Cumans
Encyclopedia
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion (1237), they decided to seek asylum
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, and subsequently to Bulgaria. Cumans had also settled in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
before the Mongol invasion.
Related to the Pecheneg, they inhabited a shifting area north of the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
and along the Volga River known as Cumania
Cumania
Cumania is a name formerly used to designate several distinct lands in Eastern Europe inhabited by and under the military dominance of the Cumans, a nomadic tribe who, with the Kipchaks, created a confederation. The Cumans were also known as the Polovtsians, or Folban...
; where the Cuman-Kipchaks meddled in the politics of the Caucasus and Khwarezm. They eventually settled to the west of the Black Sea, influencing the politics of Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
and Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
. Cuman and Kipchak tribes joined politically to create a confederation known as the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. The Cuman language
Cuman language
Cuman was a Kipchak Turkic language spoken by the Cumans and Kipchaks; the language was similar to the today's Crimean Tatar language...
is attested in some medieval documents and is the best-known of the early Turkic languages
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
. The Codex Cumanicus
Codex Cumanicus
The Codex Cumanicus was a linguistic manual of the Middle Ages, designed to help Catholic missionaries communicate with the Cumans, a nomadic Turkic people. It is currently housed in the Library of St. Mark, in Venice ....
was a linguistic manual which was written to help Catholic missionaries communicate with the Cuman people.
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
n steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
who exerted an enduring impact on the medieval Balkans. The basic instrument of Cuman political success was military force, which dominated each of the warring Balkan factions. Groups of the Cumans settled and mingled with the local population in various regions of the Balkans. A Cuman origin for the founders of three successive Bulgarian dynasties (Asenids, Terterids, and Shishmanids), and the founding Wallachian dynasty (Basarabids) has been proposed. But, in the cases of the Basarab and Asenid dynasties, medieval documents refer to them as Vlach (Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n) dynasties They also played an active role in Byzantium, Hungary, and Serbia, with Cuman immigrants being integrated into each country's elite.
The Cumans were called Folban and Vallani/Valwe by Germans, Kun (Qoun) by the Hungarians, and Polovtsy/Polovec by the Russians - all meaning "blond". It is difficult to know which group past historians were referring to when they used the name Kipchak, as they could refer to the Cumans only, the Kipchaks only, or to both together. The two nations joined and lived together (and possibly exchanged weaponry, culture and fused languages). This confederation and their living together may have made it difficult at times for historians to write exclusively about either nation.
Etymology
A variety of sources from different countries (such as Germany, Hungary and the historic Rus) explain that the different names for the Cumans may all refer to the meaning 'blond', 'sallow' and 'yellow', in reference to the color of the Kumans' hair. The Ukrainian word 'Polovtsy' (Пóловці) means "blond", since the old Ukrainian word "polovo" means "straw". "Kuman" means "pale yellow" in TurkicTurkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
.
O. Suleymenov said their name referred to "men of the field, steppe" from the Ukrainian word pole (open ground, field), not to be confused with polyane (cf. Greek polis - city). O. Suleymenov suggested that polovtsy came from a word for "blue-eyed", since the Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
word plav means "blue"
History
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
, and Rus - they became their arch enemies.
The vast territory of this Cuman-Kipchak realm, consisting of loosely connected tribal units who were the military dominating force, was never politically united by a strong central power. Cumania
Cumania
Cumania is a name formerly used to designate several distinct lands in Eastern Europe inhabited by and under the military dominance of the Cumans, a nomadic tribe who, with the Kipchaks, created a confederation. The Cumans were also known as the Polovtsians, or Folban...
was neither a state nor an empire, but different groups under independent rulers, or khans, who acted on their own initiative, meddling in the political life of the surrounding states: the Russian principalities, Bulgaria, Byzantium and the Wallachian states in the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
and Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
(see Kipchaks in Georgia
Kipchaks in Georgia
Kipchaks are an ancient nomadic, Turkic people who occupied large territories from Central Asia to Eastern Europe. They, together with the Cumans played an important role in the history of many nations in the region, Georgia among them...
-but here we do not know if it was just Kipchaks, just Cumans, or Kipchaks and Cumans, discussed earlier) in the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
, and Khwarezm
Khwarezm
Khwarezm, or Chorasmia, is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, which borders to the north the Aral Sea, to the east the Kyzylkum desert, to the south the Karakum desert and to the west the Ustyurt Plateau...
, having reached as far as to create a powerful caste of warriors, the Mamluks and the Mamluk Sultanate
Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)
The Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt was the final independent Egyptian state prior to the establishment of the Muhammad Ali Dynasty in 1805. It lasted from the overthrow of the Ayyubid Dynasty until the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in 1517. The sultanate's ruling caste was composed of Mamluks, Arabised...
.
The Cumans first encountered the Rus in 1055; this resulted in a peace agreement. In 1061, the Cumans invaded and devastated the Rus Pereiaslav principality
In 1068, at the Alta River the Cumans defeated the armies of the three sons of Yaroslav the Wise—Iziaslav Yaroslavych, Sviatoslav II Yaroslavych, and Vsevolod Yaroslavych. After the Cuman victory, they repeatedly invaded Ukraine, devastating the land, and took captives who became either slaves or were sold at slave markets in the south. the Most vulnerable regions were the principalities of Pereiasla, Novhorod-Siverskyi and Chernihiv
In the Balkans, we find the Cumans in contact with all of the statal entities of that time, fighting with the Kingdom of Hungary, allied with the Bulgarians
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
and Vlachs
Vlachs
Vlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...
against the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, and involved into the politics of the fresh Vlach statal entities. A notable Cuman leader in Europe, Thocomer, a Cuman warlord ( Toq-tämir- meaning‘hardened steel’)
who was possibly the first one to unite the Romanian (Vlach) states from the west and the east of the Olt River
Olt River
The Olt River is a river in Romania. It is the longest river flowing exclusively through Romania. Its source is in the Hăşmaş Mountains of the eastern Carpathian Mountains, near the village Bălan. It flows through the Romanian counties Harghita, Covasna, Braşov, Sibiu, Vâlcea and Olt...
. Tihomir's son Basarab ("Father king" in the Cuman language
Cuman language
Cuman was a Kipchak Turkic language spoken by the Cumans and Kipchaks; the language was similar to the today's Crimean Tatar language...
) is considered the first ruler of the united and independent kingdom of Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
. This interpretation corresponds with the general view of the situation of the Romanian
Romania in the Middle Ages
The Middle Ages in Romania began with the withdrawal of the Mongols, the last of the migrating populations to invade the territory of modern Romania, after their attack of 1241–1242...
lands in the 11th century, with the natives living in collections of village communities united in various small confederacies, with powerful chiefs competing to create small kingdoms. Some of these Romanian chiefs paid tribute to the various militarily dominant nomadic tribes that surrounded them.
Ladislaus I of Hungary defeated the Cumans after they attacked the Kingdom of Hungary in 1089.
In 1091 the Pechenegs, a semi-nomadic Turkic people of the prairies of southwestern Eurasia
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
, were decisively defeated as an independent force at the Battle of Levounion
Battle of Levounion
The Battle of Levounion was the first decisive Byzantine victory of the Komnenian restoration. On April 29, 1091, an invading force of Pechenegs was heavily defeated by the combined forces of the Byzantine Empire under Alexios I Komnenos and his Cuman allies....
by the combined forces of a Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
army under Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos
Alexios I Komnenos, Latinized as Alexius I Comnenus , was Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118, and although he was not the founder of the Komnenian dynasty, it was during his reign that the Komnenos family came to full power. The title 'Nobilissimus' was given to senior army commanders,...
and a Cuman army under Togortok and Bunaq. Attacked again in 1094 by the Cumans, many Pechenegs were again slain. The remnants of the Pechenegs fled to Hungary, as the Cumans themselves would do a few decades later: fearing the Mongol invasion
Mongol invasion of Europe
The resumption of the Mongol invasion of Europe, during which the Mongols attacked medieval Rus' principalities and the powers of Poland and Hungary, was marked by the Mongol invasion of Rus starting in 21 December 1237...
, in 1229, they asked asylum from Béla IV of Hungary
Béla IV of Hungary
Béla IV , King of Hungary and of Croatia , duke of Styria 1254–58. One of the most famous kings of Hungary, he distinguished himself through his policy of strengthening of the royal power following the example of his grandfather Bela III, and by the rebuilding Hungary after the catastrophe of the...
.
In alliance with the Bulgarians
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
and Vlachs
Vlachs
Vlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...
during the Vlach-Bulgar Rebellion by brothers Asen and Peter of Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred to as the "City of the Tsars", Veliko Tarnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famous as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists...
