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Medieval India and China HIS/276 GLOBAL CIVILIZATIONS 1400 TO 1700 June 23, 2010 Central Asia Nomads, Turks and Mongols During the tenth through fourteenth centuries, Central Asian nomads made a huge impact on the Central Asian area. Some took control of northern China, where they formed empires and dynasties there. Others were much smaller and basically made up tribes or clans. One of these was the Seljuk Turks, conquered Islamic Southwest Asia, embraced the Islamic faith, and sparked a series of conflicts with the Christian world. Later, the Mongols, led by Genghis Khan and his heirs afterwards, overran most of Eurasia, and created one of the largest land empires ever. Over time, these conquerors adopted many practices of the societies they conquered. They also expanded commerce and helped spread ideas, technologies, and weapons. The Turks The Turks were a group of nomadic people who wandered Central Asia. They were the first Inner Asian people to leave a written record of their language. The Turkic language is thought to have been spoken in areas of the Steppe, which was also known as “the arid grasslands.” The religion of the Turks was originally shamanistic and worshipped Heaven, which was similar to other groups in the steppe area. Mongols Herding was the main way of life for most Central Asian nomadic tribes and clans including the Mongols. These pastoral nomads were herders and moved in search of fresh grasslands, areas where their herds could pasture. Once the nomads found grounds for grazing, they set-up camp, which would become small villages. Generally, they would move twice a year or when the grassland became depleted. The Mongols mainly ate meat, milk, cheese, and butter, and clothed themselves largely with fleeces and hides, supplied by their herds. To protect themselves from the elements, they built large tents, known as yurts, which were made from matted wool and animal hair and were greased to repel water. They even collected the animals’ manure and used it as fuel for fire, which was used for warmth and cooking. Many Mongol tribes raised cattle, kept goats, and used camels for overland trade, but mostly the nomads livelihoods depended on horses and sheep. Sheep were mainly used for their meat, milk, and wool but also because they were better survivors than cattle on the sparse vegetation of the steppes. Horses were mainly used for hunting, herding sheep, and pulling carts that carried supplies when the Mongols moved onto the next grassland. Mare’s milk was preserved by fermenting it into an alcoholic beverage they called kumiss, but horses were also used as a source of food from time to time. The frequent movement of the nomads often led to clashes for the grasslands. Horses were a key component in winning battles. This was especially true during famines and droughts, when food and grazing grounds were scarce. Mongols used horses and the mounted nomads fought each other for the scarce pasturelands and often traveled into farming regions to raid villages and towns. Many times the conquered would join up with the Mongols and work as farmers or could prove themselves worthy and become part of the warrior army. Survival was dependent on both groups being mobile and their ability to fight, which turned the nomadic groups into warrior societies. The men spent most of their time in the saddle from an early age when they learned to eat, sleep, hunt, herd, fight, and raid on horseback. They trained to ride for days on end without food or rest, to attack as a team, and to fight without fear. Stirrups gave the warriors a notable advantage over there rivals. The stirrups secured the feet of the riders, and allowed them to stand and maneuver while moving at high speed. This enabled the mounted warriors to load and reload their bows and fire their arrows in any direction with a high rate of accuracy. Even when facing large armies the nomadic warriors would prevail because of the bow and arrow advantage. Social Climate Family and societal structure was set-up to meet the needs of nomadic life. Social status, gender roles, government, and religion were all a byproduct of the culture, which focused on mobility, resourcefulness, and warfare. Women also had a prominent role in society. They managed the camps when the men traveled in pursuit of new land or to hunt, raid, and fight. Women tended to the campfires and gathered the manure that fueled the flames. They sheared the sheep and goats, and used the fleeces, furs and hide that the men brought back from a hunt. The animal products were used to make essential items such as clothing, mats, rugs, and the yurts. Women bred the sheep and horses, helped them give birth, milked them, and used the milk to make butter, cheese, and kumiss. Plus they bore and cared for the children. Political Climate Central Asian marriages were arranged by parents, often to enhance family status or to form political ties. Prominent warriors typically took several wives, and usually had a separate tent and household for each. The leading warriors were considered a kind of nobility, but their social status depended more on military prowess than heredity. Status could improve based on acts of bravery or leadership in combat or could decline because of the lack of such instances. Central Asian nomads organized into clans and tribes were small enough to maintain mobility without the need for complex governance systems. Although Turks had overlords they were never able to unite into a political unit. However, the Mongols formed larger federations linking many tribes for political and military purposes. These federations were typically led by a regional overlord called the “khan,” who exercised broad authority but was expected to consult regularly with a council of tribal leaders and gain its approval for his decisions. Religious Climate Central Asian spirituality centered for centuries on shamanism. This was a form of religion in which spiritual leaders called shamans performed elaborate rituals and induced trances in efforts to communicate with spirits, heal the sick, forecast the future, and influence events. Typically consulted by tribal leaders facing major decisions, such as when to do battle or whom to select as khan, shamans often played a crucial role in nomadic cultures. Eventually, however, as the nomadic tribes adopted various forms of Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam through contact with settled societies, shamans lost much of their clout. Turks were much slower to convert since they had the belief in the caste system, while Mongols were open to other religions. Influence Initially the impact of the Mongol onslaught was widespread devastation. Across Eurasia hundreds of cities and towns were leveled, thousands of farmlands were ruined, and millions of people were killed. Some say the population of China dropped by 40 percent, from around 100 million to about 60 million, during the decades of Mongol rule and invasion. Southwest Asia was hit especially hard, pillaged first by the Turks and then by the Mongols. Many of the region’s great cities were destroyed, and several decades passed before the farmland could recover from the damage done to irrigation. In the long run, the main impact of the Mongol era was increased integration throughout Eurasia. Through this connection between distant and diverse regions under one common rule, the Mongols promoted trade and travel from one end of Eurasia to the other. This vastly enhanced the exchange of goods, ideas, and technologies. However, this also caused the widespread of disease among the societies. Conclusion The nomadic conquests of the Turks and Mongols transformed the nomads and facilitated the triumph of the settled societies. As time passed, the nomadic societies adopted many customs and practices of the conquered cultures, including governance structures, economic patterns, and religious beliefs. By the time their empires were finally overthrown, the former nomads had themselves become more settled and cosmopolitan, with most people forsaking their original tribal ways. Furthermore, by forcibly uniting large parts of Eurasia under their rule, the Turks and Mongols fostered connections that eventually would strengthen the settled societies. Through the growth of east-west commerce and the spread of technologies such as printing and gunpowder, the nomadic conquests eventually enhanced the wealth and power of both the Muslim and the Christian worlds. References McKay, J.P., Hill, B.D., & Buckler, J. (2007). A History of World Societies (7th ed.). Boston MA; Houghton Mifflin Company.