspian in medieval times. ... Geographical distribution of Finno-Ugric (Finno-Permic in blue, Ugric in green). ... The Mordvins (Mordva) are a people who speak languages of the Finno-Permic branch of the Finno-Ugric language family. ... Ostiaks, or Ostyaks are a tribe who inhabit the basin of the Ob in western Siberia belonging to the Finno-Ugric group and related to the Voguls. ... The Bashkirs, a Turkic people, live in Russia, mostly in the republic of Bashkortostan. ... A semi-nomadic Eurasian tribe, probably of Turkic linguistic affiliation. ...

Decline and fall

Rise of Rus

Originally the Khazars were probably allied with various Norse factions who controlled the region around Novgorod and regularly travelled through Khazar-held territory to attack territories around the Black and Caspian Seas. By 913, however, the Khazars were engaged in open hostilities with Norse marauders. The Khazar fortress of Sarkel, constructed with Byzantine aid around 830, may have been constructed as a defense against Rus incursions, as well as attacks by nomadic people such as the Pechenegs. Velikiy Novgorod (Но́вгород) is the foremost historic city of North-Western Russia, situated on the highway (and railway) connecting Moscow and St Petersburg. ... Events The Shiite Fatimid state in modern day Tunisia launches a failed military campaign against Egypt Births Deaths Eadwulf, Anglo-Saxon Earl of Bernicia who ruled the land north of the Tees Alexander III of Byzantium Categories: 913 ... Norse is related to Scandinavia, and may mean: Ancient Norse mythology Medieval Norsemen, i. ... Sarkel (or Şarkil; Turkic for White Fortress) was a large limestone-and-brick fortress built by the Khazars with Byzantine assistance in the 830s. ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ... The word Rus or Rus (Русь in Cyrillic Alphabet) may refer to: the Rus (people) of disputed origin who were at the roots of the statehood of Eastern Slavic peoples; the territories they ruled, also known by the Latinized name, Ruthenia; Kievan Rus, the most powerful of early Ruthenian (Eastern... Communities of nomadic people move from place to place, rather than settling down in one location. ...

In the 10th century the empire began to decline due to the attacks of both Vikings from Kievan Rus and various Turkic tribes. It enjoyed a brief revival under the strong rulers Aaron and Joseph, who subdued rebellious client states such as the Alans and led victorious wars against Rus invaders. ( 9th century - 10th century - 11th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000. ... The name Viking is a loan from the native Scandinavian term for the Norse seafaring warriors who raided the coasts of Scandinavia, the British Isles, and other parts of Europe from the late 8th century to the 11th century, the period of European history referred to as the Viking Age. ... Kievan Rus′ (Ки́евская Ру́сь, Kievskaya Rus in Russian; Київська Русь, Kyivs’ka Rus’ in Ukrainian) was the early, mostly East Slavic¹ state dominated by the city of Kiev (ru: Ки́ев, Kiev; uk: Ки́їв, Kyiv), from about 880 to the middle of the 12th century. ... The Turkic peoples are (currently some 150 million) Central Asians whose members speak languages in the Turkic family of languages, and their descendants thoughout the world. ...

Kabar rebellion and the departure of the Magyars

At some point in the ninth century (as reported by Constantine Porphyrogenitus) a group of three Khazar clans called the Kabars revolted against the Khazar government. Omeljan Pritsak and others have speculated that the revolt had something to do with a rejection of rabbinic Judaism; this is unlikely as it is believed that both the Kabars and mainstream Khazars had pagan, Jewish (both rabbinic and Karaite), Christian, and Muslim members. Pritsak maintained that the Kabars were led by the Khagan Khan-Tuvan Dyggvi in a war against the Bek. In any event Pritsak cited no primary source for his propositions in this matter. The Kabars were defeated and joined a confederacy led by the Magyars. It has been speculated that "Hungarian" derives from the Turkic word "Onogur", or "Ten Arrows", referring to seven Finno-Ugric tribes and the three tribes of the Kabars. Constantine VII Porphyrogenitos (the Purple-born) ( 905 – November 9, 959) was the son of Byzantine emperor Leo VI and nephew of Alexander III. He earned his nickname as the legitimate (or more accurately legitimized) son of Leo, as opposed to the others who claimed the throne during his lifetime. ... The Kabars (Gr. ... Omeljan Pritsak is a professor at Harvard University and the chairman of the Ukrainian Resource Center. ... Karaite Judaism is a Jewish denomination characterized by reliance on the Tanakh as the sole scripture, and rejection of the Oral Law (the Mishnah and the Talmuds) as halakha (Legally Binding, i. ... Geographical distribution of Finno-Ugric (Finno-Permic in blue, Ugric in green). ...

