Bulgar soldiers, from the Menology of Basil II, 10th century. Although the Latin word Menologium, in English also written Menology and Menologe, has been in some measure adopted for Western use it is originally and in strictness Basil II, surnamed the Bulgar-slayer (Βασίλειος Β΄ Βουλγαροκτόνος Basileios II Boulgaroktonos, 958 &ndash December 15 1025

The Bulgars (also Bolgars or proto-Bulgarians^[1]) were a seminomadic people, probably of Turkic descent^[2], originally from Central Asia, who from the 2nd century onwards dwelled in the steppes north of the Caucasus and around the banks of river Volga (then Itil). The Turkic peoples are Eurasian peoples residing in northern central and western Eurasia who speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south The 2nd century is the period from 101 to 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. In physical Geography, a steppe ( German, from степь - "a flat and arid land" степ - /stɛp/ тал - tal дала - /dɑlɑ/ pronounced The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East A branch of them gave rise to the First Bulgarian Empire. The First Bulgarian Empire (Първo Българско царство Părvo Bălgarsko Tsarstvo) was a Medieval Bulgarian state founded in AD 632

Ethnicity and language

Racial type and descendants

Victorious Bulgar warrior with captive, featured on the ewer from the Treasure of Nagy Szent Miklos. The Treasure of Nagyszentmiklós (also called the Treasure of Sânnicolau Mare) is a valuable collection of twenty-three early medieval gold vessels found in ^[3]

Anthropological data collected from early Bulgar necropolises from Dobrudja, Crimea and the Ukrainian steppe shows that Bulgars were a high-statured Caucasoid people with a small Mongoloid admixture ^[4] , and practiced artificial cranial deformation of the round type ^[5]. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of A necropolis (plural necropoleis or necropoles) is a large Cemetery or burial place (from Greek nekropolis "city of the dead" Crimea (kraɪˈmiːə or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Крим Автономна Республіка Крим Avtonomna Respublika Krym; Крым Ukraine (Україна Ukrayina, /ukrɑˈjinɑ/ is a country in Eastern Europe. In physical Geography, a steppe ( German, from степь - "a flat and arid land" степ - /stɛp/ тал - tal дала - /dɑlɑ/ pronounced The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The term " Mongoloid " is a variation of the word "Mongol" meaning "Mongol-like" Artificial cranial deformation or artificial deformation of the skull is any practice of intentionally deforming the skull of a human being From historical point of view the present-day Chuvash and Bulgarians are believed to originate partly from the Bulgars. The Bulgarians (българи balgari) are a South Slavic people generally associated with the Republic of Bulgaria and the Bulgarian language According to their DNA data, the genetic backgrounds of both populations are clearly different. Deoxyribonucleic acid ( DNA) is a Nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known The Chuvash have a Central European and some Mediterranean genetic background (probably coming from the Caucasus), while the Bulgarians have a classical eastern Mediterranean (probably coming from the Balkans) composition. Central Europe is the Region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East It is possible that only a cultural and low genetic Bulgar influence was brought into the two regions, without modifying the genetic background of the local populations. ^[6]