, the Cumans are believed to have played a significant role in the rebellion's final victory over Byzantium and the restoration of Bulgaria's independence (1185). Istvan Vassary states that without the active participation of the Cumans, the Vlakho-Bulgarian rebels could never have gained the upper hand over the Byzantines and ultimately without the Cumans’ military support, the process of Bulgarian restoration could never have been realised
The Cuman participation in the creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1185 and thereafter brought about basic changes in the political and ethnic sphere of Bulgaria and the Balkans The Cumans were allies with Bulgaria's emperor Kaloyan
Kaloyan of Bulgaria
Kaloyan the Romanslayer , Ivan II , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1197-1207. He is the third and youngest brother of Peter IV and Ivan Asen I who managed to restore the Bulgarian Empire...
, who was also descended from the Cumans, in the Bulgarian-Latin Wars
Bulgarian-Latin Wars
The Bulgarian–Latin Wars were a series of conflicts between the Bulgarian Empire and the Latin Empire, which was created during the Fourth Crusade in 1204...
.
Although the Cumans initially had managed to defeat the Great Prince Vladimir Monomakh of Kievan Rus in the 12th century (at the Battle of the Stugna River
Battle of the Stugna River
The Battle of the Stugna River was a battle between the princes of Kievan Rus and the nomadic Cumans tribe . The Kievan forces were defeated....
) later they were defeated by the combined forces of Russian principalities led by Monomakh and forced out of the Rus borders to Caucasus. Many Cumans at that time resettled into Georgia where they achieved prominent positions and helped Georgians to stop the advance of Seljuk Turks. After the death of warlike Monomakh in 1125 Cumans returned to the steppe along the Rus borders.
Like most other peoples of medieval Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
, they put up resistance against the relentlessly advancing Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
, led by Jebe and Subutai. The Mongols crossed the Caucasus mountains in pursuit of Muhammad II, the shah of Khwarazm, and met and defeated the Cumans in Subcaucasia in 1220. The Cuman khans Danylo Kobiakovych and Yurii Konchakovych died in battle, while the other Cumans, commanded by Koten, managed to get aid from the Rus’ princes
As the Mongols were approaching Russia, Khan Koten fled to the court of his son-in-law, Prince Mstislav the Bold of Galich. He warned Mstislav: "Today the Mongols have taken our land and tomorrow they will take yours". However, the Cumans were ignored for almost a year as the Rus had suffered from Cuman raids for decades. But when news reached Kiev that the Mongols were marching along the Dniester River, the Rus responded. Mstislav gathered an alliance of the Kievan Rus' princes including Mstislav III of Kiev and Prince Yuri II of Vladimir-Suzdal, who promised support, together with Khan Koten's Cumans. The Rus princes then began mustering their armies and going towards the rendezvous point. The army of the alliance of the Rus and Cumans numbered around 80,000. The battle took place near Kalka River (Battle of Kalka River). Due to confusion from mistakes from the Rus and Cumans, the battle was lost - the Cumans and Rus were defeated (1223). The Cumans were finally crushed in 1238.
During the second Mongol invasion of Eastern Europe in 1237 the Cumans were defeated again. After the defeat some Cuman tribes followed Koten
Köten
Köten was a Cuman khan and member of the Terter clan. This Köten is the same Prince Kotjan Sutoevic of the Russian annals, who forged the Russian-Cuman alliance against the Tatars...
to Hungary and Bulgaria, where they became part of the local population; they were integrated into the élite and became nobles and rulers. In Hungary Cumans created two regions named Cumania
Cumania
Cumania is a name formerly used to designate several distinct lands in Eastern Europe inhabited by and under the military dominance of the Cumans, a nomadic tribe who, with the Kipchaks, created a confederation. The Cumans were also known as the Polovtsians, or Folban...
(Kunság
Kunság
Kunság is a historical and geographical region in Hungary situated in the current Bács-Kiskun and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok counties. Like other historical European regions called Cumania, it is named for the Cumans, a nomadic tribe of pagan Kipchaks that settled the area...
in Hungarian): Greater Cumania
Greater Cumania
Nagykunság is a historical and geographical region in Hungary situated in the current Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county between Szolnok and Debrecen. Like other historical European regions called Cumania, it is named for the Cumans, a nomadic tribe of pagan Kipchaks that settled the area.-See...
(Nagykunság) and Little Cumania
Little Cumania
Kiskunság is a historical and geographical region in Hungary situated in the current between Kalocsa and Szeged. Like other historical European regions called Cumania, it is named for the Cumans , a historically very significant nomadic tribe -See also:...
(Kiskunság), both located in the Great Hungarian Plain. Here, the Cumans maintained their autonomy, language and some ethnic customs well into the modern era. According to Pálóczi's estimation originally 70-80,000 Cumans settled in Hungary. The Cumans were in every way different to the local population of Hungary - their appearance - attire and hairstyle set them apart. In Hungary, the Cumans were exempt from jurisdiction of country officials; the Cumans had their own representatives. The Cumans also participated in some of the early general assemblies of Hungary, the precusrors of its parliament. At the time of Elizabeth the Cuman, queen of Hungary, gifts of precious clothes, land and other objects were given to the Cumans with the intent to ensure Cuman support. By the fifteenth century, all the Cumans were permanently settle in Hungary, in villages whose structure corresponded to that of the local population, and were Christianized. The Cumans did not awlays ally to the Hungarian kings; they assassinated Laszlo IV. Both the royal and ecclesiastical authorities incorporated, rather than exclude, the Cumans. The Cumans in Hungary served as light cavalry in the royal army, as an obligation since they were granted asalym. Being very fierce and capable warriors (as noted by Istvan Vassary), the king lead them in numerous expeditions against neighbouring countries; most notably they played an important part in the battle of Rudolf of Habsburg and Ottokar II of Bohemia (1278) - king Laszlo IV and the Cumans were on Rudolf's side. Laszlo IV was particulalry fond of the Cumans, and abandoned Hungarian culture and dress for Cuman culture, dress and hairstyle (he spent a lot of time with them).
Although the Cumans were defeated by the Mongols, the cultural heritage of the Cumans that remained in the Rus steppe (those who did not move to Hungary and Bulgaria) was transferred on to the Mongols. The Mongol élite adopted a lot of the traits, customs and language from the Cumans and Kipchaks; the Cumans, Kipchaks and Mongols finally became assimilated through intermarriage and became the Golden Horde. The Cumans, together with the Turko-Mongols, adopted Islam, in the second half of the 13th and the first half of the 14th century.
Previously, in 1229, they had asked for asylum from King Béla IV of Hungary, who in 1238 finally offered refuge to the remainder of the Cuman people under their leader Kuthen (Hungarians spelled his name Kötöny). Kuthen in turn vowed to convert his 40,000 families to Christianity. King Béla hoped to use the new subjects as auxiliary troops against the Mongols, who were already threatening Hungary. The king assigned various parts of central Hungary to the Cuman tribes. A tense situation erupted when Mongol troops burst into Hungary. The Hungarians, frustrated by their own helplessness, took revenge on the Cumans, whom they accused of being Mongol spies. After a bloody fight the Hungarians killed Kuthen and his bodygards, and the remaining Cumans fled to the Balkans, pillaging and destroying many Hungarian villages in the way. After the Mongol invasion Béla IV of Hungary recalled the Cumans to Hungary to populate settlements devastated by war. The nomads subsequently settled throughout the Great Hungarian Plain
Great Hungarian Plain
The Great Hungarian Plain is a plain occupying the southern and eastern part of Hungary, some parts of the Eastern Slovak Lowland, southwestern Ukraine, the Transcarpathian Lowland , western Romania , northern Serbia , and eastern Croatia...
. During the following centuries the Cumans in Hungary were granted various rights, the extent of which depended on the prevailing political situation. Some of these rights survived until the end of the 19th century, although the Cumans had long since assimilated with Hungarians.
Istvan Vassary states that after the Mongol conquest: "A large-scale westward migration of the Cumans began. In the summer of 1237 the first wave of this Cuman exodus appeared in Bulgaria. The Cumans crossed the Danube, and this time Ivan Asen II could not tame them, as he had often been able to do earlier; the only possibility left for him was to let them march through Bulgaria in a southerly direction. They proceeded through Thrace as far as Hadrianoupolis and Didymotoichon, plundering and pillaging the towns and the countryside, just as before. The whole of Thrace became, as Akropolites put it, a ‘Scythian desert’"
The pontic Cumania
Cumania
Cumania is a name formerly used to designate several distinct lands in Eastern Europe inhabited by and under the military dominance of the Cumans, a nomadic tribe who, with the Kipchaks, created a confederation. The Cumans were also known as the Polovtsians, or Folban...
