Economical Life
Literary Culture and Art
Early Turkic States
Culture and Organisation in the Steppe Lands
Issue about the Origin of Steppe Culture
Subtopics
Steppe CultureAs it has been observed so far, this stage of the Turkish history took place mostly in the steppe lands of "Eurasia" Considering the influence of the…Scythian TheoryIssue about the Origin of Steppe CultureIndo-Germanic TheoryThis theory is very widespread and diffused in the West and it can be considered as the continuation of the influence of "Arianism". This theory alleg…Altay TheoryThe issue about the origin of Steppe culture by the Proto-Turks (ancestors of Turks) in the plateaux of the Altay Mountains was alleged by the "Vienna…Origination Period of Steppe CultureThe theories about the origin of this culture give us the opportunity to determine the approximate history about the origination of the culture. Accor…Social StructureThe classifications about the social structure of the ancient Turkish community that have been made so far are in contradiction with one another in re…Concept of IndependenceAs it has been known, the actual independence of the state comes into existence not only with the desire of the administrative body, but also with the…Concept of CountryThe country is the specific geographical region in which each independent state can execute its rights and obligations in an absolute manner and a nat…Element of Human BeingIt is difficult to imagine the existence of the political independence and the freedom of labour in the communities that considered the state as the u…Kara BudunIn respect of the explanations about the Steppe Turkish "Il" (State), we should deal with the issues of "kara-bodun; Tarhanlik" and "Orun-ulus" in bri…Institution of Tore (Tradition) in Turkish CultureThe word of töre has been defined as the most important place and sofa of a house in the work titled as Divanü Lûgati't-Türk. However, the word is wri…SovereigntyIn accordance with the general definition, the state is a high social order with the joint enforcement of the powers and authorities of legislation an…RulerThe rulers in the Steppe Turkish states have used various titles: Tan-hu (or Şan-yu), Kagan, kan (han), yangu, Il-teber, etc. The ones that were most…Dual OrganisationThe lands were divided into two administrative regions in the ancient Turkish state: Right-left, north-south, east-west, ak (=white) (sarı=yellow)-kar…Issue about the "Dual Kingdom"The dual organisation that was observed in the Turkish political institutions caused the emergence of a theory that was called as "dual kingdom". Acco…Political ActivitiesThe management of foreign affairs that administered the diplomatic relations was one of the most important offices within the Great Turkish Empires. A…Administration of JusticeWe do not have sufficient information about the persona land penal provisions of the laws and the judgement procedures and types among the ancient Tur…ArmyNearly each Turk was considered as a warrior and the military service was not considered as a separate profession in the Steppe Turkish states. Theref…Turan TacticDue to the speed that they acquired with their forces, the Turkish war troops that were composed of archer cavalry men had always overcome the foreign…ReligionWe have stated the Steppe Turkish people constituted a community with a political character in respect of the social contents and the religious leader…Issue of TotemismIt has been alleged that there was totemism among the ancient Turks and evidences for this allegation included the consideration of the wolf as the an…Issue of ShamanismIt has become a tradition to relate the religious beliefs in the Steppe lands with the religion of Shamanism. The conviction that the ancient Turkish…Belief in the Natural ForcesThe ancient Turks believed that there were some latent forces in the nature: mountains, hills, rocks, valleys, rivers, water springs, trees, forests,…Cult of AncestorsThe reverence for the late celebrities and the respect for the ancestors were considered as the indicators of the patriarchal domination in the field…Religion of Gok-Tanri (Sky-God)This was the main religion of the Steppe Turkish communities. This system of beliefs did not have any relation with any other tribes in the period of…Other ReligionsVarious Turkish communities in the history had adopted several religions in accordance with the environments that they were in and this situation had…Horse and SheepHorse and Sheep The Steppe Turkish economy was not based on the forests and deserts. As required by the climate conditions of the steppe geography tha…NutritionThe fundamental food of the Steppe Turks was meat in the beginning. They would mostly eat horseflesh and mutton. Attila had only eaten meat in the fam…ClothingThe principal material of the Steppe Turkish clothes were the skins of sheep, lamb, cattle, fox and with a less amount of bearskin and the wool of she…IronIronwork has been considered as the last stage in metalworking. Before ironwork, there were copper, bronze and golden works. The first two of them can…HandicraftsThe principal professions in the steppe Turkish communities included the ironmongery and the mine-working. Perfect swords, shields, javelins, spears,…CityExcluding the life in the summer pasture that was required in the summer months, the ancient Turks would build houses in order to take shelter in the…TradeThe Turkish states would generally export livestock, leather, stout leather, furs, and animal products to the neighbouring nations and they would impo…AgricultureOgur Turks were good farmers at the same time. The principal characteristic that distinguished them from the Eastern Turks (Huns- Gokturk, Uighur, Ogu…Epics and legendsIn this very rich literature that was composed of the memoirs of the Turkish steppe life -full of endless struggles-, the legends about the reproducti…Literary Language and PressThe Turkish tribe that had their peculiar alphabets and literary languages that we know for sure is Gokturk people together with their inscriptions th…ArtLike each culture, the Steppe culture had an artistic conception peculiar to itself and this conception had yielded to various works of art. These wor…MusicMusic had an important place in the lifestyle of the ancient Turkish communities. We have mentioned about the great musical feast of Attila on the bas…Timekeeping MeasurementTimekeeping measurement of the Ancient Turks had been affected by the influence of the Steppe culture by nature. The ancient Turkish calendar was base…Thoughts and EthicsIt has certainly been understood that the ancient Turks had developed a culture peculiar to themselves on the basis of horse and iron within the geogr…