Pannonian Avars
Alliance of various Eurasian nomads – 6th to 9th centuries / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Avar Khaganate?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
The Pannonian Avars (/ˈævɑːrz/) were an alliance of several groups of Eurasian nomads of various origins.[6][7][8][9][10][11] The peoples were also known as the Obri in chronicles of Rus, the Abaroi or Varchonitai[12] (Greek: Βαρχονίτες, romanized: Varchonítes), or Pseudo-Avars[13] in Byzantine sources, and the Apar (Old Turkic: 𐰯𐰺) to the Göktürks (Kultegin Inscription: Apar – Avars were called "Apar"). They established the Avar Khaganate, which spanned the Pannonian Basin and considerable areas of Central and Eastern Europe from the late 6th to the early 9th century.[14]
Avar Khaganate | |
---|---|
567 – after 822[1] | |
Common languages |
|
Religion | Originally shamanism and animism, Christianity after 796 |
Government | Khanate |
Khagan | |
History | |
• Established | 567 |
• Defeated by Pepin of Italy | 796 |
• Disestablished | after 822[1] |
The name Pannonian Avars (after the area in which they settled) is used to distinguish them from the Avars of the Caucasus, a separate people with whom the Pannonian Avars may or may not have had links. Although the name Avar first appeared in the mid-5th century, the Pannonian Avars entered the historical scene in the mid-6th century,[15] on the Pontic–Caspian steppe as a people who wished to escape the rule of the Göktürks. They are probably best known for their invasions and destruction in the Avar–Byzantine wars from 568 to 626 and influence on the Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe.
Recent archaeogenetic studies indicate that the Pannonian Avars were of primarily Ancient Northeast Asian ancestry similar to those of modern-day people from Mongolia and the Amur River region in Manchuria, pointing to an initial rapid migration of nomadic tribes into the centre of Europe from the Eastern Eurasian Steppe. The Pannonian Avars' core may have been descended from the remnants of the Rouran Khaganate, which were accompanied by other Steppe groups.[16][17][18][19][20][21][note 1] Linguistic evidence suggests that the later Avar population shifted to Slavic as lingua franca.[22][23][24]
Avars and pseudo-Avars
The earliest clear reference to the Avar ethnonym comes from Priscus the Rhetor (420s-after 472), who recounts that in c. 463 the Šaragurs and Onogurs were attacked by the Sabirs, who had been attacked by the Avars. In turn, the Avars had been driven off by people fleeing "man-eating griffins" coming from "the ocean" (Priscus Fr 40).[25] Whilst Priscus' accounts provide some information about the ethno-political situation in the Don-Kuban-Volga region after the demise of the Huns, no unequivocal conclusions can be reached. Denis Sinor has argued that whoever the "Avars" referred to by Priscus were, they differed from the Avars who appear a century later, during the time of Justinian (r. 527-565).[26]
The next author to discuss the Avars, Menander Protector, appeared during the 6th century and wrote of Göktürk embassies to Constantinople in 565 and 568. The Turks appeared angry at the Byzantines for having made an alliance with the Avars, whom the Turks saw as their subjects and slaves. Turxanthos, a Turk prince, calls the Avars "Varchonites" and "escaped slaves of the Turks", who numbered "about 20 thousand" (Menander Fr 43).[27]
Many more, but somewhat confusing, details come from Theophylact Simocatta, who in c. 629, describes the final two decades of the 6th century. In particular, he claims to quote a triumph letter from Turxanthos:
For this very Chagan had in fact outfought the leader of the nation of the Abdali (I mean indeed, of the Hephthalites, as they are called), conquered him, and assumed the rule of the nation. Then he […] enslaved the Avar nation.
But let no one think that we are distorting the history of these times because he supposes that the Avars are those barbarians neighbouring on Europe and Pannonia, and that their arrival was prior to the times of the emperor Maurice. For it is by a misnomer that the barbarians on the Ister have assumed the appellation of Avars; the origin of their race will shortly be revealed.
So, when the Avars had been defeated (for we are returning to the account) some of them made their escape to those who inhabit Taugast. Taugast is a famous city, which is a total of one thousand five hundred miles distant from those who are called Turks, ... Others of the Avars, who declined to humbler fortune because of their defeat, came to those who are called Moukri (Goguryeo); this nation is the closest neighbour to the men of Taugast;
Then the Chagan embarked on yet another enterprise, and subdued all the Ogur, which is one of the strongest tribes on account of its large population and its armed training for war. These make their habitations in the east, by the course of the Til, which Turks are accustomed to call Melas. The earliest leaders of this nation were named Var and Chunni; from them some parts of those nations were also accorded their nomenclature, being called Var and Chunni.