(Latin term for Deshti-Kipchak, not the Cumania in modern day Romania and Moldova), ceased to exist in the middle of the 13th century, when the Great Mongol Invasion of Europe occurred. In 1223, Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
defeated the Cumans and their Russian allies at the Battle of Kalka River (in modern Ukraine), and the final blow came in 1241, when the Cuman confederacy ceased to exist as a political entity, with the remaining Cuman tribes being dispersed, either becoming subjects and mixing with their Tatar-Mongol conquerors as part of what was to be known as the Nogai Horde, or fleeing to the west, to the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, the Second Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state which existed between 1185 and 1396 . A successor of the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the late 14th-early 15th century...
, and the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
.
Cumans had served as mercenaries in the armies of the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
from the end of the 11th century and were one of the most important elements of the Byzantine army until the mid-14th century. They served as horse-archers and those in the central army were collectively called Skythikoi. In 1241, the Byzantines settled 10,000 Cumans in Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
and Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
where they became hellenized. A Greek-speaking Cuman even became Megas Domestikos (Commander-in-Chief of the Army) under the Emperor Andronikos II
Andronikos II Palaiologos
Andronikos II Palaiologos , Latinized as Andronicus II Palaeologus, was Byzantine emperor from 1282 to 1328. He was the eldest surviving son of Michael VIII Palaiologos and Theodora Doukaina Vatatzina, grandniece of John III Doukas Vatatzes...
.
The Cumans who remained scattered in the prairie of what is now southwest Russia joined the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
khanate and their descendants became assimilated with local Tatar populations.
The Cumans who remained east and south of the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
established a county named Cumania, in an area consisting parts of Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
and Walachia. The Hungarian kings claimed supremacy on the territory of Cumania, among the nine titles of the Hungarian kings of the Árpád
Árpád dynasty
The Árpáds or Arpads was the ruling dynasty of the federation of the Hungarian tribes and of the Kingdom of Hungary . The dynasty was named after Grand Prince Árpád who was the head of the tribal federation when the Magyars occupied the Carpathian Basin, circa 895...
and Anjou
Capetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
dynasties were rex Cumaniae.
The Cuman influence in Wallachia and Moldavia was very strong, according to some historians who claim that the earliest Wallachian rulers bore supposedly Cuman names (Tihomir and Bassarab). This hypothesis is though disputed (Tihomir sounding like a Slavic given name). In lack of convincing archaeological evidence of a Cuman civilisation, it appears the Cumans were just a minority within the local population, but they made up part of the ruling élite in Wallachia. As in the case of Bulgaria, they were assimilated by the majority, the present-day Romanians.
Basarab I, son of the Wallachian prince Tihomir of Wallachia obtained independence from Hungary at the beginning of the 14th century. The name Basarab is considered by some authors as being of Cuman origin, and meaning "Father King".
It is generally believed by Bulgarian historians that the Bulgarian mediaеval dynasties Asen
Asen dynasty
The Asen dynasty ruled a medieval Bulgarian state, called in modern historiography the Second Bulgarian Empire, between 1187 and 1280.The Asen dynasty and the Second Bulgarian Empire rose as the leaders of a rebellion against the Byzantine Empire at the turn of the year 1185/1186 caused by the...
, Shishman and Terter were Cumanian.
The Caucasian mummies found in China a while ago could have been Cumans, as it is stated that the Cumans originally came from eastern China before migrating to Europe.
Codex Cumanicus
The Codex CumanicusCodex Cumanicus
The Codex Cumanicus was a linguistic manual of the Middle Ages, designed to help Catholic missionaries communicate with the Cumans, a nomadic Turkic people. It is currently housed in the Library of St. Mark, in Venice ....
was a linguistic manual of the Middle Ages, designed to help Catholic missionaries communicate with the Cumans. It is currently housed in the Library of St. Mark, in Venice (Cod. Mar. Lat. DXLIX). Some parts from the The Codex Pater Noster
Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
is shown below:
Atamız kim köktesiñ. Alğışlı bolsun seniñ atıñ, kelsin seniñ xanlığıñ, bolsun seniñ tilemekiñ – neçikkim kökte, alay [da] yerde. Kündeki ötmegimizni bizge bugün bergil. Dağı yazuqlarımıznı bizge boşatqıl – neçik biz boşatırbiz bizge yaman etkenlerge. Dağı yekniñ sınamaqına bizni quurmağıl. Basa barça yamandan bizni qutxarğıl. Amen!
In English, the text is:
Our Father which art in heaven. Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who have done us evil. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.
In Modern Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, the text is:
Atamız sen göktesin. Alkışlı olsun senin adın, gelsin senin hanlığın, olsun senin dileğin– nasıl ki gökte, ve yerde. Gündelik ekmeğimizi bize bugün ver. Ve de yazıklarımızdan (suçlarımızdan) bizi bağışla– nasıl biz bağışlarız bize yaman (kötülük) edenleri. Ve de şeytanın sınamasından bizi koru. Tüm yamandan (kötülükten) bizi kurtar. Amin!
Cuman Prayer:
| Cuman Language | Modern Turkish | English |
|---|---|---|
bizim atamiz kim-szing kökte szentlenszing szening ading düs-szün szening könglügüng necsik-kim dzserde alaj kökte bizing ekmegimizni ber bizge büt-bütün künde ilt bizing minimizni necsik-kim biz ijermiz bizge ötrü kelgenge iltme bizni ol dzsamanga kutkar bizni ol dzsamannan szen barszing bu kücsli bu csin ijgi tengri, amen. |
bizim atamız ki sensin gökte aziz olsun senin adın hoş olsun senin gönlün nasıl ki yerde ve tüm gökte bizim ekmeğimizi ver bize bütün günde ilet bizim aklımızı nasıl ki biz boyun eğeriz bize emir gelince iletme bizi her (tüm) kötülüğe kurtar bizi her kötülükten sen varsın bu güçte bu yücelikte tanrım, amin. |
our father is in the sky may your name be glorified may your sincerity be in peace in the ground and in the sky give use our bread in all days deliver our mind when you give the command we will bow down do not deliver us to the evil save us from all bad only you exist in this strength and highness my tengri, amen. |
Culture
Robert de Clari described Cumans as nomadic warriors, who did not use houses, or farm, but rather lived in tents, and ate milk, cheese and meat. The horses had a sack for feeding attached to the bridleBridle
A bridle is a piece of equipment used to direct a horse. As defined in the Oxford English Dictionary, the "bridle" includes both the headstall that holds a bit that goes in the mouth of a horse, and the reins that are attached to the bit....
, and in a day and a night they can ride seven days of walking (Mansio)
Mansio
In the Roman Empire, a mansio was an official stopping place on a Roman road, or via, maintained by the central government for the use of officials and those on official business whilst travelling.-Background:The roads which traversed the Ancient World, were later surveyed,...
, they go on campaign without any baggage, and when they return they take everything they can carry, they wear sheepskin
Sheepskin
Sheepskin is the hide of a sheep, sometimes also called lambskin or lambswool.Sheepskin may also refer to:* Parchment, a thin material made from calfskin, sheepskin or goatskin** Diploma, originally made of sheepskin...
and were armed with composite bows and arrows. They pray to the first animal they see in the morning. The Cumans, like the Bulgars, were also known to drink blood from their horse (they would cut a vein) when they ran out of water and were far from an available source. Another interesting feature of the Cumans was their elaborate masks which they used in battle - they were shaped like and worn over the face. A typical feature were mustaches. The traditional Cuman costume consisted of trousers and a caftan, each fastened by a belt. The men shaved the top of their head, while the rest of the hair was plaited into several braids. The Cumans also commonly wore pointed hats.
The main activity of the Cumans was animal husbandry. They raised horses, sheep, goats, camels, and cattle. In summer they moved north with their herds; in winter, south. Some of the Cumans led a semi settled life and took part in trading and farming. They mainly sold and exported animals, mostly horses, and animal products. The Cumans also played the role of middlemen in the trade between Byzantium and the East, which passed through the Cuman-controlled ports of Surozh, Oziv, and Saksyn. Several land routes between Europe and the Near East ran through Cuman territories: the Zaloznyi route, the Solianyi route, and the Varangian route. Cuman towns—Sharukan, Suhrov, and Balin—appeared in the Donets River Basin; they were inhabited, however, by other peoples besides the Cumans. Stone figures called Stone babas, which are found throughout southern Ukraine, were closely connected with the Cuman religious cult of shamanism. The Cumans tolerated all religions and Islam and Christianity spread quickly among them. As they were close to the Kyivan Rus’ principalities, the Cuman khans and important families began to Slavicize their names, for example, Yaroslav Tomzakovych, Hlib Tyriievych, Yurii Konchakovych, and Danylo Kobiakovych. Ukrainian princely families were often connected by marriage with Cuman khans; this lessened wars and conflicts. Sometimes the princes and khans waged joint campaigns; for example, in 1221 they attacked the trading town of Sudak on the Black Sea, which was held by the Seljuk Turks and which interfered with Rus’-Cuman trade.
