Scythian-Sarmat Ancestors of Balkarians and Karachais
I. M. Miziyev
The successors of the pit culture
Archeological science has long ago established that the successor of the pit culture in South-Russian steppes was the so-called frame culture, which has got its name from the wooden frame under the mould-burial. In the steppes of Middle Asia and Minusinsk hollow, the Afanasiev variety of pit culture was replaced by the so-called Andronov culture, ethnically close to it. Thus, already in pit-Afanasiev and frame-Andronov times, the ancient Turk cultural community became divided into the Eastern and Western groups.
The pit and frame cultures were followed by Scythian-Sarmats, while Massagets were the probable successors of Afanasiev culture, which is considered to be the origin of modern Turkmen.
A brief description of Scythia
Nearly five centuries of the history of Eastern Europe, Fore-Asia, Caucasus, Southern Siberia and other regions were associated with by the name Scythians. This period coincides with the formation of the states of Ancient Greece which played a great role in the formation of European civilization. Scythians were in close communication with Greece and the world around it. Scythian power, including not only the steppes of Northern coast of the Black Sea and Crimea, Northern Caucasus and Ural region but also the tribes inhabiting the forest-steppe areas, was a link in the chain of cultural and trade contacts between Fore-Asia, Middle Asia and Europe. There were strong links between Scythia and the Greek cities on the Black Sea and the early Roman provinces. Scythian state, involving neighboring tribes in culture-economic relations, helped both the development of social organization and the cultural growth in these tribes. Scythian military campaigns induced the formation of military democracy and the consolidation of patriarchal tribe aristocracy (Fig. 4,5).
Ancient authors about Scythians and Sarmats
Ancient Greek and Roman authors are the main source of written evidence about Scythians and Sarmats. Among them, one could especially note Herodotos, Hyppocrates, Strabo, Ptolomaios and others. Scythians are one of the first peoples mentioned in the texts of Ancient Greek authors. All of them, starting from Hesiodos and Eschiles, call Scythians and Sarmats "mare-milkers", "koumiss-drinkers" , "horse-flesh eaters" and so on. They told that these peoples lead a nomadic life, living in felt tents (yurts) on the carriages, with their children and household articles.
There were Scythian ploughmen in the fertile deltas and along the rivers, but the leading role belonged to the nomadic Scythians, or the so-called "King Scythians", representing a special social layer among various tribes meant under the common name "Scythians".
Describing the territory of Scythia, its boundaries and rivers, its neighbors, military campaigns etc., the ancient authors said nothing about the Scythian language. So, we can judge about the language of Scythians only by just a few mentioned personal names, the names of some things, or the names of places and rivers.
Scythian legends and tales about their origin
By the words of Herodotos (484425 BC), Scythians thought that they were born in a deserted land from the first man called Targitaios, whose parents were a daughter of the river Dnieper (Borisphenes) and Scythian god of thunder corresponding to Greek Zeus. Targitaios had three sons: Lipoxaios, Arpaxaios and Kolaxaios. The first of them gave birth to Scythians Auchates, the second to Katiares, and the third to Parallates. Their common name was Scolotes. We can immediately see that all these names are definitely of the Turk origin and can easily be explained on the basis of Karachai-Balkarian and other Turk languages and dialects. The very word "Scolotes", evidently distorted by Ellines, sounded as "Skhilti" in the original language of Scythians, which refers to the upper strata of the society in Karachai-Balkarian. The common origin of these three tribes from the fore-farther of all the Scythians Targitaios was indicated in this way.
Herodotos heard another legend, or tale, about Scythians born from the marriage of Heracles with a half-woman, half-snake, whose upper part was of a woman and the lower part of a snake.
Then, Herodotos continues his narration about the origin of Scythians: "There is, however, one more story, which I trust the most. By this tale, nomadic Scythians living in Asia, being pressed by the military actions of Massagets, had crossed the river Arax and gone to the Kimmerian lands. Indeed, the country occupied by Scythians now (i. e. the steppes near the Black Sea--aut.) originally belonged to Kimmerians, as it is told". It should be noted here that Ancient authors applied the name "Arax" nor only to the modern Arax, and not so much to this river, but rather to Sir-Daria. Therefore, Scythians could be pressed by Massagets from the near-Aral steppes, where the earliest pra-Turk culture once originated.
Who were Kimmerians
Ancient authors (Homeros, Hesiodos and others) called Kimmerians "mare-milkers" and "horse-flesh eaters" too, evidently meaning their non-Indo-European appearance and way of life. The history of this ethnos is yet poorly studies, though it is quite firmly established now that Kimmerians are cognate to Scythians. In Northern Caucasus, archeologists have found many typically Kimmerian household articles, tools and weapons. Such findings are exclusively numerous on the territory of Karachai, near aul Kart-Jurt, Uchkulan, Teberdi, Indish, Sari-Tüz and many others. Such an accumulation of Kimmerian antiquities on Karachai territory bears an exceptional value for the understanding of the origin of Karachais and Balkarians.