Оrigins

The worldwide accepted theory about the origins of the Bulgars is that they were Turkic speaking people from Central Asia. The word theory has many distinct meanings in different fields of Knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion. Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south ^[7] The now extinct Bulgar language belonged to a distant branch of the Turkic languages, broadly classified as Bulgar Turkic, whose only living representative is the Chuvash language. Bulgar (also Bolğar and Proto-Bulgarian) was the language of the Bulgars, now extinct The Turkic languages constitute a Language family of some thirty languages spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Chuvash (Chuvash Чӑвашла Čăvašla, ʨəʋaʂˈla also known as Chăvash, Chuwash, Chovash, Chavash, Çuvaş ^[8][9] Therefore, it is mainstream opinion that the Bulgars were a Turkic people. The Turkic peoples are Eurasian peoples residing in northern central and western Eurasia who speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family ^{[10][11][12][13][14]} It is supported, among other things, by the facts that some Bulgar words contained in the few surviving stone inscriptions,^[15] and in other documents (mainly military and hierarchical terms such as tarkan, bagatur, and probably kan and kanartikin "prince") appear to be of Turkic origin, that the Bulgars apparently used a 12-year cyclic calendar similar to the one adopted by Turkic and Mongolian peoples from the Chinese, with names and numbers that are deciphered as Turkic, and that the Bulgars' supreme god was apparently called Tangra, a deity widely known among the Turkic peoples under names such as Tengri, Tura etc. This article is about Tarkhan an ancient Turkic title For other uses see Tarkan (disambiguation Tarkhan, Tarkhaan, or Tarqan Baghatur is an old Altaic term for a Warrior, a military commander or an epic Hero. The Chinese calendar is lunisolar, incorporating elements of a Lunar calendar with those of a Solar calendar. Tengriism ( Tengerism, Tengrianism, Tengrianizm, Tengricilik) was the major belief of the Mongols and Turkic peoples before Tengri is the supreme god of the old Xiongnu, Xianbei, Turkic, Bulgar, Mongolian, Hunnic and Altaic ^[16] Some also point out the presence of a small number of Turkic loanwords in the Slavic Old Bulgarian language, and the fact that the Bulgars used an alphabet similar to the Turkic Orkhon script, although this alphabet hasn't been satisfactorily deciphered yet: fortunately, the Bulgar inscriptions were sometimes written in Greek or Cyrillic characters, most commonly in Greek, thus allowing the scholars to identify some of the Bulgar glosses. An alphabet is a standardized set of letters basic written symbols each of which roughly represents a Phoneme, a Spoken language, either The Old Turkic script (also Göktürk script, Orkhon script, Orkhon-Yenisey script; Turkish: Orhun Yazıtları, 鄂爾渾文字 The Greek alphabet (Ελληνικό αλφάβητο is a set of twenty-four letters that has been used to write the Greek language since the late 9th or early The Cyrillic alphabet (səˈrɪlɪk also called azbuka, from the old name of the first two letters is actually a family of Alphabets, subsets of which are used by Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Supposedly, the name Bulgar is derived from the Turkic verb bulģa "to mix, shake, stir" and its derivative bulgak "revolt, disorder". ^[17]

Further evidence culturally linking the Danubian Bulgar state to Turkic steppe traditions was the layout of the Bulgars' new capital of Pliska, founded just north of the Balkan Mountains shortly after 681. For the ancient battle see Battle of Pliska Pliska (Плиска is the name of both the first capital of Danubian Bulgaria and a small The Balkan Mountain range ( Bulgarian and Стара планина Stara planina, "Old Mountain" Events By Place Byzantine Empire The Bulgars win the war with the Byzantine Empire; the latter signs a peace treaty which The large area enclosed by ramparts, with the rulers' habitations and assorted utility structures concentrated in the center, resembled more a steppe winter encampment turned into a permanent settlement than it did a typical Roman Balkan city. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC ^[18]

Another alternative view is that Bulgar, far from being affiliated to Chuvash, belonged instead to the same branch as all other surviving Turkic languages and more specifically Kazan Tatar. The Tatar language (,, Татар теле, Татарча) is a Turkic Language spoken by the Tatars. Bulgarian scholar Ivan Shishmanov speculated in 1900 that this was the case,^[19] and the same view is espoused also by modern Bulgarist Kazan Tatar linguist Mirfatyh Zakiev. Bulgarism is a political movement for the use of the Bolgar ethnonym among Kazan Tatars. Volga Tatars are a Turkic people of Russia most of whom occupy the west central portion of the Ural Mountains. ^[20]

Cäğfär Taríxı, a Russian language document of disputed authenticity, purports to be a 1680 compilation of ancient Bulgar annals. The Cäğfär Taríxı ( Tatar Cyrillic: Җәгъфәр тарихы Russian: Джагфар Тарихы pronounced tʌrɯɪˈxɯ - roughly "jagh-FAR It was published by a Volga Tatar Bulgarist editor in 1993. Volga Tatars are a Turkic people of Russia most of whom occupy the west central portion of the Ural Mountains. Bulgarism is a political movement for the use of the Bolgar ethnonym among Kazan Tatars. Cäğfär Taríxı contains a very detailed description of Bulgar history. Among other things, it implies that the Bulgars were formed as a result of consolidation of many Turkic and Turkicized tribes. Turkification is a term used to describe a process of cultural change in which something or someone who is not a Turk becomes one voluntarily or by force

Additional theories

The ancient Bulgar homeland according to Acad. S. T.  Eremian’s reconstruction of the original ‘Ashharatsuyts’ map of Central Asia.