Niketas Choniates, while descrbing a battle in the vicinity of Beroe in the late 12th century, gave an interesting description of the nomadic battle techniques of the Cumans: "They [i.e. the Cumans] fought in their habitual manner, learnt from their fathers. They would attack, shoot their arrows and begin to fight with spears. Before long they would turn their attack into flight and induce their enemy to pursue them. Then they would show their faces instead of their backs, like birds cutting through the air, and would fight face to face with their assailants and struggle even more bravely. This they would do several times, and when they gained the upper hand over the Romans [Byzantines], they would stop turning back again. Then they would draw their swords, release an appalling roar, and fall upon the Romans quicker than a thought. They would seize and massacre those who fought bravely and those who behaved cowardly alike".
Religion
It is alleged that the Cumans practiced TengrinismTengriism
Tengriism is a Central Asian religion that incorporates elements of shamanism, animism, totemism and ancestor worship. Despite still being active in some minorities, it was, in old times, the major belief of Turkic peoples , Bulgars, Hungarians and Mongols...
. Their belief system compromised animistic and shaministic elements; they celebrated the cult of ancestors and provided the dead with various objects whose lavishness paralleled the recipient's social rank. The Cumans buried the elite with their horses (like the Bulgars). Cuman divination practices used animals, especially the wolf and dog. Cumans had shamans who communicated with the spirit world - they were consulted for questions of various outcomes.
The Kuman people were baptised in 1227 by Róbert Archbishop of Esztergom in a mass baptism in Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
on the orders of Bortz Khan, who swore allegiance to King Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II the Jerosolimitan was King of Hungary and Croatia . He was the younger son of King Béla III of Hungary, who invested him with the government of the Principality of Halych...
.
In the 13th century, the Western Cumans adopted Roman Catholicism (in Hungary they all later became Calvinist) and the Gagauzes Eastern Orthodoxy, while the Eastern Cumans converted to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. The Catholic Diocese of Cumania
Diocese of Cumania
The Diocese of Cumania was a Roman Catholic diocese in Hungary.The diocese was founded in 1227 with its seat in Milcov, serving the Cumans and the Teutonic Knights in the Burzenland. The diocese was destroyed during the course of the Mongol invasion of Europe in 1241.It was a suffragan of the...
founded in Milcov
Milcov
Milcovul or Milcov is a commune in Vrancea County, Romania. It is located in the historical region of Moldavia. It is composed of two villages, Lămoteşti and Milcovul, and also included Gologanu and Răstoaca before these became separate communes in 2004.In 1227 Milcov became the seat of the...
in 1227 and including what is now Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
, retained its title until 1523. It was a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Esztergom
Archdiocese of Esztergom
The archbishopric of Esztergom was a historical diocese created in 1000 under Stephen I of Hungary largely on the territory of Upper Hungary. After the Treaty of Trianon, its territory was reduced to its present-day extent and it became the Archdiocese of Esztergom-Budapest on 31 May 1993...
in Hungary.
Legacy
While the Cumans were gradually absorbed into eastern European populations, their trace can still be found in placenames as widespread as the city of KumanovoKumanovo
Kumanovo is a city in the Republic of Macedonia and is the seat of Kumanovo Municipality which is the largest municipality in the country. Municipal institutions include a city council, mayor and other administrative bodies.-Name:...
in the Northeastern part of the Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
; a Slavic village named Kumanichevo in the Kostur (Kastoria) district of Greece, which was changed to Lithia after Greece obtained this territory in the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest, Comăneşti
Comanesti
Comăneşti is a town in Bacău County, Romania, with a population of 26,230. It is situated on the Trotuş River, which flows between the Ciuc and the Tarcău mountains .The town administers two villages, Podei and Vermeşti.-History:...
in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, a village of Kumane
Kumane
Kumane is a village located in the Novi Bečej municipality, in the Central Banat District of Serbia. It is situated in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
in Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Comana
Comana, Constanta
Comana is a commune in Constanţa County, Romania.The commune includes three villages:* Comana * Tătaru * Pelinu...
in Dobrogea (also Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
) and the small village of Kumanite in Bulgaria. Debrecen
Debrecen
Debrecen , is the second largest city in Hungary after Budapest. Debrecen is the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar county.- Name :...
in Hungary.
As the Mongols pushed westwards and devastated their state, most of the Cumans fled to the Bulgarian Empire as they were major military allies. The Bulgarian Tsar Ivan-Asen II (who was descended from Cumans) settled them in the southern parts of the country, bordering the Latin Empire and the Thessallonikan Despotate. Those territories are in present-day Turkish Europe, Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia.
The Cumans also settled in Hungary and had their own self-government there in a territory that bore their name, Kunság
Kunság
Kunság is a historical and geographical region in Hungary situated in the current Bács-Kiskun and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok counties. Like other historical European regions called Cumania, it is named for the Cumans, a nomadic tribe of pagan Kipchaks that settled the area...
, that survived until the 19th century. Two regions - Little Cumania and Greater Cumania exist in Hungary. The name of the Cumans (Kun) is still preserved in county names such as Bács-Kiskun
Bács-Kiskun
Bács-Kiskun is a county located in southern Hungary. It was created as a result of World War II, merging the pre war Bács-Bodrog and the southern parts of Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun counties. With an area of 8,445 km2, Bács-Kiskun is the largest county in the country. The terrain is mostly flat...
and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok
Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok
This article is about the modern county, for the historical one see Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok .Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok is the name of an administrative county in Hungary. It lies in central Hungary and shares borders with the Hungarian counties Pest, Heves, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, Hajdú-Bihar, Békés,...
and town names such as Kiskunhalas
Kiskunhalas
- Railroad :The city is an important railway junction. It crosses the Budapest-Subotica-Belgrade railway line. The Kiskunfélegyháza railway ends in Kiskunhalas.- Name :...
, Kunszentmiklós
Kunszentmiklós
Kunszentmiklós is a town in Bács-Kiskun county, Hungary.- External links :...
. The municipality of Kuman in the Fier District, Fier County, southwestern Albania is a legacy of the Cumans. as well as Küman, a municipality in Azerbaijan.
The Cumans were organized into four tribes in Hungary: Kolbasz/Olas in upper Cumania around Karcag, and the other three in lower Cumania.
Unfortunately, the Cuman language disappeared from Hungary in the 17th or 18th century (1770?), possibly following the Turkish occupation. Their 19th century biographer, Gyárfás István, in 1870 was of the opinion that they originally spoke Hungarian, together with the Iazyges
Iazyges
The Iazyges were an ancient nomadic tribe. Known also as Jaxamatae, Ixibatai, Iazygite, Jászok, Ászi, they were a branch of the Sarmatian people who, c. 200 BC, swept westward from central Asia onto the steppes of what is now Ukraine...
population. Despite this mistake, he has the best overview on the subject concerning details of material used.
In addition, toponyms of Cuman language
Cuman language
Cuman was a Kipchak Turkic language spoken by the Cumans and Kipchaks; the language was similar to the today's Crimean Tatar language...
origin can be found in some Romanian counties of Vaslui
Vaslui County
Vaslui is a county of Romania, in the historical region Moldavia, with the seat at Vaslui.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 455,049 and the population density was 86/km².*Romanians - over 98%*Romas, other-Geography:...
and Galaţi
Galati County
Galaţi is a county of Romania, in Moldavia region, with the capital city at Galaţi.-History:Historically Galaţi is part of Moldavia...
, including the names of both counties.
When some of the Cumans moved to Hungary, they brought with them their dogs - the Komondor
Komondor
The Komondor is a large, white-colored Hungarian breed of livestock guardian dog with a long, corded coat....
dogs, which has become one of the national dogs of Hungary.
In the countries where the Cumans were assimilated, family surnames derived from the words for "Cuman" (such as coman or kun, "kuman") are not uncommon. Traces of the Cumans are the Bulgarian surnames Kunev or Kumanov (feminine Kuneva, Kumanova), its Macedonian variants Kunevski, Kumanovski (feminine Kumanovska), and the widespread Hungarian surname Kun. The names "Coman" in Romania and its derivatives however do not appear to have any connection to the medieval Cumans, as it was unrecorded until very recent times and the places with the highest frequency of such names has not produced any archaeological evidence of Cuman settlement.
