Tamgha
Encyclopedia
A tamga or tamgha "stamp, seal" is an abstract seal or stamp used by Eastern Eurasian nomadic peoples and by cultures influenced by them. The tamga was normally the emblem of a particular tribe, clan or family. They were common among the Scythians, Sarmatians
, Alans
, all Turkic peoples
(including Bulgars
, Khazars
and Uyghurs
), and Mongols
. Neighboring sedentary people sometimes adopted tamga-like symbols; for example, the stylized trident
tamga, or seal were used by various peoples of Eastern Europe
and Asia
: Kushan Empire
, Bulgarians
, the Dulo clan
, the Rus', Khazars
, Kipchaks, Tatars, Tatars, Lithuanians and Poles
. Archaeologists prize tamgas as a first-rate source for the study of present and extinct cultures.
"Tamga" or "tamag" literally means just a stamp or seal in the Mongolian language
. Tamgas are also stamped using hot irons
on domesticated animals such as horses in present-day Mongolia
and others to identify that the livestock belongs to a certain family while they graze during the day on their own. In this regard, each family has their own tamga markings for easier identification. Tamga marking in that case is not very elaborate and is just a curved iron differentiating from other families' tamgas. The President of Mongolia
also passes the tamag "state seal" when he or she transitions the position to the new president. In the presidential case, the tamag or seal is little more elaborate and is contained in a wooden box.
Among modern Turkic peoples
, the tamga is a design identifying property
or cattle
belonging to a specific Turkic clan, usually as a cattle brand
or stamp. In Russia, the term tamga survived in state institution of border customs, with associated cluster of terms: tamojnya (customs), tamojnik (customs officer), rastamajit (pay customs duties), drived from the use of tamga as a certificate of state.
When Turkish clans took over more urban
or rural areas, tamgas dropped out of use as pastoral
ways of life became forgotten. This is most evident in the Turkish clans who took over western and eastern Anatolia
following the Battle of Manzikert
. The Turks who took over western Anatolia founded the Sultanate of Rûm
and became Roman-style aristocrats. Most of them adopted the (at the time) Muslim symbol of the Seal of Solomon
after the Sultanate disintegrated into a mass of feuding ghazi states (see Isfendiyarids, Karamanids). Only the Ottoman ghazi state (later to become the Ottoman Empire
) kept its tamga
, and this was highly stylized, so much so that the bow was stylized down eventually to a crescent moon.
The Turks who remained pastoral nomad kings in eastern Anatolia and Iran however, continued to use their clan tamgas, and in fact they became high-strung nationalistic imagery. The Ak Koyunlu
, like many other royal dynasties in Eurasia, put their tamga on their flags and stamped their coinage with it.
For those Turks who never left their homeland of Turkestan
in the first place it remained and still is what it was originally, a cattle brand and clan identifier.
includes the extensive use of horseshoes, arrows, Maltese cross
es, scythes, stars and crescents as well as many purely geometrical shapes for which a separate set of heraldic terms was invented. It has been suggested that originally all Polish coats of arms were based on such abstract geometrical shapes, but most were gradually "rationalized" into horseshoes, arrows and so on. If this hypothesis is correct, it suggests in turn that Polish heraldry
, also unlike Western Europe
an heraldry
, may be at least partly derived from tamgas. However, the evidence about the origins of the system is scanty, and this hypothesis has been criticized as being part of the Polish noble tradition
of romanticizing their supposed Sarmatian ancestry. On this matter, research and controversy continue.
language (which absorbed Turkic vocabulary), Tamgha is used as medal
. Tamgha-i-Jurat
is the 4th highest Military medal of Pakistan
. It is admissible to all ranks for gallantry and distinguished services in combat. Tamgha-i-Imtiaz
or Tamgha-e-Imtiaz , which translates as the medal of excellence, is fourth highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both the military and civilians. Tamgha-i-Khidmat
or Tamgha-e-Khidmat , which translates as the medal of services , is 7th highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both the military and civilians. It is admissible to non commissioned officers other ranks for long meritorious or distinguished services of a non-operational nature.
, the term damgha or tamgha is still used in several contexts. The first is a tax or fee when dealing with the government. It is normally in the form of stamps that have to be purchased and affixed to most government form, be they a driver license, registration of a contact, any most other forms. The term is derived from Ottoman times. The other is a stamp that every piece of jewelry made from gold or silver must have to ensure it is genuine, and not made of lesser metals.
