The Steppe Lion: A History of Khazaria

How's the Khazar language going to evolve in the future? Any chance that it could be influenced by Crimean Gothic, or at least Varangian Russian?
 

Zioneer

Banned
How's the Khazar language going to evolve in the future? Any chance that it could be influenced by Crimean Gothic, or at least Varangian Russian?

The Khazar language is going to evolve mainly through a heavy influence from Varangian Russian, but also many Turkic and Hebrew loanwords. Maybe a few Greek words as well.
 

Zioneer

Banned
Before the update, here's a map (courtesy of MNP) of Eastern Europe circa 1000 AD.

forstmap2.jpg
 

Zioneer

Banned
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Chapter 6: The Last Years of the Khazar Solomon

1001: The Mordvins absorb several more of the Finno-Ugric tribes, and unite even a few Slavic villages under their banner.
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[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The same year, Vladmir Sviatoslavich dies, leaving his domain to his three sons, Borislav, Sviatopolk, and [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Fyodor (named after the father of one of Vladmir's Christian wives). The ever-weak Rus state is shattered, divided into four pieces: Novogorod to Borislav, Pskov to Sviatopolk, Rostov to Fyodor, and the conquered Finnish region of Kareliya being granted by Borislav's consent to Thomas Lekapenos, adoptive son of the exiled eunuch Basil Lekapenos.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1002: [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif], eldest son of Khagan Melech, is made Tundun (governor) of Alania. He brutally crushes a rising anti-Khazar faction among the Alans, having the main perpetrators thrown into the Caspian Sea with weighted stones, and rewarding his troops with the possessions of the rebels.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The sons of Vladimir fight against one another, and Sviatopolk is defeated and sent into exile amid the court of Sweyn Forkbeard, king of the Danes.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The hostile powers of the Byzantines and the Armenians conclude a partial trade agreement, allowing for renewed revenue and prosperity to return to the opposing powers.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Meanwhile, the Polish duke Boleslaw I expands Poland's lands and influence in many ways, including the capture of long-dead Sviatoslav's western lands in Ruthenia, dangerously close to Khazar territory. Boleslaw also arranges for the martyred bishop Adalbert, first Slavic Christian clergy member, to be canonized, and under the eyes of his friend Otto III of the Holy Roman Empire, he sends a delegate to Rome to ask for a crown. Unlike in OTL, Otto does not die this year.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1003: The Normans arrive in southern Italy.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Additionally, the sons and followers of the tarkhan Seljuk[1], a Turkic captain in the Khazar armies, settle around Cherson, in the Khazar Crimea, murdering the Khazar tundun of Crimea and appointing one of their own as governor. They take Crimean Gothic wives, and raid Byzantine possessions on the other side of the Black Sea. Despite the murder of the tundun, Khagan Melech does not send an expedition to remove the Seljuks, mostly because they sent twice as many taxes to Atil as the previous ruler did.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1004: The Devil's War: The Byzantine Emperor, Angelos[2] I Phokas (the son of Bardas I), a man of an entirely different mindset from his father, breaks the peace with the Khazars AND the Arabs. He invades Syria and Alania, and enlists twenty thousand soldiers from the Tsardom of Bulgaria to make sure he triumphs. As an ironic reversal of his birth name, Angelos is uncommoningly brutal, especially to the Arabs, earning him the name of "Iblis" or "The Devil".[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1005: The Volga Bulgars, seeing an opportunity to weaken the hated Khazars, declare war upon Khagan Melech for the thin pretext of "Our Western Cousins are warring against the Khazars, and as kin we must protect them". The Arab Caliph, though distressed that the Bulgars are wounding a potential ally against the Greeks, nonetheless realize the long-term consequences of the Byzantines being trapped in the northern steppes, so give the Bulgar (Muslim) king the title of "King of the Saqaliba[3]", and his people the name of Saqlibians. This recognizes the power of the newly titled ruler, and allows him to centralize his command over the Islam-following tribes.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1006: Emperor Angelos sacks the Arab and Khazar fortresses of Derbent (Arab) and Samandar (Khazar) respectively, and his forces capture even Aleppo.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]In the north, King Yunus of the newly named Saqlibians leads a powerful force of 15,000 assorted Turk warriors against the Khazars. They burn several border villages, and march on Kiev, the armies made even larger by forced recruitment. They are stopped at the gates of Kiev by Prince Yaropolk of Kiev, but the now elderly warrior dies stopping them. He is succeeded by his son Radimir, and legend tells that Yaropolk enlisted even the old Rabbis to defend the city.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]With the fall of Kiev averted, the aging Khagan Melech lets loose his greatest weapon; his son [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]. The prince of the Khazars leads a fanatically loyal army engorged on the riches of the rebel Alans to Samanader, where the fortress is retaken. By the end of the year, [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] has retaken the Khazar lands, and earned the monikor of "Admoni" or "Red", for both his characteristic red hair[4], and the color of the blood he sheds in the brutal assaults upon the Greek defenses.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1007: [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] Admoni pushes his way into Anatolia, but Emperor Angelos spreads his agents among the Khazar army to bribe the minor tarkhans, thus delaying their advance. Consequently, this allows Emperor Angelos to resume fighting the Arabs, specifically the Abbasids. The cunning Angelos gives a secret series of letters, known as "The Prophet's Nobility" to the Fatimids, the rivals of the Abbasids. Caliph Al-Hakim thus raises the white banner of the Fatimids in support of Angelos. The Fatimid-Byzantine alliance ravages Abbasid lands up to Bagahad.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1008: Prince [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] resumes his advance into Anatolia, but is forced to stop once more by his tired troops. While he rests, Emperor Angelos begins seeking peace with Khagan Melech, as both rulers have budding revolts at home. By the end of the year, Melech accepts a peace, in return for free passage of Jewish merchants (who ineviatably go through Khazaria) inside the Byzantine lands, as well as the recogniation of the Crimea as a Khazar fief, in return for a small payment to restore the cities sacked by [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1009: The revolts so feared by the Greeks and Khazars come to fruition. The Khazars face a large-scale rebellion by Radimir of Kiev (nominally Bene Noach, but now revealed as a devout pagan, and leader of a faction desiring a weaker Khagan) while Emperor Angelos faces a peasant revolt with Constantinople aided by various religious leaders disappointed with the alliance with the Islamic Fatimids.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Radimir of Kiev crushes the army sent against him, and settles in for the winter.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]In Constantinople, the religiously supported peasants revolt is solved in a unique fashion: Emperor Angelos appoints the priestly ringleaders as captains of an entirely fictional thematic army, gives them command of a few battilions of pardoned criminals, and orders them to smash the peasant rebellion. Now military leaders and thus subject to the Emperor's will, the priests are forced to destroy their on rebellion or be executed themselves. Angelos then has the criminals themselves executed for killing citizens of the Empire, and strips the priests of their offices for conspiracy and murder. However, Angelos is poisoned by the knife of the agent of an unknown enemy.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1010: The Abbasids are defeated, and forced to flee Baghdad, where the triumphant Caliph Al-Hakim proclaims that "now, and forever more, the Abbasids are outlaws within the rightful Caliphate". In return for the Byzantine aid in seizing Baghdad, Emperor Angelos is allowed to keep Aleppo and the northern Arabic lands for the remainder of his rule, but not the rule of his successor.[/FONT]


