Importance and Role of Kurykan People In Turkic History

The Kurykan people were seen for the first time in the mourning ceremony of the Turk kagan and were recorded in the Orkhun Inscriptions. They were one of the nomadic tribes spread on the west side of Baikal Lake and they were known as both enemy and friend. It is very interesting that runic texts of...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: YILDIRIM, Elvin
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:Turkish
Published: İstanbul Üniversitesi 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/iuturkiyat/issue/52202/699234
Description
Summary:The Kurykan people were seen for the first time in the mourning ceremony of the Turk kagan and were recorded in the Orkhun Inscriptions. They were one of the nomadic tribes spread on the west side of Baikal Lake and they were known as both enemy and friend. It is very interesting that runic texts of the Kurykan were found in Lena and Angara. The Kurykan people were recorded as Gulikan or Ku-li-kan by the Chinese which is one of primary sources for early Turkic history. They were identified as Furi or Kuri people from Islamic sources. Historical sources recorded that they were renowned for their beautiful horses. There are three main opinions about them: They are accepted as ancestors of the Yakut, Buriat, or Mongolian Khor tribe. In this article, we recognize them as ancestors of the Yakuts. They lived in Baikal and its surrounding area, practiced animal husbandry and were horse breeders. They were also good blacksmiths. They had an army of five thousand soldiers to show their strength and power. They created the Kurumchi Culture and left behind especially important cultural materials. These topics will be examined according to material cultural elements and their importance in Turkic history will be emphasized. Orhun Abidelerinden Bilge Kağan ve Kültigin Yazıtları’nda bazen düşman bazen de kağanlarının ölümü üzerine yas tutan millet ve boylar arasında zikredilen Kurıkanlar, Baykal Gölü’nün batı yönünde oturan konar-göçer boylardan idiler. Onlardan kalan dil bakiyeleri arasında Lena ve Angara’da ortaya çıkarılmış ve Göktürk alfabesi ile yazılmış metinler mevcut idi. Türk tarihinin erken dönemleri için başvuru kaynaklarımızdan olan Çin kaynaklarında Gulikan veya Ku-likan etnosu ile kaydedilmiş olan ve İslam Kaynaklarında Furi veya Kuri olarak geçen toplulukla özdeşleştirilen, atlarının güzelliği ile nam salmış olan bu Türk topluluğu, Yakutların ve Buryatların bazen de Moğol kabilelerinden Horların ataları oldukları konusunda tartışılmışlardır. Bu makalede Baykal ve çevresinde meskûn olan, hayvancılık ve özellikle at yetiştiricisi ve demirci olan, bir seferde beş bin asker çıkarabilme özelliğine sahip, Kurumçi Kültürü’nü meydana getirerek arkalarında oldukça önemli maddi kültür kalıntıları bırakan Yakutların ataları Kurıkanların yazılı ve arkeolojik kaynaklardaki durumları irdelenecek ve bıraktıkları maddi kültür unsurları çerçevesinde Türk tarihindeki önemi ve yeri üzerinde durulacaktır.