Colette's Grand Detour

Something that has taken me a long time to get my head around has been who were the Turkic people originally and where and how did they spread across Asia over many centuries. Their ancestors pop up in basically every dynasty, empire and khaganate across the continent so it feels important to outline exactly who they were and who they became. I thought I had left behind my somewhat confused historical timeline when I departed Uzbekistan a few days ago. But they have cropped up again in Datong, so I thought I would organise a timeline once and for all, for my own sanity.

1. The birth of the ‘Turks’ (6th century) – The Ashina clan rebels against their overlords – the Rouran, and the Gokturks establish the First Turkic Khaganate, officially calling itself Turuk. They are based in Mongolia and the Altai Mountains and they control the silk road trade from Manchuria all the way to the Caspian Sea.
2. After the Gokturks (7th – 9th century) – The Khaganate splits into Eastern Turks (Mongolia) and Western Turks (Central Asia). The Uygher Khaganate topples the Eastern Turks. The Western Turks split into the Karluks and Oghuz Turks in Central Asia. By the 9th century, the name Turk can be applied to be many steppe tribes from Mongolia, to Kazakhstan to Iran.
3. Turks move into the Islamic World (10th – 11th century) – The Karakhanids are established – the first Turkic Muslim dynasty in Central Asia. The Ghazanavids and Seljuks, who originate from the Oghuz Turks, build empires in Persia, Iraq and Anatolia. The Seljuks defeat the Byzantines, opening up Anatolia to Turkic migration. Turk now means Muslim warrior-nomads in Persian and Arabic texts.
4. From Central Asia to Anatolia (11th – 15th century) – The Anatolian Seljuks lay the foundations for modern-day Turkey. The Khwarazmian Empire is a Turkic dynasty in Persia and Central Asia. And the Mamluks of Egypt take power, many of whom were of Kipchak Turkic origin. The Turkic identity now stretches from Xinjiang (China), to the Middle East and Eastern Europe.
5. The Mongol Era (13th – 14th century) – Mongol conquests absorb many Turkic groups. The Mongol successor states (Golden Horde, Chagatai, Ilkhanate, Yuan) are Turko-Mongol hybrids. Over time many Mongols are Turkicized, adopting language and culture.
6. Rise of the Ottomans (14th – 20th century) – Ottoman Turks emerge, originating from the Oghuz Turks in Anatolia. They expand into the Balkans, Middle East and North Africa. Turk in Europe has now come to specifically reference Ottomans rather than Central Asia nomads.
7. The Modern Turkic World (20th – 21st century) – Today Turkic refers to a language family and a culture spanning across Eurasia. In Turkey, we have the legacy of the Ottomans and the Seljuks. In Central Asia, we have the Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Turkmen and Kyrgyz. In Xinjiang, the Uyghers. In Russia and the Caucasus, the Tatars, Bashkirs, Chuvash and Azerbaijanis. A total of 170 million Turkic language speakers are spread from Siberia through to the Mediterranean.

This timeline is simplified and there are lots more smaller dynasties and sub-groups. But at a high level this provides the big picture timeline and has clarified a lot of things for me.