A newer Iranian theory, claims that the Bulgar language was originally an Iranian language, and so according to this theory, the Bulgar people would be classified as an Iranian people, although some of its proponents concede that the language was later influenced by Turkic due to Hunnic military domination. The Iranian languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family and its subfamily Indo-Iranian. The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads with a Turkic core of aristocracy This notion became popular in Bulgaria in the 1990s, with the works of Petar Dobrev, a specialist in economic history. Economic history is the study of how economic phenomena evolved in the past ^[21] Supporters of this theory are some Bulgarian historians such as professor Georgi Bakalov^[22] and professor Bozhidar Dimitrov. Bozhidar Dimitrov (Божидар Димитров (born 3 December 1945) is a well-known Bulgarian historian working in the sphere of Medieval Bulgarian ^[23] The theory is supported mostly by linguistic arguments, as authors (who are usually not linguists^[24]) attempt to prove the Iranian origin of a number of words and sometimes even grammatical features in Bulgar and modern Bulgarian. Bulgarian (български език IPA: ɛzˈik is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group ^[25]

In the 19th century, even theories of a Slavic or Finno-Ugric affiliation were proposed on the basis of the little or no evidence. The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) a group of closely related Languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages Finno-Ugric (ˌfɪnoʊˈjuːgɹɪk is a grouping of languages in the Uralic language family comprising Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian and ^[19] These have practically no adherents among today's scholars.

Toponyms that are identical or similar in proposed Bulgar locations as an argument for the Iranian theory.

Contemporaneous sources like Procopius, Agathias and Menander called the Kutrigur and Utigur Bulgars "Huns"^[26] while others, like the Byzantine Patriarch Michael II of Antioch, called them "Scythians" or "Sarmatians". Procopius of Caesarea ( Προκόπιος ο Καισαρεύς, c Agathias or Agathias Scholasticus (c AD 536-582/594 of Myrina, an Aeolian city in western Asia Minor, was a Greek Poet and the Menander Protector, Byzantine Historian, was born in Constantinople in the middle of the 6th century AD. The Kutrigurs (Kotrags/Kotzagerek/Kazarig were a horde of equestrian nomads later known as part of the Bulgars that inhabited the Eurasian plains during the dark ages The Utigurs were a Hunno-Bulgar tribe which inhabited the Eurasian steppes north-east of the Black Sea and east the Don river in the 5th and 6th centuries The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads with a Turkic core of aristocracy Patriarch Michael II was the Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch during 1292 — 1312. The Scythians or Scyths (Σκύθες Σκύθοι were an Iranian speaking people of horse-riding Nomadic pastoralists who dominated the Pontic The Sarmatians, Sarmatae or Sauromatae ( Old Iranian Sarumatah 'archer' Σαρμάτες But this latter identification is clearly due to the Byzantine tradition of naming peoples geographically; for example, centuries later the obviously Turkic Petchenegs and Cumans, were still addressed with the respective terms. The Pechenegs or Patzinaks ( Turkish: Peçenekler, Hungarian: Besenyő, Greek: Patzinaki/Petsenegi or Πατζινάκοι/Πετσενέγοι/Πατζινακίται Cumans (Кумани Byzantine: Kuman or Cuman, Kunok Turkic: Kumanlar) were a nomadic Turkic people who inhabited a

Culture and society

Archaeological finds from the Ukrainian steppe suggest that the early Bulgars had the typical culture of the nomadic equestrians of Central Asia. Eurasian Nomads are a large group of peoples of the Eurasian Steppe. They were primarily nomadic herdsmen which migrated seasonally in prusuit of pastures but they also planted crops such as wheat and barley. The Bulgars were skilled blacksmiths, stone masons and carpenters. From the 7th century onwards they rapidly began to settle down. The 7th century is the period from 601 to 700 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era.