In the closing years of the ninth century the Khazars and Oghuz allied to attack the Pechenegs, who had been attacking both nations. The Pechenegs were driven westward, where they forced out the Magyars (Hungarians) who had previously inhabited the Don-Dnieper basin in vassalage to Khazaria. Under the leadership of the chieftain Lebedias and later Arpad, the Hungarians moved west into modern-day Hungary. The departure of the Hungarians led to an unstable power vacuum and the loss of Khazar control over the steppes north of the Black Sea. Lebedias, also called Leved, Levedias, and Lebedi; semi-legendary ninth-century chieftain of the Magyars. ... Arpad is the name of: Arpad, a city in ancient Syria. ...

Rus and Byzantine hostility

Svyatoslav (seated in the boat), the destroyer of the Khazar Khaganate.
From Klavdiy Lebedev (1852-1916), Svyatoslav's meeting with Emperor John, as described by Leo the Deacon.

The alliance with the Byzantines began to collapse in the early 900s, possibly as a result of the conversion to Judaism. Byzantine and Khazar forces may have clashed in the Crimea, and by the 940s Constantine VII Porphyrogentius was speculating in De Administrando Imperio about ways in which the Khazars could be isolated and attacked. The Byzantines during the same period began to attempt alliances with the Pechenegs and the Rus, with varying degrees of success. Klavdiy Lebedev (1852-1916). ... Klavdiy Lebedev (1852-1916). ... Ioannes, protected by God and the Virgin Mary. ... Centuries: 9th century - 10th century - 11th century Decades: 850s - 860s - 870s - 880s - 890s - 900s - 910s - 920s - 930s - 940s - 950s Years: 900 901 902 903 904 905 906 907 908 909 910 Events: Categories: 900s ... Centuries: 9th century - 10th century - 11th century Decades: 890s - 900s - 910s - 920s - 930s - 940s - 950s - 960s - 970s - 980s - 990s Years: 940 941 942 943 944 945 946 947 948 949 Events: Births: Deaths: Categories: 940s ... Constantine VII Porphyrogenitos (the Purple-born) (905 – November 9, 959) was the son of Byzantine emperor Leo VI and nephew of Alexander III. He earned his nickname as the legitimate (or more accurately legitimized) son of Leo, as opposed to the others who claimed the throne during his lifetime. ... De Administrando Imperio is a scholarly work from ca. ...

The Rus warlords Oleg and Sviatoslav I of Kiev launched several wars against the Khazar khaganate, often with Byzantine connivance. The Schechter Letter relates the story of a campaign against Khazaria by HLGW (Oleg) around 941; this calls into question the timeline of the Primary Chronicle and other related works. Prince Oleg ( Norse name Helgu) was the East Slavic ruler who moved the capital of Rus from Novgorod the Great to Kiev. ... Sviatoslav I, Prince of Kiev (c. ... Events Oda the Severe becomes Archbishop of Canterbury Births Charles dOutremer son of Louis IV of France Deaths Categories: 941 ... The Russian Primary Chronicle (Russian: Повесть временных лет, Povest vremennykh let, which is often translated in English as Tale of Bygone Years), is a history of the early East Slavic state, Kievan Rus, from around 850 to 1110. ...

