Zolotoordynskoe obozrenie=Golden Horde Review

494–508

Authors: Sardelić M.

The research objective is to analyse why the accounts of two missionaries who visited the same Mongol “Other” in 1245 are quite different, despite their authors belonging to the same Christian circle. More specifically, the paper explores why Simon’s report is so much more negative in its depiction of the Mongols, and the imagological and emotional impact that these representations had. My research materials include the two mendicant reports produced by John and Simon as well as extant scholarly discussions of various aspects of the Mongol Other, apocalyptic literature, and the relations between Western Christendom and the Mongol Empire in the mid-13th century. The research innovation of the article is in the comparison of the two contemporary accounts, the elaboration of their differences in representation of the Mongols, and the analysis of their imagery from the perspective of the history of emotions. The aim of this paper is to show that in interpreting medieval European texts about the Mongols, one should combine approaches from various fields, including (but not limited to) history of emotions, cultural and literal history, anthropology, cross-cultural sociology, and others. Immediate and incorrect interpretations that the Mongols were cannibals or sodomites, as one could be tempted to hold from the account of Simon of Saint-Quentin, must be moderated from scholarly perspectives. These interpretations were the result of sediment layers of events in the 1240s: the violent contact of the Mongol armies with Western Christendom, contemporary Christian attempts to put the newcomers into known apocalyptic frameworks, and most probably the personal trauma of the author who had been threatened with death after an inaction with the Mongols, might be explained both as a cross-cultural misunderstanding and a display of power. Research results: Comparison of the two accounts, one written by John of Plano Carpini and the other by Simon of Saint-Quentin, the contextualization of these sources within 13th-century missionary literature, parallel analysis of the imagery, as well as reference to other contemporary texts on the Mongols, offer a sound starting point for a complex process of re-creating the imagined Mongol conceived by Europeans in the late Middle Ages. This imagined Mongol consists of hundreds of reused images ranging from the Classical antiquity and biblical texts to medieval prophecies, with a power to elicit the most powerful emotions by a single reference. Subtle interdisciplinary approach is always needed to avoid misinterpretations of often highly emotional images that can bring hope or sow hatred, depending on their (mis)use.

522–565

Authors: Garkavets A.N.

Objective: To highlight the most urgent problems related to the person of Marco Polo and his works, written in collaboration with Rustichano (commonly known as Rustichello) of Pisa. Research materials: The work of Marco Polo, with attention drawn to its general characteristics and scientific value. Materials are used which describe the history of the Polo family and the biography of Marco Polo the traveler. This work explores the routes of Polo’s travels, his career success in China and his documentary information about the country in the era of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. We explore his language proficiency, in particular regard to the “Tatar” language in light of the source for the “Tatar” Lord Prayer in edition of Marco Polo in a German translation of Jerome Megizer; the return-route from China to Ilkhanate of the Hulaguides; the introduction of paper money in Mongol Iran at that time; Marco’s return to Venice and his acquaintance with the novelist, Rustichano of Pisa, while in Genoese captivity; versions of their joint writing on the East; Rustichano and scribes’ additions to the memoirs of Marco; the debated date of the will of Marco Polo and the mystery of two gold items listed in the inventory of his property, which are identified as two of Gaykhatu’s golden paizas; Marco Polo’s connections to the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci; fake maps of China, Japan, Sakhalin, the Aleutian Islands, Chukotka, Alaska and much of the North American West, attributed to Marco Polo. Results and novelty of the research: We have confirmed the hypothesis about the origin of the generic nickname Million, received by Polos, and its connection to the estate of the Venetian family, Vilione / Milione. We have identified the source of the “Tatar” Lord Prayer in the German edition of Marco Polo. We have raised the question of the participation of Polo in the printing of paper money by Gaykhatu. We have proved the forgery of maps which were formerly attributed to Marco Polo.

577–590

Authors: Sabitov Zh.M.

Research objective: To study information about the Golden Horde contained in a historical source called the “Majmu al-tawarikh” and to analyze the information found in that source about the lives of amirs and khans of the Golden Horde. Research materials: The study was conducted on the basis of an analysis of published and unpublished sections of the “Majmu al-tawarikh” which have been translated. Results and novelty of the research: The “Majmu al-tawarikh” is a valuable source for the history of the Golden Horde. There are a number of anachronisms in the “Majmu al-tawarikh”, but it also contains unique and original information about the history of the Golden Horde. There are three copies of the source. The first copy (B 667) is stored at the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg. The second copy (№ 693) is stored in the Oriental department of St. Petersburg State University library. The third copy (№ 167a) stored in the fund of the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic (Bishkek). A translation in Kyrghyz of the third copy was published in 1996. This source contains unique information about the life and family of such khans of the Golden Horde as Toktamysh, Kara-Nogai, Pulad. This work contains stories about the lives of such amirs as Mamai (from the Kiyat tribe), Teginya (Tegin, Dekne) from the Shirin tribe, Temir-khodzha (Dair-Khodzha) and his son Kara-Khodzha from the Argyn tribe, Hussain Aq-Sufi from Kungirat tribe and his son Ak Nogai, Mamai from the Saray tribe, Baba Ali from the Khitai tribe, etc. Baba Ali from Khitai tribe was the main source of information for “Majmu al-tawarikh” about the Jochid ulus. He served Abd al-Kerim, the khan of Astrakhan, and the Khwarezm’s khan, Sultan-Ghazi. This same Baba Ali was also the informant of Ötemish Hajji, who recorded stories about Tokhtamysh, Kara-Nogay and Hussain Aq-Sufi.