Sarmatians
The Iron Age Sarmatians were an Iranian people in Classical Antiquity, flourishing from about the 5th century BC to the 4th century AD....
, Alans
Alans
The Alans, or the Alani, occasionally termed Alauni or Halani, were a group of Sarmatian tribes, nomadic pastoralists of the 1st millennium AD who spoke an Eastern Iranian language which derived from Scytho-Sarmatian and which in turn evolved into modern Ossetian.-Name:The various forms of Alan —...
, all Turkic peoples
Turkic peoples
The 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...
(including Bulgars
Bulgars
The Bulgars were a semi-nomadic who flourished in the Pontic Steppe and the Volga basin in the 7th century.The Bulgars emerge after the collapse of the Hunnic Empire in the 5th century....
, Khazars
Khazars
The Khazars were semi-nomadic Turkic people who established one of the largest polities of medieval Eurasia, with the capital of Atil and territory comprising much of modern-day European Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, large portions of the northern Caucasus , parts of...
and Uyghurs
Uyghur people
The Uyghur are a Turkic ethnic group living in Eastern and Central Asia. Today, Uyghurs live primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China...
), and 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...
. Neighboring sedentary people sometimes adopted tamga-like symbols; for example, the stylized trident
Trident
A trident , also called a trishul or leister or gig, is a three-pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and was also a military weapon. Tridents are featured widely in mythical, historical and modern culture. The major Hindu god, Shiva the Destroyer and the sea god Poseidon or Neptune are...
tamga, or seal were used by various peoples of 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"...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
: Kushan Empire
Kushan Empire
The Kushan Empire originally formed in the early 1st century AD under Kujula Kadphises in the territories of ancient Bactria on either side of the middle course of the Oxus in what is now northern Afghanistan, Pakistan, and southern Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.During the 1st and early 2nd centuries...
, 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:...
, the Dulo clan
Dulo clan
The Dulo Clan or the House of Dulo was the name of the ruling dynasty of the early Bulgars.This was the clan of Kubrat who founded Old Great Bulgaria, and his sons Batbayan, Kuber and Asparuh, the latter of which founded Danube Bulgaria....
, the Rus', Khazars
Khazars
The Khazars were semi-nomadic Turkic people who established one of the largest polities of medieval Eurasia, with the capital of Atil and territory comprising much of modern-day European Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, large portions of the northern Caucasus , parts of...
, Kipchaks, Tatars, Tatars, Lithuanians and Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
. Archaeologists prize tamgas as a first-rate source for the study of present and extinct cultures.
Use by the Mongols
Since the time when the ancients, including the Mongol nations have developed into relative groups, origins, and ethnic groups, the symbol and belief of a clan have emerged, and a custom to distinguish their origins and relatives have been established. Consequently, when labor distributions within clans began to develop and people started to manage an economy, various tamgas, drawings, notes and earmarks have been used as an identification sign for labor instruments and utilities as well as in domestication of animals. Every time the clan branched off due to internal clashes, the number of derivative tamghas been gradually developed into personal, family, lineage, khans, and state tamghas. Those new tamghas were created through adding new markings on the original tamgha, in order to conserve the tradition."Tamga" or "tamag" literally means just a stamp or seal in the Mongolian language
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
. Tamgas are also stamped using hot irons
Livestock branding
Livestock branding is a technique for marking livestock so as to identify the owner. Originally, livestock branding only referred to a hot brand for large stock, though the term is now also used to refer to other alternative techniques such as freeze branding...
on domesticated animals such as horses in present-day Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
and others to identify that the livestock belongs to a certain family while they graze during the day on their own. In this regard, each family has their own tamga markings for easier identification. Tamga marking in that case is not very elaborate and is just a curved iron differentiating from other families' tamgas. The President of Mongolia
President of Mongolia
The President of Mongolia is the head of state of Mongolia. The Constitution of Mongolia implements a parliamentary system, so while much of the President's role is ceremonial, he or she does wield significant political power.-Election:...
also passes the tamag "state seal" when he or she transitions the position to the new president. In the presidential case, the tamag or seal is little more elaborate and is contained in a wooden box.
Tamga used by Turkic peoples
Turkic peoples
The 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...