Social structure

The Bulgars had a well developed clan system and were governed by hereditary rulers. The members of the military aristocracy bore the title boil (boyar) which could be either inherited or acquired. This article refers to the aristocratic title of boyar. For the Boyar caste of India, see Boyar (caste. There also were bagains - lesser military commanders. The nobility were further divided onto Small and Great Boyars. The latter formed the Council of the Great Boyars and gathered to take decisions on important state matters presided by the khan (king). Khan, alternately spelled lowercase as khan, qāān for their chief between 283 - 289 and was used as a state title by the Rouran confederation Their numbers varied between six and twelve. These probably included the ichirgu boil and the kavkhan (vice khan), the two most powerful people after the khan. These titles were administrative and non-inheritable. The boyars could also be internal and external, probably distinguished by their place of residence - inside or outside the capital ^[27]. The heir of the throne was called kanartikin. Other non-kingly titles used by the Bulgarian noble class include boila tarkan (possibly the second son of the khan), kana boila kolobur (chief priest), boritarkan (city mayor).

The title khan for early Bulgar ruler is an assumed one as only the form kanasubigi is attested in stone inscriptions. Historians presume that it includes the word khan in its archaic form kana and there is a supporting evidence suggesting that the latter title was indeed used in Bulgaria, e. g. the name of one of the Bulgarian rulers Pagan occurs in Patriarch Nicephorus's so-called Breviarium as Καμπαγάνος (Kampaganos), likely an erroneous rendition of the phrase "Kan Pagan". Pagan (Паган was the ruler of Bulgaria 767&ndash768 Pagan has been identified as a member of that faction of the Bulgarian aristocracy which sought to establish A breviary (from Latin brevis, 'short' or 'concise' is a Liturgical book of the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church ^[28] Among the proposed translations for the phrase kanasubigi as a whole are lord of the army, from the reconstructed Turkic phrase *sü begi, paralleling the attested Old Turkic sü baši,^[29] and, more recently, (ruler) from God, from the Indo-European *su- and baga-, i. Old Turkic (also East Old Turkic, Orkhon Turkic, Old Uyghur) is the earliest attested Turkic language, found in inscriptions by the e. *su-baga (a counterpart of the Greek phrase ὁ ἐκ Θεοῦ ἄρχων, ho ek Theou archon, which is common in Bulgar inscriptions). ^[30] This titulature presumably persisted until the Bulgars adopted Christianity. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings ^[31] Some Bulgar inscriptions written in Greek and later in Slavonic refer to the Bulgarian ruler respectively with the Greek title archon or the Slavic title knyaz. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly The Greeks ( Greek: Έλληνες) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions Kniaz’ or knyaz is a word found in some Slavic languages, denoting a Nobility rank ^[32].

Religion

The religion of the Bulgars is also obscure but it is supposed that it was monotheistic, worshipping the Turkic Sky god Tengri. For the Celtic Frost album see Monotheist (album In Theology, monotheism (from Greek grc [[wiktμόνος μόνος]] Tengri is the supreme god of the old Xiongnu, Xianbei, Turkic, Bulgar, Mongolian, Hunnic and Altaic However, the archeological evidence shows that the Bulgar sanctuarities resembled the layout of the Zoroastrian temples of the fire. Zoroaster ( Latinized from Greek variants) or Zarathushtra (from Avestan Zaraθuštra) also referred to as Zartosht (زرتشت Therefore, the religion may have comprised elements of both, Turkic and Iranian cults^[33]. In Pliska, the first capital of Danube Bulgaria, there is a building of this type - two entered one into another squares of ashlars. For the ancient battle see Battle of Pliska Pliska (Плиска is the name of both the first capital of Danubian Bulgaria and a small A second, much larger building, oriented towards the sunrise, was excavated near the Throne palace in Pliska. Its religious utilization is confirmed by the fact that after the adoption of Christianity the building was transformed into a Christian church (the so called Palace church). Similar buildings are also found in Preslav. Similar in plan is the pagan sanctuary at the Proto-Bulgarian religious complex of Madara, near the location Daul Tash. is a Manga series Light novel series Computer role-playing game, Anime OVA and radio drama series

History

Migration to Europe

Map showing the location of Bulgars, c. 650.

