Appendix 1: Glossary

abu [abū]

father of …; often used as main form of address. Compare bin, ibn, b.

amir

noble, lord or prince; a title of Arabic and Persian origin

amir al-omara

commander-in-chief

anda

brother-by-oath, blood brother; the strong pact made between Mongol friends vowing loyalty and support

appanage

land or other provisions granted by a king for the support of a member of the royal family

aqa

elder brother, with the connotation of ‘senior prince’; aqa and ini, all the family including elder and younger brothers or by implication, princes; also title for a noble, e.g. Arghun Aqa

arban

ten men

arka’un

Christian, particularly Nestorian

atabeg

local ruler; originally this term denoted the personal tutor and guardian of a royal prince

ayqaq

informant, denouncer

Ayyubids

Kurdish sultans who ruled in Syria and Iraq and dominated the Islamic world between 1169 and 1260. Saladin [Salah al-Din d.1193] is the most famous of the Ayyubids for his seizure of Jerusalem and his final defeat of the Fatimids as well as his justice and wisdom

bahadur

hero, brave warrior; often used as a title

bakhshi [baksi]

Buddhist teacher, priest, sage

balish

bar, ingot; the Mongol unit of gold and silver currency

barat

unauthorised payment by cheque, which was usually a worthless scrap of paper

basqaq

[Turkish] overseer appointed by the Great Khan or Ilkhan to manage provincial administrations; also darugha, darughachi [Mongol]; shaḥna [Arabo-Persian]

baṭin

esoteric interpretation of Islam, hidden, secret, for the initiated only

beg

tribal leader, prince [Turkish], lord

bilig

saying, maxim

bin, ibn, b.

son of

bint, bt.

daughter of

bocca

large headdress worn by Mongol ladies

cangue

wooden implement of punishment and restraint that traps the hands and head in a vice

canzhi zhengshi

assistant chancellor

chao

Chinese paper money, also used in Ilkhanate in 1290s

danishmand

learned scholar; often used to mean Muslim cleric

Daoism [Taoism]

teachings based on the Daodejing and Zhuangzi, celebrating the merits of inaction, mysticism and contemplation

Dar al-Harb

‘abode of war’; all territory not under Islamic law

Dar al-Islam

‘abode of Islam’; all lands under Islamic law

darugha, darughachi

see basqaq [Turkish]; darugha, darughachi [Mongol]

diwan, dargah

[Persian] royal court

elchi, ilchi

envoy, ambassador, representative

farr

[Persian] majesty, nobility

farsang/parsang/

farsakh

6.42 km

fatwa

Islamic legal ruling

fida’i

Islamic warrior, holy warrior, ghazi

ger

yurt; a tent made with cloth and wooden frame as support

ghazi

holy Islamic warrior or fighter who has declared war on infidels

ghulam

see mamluk

Gog and Magog

devils who at the end of time will wage war on the Christian Church but who will finally be destroyed by the forces of God (Book of Revelation [20: 8–10]); a prince and the land from which he comes to attack Israel (Ezekiel 38)

gurkhan

leader of a clan or tribe; used as a title

Il, el

Turco-Mongol for ‘friendly’, ‘at peace’, ‘submissive’; as opposed to bulgha ‘at war’, ‘rebellious’

ini

younger brother or prince; aqa and ini, all the family including elder and younger brothers or by implication, princes

inju

Mongol crown lands

iqtaʿ [iqṭa]

assignment of land or its revenue

iqtadar

holder or controller of an iqtaʿ

jaghun

100 men

jahiliya

the world of ignorance before the revelations of the Prophet and the Qur’an

jihad/jihadist

jihad means ‘holy war’ and is understood to be either the ‘greater jihad’ where evil is confronted within the believer’s heart, or the ‘lesser jihad’, war against those who would oppress Muslims or occupy their lands. Jihadists are those who believe in perpetual ‘holy war’ against the infidel

jinshi degree

‘advanced scholar’, a graduate who passed the triennial court exam

juyin

subject tribal army employed by Jin to enforce their rule over the steppe

keshig

imperial guard

khan, Great Khan, Qa’an

lord, noble; also used as a title. The Great Khan or Qa’an was the ruling khan or emperor of the Mongol Empire

khanaqah, khangah

hospices, retreats or monasteries for Sufis, sometimes open to the public

khatun

lady; title given to a woman of noble birth

khil^cat

robe of honour

Khorasan

province of north-east Greater Iran

khutba

Friday sermon given by the head Imam of the mosque. This was very important because blessings were traditionally invoked for the current ruler, thus any changes in regime or dynasty would be announced in the Friday khutba

kulugs

pillars of support, principle wives

malik

local king or ruler

mamluk

slave soldier; mamluks were often captured as children during battles or raids on Central Asian, Caucasian, Anatolian and African territory and brought up in military camps as Muslims and soldiers. The ‘Mamluks’ were the ruling elite of Egypt from 1250 to 1517. Their armies defeated the Mongols in 1260 at Ayn Jalut

