Begdili (also spelled Bekdili or Bigdeli;

Middle Turkic Middle Turkic is a term used by linguists to refer to a group of Karluk languages, Karluk, Oghuz languages, Oghuz and Kipchak languages, Kipchak languages spoken during much of the Middle Ages (c. 900–1500 CE) in Central Asia, Iran, and parts o ...

: بَكْتِلى Begtili; ; Turkish: Beğdili boyu; Azerbaijani: Bəydili boyu) were an

Oghuz Turkic The Oghuz languages are a sub-branch of the Turkic language family, spoken by approximately 108 million people. The three languages with the largest number of speakers are Turkish, Azerbaijani and Turkmen, which, combined, account for more ...

people and a sub-branch of the Bozok tribal federation. Currently, the descendants of Begdili tribe and those who identify themselves as such are part of the Geklen Turkmens living in the Balkan velayat of

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

. They also can be found among Ersari Turkmens, who live predominantly in the Lebap velayat (region) of Turkmenistan and northern provinces of

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

. Turkish Begdili Turkomans live in Tarsus,

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

, and in many parts of

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

. Cerit/Ceritli Turkomans are a branch of Begdili tribe.

Origin

In his history work ''

Shajara-i Tarākima ''Shajara-i Tarākima'' () is a Chagatai language, Chagatai-language historical work completed in 1659 by Khan of Khiva and historian Abu al-Ghazi Bahadur. ''Shajara-i Tarākima'' is one of the two works composed by Abu al-Ghazi Bahadur that hav ...

'' (Genealogy of Turkmens), the Khan of the Khanate of Khiva and historian Abu al-Ghazi Bahadur mentions Begdili among 24 Oghuz tribes, direct descendants of Oghuz-khan, who was the ancient progenitor of the Oghuz people, and the name of the tribe translates as “reputable”.

Affiliation

The Anushteginid dynasty, which ruled vast parts of

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

from 1077 to 1231 under the title of Khwarazmshahs, descended from the Begdili tribe."Similarly, the most distant ancestor of Sultan Muhammad Khwarazmshah was Nushtekin Gharcha, who was a descendant of the Begdili tribe of the Oghuz family." The Mamluk Sultan of

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

Saif ad-Din Qutuz Sayf ad-Din Qutuz (; died 24 October 1260), also romanized as Kutuz or Kotuz and fully al-Malik al-Muẓaffar Sayf ad-Dīn Quṭuz ( ), was the Mamluk Sultan of Egypt. He reigned as Sultan for less than a year, from 1259 until his assassi ...

, who ruled Egypt from 1259 to 1260, also widely believed to have come from the Begdili tribe. Begdili tribe played important role on

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

expansion over

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and

. They also participated on foundation and administration of Aq Qoyunlus and

Safavids The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...

. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, a large group of Begdili Turkmens migrated from Central Asia to the territory of modern

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. In Azerbaijan and Turkey, there are still some toponyms that are called Begdili.

Sources

Information about the origin of the Begdili mostly comes from the famous statesman and historian of the Ilkhanate,

Rashid-al-Din Hamadani Rashīd al-Dīn Ṭabīb (;‎ 1247–1318; also known as Rashīd al-Dīn Faḍlullāh Hamadānī, ) was a statesman, historian, and physician in Ilkhanate Iran.Jami' al-tawarikh ''Jāmiʿ al-Tawārīkh'' () is a work of literature and history, produced in the Mongol Ilkhanate. Written by Rashid al-Din Hamadani (1247–1318 AD) at the start of the 14th century, the breadth of coverage of the work has caused it to be call ...

" (Compendium of Chronicles), and from the work of the Khan of Khiva Abu al-Ghazi Bahadur, titled " Genealogy of Turkmens".

References

{{Oghuz tribes History of the Turkish people Turkic peoples of Asia Turkmen tribes

Origin

Affiliation

Sources

See also

References