A genetic study was done on Cuman burials within Hungary and it was determined that they had substantially more western Eurasian mitochondrial DNA lineages. In a study by Bogacsi-Szabo, Erika. et al. (2005) of the mtDNA (Mitochondrial DNA) of the Cuman nomad population that migrated into the Carpathian basin during the 13th century, six haplogroups were revealed. "One of these haplogroups belongs to the M lineage (haplogroup D) and is characteristic of Eastern Asia, but this is the second most frequent haplogroup in southern Siberia too. All the other haplogroups (H, V, U, U3, and JT) are West Eurasian, belonging to the N macrohaplogroup. Out of the eleven remains, four samples belonged to haplogroup H, two to haplogroup U, two to haplogroup V, and one each to the JT, U3, and D haplogroups. In comparison to the Cumans, modern Hungarian samples represent 15 haplogroups. All but one is a West Eurasian haplogroup [the remaining one is East Asian (haplogroup F)], but all belong to the N lineage. Four haplogroups (H, V, U*, JT), present in the ancient samples, can also be found in the modern Hungarians, but only for haplogroups H and V were identical haplotypes found. Haplogroups U3 and D occur exclusively in the ancient group, and 11 haplogroups (HV, U4, U5, K, J, J1a, T, T1, T2, W, and F) occur only in the modern Hungarian population. Haplogroup frequency in the modern Hungarian population is similar to other European populations, although haplogroup F is almost absent in continental Europe; therefore the presence of this haplogroup in the modern Hungarian population can reflect some past contribution." "The results suggested that the Cumanians, as seen in the excavation at Csengele, were far from genetic homogeneity. Nevertheless, the grave artifacts are typical of the Cumanian steppe culture; and five of the six skeletons that were complete enough for anthropometric analysis appeared Asian rather than European (Horváth 1978, 2001), including two from the mitochondrial haplogroup H, which is typically European. It is interesting that the only skeleton for which anthropological examination indicated a partly European ancestry was that of the chieftain, whose haplotype is most frequently found in the Balkans.".
The Cumans appear in Rus culture in The Tale of Igor's Campaign
The Tale of Igor's Campaign
The Tale of Igor's Campaign is an anonymous epic poem written in the Old East Slavic language.The title is occasionally translated as The Song of Igor's Campaign, The Lay of Igor's Campaign, and The Lay of...
and are the Rus' military enemies in Alexander Borodin
Alexander Borodin
Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Russian Romantic composer and chemist of Georgian–Russian parentage. He was a member of the group of composers called The Five , who were dedicated to producing a specifically Russian kind of art music...
's opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
Prince Igor
Prince Igor
Prince Igor is an opera in four acts with a prologue. It was composed by Alexander Borodin. The composer adapted the libretto from the East Slavic epic The Lay of Igor's Host, which recounts the campaign of Russian prince Igor Svyatoslavich against the invading Polovtsian tribes in 1185...
, which features a set of "Polovtsian Dances".
The name Cuman is still the name of several villages in different parts of Turkey, such as Kumanlar, including the Black Sea region.
Famous or notable Cumans, or people of Cuman descent, in history
- Khan BoniakBoniakBoniak Khan was a Cuman khan who led the invasions, together with Togortac, on Kievan Rus'. In 1096 Boniak attacked Kiev, plundered the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, and burned down the prince's palace in Berestovo. He was defeated in 1107 by the princes of Rus's forces, near Lubni...
(Maniak), he led the invasions on Kievan Rus'. In 1096 Boniak attacked Kiev, plundered the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, and burned down the prince's palace in Berestovo - Khan KötenKötenKöten was a Cuman khan and member of the Terter clan. This Köten is the same Prince Kotjan Sutoevic of the Russian annals, who forged the Russian-Cuman alliance against the Tatars...
(or Sutoiovych), Mstyslav Mstyslavych's father-in-law, fought in the war against the Mongols (allied with the Russians); led 40000 "huts" (families) to Hungary, to escape from the Mongols, where he was later assassinated. The Cumans then emigrated to the Second Bulgarian Empire. Some of the Cumans were later called back to Hungary. He was possibly the most notable of Cumans (together with Baibars). Allegedly descended from the Cuman Terteroba clan - Khan Konchak, involved in wars and raids with the Russians (Prince Igor), along the Ros River, where the Cumans attacked towns belonging to the Olgovichi (the ruling dynasty of Chernigov)
- Atraga, Dagestan, he led a tribe of 40000 to Georgia (could have been either a Kipchak or Cuman,or mixed, its uncertain)
- Aktay, was in Egypt, killed by Qutuz (could have either been a Cuman, Kipchak or mixed)
- Aybek, was in Egypt, killed by Qutuz (could have either been a Cuman, Kipchak or mixed)
- Sultan BaibarsBaibarsBaibars or Baybars , nicknamed Abu l-Futuh , was a Mamluk Sultan of Egypt. He was one of the commanders of the forces which inflicted a devastating defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France and he led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, which marked...
("white bigcat-Siberian Tiger"/"leopard" in Turkic), Mamluke Empire,founder of the Bahri dynasty; he was one of the commanders of the forces which inflicted a devastating defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France and he led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260; he was possibly the most famous Cuman - Besarab/Basarab, first ruler/king of Wallachia, son of Tihomir (it was either he or his father who founded Wallachia/Besarabia
- Baytursun, Dagestan (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak or mixed)
- Gorgor, Georgia (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman, Kipchak or mixed)
- Toktemirus, kingdom of Wallachia
- Batchman, one of the most valiant chiefs of the Cuman-Kipchaks during the Mongol invasion, who belonged to the tribe Olelrik. He was a constant source of trouble for the Mongols
- Sevinc, Dagestan - went with 40,000 people and the family of Artvin-Trabzon somewhere between the Greek state (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman, Kipchak or mixed)
- Şaraga (yellow hammer), Crimea - organized slave trade (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak or mixed)
- Tumanbay/Dumanbey, Balkans
- Kemenche, Hungary - assassination attempt on the king of Hungary; he was caught and executed
- Kubasar, Georgia (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak or mixed
- Kutlu Aslan (happy lion in Turkish) - Kubasar's coup? was organized by a new management role.
- QutuzQutuzSaif ad-Din Qutuz, also spelled Kutuz, was the third of the Mamluk Sultans of Egypt in the Turkic line from 1259 until his death in 1260. It was under his leadership that the Mamluks achieved success against the Mongols in the key Battle of Ain Jalut...
, Sultan of Egypt (Mamluke Empire); uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak, or mixed - Kopyak/Köpek (dog in Turkish), one of the leaders in Crimea (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak, or mixed)
- Khan Kobyak, involved in wars and raids with the Russians (Prince Igor), along the Ros River, where the Cumans attacked towns belonging to the Olgovichi (the ruling dynasty of Chernigov).
- Kalavun, Egypt (Mamluke Empire)
- Tapar (worship in Turkish), southern modern day Russia "Direct translation from Turkish: the organization established the first Kipchak Kipchak lady. Longitudinal Elbörili belongs. (uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak, or mixed)
- Akbaş, Romania/Wallachia
- Akkuş, Romania/Wallachia
- Çolpan, Romania/Wallachia
- Toluntay, Romania/Wallachia
- Payandur, Romania/Wallachia
- Tutarkan, Romania/Wallachia
- Berkiş, Romania/Wallachia
- Balika(Balık), Balkans, Dobriç's father
- Dobriç, Balkans, involved with establishment of DubrovnikRagusa-Italy:* Ragusa, Sicily, a city and comune* Ragusa Ibla, a historic quarter of the Sicilian city* Marina di Ragusa, a village and frazione of the comune of Ragusa* Province of Ragusa, Italy, one of the administrative division of Sicily-Croatia:...
state in the Balkans - Buğa (Boğa), Romania/Wallachia
- Ötemiş, Romania/Wallachia
- Hulusuman, uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak, or mixed
- Togortac
- Sharagas/Sharagan, uncertainty whether he was a Cuman or Kipchak or mixed
- Bartz, Hungary, chief of Cumans
- Membrok, Hungary, chief of Cumans
- Qutb ad-Din Aibeg, founder of the Delhi sultanate, was a Cuman; redeemed from slavery by Afghan shah Mahmud Ghuri, he became his governor in Delhi and proclaimed independence after the death of his patron.
- Elizabeth the CumanElizabeth the Cuman-Daughter of Kuthen:She was born in about 1239/40, a daughter of Kuthen/Kotyan/Kotony , khan of the Cumans , and his wife whose identity has not been established. The Cumans were the western tribes of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. The Cumans were a confederation of Turkic speaking peoples who...
- Ladislaus IV of Hungary
- Mary of Hungary, Queen of Naples
- Anna of Hungary (1260–1281)
- Elisabeth (1255–1313/1326), daughter of Elizabeth the Cuman and Stephen, wife firstly of Záviš of Falkenštejn and secondly of King Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia
- Catherine (1255/1257 – after 1314), daughter of Elizabeth the Cuman, wife of King Stefan Dragutin of Serbia
- Maria (c. 1257 – 25 March 1325), daughter of Elizabeth the Cuman, wife of King Charles II of Naples
- Anna (c. 1260 – c. 1281), daughter of Elizabeth the Cuman, wife of the Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos
- Andrew, son of Elizabeth the Cuman, Duke of Slavonia (1268–1278)
- Elizabeth of Sicily, Queen of Hungary (Trouble with Cumans)
- Elizabeth of Hungary, Queen of SerbiaElizabeth of Hungary, Queen of SerbiaElizabeth of Hungary the widow was one of younger children of King Stephen V of Hungary and his wife Elizabeth the Cuman. She was a member of the House of Arpad and later became Queen consort of Serbia by her marriage to Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia....
