The House of Terter ( bg, Тертер), also Terterids or Terterovtsi (Тертеровци), was a

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

n noble and royal house of

Cuman The Cumans (or Kumans), also known as Polovtsians or Polovtsy (plural only, from the Russian exonym ), were a Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman–Kipchak confederation. After the Mongol invasion (1237), many so ...

origin,István Vásáry (2005) ''Cumans and Tatars'', Cambridge University Press, p. 2 a branch of the Cuman noble dynasty of

Terteroba The Terter or Terteroba ( Bulgarian and russian: Тертер-оба, Тертровичи) was a Cuman–Kipchak tribe or clan that took refuge in Hungary and then Bulgaria in the mid-13th century and may have produced the Terter dynasty that event ...

, that ruled the Second Bulgarian Empire between 1280 and 1292, as well as between 1300 and 1323.

History

Origin

The Terterids were originally of

origin (from the

Cuman-Kipchak confederation The name Cumania originated as the Latin exonym for the Cuman–Kipchak confederation, which was a tribal confederation in the western part of the Eurasian Steppe, between the 10th and 13th centuries. The confederation was dominated by two Tur ...

), according to Plamen Pavlov they were a branch of the Cuman noble dynasty of Terteroba who had settled in Bulgaria as part of the second wave of Cuman migration, coming from the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

after 1241. The

had ruled the

in the late 11th century, as well as in the mid-13th century under Khan

Köten Köten (russian: Котян, hu, Kötöny, ar, Kutan, later Jonas; 1205–1241) was a Cuman–Kipchak chieftain (''khan'') and military commander active in the mid-13th century. He forged an important alliance with the Kievan Rus' against the ...

Monarchy

The earliest representatives of the dynasty in Bulgaria were the '' despotēs''

Aldimir Aldimir ( bg, Алдимир) or EltimirWhile Aldimir is mentioned in Medieval Greek sources solely as Ἐλτιμηρῆς, ''Eltimiris'', his original name ''Aldimir'' has been established thanks to the discovery of his son Ivan Dragushin's epi ...

(Eltimir) and his older brother George Terter who was crowned emperor of Bulgaria as

George I of Bulgaria George Terter I ( bg, Георги Тертер I), of the Terter dynasty ruled as tsar of Bulgaria 1280–1292. He was born in Cherven. The date of his birth is unknown, and he died in 1308/1309. Early life The antecedents of George Terter I ar ...

(1280-1292), marrying the Bulgarian Maria. After his reign, Bulgaria was under the ''de facto'' control of the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fragme ...

, with Nogai Khan nominating the next ruler, Smilets (1292-1298), who was of another noble family, and was briefly succeeded by his son Ivan II (1298-1299). In 1299–1300, Bulgaria was controlled by the

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...

Chaka. Chaka was deposed by George Terter's son,

Theodore Svetoslav of Bulgaria Theodore Svetoslav ( bg, Тодор Светослав, ''Todor Svetoslav'' and also Теодор Светослав, ''Teodor Svetoslav'') ruled as emperor (tsar) of Bulgaria from 1300 to 1322. The date of his birth is unknown. He expanded the ter ...

(1300-1321), beginning the second reign of the Terterids, which also spanned that of his son,

George II of Bulgaria George Terter II ( bg, Георги Тертер II) reigned as tsar of Bulgaria between 1322 and 1323. The exact date of his birth is unknown, but he was born not long before 1307. History George Terter II was the son of Theodore Svetoslav and ...

. The Terter dynasty was succeeded by the Shishman noble dynasty of

Vidin Vidin ( bg, Видин, ; Old Romanian: Diiu) is a port city on the southern bank of the Danube in north-western Bulgaria. It is close to the borders with Romania and Serbia, and is also the administrative centre of Vidin Province, as well as ...

, also of partial Cuman origin.

Members

(Eltimir) **

Ivan Dragushin Ivan Dragushin (Bulgarian: Иван Драгушин) was a Bulgarian nobleman, son of despot Aldimir from the Cuman Terter dynasty. Ivanʻs mother was Marina Smilets, the daughter of tsar Smilets of Bulgaria, whilst Ivan's father was Aldimir, ...

(ruled 1280-1292) **

(ruled 1300-1321) ***

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 12 ...

, wife of

Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia Stefan Uroš II Milutin ( sr-cyr, Стефан Урош II Милутин, Stefan Uroš II Milutin; 1253 – 29 October 1321), known as Stefan Milutin ( sr-cyr, Стефан Милутин, Stefan Milutin), was the King of Serbia between 1282&nd ...

** Elena, wife of Chaka

References

{{Authority control Bulgarian noble families 13th century in Bulgaria People of Cuman descent