Sviatoslav finally succeeded in destroying Khazar imperial power in the 960s. The Khazar fortresses of Sarkel and Tamatarkha fell to the Rus in 965, with the capital city of Atil following circa 967 or 969. Centuries: 9th century - 10th century - 11th century Decades: 910s - 920s - 930s - 940s - 950s - 960s - 970s - 980s - 990s - 1000s - 1010s Years: 960 961 962 963 964 965 966 967 968 969 Events Khazar kingdom is attacked and defeated by Kievan Rus (965) Categories: 960s ... Sarkel (or Şarkil; Turkic for White Fortress) was a large limestone-and-brick fortress built by the Khazars with Byzantine assistance in the 830s. ... Tmutarakan is an ancient city that controlled the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. ... Events March 1 - Pope Benedict V is put in place of Pope Leo VIII by the people October 1 - John XIII becomes Pope The Khazar fortress of Sarkel falls to the Kievan Rus Births Sweyn I of Denmark Deaths February 22 - Odo, Duke of Burgundy July 4 - Pope Benedict V... Atil, also spelled Itil (Turkic for Big River), was a name of the Volga River and of the capital of Khazaria from the middle of the 8th century until towards the end of the 10th century. ... Events Boleslav I, Duke of the Bohemians, succeeded by Boleslav II (967- 1004) Emperor Reizei ascends to the throne of Japan The Khazar capital of Atil falls to the Kievan Rus around this year Births Deaths Emperor Murakami of Japan Abu al-Faraj Ali of Esfahan, scholar. ... Events December 11 - John I becomes Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire. ...

Khazars outside of Khazaria

Khazar communities existed outside of those areas under Khazar overlordship. Many Khazar mercenaries served in the armies of the Caliphate and other Islamic states. Documents from medieval Constantinople attest to a Khazar community mingled with the Jews of the suburb of Pera. Christian Khazars also lived in Constantinople, and some served in its armies. The Patriarch Photius I of Constantinople was once angrily referred to by the Emperor as "Khazar-face", though whether this refers to his actual lineage or is a generic insult is unclear. Abraham ibn Daud reported Khazar rabbinical students, or rabbinical students who were the descendents of Khazars, in 12th century Spain. Jews from Kiev and elsewhere in Russia, who may or may not have been Khazars, were reported in France, Germany and England. The Kabars who settled in Hungary in the late ninth and early tenth centuries may have included Jews among their number. Many Khazar Jews probably fled foreign conquest into Hungary and elsewhere in Eastern Europe. There they likely merged with local Jews and ensuing waves of Jewish immigration from Germany and Western Europe. They most likely did not constitute the dominant group within Eastern European Jewry, as Arthur Koestler maintained (see below). Polish legends speak of Jews being present in Poland before the establishment of the Polish monarchy. Polish coins from the 12th and 13th centuries sometimes bore Slavic inscriptions written in the Hebrew alphabet [2] [3] though connecting these coins to Khazar influence is purely a matter of speculation. Mercenary (disambiguation). ... An Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah, Caliph (  listen?) is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... Islam ( Arabic al-islām الإسلام,  listen?) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith and the worlds second-largest religion. ... Map of Constantinople. ... Pera was a suburb of Constantinople, located north of the Golden Horn, and is now part of the Istanbul district of Galata. ... Originally a patriarch is a man who exercises autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. ... Photius (b. ... Abraham ben David was a Jewish, French commentator on the Talmud. ... Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbÄ«; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbÄ«) in Judaism, means teacher, or more literally great one. The word Rabbi is derived from the Hebrew root-word RaV, which in biblical Hebrew means great or distinguished,. In the ancient Judean schools the sages were addressed as רִבִּי (Ribbi or Rebbi... The Kabars (Gr. ... Eastern Europe is, by convention, that part of Europe from the Ural and Caucasus mountains in the East to an arbitrarily chosen boundary in the West. ... Arthur Koestler Arthur Koestler (September 5, 1905 - March 3, 1983) was a novelist, political activist, and social philosopher. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ...

Late references to the Khazars

There is debate as to the temporal and geographic extent of Khazar polities following Sviatoslav's sack of Atil in 967/9, or even whether any such states existed. The Khazars may have retained control over some areas in the Caucasus for another two centuries, but sparse historical records make this difficult to confirm. Sviatoslav I, Prince of Kiev (c. ...

The evidence of later Khazar polities includes:

• Sviatoslav did not occupy the Volga basin after he destroyed Atil, and departed relatively quickly to embark on his campaign in Bulgaria. The permanent conquest of the Volga basin seems to have been left to later waves of steppe peoples like the Kipchaks.

Kipchaks (also Kypchaks, Qipchaqs) are an ancient Turkic people, first mentioned in the historical chronicles of Central Asia in the 1st millennium BC. Their language was also known as Kipchak. ...