mangonel

war engine for throwing stones and rocks, giant catapult

mingghan

1,000 men

mtavaris

Georgian community leaders

mustawfi

revenue accountant

nadim

‘boon companion’, trusted drinking companion

nasij

gold and silk brocade and embroidery

nerge

elaborate ‘hunt’ of the Mongols that also served as military training

Nestorian Christianity

Eastern Christian Church with followers in China, Central Asia and among the Mongols

nisba

part of Islamic name denoting region or place of origin

noker

ally, close friend; later it came to imply more ‘follower’. Used in Mongolian, Turkish, and Persian, hence the variety of spellings

noyan, pl. noyat

Mongol general or noble; pl. Mongol military elite

nuur

lake [Turco-Mongol]

oghul

son [Turkish]; applied as a title to Mongol princes of the blood

ongghot

images of family ancestors retained within the tent home for worship

ordu

Mongol camp

ortaq

merchant in partnership with a prince or high government official

padeshah

Persian king

paiza

like a laissez-passer, Marco Polo’s ‘tablet of authority’, which facilitated travel and ensured favourable treatment. From Chinese: paizi

pervana

Mongol appointed governor of Sultanate of Rum

pinzhang zhengshi

manager of secretariat

Prester John

a legend that grew among the Crusader States of an eastern Christian king who would come from the east and defeat the Muslim sultanates on the way to rescuing the besieged Crusader States of Palestine

Qa’an

Great Khan; often used alone with reference to Ogodai

qadi

Islamic judge

qalandar

wandering dervish

qanat

underground canal system still operating in Iran and Afghanistan

qorchi

quiver, quiver-bearer

qubchur

Mongol all-purpose tax, poll-tax

qumis, qumiss

alcoholic drink fermented from mare’s milk, very popular with the Mongols

quriltai

Mongol assembly of khans, princes and nobles

Rasadkhana

observatory at Maragheh, north-west Iran, built by Hulegu for Tusi

Rum

Anatolia, modern-day Turkey

sahib diwan

chief minister, prime minister, grand vizier

Saracen

commonly used in Christian sources to mean Muslim

Semuren

Turks, Uyghurs, and other non-Turco-Mongols who joined the early Chinggisid Empire

shaḥna

overseer; also basqaq [Turkish]

shaman

steppe holy man or divinator; also boge

Shiʿism/Shiʿa/

Shiʿites

major branch of Islam that recognises 12 holy Imams descending from ʿAli and the Prophet’s daughter Fatima; aka ‘12ers’

sinicise

to manifest the influence and infiltration of Chinese culture

steppe and sown

(or settled)

term used to contrast nomads with the steppe lands with their settle, urbanised or agriculturalist neighbours

Sufism

mystical branch of Islam that blossomed under the Ilkhans in particular

Sunni

branch of Islam practised by the majority of the world’s Muslims; they recognise the primacy of the Sunna, the Qur’an, the Hadith and the example set by the Prophet, Mohammad

supratribal polity

amalgamation or federation of tribes working towards a common objective

tamgha

vermillion seal of authentication attached to documents by the Mongols

tamma system

army of contingents allotted from the total available Mongol manpower whose aim was to maintain and extend Mongol rule in conquered territory

tanistry

system of succession where the leadership went to the most powerful

taqiyya

dissimulation, or the option to deny your religion and true beliefs should you feel yourself in danger or threatened

Tenggeri

heaven

Tenggerism or Heavenism

development of Mongols’ basic religious beliefs

tulughma

military tactic of encirclement and frontal, shielded attack

tuman

10,000

Turan

traditionally the lands of Turkestan north of the River Oxus [Amū Darya] facing Iran, the lands of Persia south of this once mighty river

Turkestan

the lands of Central Asia including Xinjiang province in western China, most of whose people speak Turkic languages

ulema

religious classes, Islamic scholars

ultimogeniture/ primogeniture

rights of the last born/first born

ulus

allotment of people and tribes granted to Mongol princes; early division of the Empire

vizier

government minister, top adviser

waqf

Islamic endowment

wu xing

five traditional forms of Chinese punishment: strangulation or decapitation; life exile; imprisonment; beating with heavy stick; beating with light stick

yaghlamishi

‘thumb-greasing’; a Mongol rite observed after a boy’s first successful hunt

yam

Mongol postal system comprising relay stations equipped with food, accommodation and horses

yarghu, yarghuchi

Mongol court of interrogation and its officials

yarligh or yarliq

Mongol edict, legal ruling

yasa and yosun

traditional Mongol laws and customs

yasal

ordinance

yurt

ger; tent made with material, often felt, with wooden frame support