DFG-Projekt "Die ‚Große mongolische Krise‘ des vierzehnten Jahrhunderts aus eurasiatischer Perspektive: Voraussetzungen, Prozesse und Folgen". Teaching and working in the Department of Sinology at the University of Bonn. PhD Studies at the Department of Asian Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Supervisors: Prof. Michal Biran
Since the beginning of his rise to power, Chinggis Khan used matrimonial relations between the me... more Since the beginning of his rise to power, Chinggis Khan used matrimonial relations between the members of his family and his allies in order to strengthen his support base and to expand the potential of his army. Whereas research has discussed in detail the history of the Chinggisid women, the role of their male non-Chinggisid counterparts – the imperial sons-in-law (Mon. güregen, Ch. fuma 駙馬), mostly the powerful military commanders – is still an under-researched topic.
In his monograph, Ishayahu Landa for the first time provides a comprehensive and detailed discussion of the Chinggisid in-laws, approaching them as a separate political institution with its own status, privileges, and ambitions, which played a crucial role in underpinning the Mongol rule across the continent. The monograph is unique in its combined usage of Arabic, Persian, Chinese, Latin and Old Slavonic primary sources as well as its temporal scope, ranging from the early thirteenth century to the period of the Chinggisid Crisis and beyond. The monograph will be of interest for specialists in Mongol, Chinese, Islamic, Russian, and Global histories, as well as in the field of gender studies, and nomadic history and ethnography. At the same time, it covers an important aspect of the power structure behind the Chinggisid expansion, its maintenance of power from Korea to the Black Sea, as well as its decline.
This paper addresses the complex interrelation between climatic extremes, famines, and the stabil... more This paper addresses the complex interrelation between climatic extremes, famines, and the stability (or instability) of the ruling powers of the various Chinggisid states across the Eurasian continent during the thirteenth to fourteenth centuries. It pays special attention to the variability of the impact of famines on the nomadic and the sedentary population under the Chinggisid rule. Looking into the primary textual sources in Arabic, Chinese, Persian and Old Slavonic, quite unevenly dispersed across the continent, this paper advocates cautiousness and a critical approach in the question of interrelations between climatic hazards of the beginning Little Ice Age (early fourteenth century onward), the impact of such hazards (e.g. demographic shocks) and the succession (or the lack of thereof) of the Chinggisid governance to manage such crisis situations. On a broader scale, the paper also addresses the issue of the interrelations between the Great Chinggisid Crisis of the mid-fourteenth century and the climatic extremes, cautioning against monocausality in historical research and insisting on the multiplicity of factors that have to be borne in mind when analysing the breakup of Mongol Eurasia.
Chronica. Annual of the Institute of History, University of Szeged, 2023
The paper singles out the decades following the Great Chinggisid Crisis, i.e. the period between ... more The paper singles out the decades following the Great Chinggisid Crisis, i.e. the period between the later 14th century and the early 15th century, as a “transition phase” between the Mongol and post-Mongol eras of Eurasian history. Looking at the political, religious, and ethnogenetic characteristics, the paper on the one hand attempts to stress the transitory nature of this specific period of time and, on the other, to assess the role of the Mongol Eurasian age in the history of the Eurasian Steppe belt.
The paper discusses the scope and the patterns of stone usage for the sake of the Eurasian-wide d... more The paper discusses the scope and the patterns of stone usage for the sake of the Eurasian-wide dispersion of imperial propaganda under the Chinggisids (13-14th century). Bringing together case studies from a broad range of geographical locations under the Mongol control, the paper especially underlines, quite in Allsen’s terms, both the selectivity and adaptability of the Chinggisid overlords and their elites, who succeeded to adapt the usage of stone for the needs of the imperial statehood in the areas with extremely diverse cultural, religious, and political traditions throughout the continent. The paper also stresses the limitations of stone as an information and propaganda medium for the steppe nomadic conquest rulers as well as the limitations of the sources and the scope of the survived artifacts.
The article discusses the history of the Princes of Lu of the Qonggirad lineage, which was matrim... more The article discusses the history of the Princes of Lu of the Qonggirad lineage, which was matrimonially connected to the Chinggisid Yuan dynasty throughout generations. Using historical, epigraphic and archaeological sources, the article stresses the special position of this lineage’s members as major marriage partners of the Qubilaids with hereditary military positions and appanages strategically located to the north of the two Yuan capitals, Dadu and Shangdu. Moreover, the article discusses their mixed Sino-Mongolian identity which the archaeological and epigraphic remains both from the northern appanages and from the princely appanages in Shandong attest to.