Jewish sources

• A letter in Hebrew dated 4746 (985/986) refers to "our lord David, the Khazar prince" who lived in Taman. The letter said that this David was visited by envoys from Kievan Rus to ask about religious matters- this could be connected to the Vladimir conversion which took place during the same time period. Taman was a principality of Kievan Rus around 988, so this successor state (if that is what it was) may have been conquered altogether. However, it should be noted that the authenticity of this letter, the Mandgelis Document, was questioned by such scholars as D. M. Dunlop.

• Abraham ibn Daud, a twelfth-century Spanish rabbi, reported meeting Khazar rabbinical students in Toledo, and that they informed him that the "remnant of them is of the rabbinic faith." This reference indicates that some Khazars maintained ethnic, if not political, autonomy at least two centuries after the sack of Atil.

• Petachiah of Ratisbon, a thirteenth-century rabbi and traveler, reported traveling through "Khazaria", though he gave few details of its inhabitants except to say that they lived amidst desolation in perpetual mourning.

He further related:

Whilst at Baghdad [I] saw ambassadors from the kings of Meshech, for Magog (n.b.- medieval Christian writers said that the Khazars lived in the land of Gog and Magog) is about ten days' journey from thence. The land extends as far as the Mountains of Darkness (a term often used to describe the Caucasus). Beyond the Mountains of Darkness are the sons of Jonadab, son of Rechab (an official in the court of the Judahite king Josiah). To the seven kings of Meshech an angel appeared in a dream, bidding them to give up the laws and statutes, and to embrace the laws of Moses, son of Amram. If not, he threatened to lay waste their country. However, they delayed until the angel commenced to lay waste their country, when the kings of Meshech and all the inhabitants of their countries became proselytes, and they sent to the head of the academy (i.e., the Gaon of Sura or Pumbedita) a request to send them some disciples of the wise. Every disciple that is poor goes there to teach them the law and Babylonian Talmud. From the land of Egypt the disciples go there to study. He saw the ambassadors visit the grave of [the prophet] Ezekiel..."

The account of the conversion of the "seven kings of Meshech" is extremely similar to the accounts of the Khazar conversion given in the Kuzari, and in King Joseph's Reply. It is possible that Meshech refers to the Khazars, or to some Judaized polity influenced by them. Arguments against this possibility include the reference to "seven kings" (though this, in turn, could refer to seven successor tribes or state micropolities).

This figure, in a detail of a medieval Hebrew calendar, reminded Jews of the palm branches ( Lulav) and the citron ( Etrog) to be brought to the synagogue at the end of sukkot, closing the solemn convocations of the calendar in autumn. ... Events Barcelona sacked by Al-Mansur Greenland colonized by Icelandic Viking Erik the Red (the date is according to legend but has been established as at least approximately correct – see History of Greenland) Lady Wulfruna founded the town that later became the city of Wolverhampton Births Al-Hakim bi-Amr... Events March 2 - Louis V becomes King of the Franks End of the reign of Emperor Kazan of Japan Emperor Ichijo ascends to the throne of Japan Explorer Bjarni Herjólfsson becomes the first inhabitant of the Old World to sight North America Births Deaths March 2 - Lothair, King of... 1. ... Events Vladimir I, Prince of Kiev marries Anna, sister of Byzantine emperor Basil II and converts to Christianity. ... Douglas Morton Dunlop, b. ... The façade of Toledo cathedral The largest Toledo in the world is Toledo, Ohio. ... Also called Petachiah ben Yakov, Moses Petachiah, or Petachiah of Regensburg; Bohemian rabbi of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. ... Meshechs (Meshekhs/Mosokhs, Mushku in Akkadian, Moschoi in Greek) were an ancient, non-Indo-European and non-Semitic, indigenous tribe of Asia Minor of the 3rd- 1st millennias BC. They were among the first people to introduce iron smelting there at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. They are... Gog and Magog are, respectively, the names of a mysterious Biblical land and its people, who feature in apocalyptic prophecy. ... The Caucasus , a region boardering Asia Minor, is located between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea which includes the Caucasus mountains and surrounding lowlands. ... Jonadab is the name of two men in the Hebrew Bible: see Jonadabs In 2 Samuel 13:3 Jonadab son of Shimeah is described as a very shrewd man (NIV). ... Judah (יְהוּדָה Praise, Standard Hebrew YÉ™huda, Tiberian Hebrew YÉ™hûḏāh) is the name of several Biblical and historical figures. ... Josiah or Yoshiyahu (יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ supported of the LORD, Standard Hebrew YoÅ¡iyyáhu, Tiberian Hebrew Yôšiyyāhû) was king of Judah, and son of Amon and Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. ... Moses or Móshe (מֹשֶׁה, Standard Hebrew Móše, Tiberian Hebrew Mōšeh, Arabic موسى), son of Amram and his wife, Jochebed, a Levite. ... angels are evil creatures they lie to you they have been feeding you dysinformation for thousands of years they hate you and this planet earth how dare you sanctify there name and species you christians lucifer has spoken The Annunciation - the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she will bear... Geonim (also Gaonim) (גאונים) (Singular: Gaon [גאון] meaning Genius in Hebrew) were the rabbis who were the Jewish Talmudic sages who were the generally accepted leaders of the Jewish community in the early medieval era. ... Ezekiel the Prophet of the Hebrew Scriptures is depicted on a 1510 Sistine Chapel fresco by Michelangelo. ... The Kuzari is the most famous work by the medieval Spanish Jewish writer Yehuda Halevi. ... An exchange of letters in the 950s or 960s between Hasdai ibn Shaprut, foreign secretary to the Caliph of Cordoba, and Joseph, King of the Khazars. ...