Then, while the emperor Justinian was in possession of the royal power, a small section of these Var and Chunni fled from that ancestral tribe and settled in Europe. These named themselves Avars and glorified their leader with the appellation of Chagan. Let us declare, without departing in the least from the truth, how the means of changing their name came to them. […]
When the Barsils, Onogurs, Sabirs, and other Hun nations in addition to these, saw that a section of those who were still Var and Chunni had fled to their regions, they plunged into extreme panic, since they suspected that the settlers were Avars. For this reason they honoured the fugitives with splendid gifts and supposed that they received from them security in exchange.
Then, after the Var and Chunni saw the well-omened beginning to their flight, they appropriated the ambassadors' error and named themselves Avars: for among the Scythian nations that of the Avars is said to be the most adept tribe. In point of fact even up to our present times the Pseudo-Avars (for it is more correct to refer to them thus) are divided in their ancestry, some bearing the time-honoured name of Var while others are called Chunni.
According to the interpretation of Dobrovits and Nechaeva, the Turks insisted that the Avars were only "pseudo-Avars", so as to boast that they were the only formidable power in the Eurasian steppe. The Göktürks claimed that the "real Avars" remained loyal subjects of the Turks, farther east.[26][29] A political name *(A)Par 𐰯𐰻 was indeed mentioned in inscriptions honoring Kul Tigin and Bilge Qaghan, yet in Armenian sources (Egishe Vardapet, Ghazar Parpetsi, and Sebeos) Apar seemingly indicated "a geographical area (Khorasan), which might also intimate a political formation once there"; additionally, "'Apar-shar', that is, the country of the Apar" was named after possibly Hephthalites, who were known as 滑 MC *ɦˠuɛt̚ > Ch.Huá in Chinese sources. Even so, *Apar could not be linked to the European Avars, notwithstanding any link, if there were, between the Hephthalites and Rourans.[30][page needed] Furthermore, Dobrovits has questioned the authenticity of Theophylact's account. As such, he has argued that Theophylact borrowed information from Menander's accounts of Byzantine–Turk negotiations to meet political needs of his time – i.e. to castigate and deride the Avars during a time of strained political relations between the Byzantines and Avars (coinciding with Emperor Maurice's northern Balkan campaigns).[26]
Uar, Rouran and other Central Asian peoples
According to some scholars, the Pannonian Avars originated from a confederation formed in the Aral Sea region, by the Uar (also known as the Ouar, Warr or Var) and the Xionites.[31][page needed][32] The Xionites had likely been speakers of Iranian and/or Turkic languages.[33] The Hephthalites, affiliated previously to the Uar and Xionites, had remained in Central and northern South Asia. The Pannonian Avars were also known by names including Uarkhon or Varchonites—which may have been a portmanteau combining Var and Chunni.
The 18th-century historian Joseph de Guignes postulates a link between the Avars of European history with the Rouran Khaganate of Inner Asia based on a coincidence between Tardan Khan's letter to Constantinople and events recorded in Chinese sources, notably the Wei Shu and Bei Shi.[34] Chinese sources state that Bumin Qaghan, founder of the First Turkic Khaganate, defeated the Rouran, some of whom fled and joined the Western Wei. Later, Bumin's successor Muqan Qaghan defeated the Hephthalites as well as the Turkic Tiele. Superficially these victories over the Tiele, Rouran and Hephthalites echo a narrative in the Theophylact, boasting of Tardan's victories over the Hephthalites, Avars and Oghurs. However, the two series of events are not synonymous: the events of the latter took place during Tardan's rule, c. 580–599, whilst Chinese sources referring to the Turk defeat of the Rouran and other Central Asian peoples occurred 50 years earlier, at the founding of the First Turkic Khaganate. It is for this reason that the linguist János Harmatta rejects the identification of the Avars with the Rouran.