Chronica. Annual of the Institute of History, University of Szeged, 2018
This paper discusses an important aspect of the Chinggisid matrimonial relations during the Unite... more This paper discusses an important aspect of the Chinggisid matrimonial relations during the United Empire period (1206–1259), namely the phenomenon of the “sons-in-law” (güregens/küregens) of the Golden lineage. The paper provides an overall analysis of all the matrimonial ties with different tribal, ethnic, and political entities from the Mongolian plateau to the Caucasus and suggests that we consider the establishment of such ties as a thought through strategic policy. The güregens of the Golden lineage will, therefore, be analysed as one of the institutions of the Mongol power hierarchy, highlighting its rather unique position vis-a-vis the other power groups in the Mongol political architecture, such as nökers and keshig.
REMMM (Revue des mondes musulmans et de la Méditerranée), 2018
The article discusses the Qonggirad migration to the Jochid ulus in the aftermath of the Mongol c... more The article discusses the Qonggirad migration to the Jochid ulus in the aftermath of the Mongol conquests as well as the roles the Qonggirad elite played in the Jochid and Khwārazmian political history in the late 13th – early 15th centuries. Based on genealogical and numismatic analyses, this paper, on the one hand, provides insights into the formation and developments of the autonomous Qonggirad power in Khwārazm in the second half of the 14th century and, on the other hand, stresses the importance of the Islamisation for the Mongol tribal elite’s accustomisation to the regional and geopolitical historical setting during the troubled period of 1359‑1380s in the Jochid ulus.
Available via: https://journals.openedition.org/remmm/11105
The history of the Mongol conquests in Eurasia was not least the history of the numerous migratio... more The history of the Mongol conquests in Eurasia was not least the history of the numerous migrations of masses of people across the continent. This essay discusses one specific case study, namely that of the Mongol commander and Chinggisid imperial son-in-law Türaqai of the Oyirad tribe and his lineage throughout the thirteenth century. He himself was probably born in Iran or Iraq. His family, however, came from Mongolia to Iran during the Mongol conquests. The article discusses Türaqai’s life, in particular his (and his army’s) flight from the Ilkhanate to the Mamlūk Sultanate in 1296. He also made an unsuccessful attempt to become part of the Mamlūk military, which costed him and his close supporters their lives. Looking through the lenses of this biographical narrative, the essay presents a broader picture of the military nomadic migrations in Chinggisid Eurasia and their mechanisms. The essay also pays special attention to the position of the Chinggisid sons-in-law, who held a highly respected status in the Mongol political architecture. Additionally, it highlights some main issues related to the migration of the nomadic tribes and their resettlement in the newly conquered areas under the Mongol rule, such as assimilation, conversion to Islam and the different dimensions of their relations with the local populations.
The paper discusses the questions of the alleged conversion of Arghun Aqa, the powerful Mongol go... more The paper discusses the questions of the alleged conversion of Arghun Aqa, the powerful Mongol governor of great parts of Western Asia in the mid-13th century, to Islam, claimed by the famous Armenian historian Kirakos. While in the end dismissing the historicity of this claim, the paper uses a variety of archaeological, numismatic, epigraphic and literary sources in order to highlight the great role the Islamic beliefs and identity of the surrounding Persianised society played in the continuous Islamic acculturation of Arghun Aqa and his family since the earliest phases of their presence in Iran.
Core, Periphery, Frontier - Spatial Patterns of Power, 2021
Following the death of the fourth Mongol Great Khan Möngke (r. 1251–1259), the united Chinggisid ... more Following the death of the fourth Mongol Great Khan Möngke (r. 1251–1259), the united Chinggisid enterprise, the ‘United Empire’ (1206–1260), was split into four major political entities, known as khanates or uluses. The Chinggisid family centred in North China won its position as the United Empire’s direct successor and proclaimed itself as the Yuan dynasty (元朝, 1271–1368), controlling China, Tibet, Mongolia, Uyghuristan and Korea at the peak of its power. This paper analyses the relations of the imperial government centred in Dadu (today’s Beijing) with the regions located to its north, northwest and northeast. These three ‘northern macro-regions’ occupied the territorial stretch in the Yuan’s north from Central Asia in the west to today’s Russian Far East in the east. Analysing the composition of those macro-regions’ power agents, the paper elaborates on the complexities, challenges and characteristics of their relations with the imperial powerholders in Dadu. Both drawing on and questioning the traditional ‘core-periphery’ scheme for the analysis, the paper observes that those relations were based on a complex power equilibrium between the regional power agents and the imperial powers, in which all the sides involved were forced to play their part in the interaction. By doing so, the paper stresses the importance of the northern macroregions for the stability of the imperial ‘core’ and singles out the ‘post and relief’ system, the major communication network of the empire, as an institution of primary importance for the maintenance of this equilibrium. Additionally, the paper analyses the ideological bases of those relations, stressing their in-built contradictions and tensions, thus further underlining the complex and multi-layered nature of the Yuan as both a Chinese and a Steppe Empire.
