Difference between revisions of "Huns"

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The '''Huns''' (singular: Kun/Hun/On/Un, meaning "Ten", plural: Kunok/Hunuk/Onoq/Unug, also simply meaning "People") considered themselves to be the "Fist of God", the "Hammer of God", the "Scourge of God" and descendants of the lost "Ten" Tribes of Israel. They were a major component in the proto-Turkic hordes. They organised themselves in Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western camps each corresponding to one of four colours Black, Red, White, and Blue respectively.  
 
The '''Huns''' (singular: Kun/Hun/On/Un, meaning "Ten", plural: Kunok/Hunuk/Onoq/Unug, also simply meaning "People") considered themselves to be the "Fist of God", the "Hammer of God", the "Scourge of God" and descendants of the lost "Ten" Tribes of Israel. They were a major component in the proto-Turkic hordes. They organised themselves in Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western camps each corresponding to one of four colours Black, Red, White, and Blue respectively.  
  
The Earliest known Hun rulers were Touman (240–209 BC) and Maodun (209–174 BC). When Ban Chao attacked the [[Xiongnu]], Bei Shan-Yu (89–91 CE), migrated to the Caspian depression and his ''Hunnoi'' are first mentioned by Tacitus as being near the Caspian Sea in 91 CE. By CE 139, the geographer Ptolemy writes that the "Huni" (''Χοῦνοι'' or ''Χουνοἰ'') are between the Bastarnae and the Rhoxolani in the Pontic area under the rule of ''Suni''. He lists the beginning of the 2nd century, although it is not known for certain if these people were the Huns. It is possible that the similarity between the names "Huni" (''Χοῦνοι'') and "Hunnoi" (''Ουννοι'') is only a coincidence considering that while the Western Roman Empire often wrote Chunni or Chuni, the Byzantine Empire never used the guttural ''Χ'' at the beginning of the name.<ref name=Thompson1996/>
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The earliest known Hun rulers were Touman (240–209 BC) and Maodun (209–174 BC). When Ban Chao attacked the [[Xiongnu]], Bei Shan-Yu (89–91 CE), migrated to the Caspian depression and his ''Hunnoi'' are first mentioned by Tacitus as being near the Caspian Sea in 91 CE. By CE 139, the geographer Ptolemy writes that the "Huni" (''Χοῦνοι'' or ''Χουνοἰ'') are between the Bastarnae and the Rhoxolani in the Pontic area under the rule of ''Suni''. He lists the beginning of the 2nd century, although it is not known for certain if these people were the Huns. It is possible that the similarity between the names "Huni" (''Χοῦνοι'') and "Hunnoi" (''Ουννοι'') is only a coincidence considering that while the Western Roman Empire often wrote Chunni or Chuni, the Byzantine Empire never used the guttural ''Χ'' at the beginning of the name.<ref name=Thompson1996/>
  
 
By the late 4th century CE Balamber the Kushan had forced them into the southern Ural region where the majority stayed gradually establishing the Finnic areas of Europe and Russia. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humber_the_Hun Humber] the "[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Viking_Expansion.svg Nordic]" Hun who raided Britain was one of their descendants. Only a small fraction of the Uralic Huns actually moved with the Kushans into European Scythia as the Hunugurs (modern [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1469-1809.2000.6420145.x/pdf Örség]). According to the Byzantine History of Priscus, while the hunters of this tribe (Hunor and Magor sons of Nimrod son of Tana) were as usual seeking game on the far bank of Lake Maeotis (Caspian Sea), they saw a deer appear unexpectedly before them and enter the swamp (Volga Delta), leading them on as a guide of the way, now advancing and now standing still. The hunters followed it on foot and crossed the [http://www.parstimes.com/spaceimages/volga_river_delta_lrg.jpg Maeotic swamp (Volga Delta)], which they had thought was as impassable as the sea. When Maeotia, the unknown Scythian land of the [[Alans]] appeared, the deer disappeared. The Huns, who had been completely ignorant that any other world existed beyond the Maeotic swamp, were filled with admiration of the Scythian country, and, since they were quick of mind, believed that the passage, familiar to no previous age, had been shown to them by God. They returned to their own people, told them what had happened, and persuaded them to follow along the way which the deer, as their guide, had shown them. They hastened to Scythia. Soon they crossed the huge swamp and like some tempest overwhelmed the various tribes of the [[Alans]]' Dula to become the 5 Dulo (咄陆) Crimean Hun (Kerami/Kermikhiones) tribes of Kidara.<ref>Priscus, Byzantine History, fragment 10.</ref> This is the basis of both the Hungarian legend of Hunor and Magor inn the  Gesta Ungarorum and Chronicon Pictum as well as the Bulgarian legend of the Martenitsa recorded by Vasil Stanilov.
 
