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6th century

Khazars — a Turkic nomadic people. They became known in the Eastern Ciscaucasia (lowland Dagestan) soon after the Hunnic invasion. The name Khazars is a self-designation, its etymology is not fully clear. According to one version, it comes from the Turkic root kaz — denoting nomadism. Assumptions have also been made that it goes back: — to Persian هَزَارْ‎, hâzâr — "thousand" (A. P. Novoseltsev); — to the title Caesar (A. Polak, A. Róna-Tas); — to the Turkic verb meaning "to oppress," "to persecute" (L. Bazin). The Black Sea and, less frequently, the Sea of Azov were called Khazar (at that time the Khazars' influence in Crimea was very strong). Also, the Caspian Sea is called by the name of the Khazars in Middle Eastern languages. On land, the name "Khazaria" (Gazaria) was longest preserved for Crimea (in Byzantine and Italian sources until the 16th century).

According to some researchers (B. N. Zakhoder), the Khazar ethnos had a dualistic basis, uniting two main tribes — white and black Khazars (Kalis-Khazars and Kara-Khazars). Proponents of another point of view (M. I. Artamonov, A. P. Novoseltsev) consider this division not ethnic but social and point to a more complex organization. The Barsils, Savirs, Balanjars, and others were closely connected with the Khazar tribal union. Subsequently, they were partially assimilated. The Barsils were the closest to the Khazars, with whom they are often mentioned in the initial period of history, and the country of Bersilia appears in sources as the starting point from which Khazar expansion into Europe began.

Regarding the origin of the Khazars and their ancestral homeland, the following hypotheses have been put forward:

- The Khazars are descendants of the Hunnic tribe Akatziri, known in Europe since the 5th century (A. V. Gadlo, O. Pritsak).
- The Khazars have Uyghur origin, from the Central Asian people Ko-sa mentioned in Chinese sources (D. Dunlop) (see the main article Uyghur theory of Khazar origin).
- The Khazars are descendants of the Hephthalites who migrated to the Caucasus from Khorasan (Eastern Iran) (D. Ludwig).
- The Khazars originated from a tribal union formed by the Ogurs, Savirs, and at the final stage by the Altai Turks (P. Golden, M. I. Artamonov, A. P. Novoseltsev, D. Németh).

The latter point of view (in various variations) occupies a dominant position in Russian and Ukrainian scholarship.

In medieval genealogical legends, the Khazars were traced back to Togarmah, a descendant of Noah. In Jewish literature, they were sometimes recognized as descendants of the tribe of Simeon. Until the 7th century, the Khazars occupied a subordinate position in successive nomadic empires. In the 560s, they became part of the Turkic Khaganate; after its collapse in the mid-7th century, they created their own state — the Khazar Khaganate (650–969), which became one of the longest-lasting nomadic unions in this region. Initially inhabiting the area north of Derbent within modern lowland Dagestan, the Khazars began to settle in controlled regions: in Crimea, on the Don, and especially in the Lower Volga region, where the capital of the state was moved in the 8th century. Several groups of Khazars were forcibly resettled in Transcaucasia as a result of prolonged wars against Iran and the Arab Caliphate. Later, many high-ranking ghulams of the Abbasid Caliphate had Khazar origin. The existence of a Khazar garrison in Constantinople and a Khazar-Jewish community in Kiev is also known (the tract Kozary still exists in Kiev today). In the first half of the 9th century, three Khazar clans, called Kabars, left the country due to political strife and joined the Hungarians, with whom they came to Pannonia and were subsequently assimilated.

The Saltovo-Mayaki archaeological culture is considered common for the Khazar Khaganate, but monuments firmly associated with the Khazars themselves have not yet been identified. Social organization as a whole did not differ from similar ethnopolitical formations of nomads, but as statehood developed, it progressively evolved. Initially, elected rulers gave way to a hereditary dynasty of khagans, which, in turn, was replaced by a diarchy of khagan and bek. By the 10th century, the Khazars had transitioned from a nomadic to a semi-nomadic way of life, spending winters in cities. Religious beliefs consisted of common Turkic pagan rituals, a characteristic feature of which was the worship of the god Tengri and the deification of the khagan. Due to the geographical position and the tolerant policy of the government, Christianity and Islam intensively penetrated into the Khazar milieu. In the 8th–9th centuries, part of the Khazars, led by the ruling clan, converted to Judaism.