Muslim sources

• Ibn Hawqal and al-Muqaddasi refer to Atil after 969, indicating that it may have been rebuilt. Al-Biruni (mid-1000s) reported that Atil was in ruins, and did not mention the later city of Saqsin which was built nearby, so it is possible that this new Atil was only destroyed in the middle of the eleventh century. Even assuming al-Biruni's report was not an anachronism, there is no evidence that this "new" Atil was populated by Khazars rather than by Pechenegs or a different tribe.

• Ibn al-Athir, who wrote around 1200, described "the raid of Fadhlun the Kurd against the Khazars". Fadhlun the Kurd has been identified as al-Fadhl ibn Muhammad al-Shaddadi, who ruled Arran and other parts of Azerbaijan in the 1030's. According to the account he attacked the Khazars but had to flee when they ambushed his army and killed 10,000 of his men. Two of the great early 20th century scholars on Eurasian nomads, Marquart and Barthold, disagreed about this account. Marquart believed that this incident refers to some Khazar remnant that had reverted to paganism and nomadic life. Barthold, (and more recently, Kevin Brook), took a much more skeptical approach and said that ibn al-Athir must have been referring to Georgians or Abkhazians. There is no evidence to decide the issue one way or the other.

Muhammad ibn Ahmad Shamsuddin Al-Muqaddasi (or Al-Maqdisi) was a notable medieval Arab geographer, author of Ahsan at-Taqasim fi Ma`rifat il-Aqalim (The Best Divisions for Knowledge of the Regions). ... Centuries: 10th century - 11th century - 12th century Decades: 950s - 960s - 970s - 980s - 990s - 1000s - 1010s - 1020s - 1030s - 1040s - 1050s 999 1000 1001 1002 1003 1004 1005 1006 1007 1008 1009 1010 Events Sweyn I of Denmark invades England. ... Location Saqsin was a medieval city that flourished from the eleventh to the thirteenth centuries. ... Pechenegs or Patzinaks, also known as Besenyők, were a semi-nomadic steppes people of Central Asia that spoke a Turkic language. ... Izz ad-Dīn ibn al-Athīr ( 1160– 1233) was a 13th century historian born in Cizre in Eastern Anatolia. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... A toponym designating two different regions: The Aran Islands or the largest island in that group Aran, a historical region that is a part of modern Republic of Azerbaijan ( Caucasia) The Isle of Arran in Scotland. ...

Kievan Rus sources

• In 986 Khazar Jews were present at Vladimir's disputation to decide on the prospective religion of the Kievian Rus. Whether these were Jews who had settled in Kiev or emissaries from some Jewish Khazar remnant state is unclear. The whole incident is regarded by a few radical scholars as a fabrication, but the reference to Khazar Jews (after the destruction of the Khaganate) is still relevant. Heinrich Graetz alleged that these were Jewish missionaries from the Crimea, but provided no reference to primary sources for his allegation.

