Gardizi. "Zayn al-Akhbar" ("The Ornament of Reports") V.V. Bartold. Collected Works. Vol. VIII. Moscow, 1973
The author hails from the village of Gardiz near Ghazni (Iran). He wrote his work "The Ornament of Reports" during the reign of the Ghaznavid Sultan Abd al-Rashid (1050-1053). It contains a chapter about the Turks, which includes new geographical information and interesting legends about the origins of various tribes.
Translation from Persian by V.V. Bartold.
Text: The reason for the unification of the Kyrgyz under the authority of their leader was as follows. He was of Slavic descent and was one of the Slavic nobles; when he lived in the land of the Slavs, a messenger from Rum arrived; this man killed that messenger. The reason for the murder was that the Rumis are descended from Shem, the son of Noah, while the Slavs are from Japheth. Their name is connected with the word "sag" (dog), as they were raised on dog’s milk. The story goes that when ant eggs were taken for Japheth, the ant prayed that the Almighty would not allow Japheth to enjoy a son. When Japheth had a son, he was named Emke; both of his eyes were blind.
At that time, dogs had four eyes. Japheth had a dog that gave birth at that time; Japheth killed the puppy; Japheth's son suckled from the dog for four years, holding onto her ear and walking like the blind do. When the dog gave birth to a second puppy, she abandoned Japheth's son and thanked God for getting rid of him. The next day, it turned out that two eyes of the dog had passed to this child and two eyes remained with the dog; traces of this still remain on the dog's face; for this reason, they are called Saklabs (Slavs).
(Thus), that leader killed the messenger in a dispute and had to leave the land of the Slavs. He departed from there and came to the Khazars; the Khazar khakan treated him well until his death. When another khakan ascended the throne, he showed hostility towards the newcomer; he was forced to leave and went to Bashjurt. This Bashjurt was one of the Khazar nobles and lived between the lands of the Khazars and the Kimeks with 2000 horsemen. The Khazar khan sent a man to Bashjurt, demanding that he drive away the Slav; he discussed this with the Slav; the Slav went to the lands... with which he was related.
On the way, he arrived at a place between the lands of the Kimeks and the Toguzguzs; the khan of the Toguzguzs quarreled with his tribe (many of them were killed); (the rest) scattered and one or two began to come to the Slav. He welcomed them all and treated them kindly, so that many gathered around him. He sent a man to Bashjurt, made friends with him, and thus strengthened himself; after that, he launched an attack on the Guzz, killing many of them, taking many captive, and gathering a lot of money, partly through plunder, partly through the captives, whom he sold into slavery. To the tribe that gathered around him, he gave the name Kyrgyz. When news of him reached the Slavs, many of them came to him with their families and property, joined others and entered into kinship with them, so that all merged into one whole. Signs of Slavic origin (are still) noticeable in the appearance of the Kyrgyz, namely red hair and fair skin.
The way to the Kyrgyz leads from the land of the Toguzguzs, namely from Chinandzhiketa to Hasan; from Hasan to Nukhbek to Kemizart is one or two months of travel among meadows and 5 days through the desert. From Kemiz to Manbek Lu, it takes two days to go through the mountains, then they come to the forest; the steppe begins, with springs, a hunting ground, up to the mountain called Manbek Lu; the mountain is high; it has many sable, squirrels, and musk antelopes, many trees, and abundant hunting; the mountain is well populated.
After Manbek Lu, they come to Kögmen; along the way, there are pastures, good springs, and a lot of game; they travel for four days through such terrain to the mountain Kögmen. The mountain is high, it has many trees, and the road is narrow. From Kögmen to the Kyrgyz camp is a 7-day journey; the road goes through the steppe and meadows, past pleasant springs and intertwined trees, so that the enemy cannot penetrate there; the entire road resembles a garden, up to the very camp of the Kyrgyz. Here is the military camp of the Kyrgyz khakan, the main and best place (in the country); there are three roads leading there; apart from them, access from all sides is blocked by high mountains and intertwined trees. Of the three roads, one leads to the Toguzguzs, to the south, another to the Kimeks and Khalluks, to the west; the third leads into the steppe; it takes 3 months to reach the large tribe of Furi.
Here there are also two roads: one through the steppe — 3 months of travel; the other, on the left side — 2 months of travel; but this road is difficult. You must walk all the time through forests, on a narrow path and narrow space; there is a lot of water on the road, rivers are constantly encountered, and it rains all the time. Anyone who wants to take this road must stock up on something to carry their luggage and clothes, as the entire area along the way is soaked with water, and nothing can be placed on the ground; you must walk behind the horse until you pass this marshy area.
In these marshes live wild people, who have no contact with anyone; they do not know how to speak foreign languages, and no one understands their language. They are the most savage of people; they carry everything on their backs; all their possessions consist of animal skins. If taken out of these marshes, they become so confused that they resemble fish taken out of water. Their bows are made of wood, their clothing is made of animal skins, and their food is game meat. Their religion is that they never touch someone else's clothing and property. When they want to fight, they come out with their families and possessions and begin battle; having defeated the enemy, they do not touch his property but burn everything and take nothing with them except weapons and iron. When they want to copulate with a woman, they put her on all fours, and then they copulate. The bride price for women is game or a valley with plenty of game and trees. If anyone from them ends up with the Kyrgyz, he does not eat food, and upon seeing someone from his friends, he runs away and disappears.
They take the dead to the mountains and hang them on trees until the corpse decomposes. From the land of the Kyrgyz, they bring musk, furs, and horns of hutus. The Kyrgyz, like the Indians, burn their dead and say: "Fire is the purest thing; everything that enters the fire is purified: (thus) the fire purifies the dead from dirt and sins." Some of the Kyrgyz worship cows, others the wind, others the hedgehog, others the magpie, others the falcon, and others beautiful trees. Among them are people called Faginuns; every year they come on a certain day, bring all the musicians, and prepare everything for a festive feast. When the musicians begin to play, the Faginun loses consciousness; after that, he is asked about everything that will happen that year: about need and abundance, about rain and drought, about fear and safety, about the invasion of enemies. He predicts everything, and most of the time it happens as he said.
Comments and Notes
1 Khazars roamed the steppes of the Volga.
2 Bashkirs also roamed the steppes of the Volga.
3 According to Chinese reports, the Kyrgyz were distinguished by tall stature, red hair, rosy faces, and blue eyes (N. Bichurin. Collection of Information. Vol. I. p. 443). All this indicates that the Kyrgyz were originally not a Turkic people — (V.V. Bartold). In our opinion, the characteristics of the Kyrgyz described by the Chinese author are related to their assimilation of the Dinlins of the Minusinsk Basin, who belonged to the Europoid race.
4 Chinandzhiket — the ruins of Kocho in the Turfan oasis.
5 It is undoubtedly that the residence of the Kyrgyz khakan was located in the Minusinsk valley, most likely on the banks of the Yenisei River.
6 Furi — the eastern neighbors of the Yenisei Kyrgyz. Interestingly, although they spoke an incomprehensible Kyrgyz language, they are counted among them.
7 Horns of some animal, one of the trade items of the Arabs with Central Asian peoples.
8 Faginuns — among the Kyrgyz, bakshi.