Central Asia - Scythians, Tatars,. .

[Astronuc]

It came up in a GD thread that Cronxeh speaks Tatar, which is a Turkic language.

Turkic peoples originated in Central Asia, and there seem to be several groups, although at the moment I am not clear.

During the last 3000 years, there have been a lot of migrations and mixing of peoples throughout the Eurasian lands (from Western Europe to Mongloia and Manchuria).

Often migrations or invasions spawn additional migrations, and as a consequence Central Asia and Eastern and Central Europe have seen many different groups of peoples.

In the middle of all this are the Scythians ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scythians ), Tatars ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatars ) and others. I am still trying to figure out the history and who went where and when.

Wiki is just a starting point

Also the Tatar language has a very interesting history:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatar_alphabet

http://www.omniglot.com/writing/tatar.htm

http://www.omniglot.com/writing/orkhon.htm

 

[Astronuc]

Timur, Timor,

Adding to the previous post - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scythia

Tīmūr bin Taraghay Barlas (Chagatai Turkic: تیمور, "iron") (1336 – February 1405) was a 14th century Mongol warlord[1], conqueror of much of Western Asia, and founder of the Timurid Empire (1370–1405) in Central Asia and of the Timurid dynasty, which survived in some form until 1857. He is also known as Timur-e Lang (Persian: تیمور لنگ) which translates to Timur the Lame, as he was lame after sustaining an injury to the leg as a child.

He ruled over an empire that extends in modern nations from south Eastern Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Kuwait, Iran, through central Asia encompassing part of Kazakhstan, Afghanistan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, India, even approaching Kashgar in China.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timur

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurgan -

Kurgan is a Turkic word for tumulus, burial mound or barrow, heaped over a burial chamber, or a kurgan cenotaph. The word "kurgan", and in some cases the kurgan tradition, were borrowed by most of the cultures that coexisted with Türkic peoples. In Kurgan Cultures, most of the burials were in kurgans, either clan kurgans or individual. Most prominent leaders were buried in individual kurgans, now called "Royal kurgans", which attract highest attention and publicity.

Kurgan Cultures transverse all periods, Eneolyth, Bronze, Iron, Antiquity and Middle Age, with old traditions still smoldering in Southern Siberia and Central Asia. In time and space Kurgan Cultures are divided into a multitude of archeological cultures, most famous among them are Timber Grave, Pit Grave, Scythian, Sarmatian, Hunnish and Kuman-Kipchak cultures.

The area of central Asia is rich in history and human migration. The westward movement of Mongols and other nomads put pressure on the pastoral cultures, which migrated to what we now consider eastern Europe. And some east Asian tribes made their way to central and western Europe. Also, various Turkic tribes pushed south and collided with Arab (Syria and Iraq) and Persian cultures.

See also -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Tatarstan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Russia

 

[Astronuc]

The history of Central Asia - a featured article on Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Central_Asia

The history of Central Asia is defined primarily by the area's climate and geography. The aridness of the region made agriculture difficult and its distance from the sea cut it off from much trade. Thus, few major cities developed in the region; instead the area was for millennia dominated by the nomadic horse peoples of the steppe.

Relations between the steppe nomads and the settled people in and around Central Asia were long marked by conflict. The nomadic lifestyle was well suited to warfare, and the steppe horse riders became some of the most militarily potent peoples in the world, limited primarily by their lack of internal unity. Periodically, great leaders or changing conditions would organize several tribes into one force, and create an almost unstoppable power. These included the Huns' invasion of Europe, the Wu Hu attacks on China and most notably the Mongol conquest of much of Eurasia.

 

[timur]

Timur means iron also in mongolian.