• In 1023 the Primary Chronicle reports that Mstislav (one of Vladimir's sons) marched against his brother Yaroslav with an army that included "Khazars and Kasogs". Kasogs were an early Circassian people. "Khazars" in this reference is considered by most to be intended in the generic sense, but some have questioned why the reference reads "Khazars and Kasogs", when "Khazars" as a generic would have been sufficient. Even if the reference is to Khazars, of course, it does not follow that there was a Khazar state in this period. They could have been Khazars under the rule of the Rus.

• A Kievian prince named Oleg (not to be confused with Oleg of Kiev) was reportedly kidnapped by "Khazars" in 1078 and shipped off to Constantinople, although most scholars believe that this is a reference to the Kipchaks.

Detail of the Millennium of Russia monument in Novgorod (1862) representing St Vladimir and his family. ... In the scholastic system of education of the middle ages, disputations (in Latin: disputationes, singular: disputatio) offered a formalised method of debate designed to uncover and establish truths in theology and in other sciences. ... Heinrich Graetz ( October 31, 1817 - September 7, 1891) was the first historian in the modern times who wrote a comprehensive history of the Jewish people from a Jewish perspective. ... Events The Judge-Governor of Sevilla takes advantage of the disintegration of the caliphate of Córdoba and seizes power as Abbad I, thus founded the Abbadid dynasty. ... The Russian Primary Chronicle (Russian: Повесть временных лет, Povest vremennykh let, which is often translated in English as Tale of Bygone Years), is a history of the early East Slavic state, Kievan Rus, from around 850 to 1110. ... The name Mstislav may refer to the following persons from the early Ruthenian history. ... Circassian language is used in a number of ways: as a synonym for the Adyghe language; as a synonym for the Kabardian language; as a term for a distinct language that includes both Adyghe and Kabardian. ... Prince Oleg ( Norse name Helgu) was the East Slavic ruler who moved the capital of Rus from Novgorod the Great to Kiev. ... Events Romanesque church begun at Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain Anselm of Canterbury becomes abbot of Le Bec William the Conqueror ordered the White Tower to be built Births Deaths Categories: 1078 ... Map of Constantinople. ...

Byzantine, Georgian and Armenian sources

• There is the joint attack on the Khazar state in Kerch, ruled by Georgius Tzul, by the Byzantines and Russians in 1016, documented by Kedrenos. Following 1016, there are more ambiguous references to Khazars that may or may not be using "Khazars" in a general sense (the Byzantines and Arabs, for example, called all steppe people "Turks"; before them the Romans had called them all "Scythians").

• The Jewish Khazars were also mentioned in a Georgian chronicle as a group that inhabited Derbent in the late 1100s.

• At least one 12th-century Byzantine source refers to tribes practicing Mosaic law and living in the Balkans; see Khalyzians.

Kerch (in Russian Керчь; in Ukrainian Керч; in Turkish and Crimean Tatar Kerç) is a city (2001 pop 157,000) on the Kerch Peninsula of eastern Crimea, an important industrial, transportation and tourist centre of Ukraine. ... Georgius Tzul (Georgeios or Georgios) was a Khazar warlord against whom the Byzantine Empire and the Kievan Rus states launched a joint expedition in 1016. ... Events George Tsul, ruler of Khazaria, is captured by a combined Byzantine- Rus force, which effectively ends Khazarias existence. ... Georgios Kedrenos, also known as George Cedrenus, was a Byzantine historian of the mid eleventh century. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that existed in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East between 753 BC and its downfall in AD 476. ... Scythia was an area in Eurasia inhabited in ancient times by an Indo-Aryans known as the Scythians. ... Darband is built around a Sassanid fortress, the only one preserved in the world. ... Centuries: 11th century - 12th century - 13th century Decades: 1050s 1060s 1070s 1080s 1090s - 1100s - 1110s 1120s 1130s 1140s 1150s Years: 1100 1101 1102 1103 1104 1105 1106 1107 1108 1109 Events and Trends 1107 Emperor Toba ascends the throne of Japan The great Buddhist centre of learning at Nalanda is... Moses or Móshe (מֹשֶׁה, Standard Hebrew Móše, Tiberian Hebrew Mōšeh, Arabic موسى), son of Amram and his wife, Jochebed, a Levite. ... The Balkans is the historic and geographic name used to describe southeastern Europe (see the Definitions and boundaries section below). ... The Khalyzians (also called Chalyzians) were a people mentioned by the 12th-century Byzantine historian John Kinnamos. ...