In the early 2nd century, some groups of Bulgars migrated from Central Asia to the European continent and settled on the plains between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea. The 2nd century is the period from 101 to 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged Sea. The Black Sea is an inland Sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolian peninsula ( Turkey The Bulgars appear (under the ethnonym of ‘Bulensii’) in certain Latin versions of Ptolemy’s second century AD mapping, shown as occupying the territory along the northwest coast of Black Sea east of Axiacus River (Southern Bug). Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Claudius Ptolemaeus ( Greek: Klaúdios Ptolemaîos; after 83 &ndash ca The Black Sea is an inland Sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolian peninsula ( Turkey Boh redirects here see also BOH tea. The Western Bug or Buh is another river which flows from Ukraine through Poland ^[34][35][36]

Between 351 and 389, some of the Bulgars crossed the Caucasus to settle in Armenia. Events By Place Roman Empire March 15 — Constantius II elevates his cousin Gallus to Caesar, and puts Events By Place Roman Empire All pagan buildings in Alexandria, including the library are destroyed on the order of Theodosius The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East Armenia (Հայաստան transliterated: Hayastan,) officially the Republic of Armenia (Հայաստանի Հանրապետություն Hayastani Toponymic data testify to the fact that they remained there and were eventually assimilated by the Armenians. Toponymy refers to the scientific study of place-names ( toponyms) their origins meanings use and Typology. The Armenians (Հայեր Hayer) are a Nation and Ethnic group originating in the Caucasus and in the Armenian Highlands A large

Swept by the Hunnish wave at the beginning of the 4th century, other Bulgar tribes broke loose from their settlements in Central Asia to migrate to the fertile lands along the lower valleys of the Donets and the Don rivers and the Azov seashore, assimilating what was left of the Sarmatians. The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads with a Turkic core of aristocracy As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 4th century (per the Julian calendar and Anno Domini / Common era) was that Century The river Seversky Donets (Северский Донец Сіверський Донець alternatively Donetz) flows into the Don River Russia Azov (Азо́в a'zof is a town in Rostov Oblast, Russia, situated on the Don River just sixteen kilometers from the Sea of Azov The Sarmatians, Sarmatae or Sauromatae ( Old Iranian Sarumatah 'archer' Σαρμάτες Some of these remained for centuries in their new settlements, whereas others moved on with the Huns towards Central Europe, settling in Pannonia. The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads with a Turkic core of aristocracy Central Europe is the Region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Pannonia is an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy,

Those Bulgars took part in the Hun raids on Central and Western Europe between 377 and 453. Central Europe is the Region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' Events By Topic Roman Empire Battle of the Willows: Roman troops fight an inconclusive battle against the Goths. Events By Place Europe Theodoric II succeeds his brother Thorismund as king of the Visigoths. After the death of Attila in 453, and the subsequent disintegration of the Hunnish empire, the Bulgar tribes dispersed mostly to the eastern and southeastern parts of Europe. Events By Place Europe Theodoric II succeeds his brother Thorismund as king of the Visigoths. Hunnic Empire, the empire of the Huns.The Huns were a confederation of Eurasian tribes especially Turkic ones from the Steppes of

At the end of the 5th century (probably in the years 480, 486, and 488) they fought against the Ostrogoths as allies of the Byzantine emperor Zeno. The 5th century is the period from 401 to 500 in accordance with the Julian calendar in Anno Domini / Common Era. Events By Place Europe Odoacer defeats an attempt by Julius Nepos to recapture Italy, and has Julius killed For the processor see Intel 80486. Events By Place Europe Roman rule in Gaul ends with the defeat at Soissons Events By Place Europe Theodoric the Great becomes king of the Ostrogoths. The Ostrogoths (Ostrogothi or Austrogothi were a branch of the Goths, an East Germanic tribe that played a major role in the political events of the late Flavius Zeno, original name Tarasicodissa or Trascalissaeus, Byzantine Emperor ( Circa From 493 they carried out frequent attacks on the western territories of the Byzantine Empire. Events By Place Europe February 25 — Odoacer agrees to a mediated peace with Theodoric the Great, and is later killed Later raids were carried out at the end of the 5th century and the beginning of the 6th century. The 5th century is the period from 401 to 500 in accordance with the Julian calendar in Anno Domini / Common Era. The 6th century is the period from 501 to 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era.

