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Khazaria.com - History of Jewish Khazars, Khazar Turk, Khazarian
Jews
A Resource for Turkic and Jewish History in Russia and Ukraine
KHAZARIA INFO CENTER's 29th ANNIVERSARY (May 5, 2024)
The first website to mention the Khazars in a nonfiction context
An inspiration behind Michael Chabon's novel Gentlemen of the Road
A new candidate for Atil's location has emerged! It's Semibugry, a large Khazar-era city that was discovered
in 2019 by researchers from Astrakhan, including Damir Solovyov.
They continued to dig in the summers of 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
I added what we know so far about Semibugry's remains to my Atil page.
Medieval Kingdom of Khazaria, 652-969
Over a thousand years ago, the far east of Europe was ruled by Jewish
kings who presided over numerous tribes, including their own tribe: the
Turkic Khazars. After their conversion, the Khazar people used Jewish
personal names, spoke and wrote in Hebrew,
were circumcised, had synagogues and rabbis, studied the Torah and Talmud,
and observed Hanukkah, Pesach, and the Sabbath.
The Khazars were an advanced
civilization with one of the most tolerant societies of the medieval
period. It hosted merchants from all over Asia and Europe. On these
pages it is hoped that you may learn more about this fascinating culture.
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF KHAZARIA
Essays summarizing the history of the Khazars, their principal
cities, their culture, and their conversion to Judaism in the
9th century.
The first gallery includes images of Turkic runes, Turkic tribe symbols,
a Khazar metal disc with an engraving of a shamanistic 6-pointed star,
Khazar-Saltovo amulets, depictions of an epic motif, Khazarian battle
and hunting scenes, Khazar silver belts, a pot with images of
a menorah and a cross, and a map of Khazaria.
The second link presents the display on 8th-9th century Khazar
objects (including arms and armor) from the northwestern Caucasus
from the March-September 2003 exhibit "Horse and Rider" at the
State Historical Museum in Moscow.
Sarkel's fortress was one of Khazaria's most important, serving both
as a defensive structure and a trading caravan stopover. Includes
images of the layout of the fortress, a bronze warrior figurine,
pottery, jewelry, bricks, and other objects.
What happened to the Khazars after the fall of their kingdom?
This remains one of the most controversial questions in Khazar
studies. Some new answers emerged from new discoveries.
The first essay summarizes evidence and opinions surrounding the issue.
The second essay
explains how we know that Eastern European Jews descend from
non-Khazar Jews. The third page gathers available evidence on
genetics and shows that Ashkenazic Jews have substantial roots in the
Middle East
as well as some ancestry from Italy,
Southern China, North Africa, and the Slavic lands.
The fourth page queries whether Jews who live in the
Caucasus today descend from Khazar converts.
The largest database of references of books and articles about
Khazarian history, including works in English, French, German, Hebrew,
Hungarian, Russian, Swedish, and other languages.
Yehudah ha-Levi was one of the greatest Spanish Jewish poets. He
was born circa 1080 in Toledo, Spain, while it was under Islamic rule.
He was a prolific writer of both Arabic and Hebrew poetry.
From 1120 to 1140, ha-Levi wrote the famous 5-chapter book known as
The Kuzari, which bases its storyline upon the Khazars' conversion to
Judaism.
This is a wonderfully illustrated guide to the history of
the Khazars, compiled by staff at Rostov State University. The only
unfortunate thing in the site is that Khazar Judaism is wrongly accused
of causing strife and a civil war.
The Jews of Spain were introduced to facts about the Khazar kingdom
largely through the efforts of Hasdai ibn Shaprut, vizier and
physician to the Spanish caliphs, who wrote a letter to King Joseph of
the Khazars.
Tatiana Tatarinova, Tatiana Faleeva, Gennady Afanasiev, and their
colleagues have studied the DNA of the Khazars and their subjects
and published their results. Take a look at our summary.
This book, translated from Bulgarian into English, chronicles the
history and archaeology of the Khazars, Bulgars, North Caucasian
Huns, and Alans. There are sections discussing the Khazar cities
Sarkel and Balanjar. Includes maps, photographs, footnotes, quotes
from historical sources.
Khazariya, by Menashe Goldelman in
World ORT's Elektronnaya Yevreyskaya Entsiklopediya, originally in volume 9 of Kratkaya Yevreyskaya Entsiklopediya in 1999
"The Khazars originated from the distant East... In the seventh and eighth centuries, this new empire halted Arab expansionism,
established contact with Byzantium, and became a decisive force between the Caspian Sea and the River Don up to the middle
of the tenth century. Land cultivation, animal husbandry and handicrafts flourished in the empire. Merchants traded not only
with Byzantium, but also with the Arab-Persian world and the distant East. The kagans did not prohibit the activities of Christian
and Moslem missionaries. Both religions maintained places or worship and schools on Khazar land. Out of political considerations,
however, the kagans and their retinues embraced a third great monotheist religion, Judaism."
- The Magyars: The Birth of a European Nation
by György Balázs, page 8.
"The khaganate of the Khazars was of the upmost strategic importance for the
Byzantines for several reasons. First of all, it controlled the routes to the
southern Caucasus, thus playing a central role in the geopolitics of the area.
... Secondly, the Byzantine possessions in Crimea... were bordered by the
Khazars, who represented a major piece in the puzzle of nations who competed
for domination of the region. ... Finally, the Khazar Empire lay at a crossing
of trading routes linking the Russian steppes with Central Asia..."
- The Emperor Theophilos and the East, 829-842
by Juan Signes Codoñer, "Section V: The Khazar Flank", page 335.
THE JEWS OF KHAZARIA
by Kevin Alan Brook
This book discusses all major issues surrounding the Khazar Empire,
including diplomacy, trade, culture, military affairs, Khazarian Judaism,
and migrations. The book draws from major primary and secondary sources,
and includes a concise timeline and glossary towards the end. This was
the first English-language book on the Khazars to contain a substantial
amount of archaeological data. The third edition was the first book on
the Khazars to contain genetic data from Khazaria.
THE KHAZARS
by Mikhail Zhirohov and David Nicolle
An illustrated guide to Khazar history, focusing on military affairs including Khazaria's wars with Arabs and the Rus', their weapons such as spears, battleaxes, and swords, their helmets and armor, and their fortifications made from stone and timber.
THE KUZARI: IN DEFENSE
OF THE DESPISED FAITH
translated and annotated by Rabbi N. Daniel Korobkin
In this classic philosophical work by Yehuda HaLevi, a Jewish sage
explains the principles of Judaism to an inquisitive Khazar king. As a
special bonus, the historical communications exchanged between Khazar King
Joseph and the Spanish Jewish diplomat Hasdai ibn Shaprut are included in
this volume.
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