Western sources

• Giovanni di Plano Carpini, a thirteenth century Papal legate to the court of the Mongol Khan Guyuk, gave a list of the nations the Mongols had conquered in his account. One of them, listed among tribes of the Caucasus, Pontic steppe and the Caspian region, was the "Brutakhi, who are Jews." The identity of the Brutakhi is unclear. Giovanni later refers to the Brutakhi as shaving their heads. Though Giovanni refers to them as Kipchaks, they may have been a remnant of the Khazar people. Alternatively, they may have been Kipchak converts to Judaism (possibly connected to the Krymchaks or the Crimean Karaites).

This article or section should be merged with [[{{{1}}}]]. Giovanni da Pian del Carpini Giovanni di Plano Carpini (c. ... Honorary guard of Mongolia. ... Güyük (c. ... The Brutakhi were a Jewish polity of uncertain location and origin during the early 13th century. ... The Krymchaks are a community of Rabbinical Jews of the Crimean peninsula. ... Karaim or Qaraylar, a Karaite Jewish community of Eastern Europe. ...

Debate

Date and extent of the conversion

The date of the conversion, and whether it occurred as one event or as a sequence of events over time, is widely disputed. The issues surrounding this controversy are discussed above.

The number of Khazars who converted to Judaism is also hotly contested. D.M. Dunlop was of the opinion that only the upper class converted; this was the majority view until relatively recently. The relatively sudden shift in burial customs during the mid 800s suggests a more widespread conversion, which hypothesis has been recently championed by Kevin A. Brook. Douglas Morton Dunlop, b. ...

Koestler's theory

Arthur Koestler

Some historians, and most famously the non-historian novelist Arthur Koestler (in a work, The Thirteenth Tribe, containing unsubstantiated speculation and appropriated historical accounts), have proposed that Jewish Khazars are the ancestors of most or all Ashkenazi (Eastern European) Jews, but the idea is the subject of much debate. Recent genetic studies have demonstrated that Middle Eastern elements dominate the Ashkenazi male line (see Y-chromosomal Aaron), but the female line appears to have a substantially different history. Some have argued this suggests Middle Eastern men marrying into local European communities [4][5] meaning that Ashkenazim are either not related to Jewish Khazars or that Jewish Khazars represent only a small element of Ashkenazi ancestry rather than the dominant element suggested by Koestler. This work is copyrighted. ... This work is copyrighted. ... Arthur Koestler Arthur Koestler (September 5, 1905 - March 3, 1983) was a novelist, political activist, and social philosopher. ... Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim (אַשְׁכֲּנָזִי אַשְׁכֲּנָזִים Standard Hebrew, Aškanazi,Aškanazim, Tiberian Hebrew, ʾAškănāzî, ʾAškănāzîm), are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of Germany, Poland, Austria, and Eastern Europe mostly established between the 10th and 19th centuries. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Y-chromosomal Aaron is the name given to the hypothesised ancestor of the Kohanim (singular Kohen), a patrilineal priestly caste in Judaism. ... A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ...

Others critics of the Khazar-Ashkenazi theory have suggested these ideas have become political and anti-Zionist in nature. The Khazar theory has been adopted by some anti-Zionists, especially in the Arab world; such proponents of the theory argue that if Ashkenazi Jews are primarily Khazar in origin, then they would be exempt from God's promise of Canaan to Israelites as recorded in the Bible, were one to ignore that the promise also applies to converts, and the fact that over half of Israeli Jews are not Ashkenazi. Some have countered that such charges of a political motive are not relevant to the core of the argument; in any event, Koestler himself was emphatically pro-Zionist. Anti-Zionism is a term that has been used to describe several very different political and religious points of view, both historically and in current debates. ... In many religions, the supreme God is given the title and attributions of Father. ... This article is about the land called Canaan. ... An Israelite is a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, descended from the twelve sons of the Biblical patriarch Jacob who was renamed Israel by God in the book of Genesis, 32:28 The Israelites were a group of Hebrews, as described in the Bible. ... The holy jewish scripture: The Torah. ...