As a significant military force, the Khazars are first mentioned in connection with the Irano-Byzantine war of 602–628, in which the Khazar ruler Jebukagan became the main promoter of the Turkic-Byzantine alliance directed against Iran. In 627, the Khazar army plundered Caucasian Albania and, joining with the Byzantines, stormed Tbilisi. Starting from 630, numerous internecine conflicts led to the collapse of the Western Turkic Khaganate. The result was the emergence on its periphery in the steppes of Eastern Europe of two new political entities. In the Black Sea region, Great Bulgaria arose, founded by Khan Kubrat in 632, and in the Caspian region — Khazaria. The Khazars did not show themselves for some time, while the Bulgarian union became a powerful political force, but this flourishing turned out to be short-lived. After Kubrat's death, the Bulgar horde split among his sons. The Khazars took advantage of this, and as a result of the clash in the 660s, part of the Bulgars, led by Khan Asparukh, migrated beyond the Danube, laying the foundation for modern Bulgaria, while the remaining part recognized the authority of the Khazars. Apparently, after this event, the ruler of Khazaria adopted the highest title in the nomadic hierarchy — khagan. By the end of the 7th century, the Khazars controlled most of the Crimean steppe, the Azov region, and the North Caucasus. It is unclear how far their control extended over the steppes east of the Volga (the history of this region is the least covered in written sources). However, it is indisputable that the historical consequence of Khazar hegemony was the halt of the continuous flow of nomads following from Asia to Europe, which had positive consequences for the East Slavic tribes and the peoples of Central Europe. During this period, Khazaria's attention was turned to Transcaucasia, whose agricultural states promised the nomads rich sources of booty. Incursions there were carried out in two ways: through Derbent — into Caucasian Albania, Armenia, and further into Iran, or, less frequently, through the Daryal Gorge, located on Alan territory and leading to Georgia. The influence of the Khazars in the region was so significant that in a number of Eastern languages, the Caspian Sea received the name Khazar Sea. However, the Khazar expansion here met a counter-pressure when the Arab Caliphate arose on the site of Sasanian Iran. Its troops occupied Georgia and Caucasian Albania, after which in 653 they crossed Derbent and attacked the Khazar possession of Balanjar. The clash ended in the defeat of the Arab army and the death of its commander Salman ibn Rabi. Due to internal strife in the following decades, the Caliphate lost control over the region. The Khazars at this time exacted tribute from Caucasian Albania and carried out a series of raids, the largest of which took place in 685. In the battle with them, the rulers of Georgia, Armenia, and Albania perished, as well as one of the Arab emirs, defeated near Mosul. With the establishment of the Umayyad dynasty in the Caliphate, Arab conquests resumed simultaneously in several directions: against the Visigoths in the west, the Turks in the east, and the Byzantines and Khazars in the north. This time, the Arabs firmly established themselves in Transcaucasia, and at the beginning of the 8th century, a continuous series of Arab-Khazar wars unfolded, in which success accompanied alternately one side and then the other.

In 737, the Arab commander Marwan ibn Muhammad (the future caliph) at the head of a 150-thousand-strong army suddenly invaded Khazaria simultaneously through Derbent and Daryal. The troops stormed the Khazar capital Semender and reached the city of al-Bayda, where the khagan's headquarters was located. The khagan fled into the depths of his domains. In pursuit of him, the Arabs went further north than ever: as far as the "Slavic River" — apparently the Don or Volga. The Khazar army was defeated, and the khagan sued for peace. In exchange for retaining his throne, he promised to convert to Islam, but this procedure was apparently nominal. Khazaria retained its independence, and the Arabs left the North Caucasus. Soon, turmoil again arose in the Caliphate. The Abbasid dynasty came to power there, which refused further expansion to the north. Thus, the Khazar Khaganate shielded Eastern Europe from Arab expansion and helped Byzantium to survive. In the second half of the 8th century, after a twenty-five-year break, the Khazars undertook two more raids into Transcaucasia: in 762–764 and 799. In the 780s, they provided assistance to the Abkhazian ruler Leon II, who proclaimed independence from Byzantium. After which their intervention in the affairs of the region ceased.

The geopolitical consequence of the Arab pressure was the movement of the population of Khazaria from the dangerous Caucasian borderland to the interior regions — the Don region, where Alan tribes settled, and the Volga region. In the lower reaches of the Volga, a new Khazar capital, Itil, arose, which soon became a major trade center. Dagestan with its old capital Semender turned from a central region into the southern outskirts of Khazaria. Probably in line with these same processes, the appearance of the Bulgars and Savirs (Suvar) in the Middle Volga and Kama region occurred, where Volga Bulgaria arose in the 9th century. The establishment of Khazar hegemony over the Eastern Slavs is often associated with the reorientation of attention to the north, although there is no information about the exact date of this event.

The decisive role in the destruction of Khazaria was played by the Old Russian state. In 964, Prince Sviatoslav liberated the last Slavic tribe dependent on the Khazars — the Vyatichi, and in the following year, 965, he defeated the Khazar army with the khagan at its head and captured Sarkel, which from that time became the Russian city of Belaya Vezha. Apparently, Samkerts (Tmutarakan) was also captured at the same time. Then, in the same 965 or, according to other sources, in 968/969, the Rus, acting in alliance with the Oghuz, destroyed Itil and Semender. This moment is considered the end of the independent Khazar state. For some time, the Rus apparently dominated the lower reaches of the Volga. The inhabitants of Itil and the royal court at this time took refuge on the islands of the Caspian Sea and Mangyshlak. After the departure of the Rus in the 980s, the Khazar ruler received help from Khwarezm (according to other sources, Shirvan) and returned to the capital. In exchange for support, most of the Khazars converted to Islam; later (after further assistance), the king himself did so. In 985, Prince Vladimir undertook a new campaign against Khazaria and imposed tribute on it. Under the year 986, the Russian chronicle reports the embassy of Khazar Jews to Vladimir with a proposal to accept their faith.

After the fall of the Khazar Khaganate in the second half of the 10th century, the Khazars dissolved among the Turkic-speaking nomadic peoples who subsequently became part of the Golden Horde. Some part of the ethnic Khazars who professed Judaism, in all probability, joined the Central European Jewish communities. Some representatives of the Turkic-speaking Jewish peoples — the Karaites and Krymchaks, as well as the Iranian-speaking Mountain Jews, consider themselves descendants of the Khazars. Some Turkic-speaking peoples of the North Caucasus may have Khazar roots.

VARIANT NAMES: Latin. Chazaii, Chazaroi, Chaziri, Charisi, Chazari, Caziri, Gazari, Greek. Χαζαροι (Khazari), Old Russian. Kozare, Russian. Khazary, Hebrew ‏כוזרים‏‎‎‎ (Kuzarim), Arabic الخزر‎‎ (al-Khazar), Persian خزر‎ (Khazar), Tatar Хәзәрләр, Xäzärlär, Armenian խազիր (Khazir), Georgian ხაზართა (Khazarta).


Sources:

Ethnogenesis of the Abkhazians. D.A. Arshba, 2015