[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]In Khazaria, Khagan Melech and Prince [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] have their hands full dealing with both the still dangerous King Yunus of the Saqlibians, and Radimir of Kiev. [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] shatters the Saqlibian army and kills King Yunus, causing a succession crisis within Saqlibia.[/FONT]


[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1011: As a result of the costly wars and rebellions of the past half-century, the Khazars, though still extremely rich, have an empty treasury, and are forced to increase taxes, thus giving more weight to the claims of Radimir, leading to the rebellion growing.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]However, in mid-May, [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif], by now extremely adept in the art of war, meets Radimir in battle outside Kiev, and wounds the rebel leader. When Radimir takes refuge in Kiev, [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] gives an ultimatum to the city elders: Give him Radimir's head, or their own heads. By the end of May, the city gates are opened and Radimir's head on a pike is presented to the Khazar prince. Once in Kiev, [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] appoints the timid Danil, a younger son of Yaropolk who has converted fully to Judasim, as new ruler of the Khazar-controlled Rus. The long wars are, for the Khazars, and only for a time, over.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1012: Far from the eyes of schemers in Atil or Constantinople, the wars for dominance over the northern pagan Rus are over. Sviatopolk, one of the three sons of Vladimir Sviatoslavich (the others being Fyodor and Borislav), came back from exile among Sweyn Forkbeard's court with five thousand Danes at his command and Sweyn's daughter as his wife. Fyodor, Borislav, and his lackey Thomas Lekapenos are all killed. Sviatoslav appoints his captains ruler of the northern Rus state.
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[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Sviatopolk also converts to Christianity (the Roman rite in particular) at his father-in-law's request (Sweyn wished to find grounds to appoint a Northern bishop, under his own control). He will be known as Sviatopolk the Pious, as through his rule, many churchs are built and pagan shrines taken down.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]1013-1017: Khagan Melech spends the last of his years peacefully handing over power to Prince [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif], and writing prodigiously in Hebrew (with a Khazar tinge to it), Greek, and Latin, the three languages he knows how to write. Among his many surviving Latin writings are [/FONT] G[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]raeci Cogitavit[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] (Thoughts On Greeks), [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Regnum Judaicum[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] (The Jewish Kingdom), [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Post Diluvium[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] (After the Flood, explaining the traditional Khazar legend of being directly descended from a great-grandson of Noah), and several other books.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Melech dies in 1017 after 40 long years of rule, leaving the mighty and peaceful Khazar Khaganate to his son Reuben Admoni (“The Red”). The long-suffering Emperor Angelos dies in the same year, leaving the Eastern Roman Empire to his brother [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Theodosius IV, who will be known to history as “the Patient”.[/FONT]