, the tamga is a design identifying property
Property
Property is any physical or intangible entity that is owned by a person or jointly by a group of people or a legal entity like a corporation...
or cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
belonging to a specific Turkic clan, usually as a cattle brand
Livestock branding
Livestock branding is a technique for marking livestock so as to identify the owner. Originally, livestock branding only referred to a hot brand for large stock, though the term is now also used to refer to other alternative techniques such as freeze branding...
or stamp. In Russia, the term tamga survived in state institution of border customs, with associated cluster of terms: tamojnya (customs), tamojnik (customs officer), rastamajit (pay customs duties), drived from the use of tamga as a certificate of state.
When Turkish clans took over more urban
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
or rural areas, tamgas dropped out of use as pastoral
Pastoral
The adjective pastoral refers to the lifestyle of pastoralists, such as shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasturage. It also refers to a genre in literature, art or music that depicts such shepherd life in an...
ways of life became forgotten. This is most evident in the Turkish clans who took over western and eastern Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
following the Battle of Manzikert
Battle of Manzikert
The Battle of Manzikert , was fought between the Byzantine Empire and Seljuq Turks led by Alp Arslan on August 26, 1071 near Manzikert...
. The Turks who took over western Anatolia founded the Sultanate of Rûm
Sultanate of Rûm
The Sultanate of Rum , also known as the Anatolian Seljuk State , was a Turkic state centered in in Anatolia, with capitals first at İznik and then at Konya. Since the court of the sultanate was highly mobile, cities like Kayseri and Sivas also functioned at times as capitals...
and became Roman-style aristocrats. Most of them adopted the (at the time) Muslim symbol of the Seal of Solomon
Seal of Solomon
In Medieval Jewish, Christian and Islamic legends, the Seal of Solomon was a magical signet ring said to have been possessed by King Solomon, which variously gave him the power to command demons, genies , or to speak with animals.-In legend :...
after the Sultanate disintegrated into a mass of feuding ghazi states (see Isfendiyarids, Karamanids). Only the Ottoman ghazi state (later to become the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
) kept its tamga
Ottoman Flag
The term Ottoman flag refers to any of the flags used by the ruling Sultans of the Ottoman Dynasty. Various flags were used within the Ottoman Empire during its existence, and the sultan also used different personal flags on different occasions of state...
, and this was highly stylized, so much so that the bow was stylized down eventually to a crescent moon.
The Turks who remained pastoral nomad kings in eastern Anatolia and Iran however, continued to use their clan tamgas, and in fact they became high-strung nationalistic imagery. The Ak Koyunlu
Ak Koyunlu
The Aq Qoyunlu or Ak Koyunlu, also called the White Sheep Turkomans , was an Sunni Oghuz Turkic tribal federation that ruled parts of present-day Eastern Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, northern Iraq, and Iran from 1378 to 1508.-History:According to chronicles from the Byzantine Empire, the Aq Qoyunlu...
, like many other royal dynasties in Eurasia, put their tamga on their flags and stamped their coinage with it.
For those Turks who never left their homeland of Turkestan
Turkestan
Turkestan, spelled also as Turkistan, literally means "Land of the Turks".The term Turkestan is of Persian origin and has never been in use to denote a single nation. It was first used by Persian geographers to describe the place of Turkish peoples...
in the first place it remained and still is what it was originally, a cattle brand and clan identifier.
Tamga and Uran
Traditionally, each tribe and clan has its tamga and uran battle cry, and the identity of such ethnic groups is defined by both attributes. While tamgas are more conservative and some can be traced back for two millennia, the battle cries are more fluid, and the present urans are frequently associated with tribal divisions, migrations, and relatively late religious symbols. The urans have survived until the present among most of the Turkic people, a necessary component of their ethnological description. Among Germanic and Slavic peoples they have taken the form of the famous battle cries, the English "Hurray" and the Slavic "Urra". In Polish, urans associated with tribal tamgas survived in their original function as a battle cry, called in Slavic zawolanie.The Tamga in Polish heraldry
Polish heraldryPolish heraldry
Polish heraldry is a branch of heraldry focused on studying the development of coats of arms in the lands of historical Poland , as well as specifically-Polish traits of heraldry. The term is also used to refer to Polish heraldic system, as opposed to systems used elsewhere, notably in Western Europe...