-one of the older children of King Stephen V of Hungary and his wife Elizabeth the Cuman - John HunyadiJohn HunyadiJohn Hunyadi John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: Ioannes Corvinus or Ioannes de Hunyad, Romanian: Iancu (Ioan) de Hunedoara, Croatian: Janko Hunjadi, Serbian: Сибињанин Јанко / Sibinjanin Janko, Slovak: Ján Huňady) John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: ...
- - He had supposedly Tatar-Cuman origin, because his ancestors had Tartar-Cuman names - Michael IX PalaiologosMichael IX PalaiologosMichael IX Palaiologos or Palaeologus , , reigned as Byzantine co-emperor with full imperial style 1294/1295–1320...
(17 April 1277 – 12 October 1320), daughter of Anna - who was a daughter of Elizabeth the Cuman - Constantine Palaiologos, despotes (c. 1278–1335), son of Anna - who was a daughter of Elizabeth the Cuman
- Tsar Ivan Asen I of the Second Bulgarian Empire, established the Second Bulgarian Empire, with the help of his Cuman allies. First emperor of the new empire. The Asen dynastyAsen dynastyThe Asen dynasty ruled a medieval Bulgarian state, called in modern historiography the Second Bulgarian Empire, between 1187 and 1280.The Asen dynasty and the Second Bulgarian Empire rose as the leaders of a rebellion against the Byzantine Empire at the turn of the year 1185/1186 caused by the...
is of Cuman origin, as well as the Terter dynasty/clan(which Kuthen was part of) and the Shishman dynasty - Boril of BulgariaBoril of BulgariaBoril reigned as emperor of Bulgaria from 1207 to 1218. He was the son of an unnamed sister of his predecessor Kaloyan.-Biography:It is unclear whether Boril was party to the murder of Kaloyan in front of the walls of Thessalonica in 1207, but Kaloyan's intended heirs, his nephews Ivan Asen and...
(Boril Kaliman), 1207–1218, Second Bulgarian Empire - Tsar Teodor I Peter IV, 1186–1197, Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar Ivan Asen II of the Second Bulgarian Empire, 1218–1241
- Tsar Ivan Stephen Shishman, of the Second Bulgarian Empire, son of Michael III Shishman (confusion whether the name Shishman is Cuman or Bulgarian in origin)
- Tsar Kaloyan, Second Bulgarian Empire, defeated the crusaders with the help of his Cumans, captured Baldwin
- Tsar Kaliman I of BulgariaKaliman I of BulgariaKaliman Asen I , reigned as emperor of Bulgaria from 1241 to 1246. Kaliman Asen I was the son of Ivan Asen II and Anna Maria of Hungary. His maternal grandparents were Andrew II of Hungary and Gertrude of Merania....
(Kaliman Asen) of the Second Bulgarian Empire - Tsar Constantine Tikh of BulgariaConstantine Tikh of BulgariaConstantine I , which includes the shortened form of the name of his father as a patronymic), ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1257 to 1277....
,1257–1277 - Tsar Michael Asen I of BulgariaMichael Asen I of BulgariaMichael II Asen of Bulgaria , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1246 to 1256. He was the son of Ivan Asen II and his third wife Irene Komnene of Epirus , daughter of Theodore I Ducas of the Despotate of Epirus...
, Second Bulgarian Empire - Tsar Michael Asen II of BulgariaMichael Asen II of BulgariaMichael Asen II , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1277 to 1279. Michael Asen II was the only known son of...
, Second Bulgarian Empire - Tsar Michael Asen III of Bulgaria, Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar Michael Asen IV оf Bulgaria, Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar Kaliman Asen II of Bulgaria, Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar Mitso Asen of the Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar Ivan Asen III of the Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar George Terter I of the Second Bulgarian Empire, descended from the Cuman Terteroba clan
- Tsar George Terter II of the Second Bulgarian Empire, descended from the Cuman Terteroba clan
- TsarMichael III Shishman of the Second Bulgarian Empire (confusion whether the name Shishman is Cuman or Bulgarian in origin)
- Tsar Theodore Svetoslav of the Second Bulgarian Empire, son of George Terter I
- Tsar Ivan Alexander of the Second Bulgarian Empire, descended of the Asen, Terter and Shishman dynasties. Was Tsar during the second golden age of Bulgaria (naphew of Michael Shishman)
- Ivan Shishman of Bulgaria (b. 1350/1351, ruled 1371–1395 in Tarnovo)
- Tsar Ivan Shishman of the Second Bulgarian Empire. fourth son of Ivan Alexander
- Tsar Ivan Stratsimir of Bulgaria, Second Bulgarian Empire
- Tsar Boril of BulgariaBoril of BulgariaBoril reigned as emperor of Bulgaria from 1207 to 1218. He was the son of an unnamed sister of his predecessor Kaloyan.-Biography:It is unclear whether Boril was party to the murder of Kaloyan in front of the walls of Thessalonica in 1207, but Kaloyan's intended heirs, his nephews Ivan Asen and...
, Second Bulgarian Empire, descended from Cumans through the Asen dynasty of Bulgaria - of Cuman origin - Constantine IIConstantine II of BulgariaConstantine II , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria in Vidin from 1397 to 1422. He was born in the early 1370s, and died in exile at the Serbian court on 17 September 1422...
, 1396–1422, spent most of his life in exile. Most historians do not include him in the list of the Bulgarian monarchs - Ivan Sratsimir of BulgariaIvan Sratsimir of BulgariaIvan Sratsimir or Ivan Stratsimir was emperor of Bulgaria in Vidin from 1356 to 1396. He was born in 1324 or 1325, and he died in or after 1397. Despite being the eldest surviving son of Ivan Alexander, Ivan Sratsimir was disinherited in favour of his half-brother Ivan Shishman and proclaimed...
(b. 1324/1325, ruled 1356–1397 in Vidin) - Belaur of Vidin, 1336 (Shishman dynasty)
- Constantine II of BulgariaConstantine II of BulgariaConstantine II , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria in Vidin from 1397 to 1422. He was born in the early 1370s, and died in exile at the Serbian court on 17 September 1422...
(b. early 1370s, ruled 1397–1422 in Vidin and in exile) - Darman and KudelinDarman and KudelinDarman and Kudelin were two Bulgarian nobles who jointly ruled the region of Braničevo as independent or semi-independent autocrats in the late 13th century...
- Bulgarians of Cuman origin - Queen Dorothea of BosniaDorothea of BulgariaDorothea of Bulgaria was the first Queen of Bosnia.-Early life:She was the daughter of Emperor Ivan Sratsimir of Bulgaria and his wife Anna of Wallachia....
- Asen (Osen), died 1082, most probably grandfather of the daughter of Ayapa (Aepa), who became the wife of Jurij, son of prince Vladimir, 1107. Ayapa was either the son or son in law of Asen (Osen)
- Asen (another), together with prince Sakz, was captured by prince Vladimir Monomakh in 1096
- Romanian boyar's clan Asan - some mebers of the Bulgarian Asen family entered Byzantine service in the 13th to 14th centuries, and the descendents of these Byzantine Asenids were the boyar clan of Asan
- The Terteroba, Arslanapa, and Ursoba clans
- Dobrotitsa - considered to be noble kindred of the Terter dynasty, ruler of the Despotate of Dobruja
- Vlad III, ruler of Wallachia, House of Drăculești (branch of the House of Basarab)
- The Terteroba, Arslanapa, and Ursoba clans
- Dobrotitsa - considered to be noble kindred of the Terter dynasty, ruler of the Despotate of Dobruja
- Vlad III, ruler of Wallachia, House of Dracule?ti (branch of the House of Basarab)
- Shishman of VidinShishman of VidinShishman, Despot of Vidin was a Bulgarian noble who ruled a semi-independent realm based out of the Danubian fortress of Vidin in the late 13th and early 14th century...
- Lady Calinica
- Nicholas Alexander of Wallachia
- Thocomerius/Tihomir of Wallachia, father of Basarab. The Hungarian László Rásonyi derives the name from a well-known Cuman and Tatar name, Toq-tämir (‘hardened steel’)
- Every ruler from the Wallachian House of DăneștiHouse of DanestiThe House of Dănești was one of the two main lineages of the Wallachian noble family House of Basarab. They were descended from Dan I of Wallachia.The other lineage of the Basarabs is the House of Drăculești....