At other times, the Khazar claim has served as a catalyst for state antisemitism in the Soviet Union and a justification for conquest by Russian nationalists. [6]

Others have claimed Khazar origins for such groups as the Karaim, Krymchaks, Mountain Jews, and Gruzim. There is little evidence to support any of these theories, although it is likely that some Khazar descendants found their way into these communities. Karaim or Qaraylar, a Karaite Jewish community of Eastern Europe. ... The Krymchaks are a community of Rabbinical Jews of the Crimean peninsula. ... Mountain Jews, or Juhurim, are Jews of the eastern Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan. ... The Gruzim are Jews from the nation of Georgia, in the Caucasus. ...

See also

• Avraham Firkovitch
• Bulan (Khazar)
• Dictionary of the Khazars
• Georgius Tzul
• Hisdai ibn Shaprut
• Khazar Correspondence
• Khazar language
• Khazars in fiction
• Kiev
• Kipchak
• Kievian Letter
• List of Khazar rulers
• Saqsin
• Schechter Letter
• Soviet Union

Abraham (Avraham) Firkovitch (1786-1874) was a Lithuanian Karaite of Crimean Karaite (Karaim) descent, born in Lutsk, Volhynia. ... For other uses of this term, see Bulan Bulan was a Khazar king who led the conversion of the Khazars to Judaism. ... Dictionary Of The Khazars: A Lexicon Novel is the first novel by Milorad Pavich (Milorad Pavić). ... Georgius Tzul (Georgeios or Georgios) was a Khazar warlord against whom the Byzantine Empire and the Kievan Rus states launched a joint expedition in 1016. ... Hasdai (Abu Yusuf ben Yitzhak ben Ezra) ibn Shaprut Spanish physician, diplomat, and patron of Jewish science; born about 915 at Jaen; died 970 or 990 at Cordova. ... An exchange of letters in the 950s or 960s between Hasdai ibn Shaprut, foreign secretary to the Caliph of Cordoba, and Joseph, King of the Khazars. ... Language spoken by the medieval Khazar tribe. ... The history of the Khazar people is not well documented. ... Motto: Oblast Municipality Municipal government City council (Київська Міська рада) Mayor Oleksandr Omelchenko Area 800 km² Population  - city  - urban  - density 2,642,486 100% 3,299/km² Founded City rights around 5th century 1487 Latitude Longitude 50°27′ N 30°30′ E Area code +380 44 Car plates  ? Twin towns Athenes, Brussels, Budapest... Kipchaks (also Kypchaks, Qipchaqs) are an ancient Turkic people, first mentioned in the historical chronicles of Central Asia in the 1st millennium BC. Their language was also known as Kipchak. ... Introduction The Kievian Letter is an early 10th century letter written by a Khazarian Jewish community in Kiev. ... List of Khazar Rulers From Bruce Gordons Regnal Chronologies - Eurasian Nomads Early Khazar rulers Khozarig (Eponymous folk-ancestor of the Khazars) Karadach. ... Location Saqsin was a medieval city that flourished from the eleventh to the thirteenth centuries. ... Also called the Cambridge Document, the Schechter Letter was discovered in the genizah of a Cairo synagogue by Solomon Schechter. ...

Resources

• Kevin Alan Brook, The Jews of Khazaria, 1st ed., Northvale, N.J.: Jason Aronson, 1999
• Essay: Are Russian Jews Descended from the Khazars?
• Kevin Alan Brook, "Tales about Jewish Khazars in the Byzantine Empire Resolve an Old Debate". Los Muestros, No. 54, p. 27.
• Douglas M. Dunlop, The History of the Jewish Khazars, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954.
• Peter Golden. Khazar Studies: An Historio-Philological Inquiry into the Origins of the Khazars. Budapest: Akademia Kiado, 1980.
• Norman Golb and Omeljan Pritsak, Khazarian Hebrew Documents of the Tenth Century. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press, 1982.

Douglas Morton Dunlop, b. ... Omeljan Pritsak is a professor at Harvard University and the chairman of the Ukrainian Resource Center. ...

External links

• Khazaria.com
• Bibliography of Khazar Studies
• Primary sources on the Conversion
• Eurasian Nomads
• Khazar Historic Maps
• Norman Finkelshteyn's Jewish Warriors - The Khazar Khaganate
• Caveats in Researching the Khazars
• Criticisms of Khazar Studies by Norman Finkelshteyn