Call for Papers: International Workshop for Early Career Researchers, 7-8 June 2024, University o... more Call for Papers: International Workshop for Early Career Researchers, 7-8 June 2024, University of Bonn.
Since the beginning of his rise to power, Chinggis Khan used matrimonial relations between the me... more Since the beginning of his rise to power, Chinggis Khan used matrimonial relations between the members of his family and his allies in order to strengthen his support base and to expand the potential of his army. Whereas research has discussed in detail the history of the Chinggisid women, the role of their male non-Chinggisid counterparts – the imperial sons-in-law (Mon. güregen, Ch. fuma 駙馬), mostly the powerful military commanders – is still an under-researched topic.
In his monograph, Ishayahu Landa for the first time provides a comprehensive and detailed discussion of the Chinggisid in-laws, approaching them as a separate political institution with its own status, privileges, and ambitions, which played a crucial role in underpinning the Mongol rule across the continent. The monograph is unique in its combined usage of Arabic, Persian, Chinese, Latin and Old Slavonic primary sources as well as its temporal scope, ranging from the early thirteenth century to the period of the Chinggisid Crisis and beyond. The monograph will be of interest for specialists in Mongol, Chinese, Islamic, Russian, and Global histories, as well as in the field of gender studies, and nomadic history and ethnography. At the same time, it covers an important aspect of the power structure behind the Chinggisid expansion, its maintenance of power from Korea to the Black Sea, as well as its decline.
This paper addresses the complex interrelation between climatic extremes, famines, and the stabil... more This paper addresses the complex interrelation between climatic extremes, famines, and the stability (or instability) of the ruling powers of the various Chinggisid states across the Eurasian continent during the thirteenth to fourteenth centuries. It pays special attention to the variability of the impact of famines on the nomadic and the sedentary population under the Chinggisid rule. Looking into the primary textual sources in Arabic, Chinese, Persian and Old Slavonic, quite unevenly dispersed across the continent, this paper advocates cautiousness and a critical approach in the question of interrelations between climatic hazards of the beginning Little Ice Age (early fourteenth century onward), the impact of such hazards (e.g. demographic shocks) and the succession (or the lack of thereof) of the Chinggisid governance to manage such crisis situations. On a broader scale, the paper also addresses the issue of the interrelations between the Great Chinggisid Crisis of the mid-fourteenth century and the climatic extremes, cautioning against monocausality in historical research and insisting on the multiplicity of factors that have to be borne in mind when analysing the breakup of Mongol Eurasia.
Chronica. Annual of the Institute of History, University of Szeged, 2023
The paper singles out the decades following the Great Chinggisid Crisis, i.e. the period between ... more The paper singles out the decades following the Great Chinggisid Crisis, i.e. the period between the later 14th century and the early 15th century, as a “transition phase” between the Mongol and post-Mongol eras of Eurasian history. Looking at the political, religious, and ethnogenetic characteristics, the paper on the one hand attempts to stress the transitory nature of this specific period of time and, on the other, to assess the role of the Mongol Eurasian age in the history of the Eurasian Steppe belt.
The paper discusses the scope and the patterns of stone usage for the sake of the Eurasian-wide d... more The paper discusses the scope and the patterns of stone usage for the sake of the Eurasian-wide dispersion of imperial propaganda under the Chinggisids (13-14th century). Bringing together case studies from a broad range of geographical locations under the Mongol control, the paper especially underlines, quite in Allsen’s terms, both the selectivity and adaptability of the Chinggisid overlords and their elites, who succeeded to adapt the usage of stone for the needs of the imperial statehood in the areas with extremely diverse cultural, religious, and political traditions throughout the continent. The paper also stresses the limitations of stone as an information and propaganda medium for the steppe nomadic conquest rulers as well as the limitations of the sources and the scope of the survived artifacts.