, which was one of the two main lineages of the Wallachian noble family House of Basarab. They were descended from Dan I of Wallachia. The other lineage of the Basarabs is the House of DrăculeștiHouse of DraculestiThe Drăculeşti were one of two major rival lines of Wallachian voivodes of the House of Basarab, the other being the Dăneşti.These lines were in constant contest for the throne from the late fourteenth to the early sixteenth centuries... - The House of Drăculeşti were one of two major rival lines of Wallachian voivodes of the House of Basarab, the other being the Dăneşti. The following rulers of the House of Drăculeşti are of Cuman descent:
- Vlad II DraculVlad II DraculVlad II , known as Vlad Dracul , was a voivode of Wallachia. He reigned from 1436 to 1442, and again from 1443 to 1447...
1436-1442, 1443–1447; son of Mircea cel Bătrân - Mircea II 1442; son of Vlad II
- Vlad III Drăculea 1448, 1456–1462, 1476; son of Vlad II
- Radu cel FrumosRadu cel FrumosRadu III the Fair, Radu III the Handsome or Radu III the Beautiful , also known by his Turkish name Radu Bey , was the younger brother of Vlad Ţepeş and voivode of the principality of Wallachia, of the four brothers he converted to Islam and entered Ottoman service...
1462-1473, 1474; son of Vlad II - Vlad CălugărulVlad CalugarulVlad IV Călugărul, translated as Vlad the Monk, was the pious half-brother of Vlad III , and one of many rulers of Wallachia during the 15th century...
1481, 1482–1495; son of Vlad II - Radu cel MareRadu cel MareRadu IV the Great was a Voivode of Wallachia from September 1495 to April 1508. He succeeded his father, Vlad Călugărul, who was one of the three brothers to Vlad III the Impaler . He was married to Princess Catalina Crnojević of Zeta, and was succeeded by his first cousin Mihnea cel Rău, son to...
1495-1508; son of Vlad Călugărul - Mihnea cel RăuMihnea cel RauMihnea cel Rău , the son of Vlad III Dracula , and his first wife, was Voivode of Wallachia from 1508 to 1509, having replaced his first cousin Radu cel Mare. During his reign, he ruled alongside his son Mircea III Dracul in the year 1509...
1508-1509; son of Vlad III - Mircea III DraculMircea III DraculMircea III Dracul was Hospodar of Wallachia in 1510. He was married to Maria Despina and was the father of Alexandru II Mircea. His father was Mihnea cel Rău and mother, Mihnea's second wife, Voica. It is known that Mircea was a physically strong and brutal man since he had caught some of the...
1510; son of Mihnea cel Rău - Vlad cel Tânăr 1510-1512; son of Vlad Călugărul
- Radu de la Afumaţi 1522-1523, 1524, 1524–1525, 1525–1529; son of Radu cel Mare
- Radu Bădica 1523-1524; son of Radu cel Mare
- Vlad ÎnecatulVlad ÎnecatulVlad VI of Wallachia was the voivode [prince] who ruled Wallachia between June 1530 and September 1532. He has been historically referenced as Vlad Înecatul ["Vlad the Drowned"], as a description of the manner of his death....
1530-1532; son of Vlad cel Tânăr - Vlad Vintilă de la Slatina 1532-1534, 1534–1535; son of Radu cel Mare
- Radu PaisieRadu PaisieRadu Paisie also known as Petru de la Argeş was a ruler of the principality of Wallachia in the 16th century. He reigned from September 1534 to November 1534, and again from June 1535 to March 1545....
1534, 1535–1545; son of Radu cel Mare - Mircea the Shepherd 1545-1552, 1553–1554, 1558–1559; son of Radu cel Mare
- Pătraşcu cel BunPătraşcu cel BunPătraşcu cel Bun was the Prince of Wallachia . He was the son of Radu Paisie and the father of Michael the Brave; he was a member of the House of Drăculeşti...
1554-1558; son of Radu Paisie - Petru cel Tânăr 1559-1568; son of Mircea the Shepherd
- Alexandru II MirceaAlexandru II MirceaAlexandru II Mircea was Hospodar of Wallachia from 1568 to 1574 and 1574 to 1577. He was the father of Mihnea II Turcitul. His parents were Mircea III Dracul and Maria Despina...
1568-1574, 1574–1577; son of Mircea III Dracul - Vintilă 1574; son of Pătraşcu cel Bun
- Mihnea TurcitulMihnea TurcitulMihnea II Turcitul was Prince of Walachia between September 1577 and July 1583, and again from April 1585 to May 1591....
1577-1583, 1585–1591; son of Alexandru II Mircea - Petru CercelPetru CercelPetru II Cercel was a Voivode of Wallachia from 1583 to 1585, bastard son to Pătraşcu cel Bun and alleged half-brother of Mihai Viteazul. A polyglot and a minor figure as a poet, Petru is noted for having written his verses in Tuscan...
1583-1585; son of Pătraşcu cel Bun - Mihai Viteazul 1593-1600; possibly a son of Pătraşcu cel Bun
See also
- CumaniaCumaniaCumania is a name formerly used to designate several distinct lands in Eastern Europe inhabited by and under the military dominance of the Cumans, a nomadic tribe who, with the Kipchaks, created a confederation. The Cumans were also known as the Polovtsians, or Folban...
- The Cuman Tsaritsa of BulgariaThe Cuman Tsaritsa of BulgariaThe name of the Cuman noblewoman who subsequently married two Tsars Emperors of Bulgaria, Kaloyan of Bulgaria and Boril of Bulgaria, is unknown. There are only two sources mentioning her, both foreign. The Byzantine historian George Akropolites claimed that after the death of Kaloyan, his sister's...
- KumandinsKumandinsThe Kumandins are an autonomous people of southern Siberia. They reside mainly in the Altai Republic. Their language is related to the Turkic Uigur language of the Karluk branch....
- a branch of the Cumans that still exists up to this day, in Siberia - Delhi SultanateDelhi SultanateThe Delhi Sultanate is a term used to cover five short-lived, Delhi based kingdoms or sultanates, of Turkic origin in medieval India. The sultanates ruled from Delhi between 1206 and 1526, when the last was replaced by the Mughal dynasty...
- Qutb ad-Din Aibeg, founder of the Delhi sultanate, was a Cuman; redeemed from slavery by Afghan shakh Mahmud Ghuri, he became his governor in Delhi and proclaimed independence after the death of his patron. - Igor SvyatoslavichIgor SvyatoslavichIgor Svyatoslavich the Brave was a Rus’ prince...
- Kipchak
- NomadNomadNomadic people , commonly known as itinerants in modern-day contexts, are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. There are an estimated 30-40 million nomads in the world. Many cultures have traditionally been nomadic, but...
- KumyksKumyksKumyks are a Turkic people occupying the Kumyk plateau in north Dagestan and south Terek, and the lands bordering the Caspian Sea. They comprise 14% of the population of the Russian republic of Dagestan. They speak the Kumyk language...
- Crimean TatarsCrimean TatarsCrimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
- Pechenegs
- Komnenos dynasty
- Komnina (Kozani), GreeceKomnina (Kozani), GreeceKomnina is a town in the Kozani peripheral unit, West Macedonia, Greece. It was the seat of the municipality of Vermio. As of 2001, it had a population of 1120 permanent residents...
- GhumanGhumanGhuman are a Rajput tribe, found in Pakistan and Northern Indian States of Punjab and Haryana. Ghumman is a Chandravanshi Rajput clan of Janjua Rajput lineage in Punjab that claims Lunar origin by direct descent from Raja Sanpal Janjua of Janjua Rajput ancestry...
, a tribe in India - Turkic peoplesTurkic peoplesThe Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
- Turkic languagesTurkic languagesThe Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
- Battle of the Kalka RiverBattle of the Kalka RiverThe Battle of the Kalka River took place on May 31, 1223, between the Mongol Empire and Kiev, Galich, and several other Rus' principalities and the Cumans, under the command of Mstislav the Bold and Mstislav III of Kiev...
- Mongol invasion of RusMongol invasion of RusThe Mongol invasion of Russia was resumed on 21 December 1237 marking the resumption of the Mongol invasion of Europe, during which the Mongols attacked the medieval powers of Poland, Kiev, Hungary, and miscellaneous tribes of less organized peoples...
- Tatar invasionsTatar invasionsThe Mongol invasion of Europe from the east took place over the course of three centuries, from the Middle Ages to the early modern period.The terms Tatars or Tartars are applied to nomadic Turkic peoples who, themselves, were conquered by Mongols and incorporated into their horde...