In the middle of the 6th century, war broke out between the two main Bulgar tribes, the Kutrigur and Utigur. The 6th century is the period from 501 to 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. The Kutrigurs (Kotrags/Kotzagerek/Kazarig were a horde of equestrian nomads later known as part of the Bulgars that inhabited the Eurasian plains during the dark ages The Utigurs were a Hunno-Bulgar tribe which inhabited the Eurasian steppes north-east of the Black Sea and east the Don river in the 5th and 6th centuries At the end of the 6th century, the Kutrigur allied with the Avars to conquer the Utigur. The 6th century is the period from 501 to 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. The Caucasian Avars are a modern people of Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan. The Bulgars fell under the domination of the Göktürk Khanate in 568. Göktürks ( Turkish: Gök Türkler) were a Turkic people of ancient Central Asia. Events By Place Europe April 1 — King Alboin leads the Lombards into Italy refugees fleeing from them go on

Establishment of Great Bulgaria

This sword was found in what is widely considered to be the tomb of Kubrat. The Pereshchepina Treasure (Перещепинский клад Съкровище от Мала Перешчепина is a major deposit of Byzantine, Bolgar, The hilt bears a Greek inscription and is decorated with crosses, which might suggest that its owner (or the original owner at least) was a Christian. A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other dividing one or two of the lines in half

First Bulgarian Empire in 800AD, highlighting the Bulgarian Empire and showing its neighbors.

Main article: Old Great Bulgaria

United under Kubrat or Kurt of the Dulo clan (supposed to be identical to the ruler mentioned by Arabic chronicler At-Tabari under the name of Shahriar), they joined forces of the Utigur and Kutrigur Bulgars and probably the non-Bulgar Onogurs, and broke loose from the Turkic khanate in the 630s. Old Great Bulgaria or Great Bulgaria (Стара Велика България Παλαιά Μεγάλη Βουλγαρία in Byzantine chronicles alternative Kubrat or Kurt (Кубрат Χουβρατις was a Bulgar ruler credited with establishing the confederation of Old Great Bulgaria in 632 The Dulo Clan or the House of Dulo was the name of the ruling dynasty of the early Bulgars. The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (838-923 أبو جعفر محمد بن جرير الطبري was one of the earliest most prominent and famous Persian Historians The Onogurs were a horde of Equestrian nomads that wandered the Eurasian plains in the 5th – 8th centuries. Events and Trends 630 — Serbs and Croats settle the Balkans in the provinces of Moesia, Pannonia and They formed an independent state, the Onogundur-Bulgar (Oghondor-blkar or Olhontor-blkar) Empire, often called by Byzantine sources^[37] ‘the Old Great Bulgaria’. Old Great Bulgaria or Great Bulgaria (Стара Велика България Παλαιά Μεγάλη Βουλγαρία in Byzantine chronicles alternative The empire was situated between the lower course of the Danube to the west, the Black Sea and the Azov Sea to the south, the Kuban River to the east, and the Donets River to the north. The Danube (In Donau from earlier Danuvius, Celtic *dānu, meaning "to flow run" Slovak and Polish Dunaj The Black Sea is an inland Sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolian peninsula ( Turkey The Sea of Azov (Азо́вское мо́ре - Azovskoye more; Азо́вське мо́ре - Azovs'ke more, Azaq deñizi is the world's shallowest sea linked Kuban ( Кубáнь) is a geographic region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe The river Seversky Donets (Северский Донец Сіверський Донець alternatively Donetz) flows into the Don River Russia It is assumed that the state capital was Phanagoria, an ancient city on the Taman peninsula (see Tmutarakan). Phanagoria was the largest Greek colony on the Taman peninsula, spreading on two plateaux along the Asian shore of the Cimmerian Bosporus, 25 kilometers Tmutarakan (Тмутаракань is an ancient city that controlled the Cimmerian Bosporus, the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. However, the archaeological evidence shows that the city became predominantly Bulgarian only after Kubrat's death and the consequent disintegration of his state.