By the late 4th century CE Balamber the Kushan had forced them into the southern Ural region where the majority stayed gradually establishing the Finnic areas of Europe and Russia. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humber_the_Hun Humber] the "[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Viking_Expansion.svg Nordic]" Hun who raided Britain was one of their descendants. Only a small fraction of the Uralic Huns actually moved with the Kushans into European Scythia as the Hunugurs (modern [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1469-1809.2000.6420145.x/pdf Örség]). According to the Byzantine History of Priscus, while the hunters of this tribe (Hunor and Magor sons of Nimrod son of Tana) were as usual seeking game on the far bank of Lake Maeotis (Caspian Sea), they saw a deer appear unexpectedly before them and enter the swamp (Volga Delta), leading them on as a guide of the way, now advancing and now standing still. The hunters followed it on foot and crossed the [http://www.parstimes.com/spaceimages/volga_river_delta_lrg.jpg Maeotic swamp (Volga Delta)], which they had thought was as impassable as the sea. When Maeotia, the unknown Scythian land of the [[Alans]] appeared, the deer disappeared. The Huns, who had been completely ignorant that any other world existed beyond the Maeotic swamp, were filled with admiration of the Scythian country, and, since they were quick of mind, believed that the passage, familiar to no previous age, had been shown to them by God. They returned to their own people, told them what had happened, and persuaded them to follow along the way which the deer, as their guide, had shown them. They hastened to Scythia. Soon they crossed the huge swamp and like some tempest overwhelmed the various tribes of the [[Alans]]' Dula to become the 5 Dulo (咄陆) Crimean Hun (Kerami/Kermikhiones) tribes of Kidara.<ref>Priscus, Byzantine History, fragment 10.</ref> This is the basis of both the Hungarian legend of Hunor and Magor inn the  Gesta Ungarorum and Chronicon Pictum as well as the Bulgarian legend of the Martenitsa recorded by Vasil Stanilov.

Revision as of 21:26, 6 March 2013

The Huns (singular: Kun/Hun/On/Un, meaning "Ten", plural: Kunok/Hunuk/Onoq/Unug, also simply meaning "People") considered themselves to be the "Fist of God", the "Hammer of God", the "Scourge of God" and descendants of the lost "Ten" Tribes of Israel. They were a major component in the proto-Turkic hordes. They organised themselves in Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western camps each corresponding to one of four colours Black, Red, White, and Blue respectively.

The earliest known Hun rulers were Touman (240–209 BC) and Maodun (209–174 BC). When Ban Chao attacked the Xiongnu, Bei Shan-Yu (89–91 CE), migrated to the Caspian depression and his Hunnoi are first mentioned by Tacitus as being near the Caspian Sea in 91 CE. By CE 139, the geographer Ptolemy writes that the "Huni" (Χοῦνοι or Χουνοἰ) are between the Bastarnae and the Rhoxolani in the Pontic area under the rule of Suni. He lists the beginning of the 2nd century, although it is not known for certain if these people were the Huns. It is possible that the similarity between the names "Huni" (Χοῦνοι) and "Hunnoi" (Ουννοι) is only a coincidence considering that while the Western Roman Empire often wrote Chunni or Chuni, the Byzantine Empire never used the guttural Χ at the beginning of the name.[1]

By the late 4th century CE Balamber the Kushan had forced them into the southern Ural region where the majority stayed gradually establishing the Finnic areas of Europe and Russia. Humber the "Nordic" Hun who raided Britain was one of their descendants. Only a small fraction of the Uralic Huns actually moved with the Kushans into European Scythia as the Hunugurs (modern Örség). According to the Byzantine History of Priscus, while the hunters of this tribe (Hunor and Magor sons of Nimrod son of Tana) were as usual seeking game on the far bank of Lake Maeotis (Caspian Sea), they saw a deer appear unexpectedly before them and enter the swamp (Volga Delta), leading them on as a guide of the way, now advancing and now standing still. The hunters followed it on foot and crossed the Maeotic swamp (Volga Delta), which they had thought was as impassable as the sea. When Maeotia, the unknown Scythian land of the Alans appeared, the deer disappeared. The Huns, who had been completely ignorant that any other world existed beyond the Maeotic swamp, were filled with admiration of the Scythian country, and, since they were quick of mind, believed that the passage, familiar to no previous age, had been shown to them by God. They returned to their own people, told them what had happened, and persuaded them to follow along the way which the deer, as their guide, had shown them. They hastened to Scythia. Soon they crossed the huge swamp and like some tempest overwhelmed the various tribes of the Alans' Dula to become the 5 Dulo (咄陆) Crimean Hun (Kerami/Kermikhiones) tribes of Kidara.[2] This is the basis of both the Hungarian legend of Hunor and Magor inn the Gesta Ungarorum and Chronicon Pictum as well as the Bulgarian legend of the Martenitsa recorded by Vasil Stanilov.

The most famous of their clans was the Simeon tribe of the Southern "Red" Kidara or Kermikhiones to which belonged the Great Gahan Bulan of the Khazars who is generally regarded as the founder of Turanian Karaism after he was converted by Isaac Sangari of Khwarezm. Genghis Khan devastated them in an attempt to establish himself as their Chief Priest before he was struck by lightning. In Mediaeval times the Huns were known as Cumans, then after the enlightenment, they were generally known as Polovtsi. Their modern descendants are represented by the speakers of Kipchak languages mostly belong to the Y-DNA Haplogroup R1a meaning that all other R1a people of Eastern Europe also descend from the Polovtsi.

Their religion was Turanian Karaism.
  1. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Thompson1996
  2. Priscus, Byzantine History, fragment 10.