- Crimean KaraitesCrimean KaraitesThe Crimean Karaites , also known as Karaim and Qarays, are a community of ethnic Turkic adherents of Karaite Judaism in Eastern Europe...
, an ethnic group possibly with Cuman origins - Battle of the Stugna RiverBattle of the Stugna RiverThe Battle of the Stugna River was a battle between the princes of Kievan Rus and the nomadic Cumans tribe . The Kievan forces were defeated....
- Battle of LevounionBattle of LevounionThe Battle of Levounion was the first decisive Byzantine victory of the Komnenian restoration. On April 29, 1091, an invading force of Pechenegs was heavily defeated by the combined forces of the Byzantine Empire under Alexios I Komnenos and his Cuman allies....
- KötenKötenKöten was a Cuman khan and member of the Terter clan. This Köten is the same Prince Kotjan Sutoevic of the Russian annals, who forged the Russian-Cuman alliance against the Tatars...
- List of Tatar and Mongol raids against Rus'
- Mongol invasion of EuropeMongol invasion of EuropeThe resumption of the Mongol invasion of Europe, during which the Mongols attacked medieval Rus' principalities and the powers of Poland and Hungary, was marked by the Mongol invasion of Rus starting in 21 December 1237...
- History of Romania
- Crimean KaraitesCrimean KaraitesThe Crimean Karaites , also known as Karaim and Qarays, are a community of ethnic Turkic adherents of Karaite Judaism in Eastern Europe...
, an ethnic group with possible Cuman origins - KunságKunságKunság is a historical and geographical region in Hungary situated in the current Bács-Kiskun and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok counties. Like other historical European regions called Cumania, it is named for the Cumans, a nomadic tribe of pagan Kipchaks that settled the area...
- Bács-Kiskun County
- Kaloyan
- Cuman languageCuman languageCuman was a Kipchak Turkic language spoken by the Cumans and Kipchaks; the language was similar to the today's Crimean Tatar language...
- Crimean Tatar languageCrimean Tatar languageThe Crimean Tatar language is the language of the Crimean Tatars. It is a Turkic language spoken in Crimea, Central Asia , and the Crimean Tatar diasporas in Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria...
- possibly similar to the Cuman language - BaibarsBaibarsBaibars or Baybars , nicknamed Abu l-Futuh , was a Mamluk Sultan of Egypt. He was one of the commanders of the forces which inflicted a devastating defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France and he led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, which marked...
- Béla IV of HungaryBéla IV of HungaryBéla IV , King of Hungary and of Croatia , duke of Styria 1254–58. One of the most famous kings of Hungary, he distinguished himself through his policy of strengthening of the royal power following the example of his grandfather Bela III, and by the rebuilding Hungary after the catastrophe of the...
- Romania in the Early Middle AgesRomania in the Early Middle AgesThe Early Middle Ages in Romania spans the period from the withdrawal of the Roman administration from the province of Dacia in the 271–275 AD, thenceforward modern Romania's territories were to be crisscrossed by migrating populations for almost 1,000 years...
(section Cumania: the land of the Cumans (1065–1241))) - Stephen V of HungaryStephen V of HungaryStephen V , was King of Hungary from 1270 to 1272.-Early years:...
- Foundation of WallachiaFoundation of WallachiaThe foundation of Wallachia , that is the establishment of the first independent Romanian principality, was achieved at the beginning of the 14th century, through the unification of smaller political units that had existed between the Carpathian Mountains, and the Rivers Danube, Siret and...
- Battle of Adrianople (1205)Battle of Adrianople (1205)The Battle of Adrianople occurred on April 14, 1205 between Bulgarians under Tsar Kaloyan of Bulgaria, and Crusaders under Baldwin I. It was won by the Bulgarians after a skillful ambush using the help of their Cuman and Greek allies. Around 300 knights were killed, including Louis of Blois, Duke...
- KunságKunságKunság is a historical and geographical region in Hungary situated in the current Bács-Kiskun and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok counties. Like other historical European regions called Cumania, it is named for the Cumans, a nomadic tribe of pagan Kipchaks that settled the area...
- Constantine Euphorbenos KatakalonConstantine Euphorbenos KatakalonConstantine Euphorbenos Katakalon was a Byzantine noble and one of the most prominent generals of the reign of Alexios I Komnenos ....
- Terter dynastyTerter dynastyTerter , also Terterids or Terterovtsi , was a Bulgarian noble and royal house that ruled the Second Bulgarian Empire between 1280 and 1292, as well as between 1300 and 1323.The Terterids were originally of Cuman origin Terter , also Terterids or Terterovtsi (Тертеровци), was a Bulgarian noble and...
- Basarab I of WallachiaBasarab I of WallachiaBasarab I the Founder was voivode or prince of Wallachia . His rise seems to have taken place in the context of the war between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Orthodox states in the north of the Balkan Peninsula...
- Origin of the Romanians
- Anna of Hungary (1260–1281)
- Yaropolk II of KievYaropolk II of KievYaropolk II Vladimirovich , Prince of Pereyaslav , Velikiy Kniaz of Kiev , son of Vladimir II Monomakh and Gytha of Wessex. He fought in several campaigns against the Polovtsy , once in 1103 and again in 1116.After the death of his brother in 1132, Msitslav I the Great, Yaropolk received the...
- Darman and KudelinDarman and KudelinDarman and Kudelin were two Bulgarian nobles who jointly ruled the region of Braničevo as independent or semi-independent autocrats in the late 13th century...
- Bulgarians of Cuman origin - Elizabeth of Sicily, Queen of Hungary (Trouble with Cumans)
- Elizabeth of Hungary, Queen of SerbiaElizabeth of Hungary, Queen of SerbiaElizabeth of Hungary the widow was one of younger children of King Stephen V of Hungary and his wife Elizabeth the Cuman. She was a member of the House of Arpad and later became Queen consort of Serbia by her marriage to Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia....
-one of the older children of King Stephen V of Hungary and his wife Elizabeth the Cuman - John HunyadiJohn HunyadiJohn Hunyadi John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: Ioannes Corvinus or Ioannes de Hunyad, Romanian: Iancu (Ioan) de Hunedoara, Croatian: Janko Hunjadi, Serbian: Сибињанин Јанко / Sibinjanin Janko, Slovak: Ján Huňady) John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: ...
- He had supposedly Tatar-Cuman origin, because his ancestors had Tartar-Cuman names - Shishman of VidinShishman of VidinShishman, Despot of Vidin was a Bulgarian noble who ruled a semi-independent realm based out of the Danubian fortress of Vidin in the late 13th and early 14th century...
(Shishman dynasty of the Second Bulgarian Empire is most probably of Cuman origin) - Roman the GreatRoman the GreatRoman Mstislavich , also Roman Mstyslavych or Roman the Great, was a Rus’ prince, Grand Prince of Kiev ....
- he waged two successful campaigns against the Cumans - Ladislaus IV of Hungary - he was also known as King Ladislas the Cuman, son of Elizabeth the Cuman
- History of TransylvaniaHistory of TransylvaniaTransylvania is a historical region in the central part of the Romania. In ancient times it was part of the Dacian Kingdom and Roman Dacia. Since the 10th century, Transylvania became part of the Kingdom of Hungary...
- Asen dynastyAsen dynastyThe Asen dynasty ruled a medieval Bulgarian state, called in modern historiography the Second Bulgarian Empire, between 1187 and 1280.The Asen dynasty and the Second Bulgarian Empire rose as the leaders of a rebellion against the Byzantine Empire at the turn of the year 1185/1186 caused by the...
- dynasty of the Second Bulgarian Empire of Cuman origin
Further reading
Golubovsky Peter V. (1884) Pechenegs, Torks and Cumans before the invasion of the Tatars. History of the South Russian steppes IX-XIII centuries (Печенеги, Торки и Половцы до нашествия татар. История южно-русских степей IX—XIII вв.) at Runivers.ru in DjVuDjVu
DjVu is a computer file format designed primarily to store scanned documents, especially those containing a combination of text, line drawings, and photographs. It uses technologies such as image layer separation of text and background/images, progressive loading, arithmetic coding, and lossy...
format. Golubovsky Peter V. (1889) Cumans in Hungary. Historical essay (Половцы в Венгрии. Исторический очерк) at Runivers.ru in DjVu
DjVu
DjVu is a computer file format designed primarily to store scanned documents, especially those containing a combination of text, line drawings, and photographs. It uses technologies such as image layer separation of text and background/images, progressive loading, arithmetic coding, and lossy...
format.
- István Vásáry (2005) "Cumans and Tatars", Cambridge University Press.
- Gyárfás István: A Jászkunok Története
- Györffy György: A Codex Cumanicus mai kérdései
- Györffy György: A magyarság keleti elemei
- Hunfalvy: Etnographia
- Perfecky (translator): Galician-Volhynian Chronicle