Archeological materials are strongly substantiated by the language data, and the etymology if the ethnonymic word "kimmer" first of all. The fact is, that, according to one of the meanings of the word "kara", this word could be interpreted as "big", "great", "powerful". The word "chai" ("sai") means "river", "river-bed" in common Turk.
Hence, the word "Karachai" may mean "Wide, Great, Mighty river", and the name of the nationality could originate from the name of a river, as it often occurred in the Turk world, meaning just "the river people". But a river could as often be referred to by the word "kam", "kem" in common Turk (as, for example, Yenisei was called Khem and its tributary Khemchik). From the same word comes Karachai-Balkarian word "airikam", that is, "island" or, more exactly, "separated by the water". A river with the same name exists in Danubean Bulgaria, Kamchia, and so on. Hence it is easy to see that the word "Kam-er", or "Kim-er" is of typically Turk origin, meaning "river man", just like the recent "Suv-ar", "Bulak-ar" ("Bolkar"), or earlier "Sub-ar", "Suv-ar" (which is the same as "Shum-er"). The alternation of the phonemes "sh" and "s" in many languages should not surprise anybody.
On the language of Scythians and Sarmats
In the Bible, the name of Scythians sounds as "Ashkuzi", which is a slight Semite distortion of the name of a Turk tribe "As-kishi". Not without reason, the Arabian authors of IX century (for example, Khvaresmi) called Scythia the country of Turks, the country of As-Kishi or Togusogus. So, the Bible fixed the ancient Turk tribe of Scythians, as "Ashkuzi". Appearing in this ethnonym word "as" is also from Turk and means "to stray", "wander", i. e. the carry a nomadic life. It is important to remember that Ancient Greeks originally produced the geographical term "Asia" from this very word, originally meaning specifically the Kuban steppes in the upper Caucasus. This may have been because Ancient Greek authors were informed about the migration of ancient nomadic tribes (As) to these regions.
The Turk type of the Scythian-Sarmat language is testified by many names of Sarmat leaders mentioned by Roman historians Tacitus, Ammianus Marcellinus and others. The language of Scythians is known almost exclusively by the personal names, among which both Turk and Iranian words are met. One cannot speak about Scythian language without an analysis of common nouns and special terms found in written sources, while the ancient authors keep complete silence on that. Nevertheless, the above-mentioned Turk words, such as Targitaios, Kolaxaios, Lipoxaios, Arpaxaios, Skhilti and other speak that Scythians and Sarmats were Turk tribes. The following connon Turk examples could be added:
| Papai | the supreme god of Scythians, whose name means "elder" in Turk languages |
| Api | Papai's wife; means "mother" in Turk languages. |
| Atei | Scythian king, whose name is a common Turk word meaning "father". |
| Eir | Scythian noun "man". This word has the same meaning in Turk: "eir", "er". |
| Tagi | Scythian word "thread"; coincides with the same Turk word. |
| Jün | in Scythian and Turk means "wool". |
| Üshü, Ish | Scythian verb "feel cold". The word with the same meaning exists in Karachai-Balkarian and other Turk languages: Üshü. |
Even this short list of common words, ignored by many scythianologists before, the Turk nature of Scythian language can be clearly seen.
Culture and life of Scythians and Sarmats
Scythians and Sarmats were age-old nomads. The Turk elements in Sarmat culture and life is perfectly illustrated by the findings on Southern Bug, in the burials of I century. One of them was a little sculpture of a Sarmat sitting in the Asian manner, with crossed legs, in a quilted gown, with slanting eyes and flat nose.
The Scythian and Sarmat way of living and their culture manifests numerous Turk elements. Thus, for example, Scythian wise man Anacharsis answered the question about what Scythians eat saying that every Scythian's breakfast and dinner were sour milk and cheese. These words coincide with the Karachai-Balkarian expression "Airan bla bishlak", describing their daily food. By the words of the I century author Plinius, Sarmats eat "raw flour mixed with mare milk".
It is quite obvious, that the Roman historian could not distinguish raw flour from the flour of fried grain, khuuut, which is a delicacy for Balkarians and Karachais. As a rule, they add airan or butter to khuuut, and could well add koumiss too.
The same sources report that Sarmats eat a thick white pulp, which perfectly coincides with a Karachai-Balkarian dish of sour and small grains, "kak".
Among the elements of Scythian and Sarmat clothes, there such similar to Karachai-Balkarian clothes as short, above the knees, caftans, wadded or made of skins, as well as leather jackboots and shoes with the laces tied below the knee. Such boots could be made of felt. Scythians and Sarmats wore pointed hats, much resembling bashliks. The pictures of such hats can be found on stone sculptures and other decorations. Scythians and Sarmats also wore felt cloaks, "zhamichi". Many elements of Scythian and Sarmat clothes were made of various felts, which were used everywhere in the life of these tribes, and now felt elements are very important in the traditional Karachai-Balkarian clothes and household.
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