600–611

Authors: Trepavlov V.V.

Research objective: Analysis of the phrase otetskie deti (“father’s sons”) in the Register Book of the Lithuanian metrics (Lithuanian Metrica) as designations of the military service class of the Kazan khanate. Research materials: The 7th Register Book of the Lithuanian Metrica, Russian chronicles, the chronicles of Kïrïmi and Ötemish-Hajji, the works of S. Herberstein, A. Kurbsky, Maciej of Miechów, Mahmud al-Kashgari, A. Olearius. Results and novelty of the research: The 7th Register Book of the Lithuanian Metrics contains a translation of a message from the Crimean khan, Muhammad Giray, to the Polish King and Lithuanian Grand Duke Sigizmund I. In this letter, there is a reiteration of the requests of the inhabitants of the Kazan Khanate addressed to Muhammad Giray to send them one of his relatives to reign over them. The Kazanians wrote that they had twenty thousand otetskie deti (“father’s sons”) and countless Mordovians and Cheremisses, all of whom were ready to submit (to be “slaves”) to the ruler of the Crimea. The author of the article seeks the meaning of this term and looks for a putative Turkic equivalent to the expression otetskie deti as well as the reasons for the presence of the Mordovians and Cheremisses in this document. The word “otetskii” (paternal) had a wide range of usages in the Russian language of the 16th century – in the State of Muscovy and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. One of its meanings was “belonging to an ancient, noble family”. The instances quoted by the author show a socio-cultural universality, which combined paternity, noble origin and elite status in a single notion. The author hypothesizes that the phrase “otetskie deti” in the Russian translation could replace the concept of “Tatars” in its social meaning, as a symbol of the military strata of the population of the Kazan khanate. Mention of the Mordovians and the Cheremisses in the Kazan message reflected the positive image of these peoples – namely, their high military reputation in neighboring countries. The Kazanians’ assurances to be ready to put two tumens of elite troops and crowded militia at the disposal of Crimea served as one of the stimuli for Muhammad Giray to assent to their request by dispatching Prince Giray to Kazan.

629–658

Authors: Akchurin M.M., Isheev M.R.

Objective: To identify possible circumstances behind the appearance of towns in the Western Mordovian lands, as well as their place and role in the 15th–16th centuries. Research materials: Various written sources were used in this study, including primarily act materials, chronicle accounts, genealogical legends, as well as materials relating to archaeological research carried out at the Ityakov hillfort and Starokadom hillfort. Results and novelty of the research: Analysis of the act materials of the 16th–17th centuries led us to the opinion that during the Moscow period, the towns of the Mordovian lands were the residences of Tatar vicegerents and, possibly, the focal points of the subordinated groups of the serving Tatar population. These towns (Temnikov, Kadoma, Sacony, Andreev townlet) were the local administrative centers for the surrounding Mordovian regions, which in the second half of the 16th century became a separate uyezds of the larger Meshchersky uyezd. Taken as a whole, the consulted written sources and archaeological materials suggest that since the 1430s there was some agreement between the Tatar princes of the former Mokhshi ulus and the princes of Moscow and Ryazan Grand Principalities. These agreements could provide the safe resettlement of the Tatar population from the surroundings of Narovchat to more secure northern areas of the Mordovian lands, adjacent to the boundaries of Moscow and the Ryazan Grand Principalities. This process led to the emergence of heavily fortified castle-towns there. However, the Mordovian region was finally annexed, no earlier than the 1480–90s. In our opinion, the presented information may be interesting for the study of the history of the peoples living in these areas and, primarily, the Tatars, whose modern descendants are now called the Mishars. It is also useful for understanding the processes by which the former Horde’s territories were incorporated into Muscovy during the 15th and 16th centuries.

666–674

Authors: Abduzhemilev R.R.