The article discusses the history of the Princes of Lu of the Qonggirad lineage, which was matrim... more The article discusses the history of the Princes of Lu of the Qonggirad lineage, which was matrimonially connected to the Chinggisid Yuan dynasty throughout generations. Using historical, epigraphic and archaeological sources, the article stresses the special position of this lineage’s members as major marriage partners of the Qubilaids with hereditary military positions and appanages strategically located to the north of the two Yuan capitals, Dadu and Shangdu. Moreover, the article discusses their mixed Sino-Mongolian identity which the archaeological and epigraphic remains both from the northern appanages and from the princely appanages in Shandong attest to.
Chronica. Annual of the Institute of History, University of Szeged, 2018
This paper discusses an important aspect of the Chinggisid matrimonial relations during the Unite... more This paper discusses an important aspect of the Chinggisid matrimonial relations during the United Empire period (1206–1259), namely the phenomenon of the “sons-in-law” (güregens/küregens) of the Golden lineage. The paper provides an overall analysis of all the matrimonial ties with different tribal, ethnic, and political entities from the Mongolian plateau to the Caucasus and suggests that we consider the establishment of such ties as a thought through strategic policy. The güregens of the Golden lineage will, therefore, be analysed as one of the institutions of the Mongol power hierarchy, highlighting its rather unique position vis-a-vis the other power groups in the Mongol political architecture, such as nökers and keshig.
REMMM (Revue des mondes musulmans et de la Méditerranée), 2018
The article discusses the Qonggirad migration to the Jochid ulus in the aftermath of the Mongol c... more The article discusses the Qonggirad migration to the Jochid ulus in the aftermath of the Mongol conquests as well as the roles the Qonggirad elite played in the Jochid and Khwārazmian political history in the late 13th – early 15th centuries. Based on genealogical and numismatic analyses, this paper, on the one hand, provides insights into the formation and developments of the autonomous Qonggirad power in Khwārazm in the second half of the 14th century and, on the other hand, stresses the importance of the Islamisation for the Mongol tribal elite’s accustomisation to the regional and geopolitical historical setting during the troubled period of 1359‑1380s in the Jochid ulus.
Available via: https://journals.openedition.org/remmm/11105
The history of the Mongol conquests in Eurasia was not least the history of the numerous migratio... more The history of the Mongol conquests in Eurasia was not least the history of the numerous migrations of masses of people across the continent. This essay discusses one specific case study, namely that of the Mongol commander and Chinggisid imperial son-in-law Türaqai of the Oyirad tribe and his lineage throughout the thirteenth century. He himself was probably born in Iran or Iraq. His family, however, came from Mongolia to Iran during the Mongol conquests. The article discusses Türaqai’s life, in particular his (and his army’s) flight from the Ilkhanate to the Mamlūk Sultanate in 1296. He also made an unsuccessful attempt to become part of the Mamlūk military, which costed him and his close supporters their lives. Looking through the lenses of this biographical narrative, the essay presents a broader picture of the military nomadic migrations in Chinggisid Eurasia and their mechanisms. The essay also pays special attention to the position of the Chinggisid sons-in-law, who held a highly respected status in the Mongol political architecture. Additionally, it highlights some main issues related to the migration of the nomadic tribes and their resettlement in the newly conquered areas under the Mongol rule, such as assimilation, conversion to Islam and the different dimensions of their relations with the local populations.
The paper discusses the questions of the alleged conversion of Arghun Aqa, the powerful Mongol go... more The paper discusses the questions of the alleged conversion of Arghun Aqa, the powerful Mongol governor of great parts of Western Asia in the mid-13th century, to Islam, claimed by the famous Armenian historian Kirakos. While in the end dismissing the historicity of this claim, the paper uses a variety of archaeological, numismatic, epigraphic and literary sources in order to highlight the great role the Islamic beliefs and identity of the surrounding Persianised society played in the continuous Islamic acculturation of Arghun Aqa and his family since the earliest phases of their presence in Iran.