Subsequent migrations

The legend tells that on his death-bed, Khan Kubrat had his sons gather sticks and bring them to him, which he then bundled together and told his eldest son Bayan to break the bundle. Batbayan (died 690 (also known as Bezmer, Bezmes Bayan, Bayan, Boyan, Bat-Boyan, Batbai, Batpai, Batboyan Bayan failed under the strength of the combined sticks, and, after the rest of the sons failed this test as well, Kubrat took the sticks back, separated each one, and broke them all one-by-one even in his weakened state. Then he told his sons the words "Unity makes strength", which have become a very popular Bulgarian slogan and now appears on the modern Bulgarian coat of arms. The coat of arms of Bulgaria (Герб на България Gerb na Bălgariya) consists of a crowned golden lion rampant over a dark red shield

The Byzantine Patriarch Nicephorus I^[38] tells that Kubrat's sons, however, did not heed these very specific words, and thus soon after the death of Kubrat around 665, the Khazar expansion eventually led to the dissolution of Great Bulgaria. Events By Place Europe Swithelm is succeeded by Sighere and Sebbi as king(s of Essex. Old Great Bulgaria or Great Bulgaria (Стара Велика България Παλαιά Μεγάλη Βουλγαρία in Byzantine chronicles alternative

Bulgars' proposal homeland and subsequent migrations in Europe.

The khan’s eldest son, Batbayan (also Bayan or Boyan), remained the ruler of the land north of the Black and the Azov Seas, which was, however, soon subdued by the Khazars. Batbayan (died 690 (also known as Bezmer, Bezmes Bayan, Bayan, Boyan, Bat-Boyan, Batbai, Batpai, Batboyan The Black Sea is an inland Sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolian peninsula ( Turkey The Sea of Azov (Азо́вское мо́ре - Azovskoye more; Азо́вське мо́ре - Azovs'ke more, Azaq deñizi is the world's shallowest sea linked "Kazar" redirects here for the Marvel Comics character see Ka-Zar; for the village in Azerbaijan see Xəzər. Those Bulgars converted to Judaism in the 9th century, along with the Khazars, and were eventually assimilated. Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut The 9th century is the period from 801 to 900 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. A different theory claims that the Balkars in Kabardino-Balkaria may be the descendants of this Bulgar branch. The Balkars ( Karachay-Balkar: sg малкъар - malqar, pl The Kabardino-Balkar Republic (Кабарди́но-Балка́рская Респу́блика Kabardian: Къэбэрдей-Балъкъэр Республикэ

Another Bulgar tribe, led by Kubrat’s second son Kotrag, migrated to the confluence of the Volga and Kama Rivers in what is now Russia (see Volga Bulgaria). Volga Bulgaria or Volga-Kama Bolghar, is an historic state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of See also Kotrags Khan Kotrag was the founder of Idil Bolgar. He was the son of Kubrat who left Great Bulgaria Kama (река́ Ка́ма is a major river in Russia, the longest left tributary of the Volga and the largest one in discharge in fact it is larger than Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Volga Bulgaria or Volga-Kama Bolghar, is an historic state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of The present-day republics of Tatarstan and Chuvashia are considered to be the descendants of Volga Bulgaria in terms of territory and people, but only Chuvash is thought to be similar to the old Bulgar language. Republic of Tatarstan (Респу́блика Татарста́н Татарстан Республикасы|Tatarstan Respublikası is a federal subject of the Russian Chuvash Republic (Чува́шская Респу́блика Чăваш Республики or Chuvashia (ru Чува́шия is a federal subject Volga Bulgaria or Volga-Kama Bolghar, is an historic state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of Chuvash (Chuvash Чӑвашла Čăvašla, ʨəʋaʂˈla also known as Chăvash, Chuwash, Chovash, Chavash, Çuvaş Bulgar (also Bolğar and Proto-Bulgarian) was the language of the Bulgars, now extinct