According to Edwin G. Pulleyblank, the name Avar is the same as the prestigious name Wuhuan in the Chinese sources.[35] Several historians, including Peter Benjamin Golden, suggest that the Avars are of Turkic origin, likely from the Oghur branch.[36] Another theory suggests that some of the Avars were of Tungusic origin.[3] A study by Emil Heršak and Ana Silić (2002) suggests that the Avars were of heterogeneous origin, including mostly Turkic (Oghuric) and Mongolic groups. Later in Europe some Germanic and Slavic groups were assimilated into the Avars. They concluded that their exact origin is unknown but state that it is likely that the Avars were originally mainly composed of Turkic (Oghuric) tribes.[37][page needed]
Increasing evidence support a relationship between the elite of the Pannonian Avars and the Inner Asian Rouran Khaganate, however it remains unclear to what extent the European Avars descent from the Rouran population. It is argued that the initial elite core of the Pannonian Avars spoke a Para-Mongolic language (Serbi-Avar), which is a sister lineage to contemporary Mongolic languages.[38][39]
Steppe empire dynamics and ethnogenesis
In 2003, Walter Pohl summarized the formation of nomadic empires:[40]
1. Many steppe empires were founded by groups who had been defeated in previous power struggles but had fled from the dominion of the stronger group. The Avars were likely a losing faction previously subordinate to the (legitimate)[clarification needed] Ashina clan in the Western Turkic Khaganate, and they fled west of the Dnieper.
2. These groups usually were of mixed origin, and each of its components was part of a previous group.
3. Crucial in the process was the elevation of a khagan, which signified a claim to independent power and an expansionist strategy. This group also needed a new name that would give all of its initial followers a sense of identity.
4. The name for a new group of steppe riders was often taken from a repertoire of prestigious names which did not necessarily denote any direct affiliation to or descent from groups of the same name; in the Early Middle Ages, Huns, Avars, Bulgars, and Ogurs, or names connected with -(o)gur (Kutrigurs, Utigurs, Onogurs, etc.), were most important. In the process of name-giving, both perceptions by outsiders and self-designation played a role. These names were also connected with prestigious traditions that directly expressed political pretensions and programmes, and had to be endorsed by success. In the world of the steppe, where agglomerations of groups were rather fluid, it was vital to know how to deal with a newly-emergent power. The symbolical hierarchy of prestige expressed through names provided some orientation for friend and foe alike.
Such views are mirrored by Csanád Bálint [hu]. "The ethnogenesis of early medieval peoples of steppe origin cannot be conceived in a single linear fashion due to their great and constant mobility", with no ethnogenetic "point zero", theoretical "proto-people" or proto-language.[41][page needed] Moreover, Avar identity was strongly linked to Avar political institutions. Groups who rebelled or fled from the Avar realm could never be called "Avars", but were rather termed "Bulgars". Similarly, with the final demise of Avar power in the early 9th century, Avar identity disappeared almost instantaneously.[42][page needed]
Savelyev and Jeong (2020) in "Early nomads of the Eastern Steppe and their tentative connections in the West" concluded that the initial Pannonian Avars formed in Central Asia from various ethno-linguistic groups, including Iranian peoples, Ugrians, Oghur-Turks, and Rouran tribes. They further note that "the broadly East Asian component in the archaeological record of the European Avars is limited even in the earlier period of their history; elements originating from West Asia, the Caucasus, the Southern Russian steppes and the local Central European cultures can be traced alongside each other".[43]
Subsequent analyses from 2022 on Avar remains however confirmed their Ancient Northeast Asian origin, and support a possible ethnogenesis of the Avar Elite from the former Rouran Khaganate.[44][45]
Anthropology
In the Stuttgart Psalter there is an image of mounted archers riding backwards on their horses, a noted "Asian" tactic, which may depict the Avars.[46] According to mid-20th century physical anthropologists such as Pál Lipták, human remains from the early Avar (7th century) period had mostly "Europoid" features, while grave goods indicated cultural links to the Eurasian Steppe.[47] Cemeteries dated to the late Avar period (8th century) included many human remains with physical features typical of East Asian people or Eurasians (i.e., people with both East Asian and European ancestry).[48] Remains with East Asian or Eurasian features were found in about one third of the Avar graves from the 8th century.[49] According to Lipták, 79% of the population of the Danube-Tisza region during the Avar period showed Europoid characteristics.[47] However, Lipták used racial terms later deprecated or regarded as obsolete, such as "Mongoloid" for northeast Asian and "Turanid" for individuals of mixed ancestry.[50][page needed] Several theories suggest that the ruling class of the Avars were of Northern East Asian origin resembling the "Tungid type" (common among Tungusic speaking peoples).[3]
Archaeogenetics