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[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Sorry for the wait, everyone; I simply didn't have any good ideas until a few days ago. But there you have it; the last years of Khagan Melech. What did you all think of Melech? He's going to be the last Khagan without much of a personality, I intend to focus intently on the mindsets of the Khagans in the future. Also, I'll ask a variation of my earlier question: What do you think will be different by now in the West and further East?
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[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif][1] In some sources, Seljuk is claimed to be a Khazar captain. Thing is, from his death date (1038 AD, Wikipedia says) he literally cannot have been in the main Khazar empire, unless he was 80, 90, or 100 at the time of his death.. It's more likely that Seljuk served in one of the Khazar successor kingdoms. Since Khazaria remains, there isn't that problem, I'm just letting you guys know why the Seljuk Turks (or I suppose they'll become the Seljuk Goths) are suddenly in Cherson.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif][2] I don't like dynastic names all that much. Actually, no, that's a lie. I love dynastic names that aren't Louis, Charles, Edward or Henry. Regardless, no Bardas II, at least not yet.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif][3] Arabic word for Slavs and a hypothetical "Slavica". Yes, the Volga Bulgars are Turkic, but at this point, the Arabs don't really care. Neither do I. Truthfully, it's a way to avoid having to specify "Volga Bulgars" and "Danube Bulgarians" ever again. Feel free to tell me if it's a terrible name or not.[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif][4] You know how a surprising number of Eastern European Jews have reddish hair and pale skin? Yeah, that's actually a distinctive Khazar trait, according to the excellent book Jews of Khazaria. I know, I didn't know either.[/FONT]
 
It's rumored that Genghis Khan had red hair which isn't too implausible considering the Mongols even prior to the empire building under Genghis and his successors had contacts outside the steppes and certainly it was not weird for there to be intermarriage. It's very interesting. Boleslaw I can now be Poland's first king, which would probably prevent expansionism in the east by the Germans.

Excellent update.

 
Looks great Splendid! Good luck with the story.

By the way in case you didn't know...

*Takes of his mask*

It's me! AustinMontreal. Changed my username.
 
Ah. Interesting. A western-facing, Novgorod-centered Rus, and the Khazar overlordship over Kiev preserved.

For examples of Finnic military statehood attempts, read up on Purgas. Should help a little with Mordvins.

Slavs and Varagnians settling much around Bulgar? Is that why Saqaliba?
 

Zioneer

Banned
It's rumored that Genghis Khan had red hair which isn't too implausible considering the Mongols even prior to the empire building under Genghis and his successors had contacts outside the steppes and certainly it was not weird for there to be intermarriage. It's very interesting. Boleslaw I can now be Poland's first king, which would probably prevent expansionism in the east by the Germans.

Excellent update.

Thank you for the praise; I'm honestly not very good, but whatever. BTW, I'm going to contact you by PM soon on a narrative-driven update I'd like you to help me with.

As for your thoughts on Genghis Khan, yeah, it's most likely he had partial ancestry from one of the former Western Gokturk tribes. Perhaps the the account of Rashid al-Din of Genghis's ancestor as "long-bearded, red-haired, and green-eyed" could be correct; I think a possible ethnicity for Genghis is of the Kyrgyz people. And indeed it is interesting, as I point out, the Turks (and therefore the Khazars) did seem to have the same traits as Polish and Russian Jews...

