Turco–Mongol tradition facts for kids

The Turco-Mongol tradition was a special mix of cultures that grew in Asia during the 1300s. It happened among the leaders of two big Mongol empires: the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. Over time, the Mongol leaders of these empires started to blend in with the Turkic peoples they had conquered. This is why they became known as Turco-Mongols.

These leaders slowly started to follow Islam. They also began speaking Turkic languages. But they still kept many of their old Mongol ways of ruling and their laws.

The Turco-Mongols later created many new Islamic empires after the Mongol empires broke apart. Some of these were the Kazakh Khanate and the Tatar khanates (like the Crimean Khanate and Khanate of Kazan). The Timurid Empire also rose in Central Asia after the Chagatai Khanate.

A Turco-Mongol prince named Babur (who lived from 1483 to 1530) was a great-great-great-grandson of Timur. He founded the Mughal Empire, which ruled almost all of India. Turks and Tatars also ruled parts of Egypt as part of the Mamluk Sultanate.

One place where Turkic-Mongol traditions were very strong was the Yenisei Kingdom. Its ruling family came from the Melig line, who were descendants of Ögedei Khan and were Muslims. Many Turkic groups lived under their rule, like the Teleuts, Kimeks, Kipchaks, Altaians, Kyrgyzs, and Naymans.

These Turco-Mongol leaders also supported the Turco-Persian tradition. This was the main culture among Muslims in Central Asia at that time. In later centuries, the Turco-Mongols spread this culture to other areas. It became the main culture for the rulers and important people in places like North India (the Mughal Empire), Central Asia, the Tarim Basin (in Northwest China), and large parts of West Asia (Middle East).

How Languages Blended

Before Genghis Khan's time, Turkic and Mongolic peoples often shared words. Turkic languages gave more words to Mongolic languages. For a very long time, Turkic and Mongolic languages borrowed words from each other. They also shared similar ways of speaking, like how sounds work and how sentences are put together.

These similarities once made people think that Turkic and Mongolic languages came from the same family, called the Altaic language family. But now, many experts believe these similarities are mostly from a long time of contact. It's like how neighbors might start using some of the same words or phrases.

After the Mongol conquests, the Mongol leaders in the new empires started to blend with the people they ruled. The Golden Horde was a mix of Turks and Mongols. They later became Muslims. There were also smaller groups like Finno-Ugric peoples, Sarmato-Scythians, and Slavs.

Most people in the Horde were Turkic. They included Kipchaks, Cumans, Volga Bulgars, and others. The Horde slowly became more Turkic and lost its Mongol identity. The descendants of Batu's first Mongol warriors were the upper class. Russians and other Europeans often called them Tatars. Most of these people saw themselves as Muslims. Most people, both those who settled down and those who moved around, started speaking the Kipchak language. This language later became the basis for many regional Turkic languages.

In the Chagatai Khanate, the Turkic language adopted by the Mongol leaders was called the Chagatai language. This language came from the Karluk Turkic group. The Chagatai language was the main language of the Timurid dynasty. This Turco-Mongol family took power in Central Asia after the Chagatai khans became weaker. Chagatai is the ancestor of modern Karluk Turkic languages, like Uzbek and Uyghur.

The Shift to Islam

In the early days of the Mongol conquests, the Mongols, including Genghis Khan, mostly followed Tengrism. This was an ancient religion of Central Asia. However, the new empires that came after the Mongol Empire – the Ilkhanate, Golden Horde, and Chagatai Khanate – ruled over many Muslim people. The Ilkhanate and Chagatai Khanate especially ruled over areas where most people were Muslim, like Iran and Central Asia.

In the Golden Horde, Uzbeg became ruler in 1313. He made Islam the official religion of his state. He stopped Mongols in Russia from practicing Buddhism and Shamanism. By 1315, Uzbeg had successfully made the Horde Islamic. He even removed Mongol princes and Buddhist lamas who were against his religious changes. Uzbeg Khan continued to be friends with the Mamluks, just like earlier rulers. He kept a good relationship with the Mamluk Sultan in Cairo.

To help Islam grow, the Mongols built mosques and other important buildings. These places often had baths, which were a key part of Muslim culture. The city of Sarai, the capital, attracted traders from other countries. The slave trade also grew because of strong ties with the Mamluk Sultanate. As wealth and demand for goods increased, Sarai grew. It became a large Muslim center.

In the Chagatai Khanate, Mubarak Shah became Muslim. Over time, all the Chagatai leaders became Muslim. The Chagatai Khanate was later replaced by the Timurid Empire in Central Asia. This empire was founded by the Turco-Mongol warrior Timur. Timur used Islamic symbols and language to make his conquests seem right. He called himself the "Sword of Islam." He also supported schools and religious places. He made almost all the Mongol leaders who were part of the Borjigin family become Muslim during his lifetime. Timur famously defeated the Christian Knights Hospitaller at the Siege of Smyrna, calling himself a ghazi (a warrior for Islam).

See also

In Spanish: Turcomongol para niños