A third Bulgar tribe, led by the youngest son Asparukh, moved westward, occupying today’s southern Bessarabia. Asparuh or Isperih ( Bulgarian: Аспарух, Asparuh or Исперих, Isperih) was ruler of a Bulgar tribe Bessarabia ( Basarabia in Romanian, Бесарабія in Ukrainian, Бессарабия in Russian, Бесарабия in Bulgarian After a successful war with Byzantium in 680, Asparukh's khanate setteled in Dobrudja and conquered later Moesia Superior So it was recognized as an independent state under the subsequent treaty signed with the Byzantine Empire and emperor Constantine IV Pogonatus in 681. This article is about the city See also Byzantine Empire. Byzantium ( Greek: Βυζάντιον Latin: la BYZANTIVM Events By Place Europe The Bulgars subjugate the country of current-day Bulgaria. Asparuh or Isperih ( Bulgarian: Аспарух, Asparuh or Исперих, Isperih) was ruler of a Bulgar tribe Moesia (Μοισία Moisía; Мизия Miziya; Moesia Мезија Mezija) was an ancient region and Roman province situated in the Events By Place Byzantine Empire The Bulgars win the war with the Byzantine Empire; the latter signs a peace treaty which The same year is usually regarded as the year of the establishment of modern Bulgaria (see History of Bulgaria). The state of Bulgaria (България transliterated bg-Latn ''Balgaria'' The country preserves the traditions (in ethnic name language and alphabet of the First Bulgarian The History of Bulgaria as a separate country began in 632 AD with the establishment of Old Great Bulgaria, which stretched from east of the Sea

A fourth group of Bulgars, under Kuber, initially moved to Pannonia and subsequently settled in Macedonia. Kuber was Bulgar leader who ruled over Srem as a vassal to the Avar Khagan Pannonia is an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, Macedonia is a Geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe whose area was re-defined in the early 20th century It probably formed a khanate there, which joined Slavs to attack the Byzantine Empire.

The fifth and smallest group, of Alcek (also transliterated as 'Altsek' and 'Altzek'), after many wanderings, ended up led by Emnetzur and settled in Italy, northeast of Naples. Alcek ( Bulgar: Altsikurs) was the leader of Bulgar Horde that settled in the villages of Gallo, Sepino, Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Naples ( Napoli, Neapolitan: Nàpule) is a historic City in southern Italy, the Capital of the

The Madara Rider (c. The Madara Rider or Madara Horseman (Мадарски конник Madarski konnik) is an Early medieval large rock Relief carved 710), a famous example of Bulgar art

List of Bulgar tribes

Tribes thought to have been Bulgar in origin include:

• Utigurs
  • Kupi-bulgar
  • Duchi-bulkar
  • Chdar-b'lkar
• Kutrigurs (Kotrags)

After the dissolution of Great Bulgaria these tribes formed:

• Asparukh’s Horde
• Batbayan's Horde
• Kotrag's Horde
• Kuber’s Horde
• Alcek’s Horde

See also

• Bulgar language
• Bulgarians
• Pamir languages
• Madara Rider
• Chuvash
• Volga Bulgaria
• Bactrians
• Balkar
• Bolghar
• Yuezhi
• Kuber
• Mount Imeon
• Kingdom of Balhara
• Old Great Bulgaria

References

External links

• History of Bulgaria
• History of the Bulgars
• Bulgars on Regnal Chronologies
• The language of the Asparukh and Kuber Bulgars, Vocabulary and grammar, by Peter Dobrev
• Inscriptions and Alphabet of the Proto-Bulgarians, by Peter Dobrev
• On the origins of the Proto-Bulgarians
• Proto-Bulgarian Epigraphic Monuments, Vesselin Beshevliev
• Conceptions of Ethnicity in Early Medieval Studies, by Walter Pohl
• History of the Proto-Bulgarians north and west of the Black Sea
• Encyclopaedia Britannica Online - Arrival of the Bulgars