Legends of the Caucasus

David Hunt

• Publisher: Saqi Books
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780863564734
• eBook ISBN: 9780863568237
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Poetry
• Index: Literature

The Caucasus has an extremely rich folk literature, almost unknown among English speakers, which includes myths, legends, magical tales, anecdotes and proverbs. The one hundred and one legends included in this book reflect the cultures of fourteen different ethnic groups - their dynamism and the matters that concerned them: survival against external dangers, the risk of starvation and the persistence of the family or clan as a coordinated group. Descended from an oral tradition, much of their knowledge was retained in memories and passed down the generations. Yet, with the introduction of the alphabet, the way of life they portray is rapidly becoming extinct. An incomparable collection, Legends of the Caucasus conveys the poetry and romance of these swiftly vanishing tribes.

I

Historical–Political Legends

It is no exaggeration to say that the epic saga of Edige is one of the world’s cultural treasures. For the Turkish people of West Asia in general, and for the Nogay people in particular, it is a national epic that can be compared with the West European Arthurian romances, the English Beowulf and the Finnish Kalevala.

The saga of Edige deals with real historical characters and events that took place at the turn of the fifteenth century. Since that time the plot has diverged somewhat from the actual recorded history.

There follows some information about the actual people and places mentioned. Much of this information was obtained from Karl Reichl’s outstanding book Edige: A Karakalpak Oral Epic. Reichl’s book gives the complete recorded text and a translation of a version of the Edige epic recorded among the Karakalpak people; these and other ethnic groups were once part of the Nogay Horde and, according to Reichl, versions of the Edige epic have been recorded among the Nogay, Kazakh, Karakalpak, Tatar and Bashkir in their native tongues (Reichl 2007, 32).

The saga of Edige is an epic biography of a leader of the Nogay Horde of western Asia. It describes his humble beginnings and his rise to power, which included the overthrow of the previous leader, Khan Tokhtamysh. Although the background facts are political and historical, the story deals more particularly with Edige’s human and familial relations. The Nogay Horde was formed from the remnants of the Golden Horde, which disintegrated after the defeat of Khan Tokhtamysh.

KHAN TOKHTAMYSH AND THE GOLDEN HORDE

Khan Tokhtamysh was of Mongolian origin, descended from Chingis Khan himself via his fourth son Jochi, although the details of his descent are uncertain. He was the last Khan of the Golden Horde, whose domains extended from the Crimea in the West to near Lake Balkash in the East. Besides the territory of present-day Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, they also controlled Southern Russia and the Ukraine. According to one account, the epithet ‘golden’ was coined by envoys from the West who were struck by the magnificence of the gold decorations on the dwelling of the khan (Reichl 2007, 22). An alternative explanation is that the various Hordes used colours to signify the cardinal directions: black for north, blue for east, red for south, white for west and golden for central (Internet: Nationmaster Encyclopedia: Golden-Horde). Although the leaders of the Golden Horde were of Mongolian origin, the majority of the population was of Turkic origin, with Turkic influence gradually increasing, and by the fourteenth century the language of the Golden Horde was Kipchak Turkic. These Turkic people were usually referred to in Russian epics as ‘Polovtsy’. Khan Tokhtamysh’s military campaigns included the sacking of Moscow in 1382, an invasion of Persia in 1385, and an invasion in 1387 of Transoxiana, which was the domain of Timur, his former ally.

The Golden Horde began its decline with the Black Death and a serious defeat by Russian forces at the Battle of Kulikovo Polye in 1380; and Tokhtamysh was conclusively defeated by his former ally Timur (Tamerlane) at the River Terek in the North Caucasus in 1395, with a further defeat at the Battle of Vorskla River by Edige and Khan Temir Qutlugh in 1399. He was finally killed during the winter of 1406–1407 by Tokhtamysh’s successor, Khan Shadi Beg. In the Battle of Vorskla River, the Khan of the Golden Horde, Temir Qutlugh, was killed and he was succeeded by Shadi Beg. However, Edige wielded the real power in the Golden Horde as emir. During the fifteenth century the Golden Horde gradually disintegrated into various groups, one of which was the Nogay Horde, of which Edige is considered to be the founder. Edige himself was a Nogay, and the name Nogay is taken from a previous powerful emir of the Golden Horde. Historical sources say that Edige was killed in 1419 by Qadir Berdi, a son of Tokhtamysh.

One of the most important historical characters that appears in the epic is Timur the Lame (Tamerlane or Temir), named here as Khan Shatemir. He and Tokhtamysh had been allies until the two came to clash over their rival territorial ambitions in Persia and the Persian Empire. Tamerlane emerged as the eventual winner. Tokhtamysh’s overwhelming defeat at the Battle of the Vorskla River was conducted by Tamerlane’s forces under the command of Edige and Khan Temir Qutlugh.

The capital of the Golden Horde was established on the River Volga at Saray Batu, also known as Old Saray. It is thought that it was located on what is now the Akhtuba Channel of the Lower Volga near the present village of Selitryannoye, about 120 km north of Astrakhan. The capital was later moved upstream to New Saray (Saray Berke), which was possibly on the same channel, about 55 km south of Volgograd.

1. Edige (Nogay)

A certain poor shepherd used to graze his sheep on the steppe. One day he came across the skull of a man. After turning it over with his stick, the shepherd noticed an inscription on the skull’s forehead.

The shepherd was illiterate. Putting the skull on his stick, he brought it into the aul and showed it to a certain literate man. The inscription ran: ‘Before death I killed ten thousand men, after death I will kill only forty.’

The shepherd was surprised. He brought the skull home and smashed it into little bits with a hammer. Then, after turning them into flour, he wrapped it in a rag and gave it to his wife for safe-keeping. He gave it to her but did not tell her where the flour came from.

In an hour when there was nobody at home, the shepherd’s daughter opened the chest where they kept the little bundle and unwrapped it. On seeing the white flour, the girl tasted it with her tongue and she became pregnant.

Her time came, and she gave birth to a boy, to whom they gave the name of Barkaya.

The boy grew very fast and soon became more intelligent and stronger than all of his contemporaries.

The years passed. And a khan was the ruler in that region. And one night he had a dream: in it he was riding on his favourite racehorse, and suddenly forty savage dogs surrounded him. After dividing u...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Contents
• Introduction
• I Historical–Political Legends
• II Resistance to Foreign Invaders
• III Resistance to Feudal Oppression
• IV Rustling, Stealing of Animals
• V Warriors, Including Blood Revenge
• VI Hunting
• VII Legends About Shepherds, Including Cyclops Legends
• VIII Abundance
• IX Family and Personal Honour
• X Relations Within the Family
• XI Religion and Relations With the Dead
• XII Prometheus Legends
• Appendix
• Glossary
• References
• Copyright