Core, Periphery, Frontier - Spatial Patterns of Power, 2021
Following the death of the fourth Mongol Great Khan Möngke (r. 1251–1259), the united Chinggisid ... more Following the death of the fourth Mongol Great Khan Möngke (r. 1251–1259), the united Chinggisid enterprise, the ‘United Empire’ (1206–1260), was split into four major political entities, known as khanates or uluses. The Chinggisid family centred in North China won its position as the United Empire’s direct successor and proclaimed itself as the Yuan dynasty (元朝, 1271–1368), controlling China, Tibet, Mongolia, Uyghuristan and Korea at the peak of its power. This paper analyses the relations of the imperial government centred in Dadu (today’s Beijing) with the regions located to its north, northwest and northeast. These three ‘northern macro-regions’ occupied the territorial stretch in the Yuan’s north from Central Asia in the west to today’s Russian Far East in the east. Analysing the composition of those macro-regions’ power agents, the paper elaborates on the complexities, challenges and characteristics of their relations with the imperial powerholders in Dadu. Both drawing on and questioning the traditional ‘core-periphery’ scheme for the analysis, the paper observes that those relations were based on a complex power equilibrium between the regional power agents and the imperial powers, in which all the sides involved were forced to play their part in the interaction. By doing so, the paper stresses the importance of the northern macroregions for the stability of the imperial ‘core’ and singles out the ‘post and relief’ system, the major communication network of the empire, as an institution of primary importance for the maintenance of this equilibrium. Additionally, the paper analyses the ideological bases of those relations, stressing their in-built contradictions and tensions, thus further underlining the complex and multi-layered nature of the Yuan as both a Chinese and a Steppe Empire.
Call for Papers: International Workshop for Early Career Researchers, 7-8 June 2024, University o... more Call for Papers: International Workshop for Early Career Researchers, 7-8 June 2024, University of Bonn.
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In his monograph, Ishayahu Landa for the first time provides a comprehensive and detailed discussion of the Chinggisid in-laws, approaching them as a separate political institution with its own status, privileges, and ambitions, which played a crucial role in underpinning the Mongol rule across the continent. The monograph is unique in its combined usage of Arabic, Persian, Chinese, Latin and Old Slavonic primary sources as well as its temporal scope, ranging from the early thirteenth century to the period of the Chinggisid Crisis and beyond. The monograph will be of interest for specialists in Mongol, Chinese, Islamic, Russian, and Global histories, as well as in the field of gender studies, and nomadic history and ethnography. At the same time, it covers an important aspect of the power structure behind the Chinggisid expansion, its maintenance of power from Korea to the Black Sea, as well as its decline.
「忠武」至終——元代政治結構中的弘吉剌世系魯王
本文探討世代通過母系與元朝成吉思汗後裔通婚的弘吉剌世系魯王的歷史。本文使用歷史文獻、碑文和考古材料,在第一部分強調弘吉剌世系的特殊地位。這種特殊地位體現在他們作為忽必烈後裔婚姻配偶和世襲軍事將領,以及弘吉剌世系封地位於大都和上都北部和東北部的重要戰略位置。本文第二部分,基於在北部和山東封地内考古與碑文發現,討論弘吉剌這一世系的漢、蒙混合身份。
Available via: https://journals.openedition.org/remmm/11105
In his monograph, Ishayahu Landa for the first time provides a comprehensive and detailed discussion of the Chinggisid in-laws, approaching them as a separate political institution with its own status, privileges, and ambitions, which played a crucial role in underpinning the Mongol rule across the continent. The monograph is unique in its combined usage of Arabic, Persian, Chinese, Latin and Old Slavonic primary sources as well as its temporal scope, ranging from the early thirteenth century to the period of the Chinggisid Crisis and beyond. The monograph will be of interest for specialists in Mongol, Chinese, Islamic, Russian, and Global histories, as well as in the field of gender studies, and nomadic history and ethnography. At the same time, it covers an important aspect of the power structure behind the Chinggisid expansion, its maintenance of power from Korea to the Black Sea, as well as its decline.
「忠武」至終——元代政治結構中的弘吉剌世系魯王
本文探討世代通過母系與元朝成吉思汗後裔通婚的弘吉剌世系魯王的歷史。本文使用歷史文獻、碑文和考古材料,在第一部分強調弘吉剌世系的特殊地位。這種特殊地位體現在他們作為忽必烈後裔婚姻配偶和世襲軍事將領,以及弘吉剌世系封地位於大都和上都北部和東北部的重要戰略位置。本文第二部分,基於在北部和山東封地内考古與碑文發現,討論弘吉剌這一世系的漢、蒙混合身份。
Available via: https://journals.openedition.org/remmm/11105