As for Poland, well, historically Bolesaw was the first King of Poland, and did do essentially the same things as in this TL; but with Otto's successor. Now that Otto lives longer, his friend Boleslaw will be helped immensely by the Holy Roman Empire... No weak Kings of Poland, perhaps.

Looks great Splendid! Good luck with the story.

By the way in case you didn't know...

*Takes of his mask*

It's me! AustinMontreal. Changed my username.

Thank you! And yeah, I knew you were AustinMontreal; I saw the thread in which you announced the change. I did think you were Canadian, in any case, for which I apologize. :p


By the way everyone, I was looking at a modern map, and then back to the TL's map earlier, and I just realized that Khazaria is mainly in the territory of modern-day Ukraine. I've created what amounts to be a Ukraine-wank.
 

Valdemar II

Banned
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif][4] You know how a surprising number of Eastern European Jews have reddish hair and pale skin? Yeah, that's actually a distinctive Khazar trait, according to the excellent book Jews of Khazaria. I know, I didn't know either.[/FONT]

Nice update but one comment to this, I think there are a easier explanation. The genes for red exist among more ethnic groups than the genes for blond hair, and especially in Levant (Lebanon, Syria and Palestinia) the genes are common. Red hair usual fall together with pale skin, which mean that it's not very beneficial in the middle east, but as recessive trait it survives. But aound the Baltic Sea pale skin are a big benefit, because it allow a better use of sunlight, while among Slavs, Finns, Balts and Germanic which meant a selection for blond hair, blue eyes and pale skin, among the Jews with less outbreeding this meant selections for the traits already common in their gene pool; red hair and pale skin. The only reason red hair aren't more common among Ashkenazi are the relative short time they lived in the area.
Of course here where we see a greater interbreeding with local Slavs blond hair will likely end up the common trait.
 
The Khazar red-hair theory has been disproven with genetic testing, and is generally only in the purview of racists nowadays.
 

Zioneer

Banned
Nice update but one comment to this, I think there are a easier explanation. The genes for red exist among more ethnic groups than the genes for blond hair, and especially in Levant (Lebanon, Syria and Palestinia) the genes are common. Red hair usual fall together with pale skin, which mean that it's not very beneficial in the middle east, but as recessive trait it survives. But aound the Baltic Sea pale skin are a big benefit, because it allow a better use of sunlight, while among Slavs, Finns, Balts and Germanic which meant a selection for blond hair, blue eyes and pale skin, among the Jews with less outbreeding this meant selections for the traits already common in their gene pool; red hair and pale skin. The only reason red hair aren't more common among Ashkenazi are the relative short time they lived in the area.
Of course here where we see a greater interbreeding with local Slavs blond hair will likely end up the common trait.

That would make sense, I suppose. Hmm. Though Jews of Khazaria does point out several sources in which contemporary authors noted the red-hair thing.

The Khazar red-hair theory has been disproven with genetic testing, and is generally only in the purview of racists nowadays.

Hmm.. Then how do you explain all the contemporary accounts of Khazar red-hair? Ibn Fadlin for one, mentions it. And several other somewhat neutral Arab authors do as well. And I'm not saying that no Eastern European Jews are descended from the Titus-era exiles or whatever. I'm sorry if you got that impression. I'm just trying to combine Jews of Khazaria (which is not racist at all, and even points out how it could be taken as racist) and what I know of the Jews that settled in the Caucasus and north of it.

Essentially, I'm going by the interpretation that enough interbreeding between the Khazars and the original Jewish/Hebrew exiles that, they became unrecognizable from each other, leading to some of the traits that Eastern European Jews have today.

As for the genetic testing, do you have any links I can use to look at the study?
 
While Khazars and other steppe peoples certainly had red hair, it was unconnected to the Ashkenazi trait. Can't find an online source right now, but it is a generally accepted fact of Jewish genealogy that Jewish populations have more in common with each other than with their surrounding populations.

There is evidence of an infusion of local genetics early on among the Levite population (IIRC, about 12.5% of Ashkenazi Levites show the genetic markers for it)- but Ashkenazi Kohanim look just like their Sephardic counterparts (and red hair is more common among Kohanim than among Levites.)
 
SplendidTuesday

Good update. Sounds like the empire is in good hands, provided that [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Reuben[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif] is as good a political leader as a military one.

Just to clarify [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Angelos was poisoned by a dagger in 1009 but doesn't die until 1017. Going to be interesting to see if his heir gives up the lands gained from the Arabs?

Steve
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