The book “Philosophical Thought of the Crimean Khanate” by Mikhaylo Yakubovich offers a comprehensive study of the religious and philosophical heritage of the Crimean Khanate. It should be mentioned that up to the present there was no such work among the list of available research monographs. There were only some fragmentary works, which did not cover the conceptual essence of the philosophical perspectives and concepts of medieval thinkers whose activity was shaped within the context of the Crimean Khanate. Thus, Mikhaylo Yakubovich’s contribution is obvious and there is no doubt of the work’s significance. The book consists of a preface, an introduction, seven chapters, conclusions, appendixes, list of illustrations (religious sites, libraries and photocopies of manuscripts), and a bibliography. A wide source-base is evident in the work: the bibliography lists manuscripts from various libraries throughout the world. In the first introductory chapter, a review of historiography is carried out and the range of sources within the framework of the study is defined. The prehistory of the formation of philosophical thought of the Crimean khanate, namely the origins of its formation back to the Golden Horde era, is outlined in the second chapter. This section presents the hermeneutical aspects of Sharaf ad-Din al-Kyrymi and Ahmad bin ‘Abd Allah al-Kyrymi’s interpretation of the philosophy of Ibn al-‘Arabi and Sadr al-Din al-Kunavi. The third chapter contains biographical information about Ibrahim al-Kyrymi, the specificity of the Qur'anic hermeneutics in his work, as well as the idea of a spiritual journey as viewed from anthropological and historiosophical perspectives. In the fourth chapter, the creativity of Abu’l-Baka’ al-Kafauvi is considered, while also reflecting on the life and scientific heritage of this philosopher, his work “al-Qulliyyat” in the context of Islamic encyclopedic learning, understanding the divine properties (syfat) and the hermeneutic theory in “al-Qulliyyat” (“The Book of General Concepts”). The main issues of the fifth chapter are the perception of Avicennism in the works by Muhammad al-Kafauvi, and ontological and the ethical views of Muhammad al-Akkirmani. The sixth chapter covers a wide area: ideological features of the work “Hadaik al-Ahyar fi Hakaik al-Ahbar” (“The Gardens of the Best among the Essences of the News”), “inner” and “outward” ways of knowing of God in “The Guides for Experts” (“Ariflerin delili”) by Selim Divane Kyrymly, philosophical features of the Sufi exegesis of Hamid ‘Bi-nuva’ Kyrymi, and the mystical outlook of ‘Abd al-Baki al-Hijabi. In the seventh chapter, the researcher focuses his attention on the problem of Islamic apologetics in the works of Crimean authors of the 17th–18th centuries (‘Abd Allah al-Kafauvi, Hasan al-Kafauvi and Kutb ad-Din al-Kyrymi). Conclusions that can be drawn from M. Yakubovich’s book: there was a distinctive form of philosophical thought in the Crimean Khanate, which, on the one hand, had absorbed the experience and knowledge of the previous generations (primarily based in the classics). On the other hand it had a certain originality; the philosophical heritage of the Crimean Khanate is an important component of the global history of philosophy, revealing the vectors of development for Turkic-Muslim regions in subsequent periods. The basis of the philosophical thought of the Crimean khanate had been laid with the Islamization in the Golden Horde, when conditions were created for the emergence of the religious and philosophical schools. Lastly, one can conclude that there are still plenty of works of a philosophical nature that require detailed analysis.

682–686

Authors: Hautala R.

On May 17–18, 2017, an international workshop “Networks, Regions and Institutions in Mongol Eurasia: A Meso-Historical Analysis” was held at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem with the participation of researchers from Israel, Japan, Britain, United States, Russia, China, Hungary and Finland. The main goal of the workshop was to reveal the potential of the “meso-historical analysis” in the study of the Mongol Empire, including the simultaneous consideration of global changes in Eurasia caused by the creation of the empire of Chinggis Khan, and the impact of these changes on each of its separate regions as recorded in the available primary sources. The keynote speech by Akinobu Kuroda (The University of Tokyo) was entitled “A Global Monetary History of Mongol Eurasia: A Mesoscopic Perspective”. The first panel “Networks of the Empire and Beyond” included the following talks: Yoichi Isahaya (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem), “Hulaguid Appanages as Mesoscale Agency in Cross-Cultural Exchange”; Elizabeth Lambourn (De Montfort University), “Mongol Eurasia at Sea: Peninsular South India in Networks of Maritime Trade and Tribute (Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries)”. In the framework of the second panel “Decentralizing the Empire through Mesoscale Regions” the following talks were presented: Francesca Fiaschetti (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem), “Empires within the Empire: Governance and Dynastic Space in Eastern Eurasia under Mongol Rule”; Christopher Erikson (University of Pittsburgh), “Mongol Appanages and Ming Chinese Frontier Princedoms: A Comparison of Autonomous Territorial Units in Northern China, 1200–1500 CE”; Nikolay Kradin (Russian Academy of Sciences), “North-Eastern Margin of Mongolian Empire: Hinterland Urbanization of Chinggis Khan Brother”. The third panel “Sources Narrate Eurasia” saw presentations by: Roman Hautala (Tatarstan Academy of Sciences), “Catholic Missionary Sources on the Everyday Life in the Golden Horde (First Half of the 14th Century)”; Stephen Pow, (CEU University) “What a Source Says, When It Says Nothing at All: Extracting Information from Jochi Khan’s Biography in the 117th Chapter of the Yuan Shi”; Jonathan Brack (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem), “How the Dead Mattered in Ilkhanid Iran? The Local and the Global in Rashid al-Din’s Three Refutations of Reincarnation”. In the framework of the final fourth panel “Law as a Meso-Institution” the following talks were presented: Khohchahar E. Chuluu (The University of Tokyo), “Law, Institutions, and Justice in the Mongol Empire”; Florence Hodous (Renmin University), “Joint Trials as a Key to Local History and Empire-Wide Dynamics”; Edith Chen (Princeton University), “Justice of the Khan: Writing the Lives of the Jarqučis in the Yuan Shi”.