A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in September 2016 examined the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of 31 people buried in the Carpathian Basin between the 7th and 9th centuries.[52] They were found to be mostly carrying European haplogroups such as H, K, T and U, while about 15% carried Asian haplogroups such as C, M6, D4c1 and F1a.[53] Their mtDNA were found to be primarily characteristic of Eastern and Southern Europe.[54]
A genetic study published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology in 2018 examined 62 individuals buried in the 8th and 9th centuries at an Avar-Slavic burial in Cífer‐Pác, Slovakia.[55] Of the 46 samples of mtDNA extracted, 93% belonged to west Eurasian lineages, while 6% belonged to east Eurasian lineages.[56] The amount of east Eurasian lineages was higher than among modern European populations, but lower than what has been found in other genetic studies on the Avars.[57] The mtDNA of the examined individuals was found to be quite similar to medieval and modern Slavs, and it was suggested that the mixed population examined had emerged through intermarriage between Avar males and Slavic females.[58]
A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in November 2019 examined the remains of fourteen Avar males. Eleven of them were dated to the early Avar period, and three were dated to the middle and late Avar period.[59] The eleven early Avar males were found to be carrying the paternal haplogroups N1a1a1a1a3 (four samples), N1a1a (two samples), R1a1a1b2a (two samples), C2, G2a, and I1.[59] The three males dated to the middle and late Avar period carried the paternal haplogroups C2, N1a1a1a1a3 and E1b1b1a1b1a.[59] In short, most carried "East Eurasian Y haplogroups typical for modern north-eastern Siberian and Buryat populations". The Avars studied were all determined to have had dark eyes and dark hair, and the majority of them were found to be primarily of East Asian origin.[60] Highest percent of haplogroup N-F4205 found in Dukha people at 52.2 percent(a Turkic ethnic group living in Khövsgöl province of Mongolia also known as Tsaatan).[61]
A genetic study published in Scientific Reports in January 2020 examined the remains of 26 individuals buried at various elite Avar cemeteries in the Pannonian Basin dated to the 7th century.[62] The mtDNA of these Avars belonged mostly to East Asian haplogroups, while the Y-DNA was exclusively of East Asian origin and "strikingly homogenous", belonging to haplogroups N-M231 and Q-M242.[63] The evidence suggests that the Avar elite were largely patrilineal and endogamous for a period of around one century, and entered the Pannonian Basin through migrations from East Asia involving both men and women.[64] Another 2020 study, but of Xiongnu remains in East Asia, found that the Xiongnu shared certain paternal (N1a, Q1a, R1a-Z94 and R1a-Z2124) and maternal haplotypes with the Huns and Avars, and suggested on this basis that they were descended from Xiongnu, who they in turn suggested were descended from Scytho-Siberians.[65]
A genetic study published in scientific journal Cell in April 2022 analyzed 48 Pannonian Avar samples from the early, middle and late period, and found them to be of nearly exclusively Ancient Northeast Asian (ANA), with predominant paternal lineage N1a1a1a1a3a-F4205, with some Q1a, Q1b, R1a, R1b and E1b subclades, with strong affinity to modern peoples inhabiting the region from Mongolia to the Amur, including a historical Rouran Khaganate sample and those from Xiongnu-Xianbei periods in the eastern Asian steppe.[44] The Avar individuals showed their highest genetic affinity with present-day Mongolic and Tungusic peoples, as well as Nivkhs.[45]
A genetic study published in scientific journal Current Biology in May 2022 examined 143 Avar samples from various periods, including Avar elites and local commoners. It confirmed the Ancient Northeast Asian (ANA) paternal and maternal origin for the Avar elite, with N1a-F4205 being their predominant and characteristic paternal lineage, alongside incorporated Q1a2a1 and R1a-Z94 Hunnic-Iranian remnants, and the rest belonging to local haplogroups found among surrounding populations. Autosomally, the Elite Avar samples "preserved very ancient Mongolian pre-Bronze Age genomes, with ca 90% [Ancient North-East Asian] ancestry", shared deep ancestry with European Huns, but although since Early Avar period started mixing with local and immigrant Hunnic-Iranian related populations, "people with different genetic ancestries were seemingly distinguished, as samples with Hun-related genomes were buried in separate cemeteries". The majority of the Avar Khaganate general population consisted of local European peoples (EU_core) but did not display Northeast Asian admixture, supporting a model of elite dominance of arriving horse nomads over a large sedentary population, with at least some subsequent admixture events. Genetic data on later Avar elite samples showed continuity with earlier Avars and the long-term presence of Northeast Asian ancestry among the Avar elite, suggesting a possible endogamous social system. There was however an increase of Northeast Asian and Saka associated ancestry among the total population, suggesting either further migration from the Eurasian Steppe and admixture between local and Avar groups, or substructure among the overall population not observed before.[66]