Arrival of the Turks in Anatolia

In the early 11th century, a new people began attacking Byzantine territory from the east .They had originally come from Mongolia,North China and Siberia in the 7th or 8th century .The grasslands there were important to establishing a horse riding, warrior society .The Chinese called them 'Tu-kueh' or (Tujue in PinYin) and may have been related to the Xiongnu . The word Tu-Kueh was said to have derived from a hill shaped like a helmet in their domains. They were mostly Shamanistic and some used the symbol of the star and crescent in their worship of sun, moon, and sky gods. The first Turkic tribe known to use the name "Turk" as a political name were known as the Göktürksi .

marble head of the Göktürk general Kul Tigin (8th century AD), Mongolia

They were forced by population pressure, climate change, infighting and the Chinese empire to migrate westward .  Early in the 8th century some tribes starting going west and were collectively known as the Oghuz. and led mostly of chieftans or beys of the Seljuk clan.  The turks, from the 9th century began to renounce their pagan beliefs and convert to Islam.

By the 10th century most of Central Asia, formerly dominated by Iranian peoples, and later Arab Moslem armies,was settled by Turkic tribes. The Arabs of the Abbasid Caliphate, recognizing them as formidable warriors, recruited them into their armies and converted them to Islam and by the end of the 9th century most military commands and political positions were held by Moslem Turks. As the Abbasid Caliphate waned, the Seljuks formed their own Islamic state based on the traditions of the Abbasid Caliphate. Unlike other nomadic conquerers such as the Huns and Mongols, the Seljuks were able transform their culture to a sedentary life over time, although there still remained a large population of nomadic Turks, some still pagan, known as Turcomans. The Seljuks took advantage of this warrior zeal of these nomadic tribes, especially the Ghazi or holy Islmamic warriors by giving the Turkish tribes land close to weaken the Byzantine Empire to keep them from pillaging Moslem lands to the west. Ghazi warriors had the zeal of new converts, but many only had a vauge notion of Islam and were motivated by plunder. the Byzantine Emperor Romanus IV Diogenes had enough of these incursions and led an army to retaliateand fought a major battle against the Seljuk sultan Alp Arslan (brave lion ) at Manzikert .

Seljuk kervansaray in Turkey. Trade was revived and the Seljuks protected trade with fortified caravan stops ( kervansaray ) . The Seljuks also benifited from a silver boom which helped expand trade.

The Selkuks won a major battle over the Byzantines at the battle of Manzikert in 1071 in which the Byzantine  emperor was captured (later released). .A branch of the Seljuks established the Sultanate of Rum in central Anatolia with their capital at Konya. By 1176, after the battle of Myriokephalo, this new state came to terms with the Byzantines .The Sultanate of Rum ( in Arabic they were called 'ceasars of rome since they controlled a part of the Byzantine Empire) evolved into highly cultured state with kervansarays  or caravanserai ( fortified caravan stops) medreses (religious schools) and other works and was where Celalddin Rumi founded the Melevi Dervish order . The Seljuks reached their zenith in the first half of the 13th century.

The Star and Crescent symbol

early flag of the Ottoman Empire

The Tale of Dede Korkut

The epic story of the forerunners of the Ottomans, the Oghuz Turks. A collection of 12 stories , the stories combine elements of pre-Islamic nomadic society with the later Islamic culture. From the racy and colloquial to the poetic and dignified, the stories bring to life a wild society and its unforgettable characters - the near-legendary Dede Korkut, soothsayer and bard, the chivalrous Beyrek, the unpredictable crazy Karchar, Goggle Eye the monster and Boghazja Fatima of the 40 lovers.

However, soon the Mongols exploded on the scene and smashed the Seljuk armies reinforced with Byzantine auxiliaries at the battle of Kose Dag in 1243. The Seljuks became vassals of a Mongol protectorate ruled by Hulagu. Mongol power lasted only a generation.The Seljuks lingered on until the turn of the century, the Turkish tribes took  advantage of the situation to swarm over the land of the Seljuks and the Byzantines. Following the collapse of the Seljuks, Anotolia fragmented into 10 small states called emirates .

The equestrian team sport of

 Çavgan was popular in the Ottoman Empire.Riders use blunt javelins to throw at each other,each hit earning one point.

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