includes the extensive use of horseshoes, arrows, Maltese cross
Maltese cross
The Maltese cross, also known as the Amalfi cross, is identified as the symbol of an order of Christian warriors known as the Knights Hospitaller or Knights of Malta and through them came to be identified with the Mediterranean island of Malta and is one of the National symbols of Malta...
es, scythes, stars and crescents as well as many purely geometrical shapes for which a separate set of heraldic terms was invented. It has been suggested that originally all Polish coats of arms were based on such abstract geometrical shapes, but most were gradually "rationalized" into horseshoes, arrows and so on. If this hypothesis is correct, it suggests in turn that Polish heraldry
Polish heraldry
Polish heraldry is a branch of heraldry focused on studying the development of coats of arms in the lands of historical Poland , as well as specifically-Polish traits of heraldry. The term is also used to refer to Polish heraldic system, as opposed to systems used elsewhere, notably in Western Europe...
, also unlike Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
an heraldry
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
, may be at least partly derived from tamgas. However, the evidence about the origins of the system is scanty, and this hypothesis has been criticized as being part of the Polish noble tradition
Sarmatism
"Sarmatism" is a term designating the dominant lifestyle, culture and ideology of the szlachta of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Together with "Golden Liberty," it formed a central aspect of the Commonwealth's culture...
of romanticizing their supposed Sarmatian ancestry. On this matter, research and controversy continue.
Urdu
In the UrduUrdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
language (which absorbed Turkic vocabulary), Tamgha is used as medal
Medal
A medal, or medallion, is generally a circular object that has been sculpted, molded, cast, struck, stamped, or some way rendered with an insignia, portrait, or other artistic rendering. A medal may be awarded to a person or organization as a form of recognition for athletic, military, scientific,...
. Tamgha-i-Jurat
Tamgha-i-Jurat
Tamgha-i-Jurat , is the fourth highest military award of Pakistan. It was established in 1957 after Pakistan became a Republic, however, it was instituted retrospectively back to 1947...
is the 4th highest Military medal of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. It is admissible to all ranks for gallantry and distinguished services in combat. Tamgha-i-Imtiaz
Tamgha-i-Imtiaz
Tamgha-i-Imtiaz , English: Medal of Excellence, is state organized honour of State of Pakistan. It is the fourth-highest decoration given to any civilian in Pakistan based on their achievements. While, it is civilian award, it can also be bestowed to Military officers of the Pakistan Armed Forces...
or Tamgha-e-Imtiaz , which translates as the medal of excellence, is fourth highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both the military and civilians. Tamgha-i-Khidmat
Tamgha-i-Khidmat
Tamgha-i-Khidmat or Tamgha-e-Khidmat, which translates as the medal of services , is 7th highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both the military and civilians....
or Tamgha-e-Khidmat , which translates as the medal of services , is 7th highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both the military and civilians. It is admissible to non commissioned officers other ranks for long meritorious or distinguished services of a non-operational nature.
Use in Egypt
In EgyptEgypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, the term damgha or tamgha is still used in several contexts. The first is a tax or fee when dealing with the government. It is normally in the form of stamps that have to be purchased and affixed to most government form, be they a driver license, registration of a contact, any most other forms. The term is derived from Ottoman times. The other is a stamp that every piece of jewelry made from gold or silver must have to ensure it is genuine, and not made of lesser metals.
See also
- Mon (emblem) - a similar heraldic emblem
- TughraTughraA tughra is a calligraphic monogram, seal or signature of an Ottoman sultan that was affixed to all official documents and correspondence. It was also carved on his seal and stamped on the coins minted during his reign...
- TotemTotemA totem is a stipulated ancestor of a group of people, such as a family, clan, group, lineage, or tribe.Totems support larger groups than the individual person. In kinship and descent, if the apical ancestor of a clan is nonhuman, it is called a totem...
- MedalMedalA medal, or medallion, is generally a circular object that has been sculpted, molded, cast, struck, stamped, or some way rendered with an insignia, portrait, or other artistic rendering. A medal may be awarded to a person or organization as a form of recognition for athletic, military, scientific,...
- Tamga hamuliferaTamga (fossil)Tamga hamulifera is a disk-shaped fossil from Precambrian strata of the White Sea area, in Russia.-Description:The small , disk-shaped fossil has seven hook-like isomers in a star-like arrangement in the clearly expressed peripheral undivided zone. T...