A purported Khazar ruler of the late tenth century CE who ruled over a Khazar successor-state in the Taman region. David is mentioned in a single document dated AM 4746 (985/986 CE) which contains a reference to "our lord David, Prince of the Khazars, who lives in Taman." The document in question is of uncertain authenticity, as it passed through the hands of Abraham Firkovich, who on occasion forged documents and inscriptions.[citation needed]
David's capital may have been in or near Tmutorakan; though rule by the Kievan Rus is reported in Russian sources before 985, it is conceivable that the Khazars reasserted control over the town or that David ruled as a client. The first independent Russian prince of Tmutorakan is Mstislav, whose rule began in 988. The later Khazar ruler Georgius Tzul ruled from Kerch; it is uncertain whether his kingdom was the same polity that had earlier been under the rule of David of Taman.[citation needed]
Resources
Kevin Alan Brook. The Jews of Khazaria. 2nd ed. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2006.
Douglas M. Dunlop, The History of the Jewish Khazars, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954.
The Khazars were a nomadic Turkic people that, in the late 6th-century CE, established a major commercial empire covering the southeastern section of modern European Russia, southern Ukraine, Crimea, and Kazakhstan. They created what for its duration was the most powerful polity to emerge from the break-up of the Western Turkic Khaganate. Astride a major artery of commerce between Eastern Europe and Southwestern Asia, Khazaria became one of the foremost trading empires of the early medieval world, commanding the western marches of the Silk Road and playing a key commercial role as a crossroad between China, the Middle East and Kievan Rus'. For some three centuries the Khazars dominated the vast area extending from the Volga-Don steppes to the eastern Crimea and the northern Caucasus.
Sviatoslav or Svyatoslav I Igorevich was Prince of Kiev from 945 until his death in 972. He is known for his persistent campaigns in the east and south, which precipitated the collapse of two great powers in Eastern Europe, Khazaria and the First Bulgarian Empire. He conquered numerous East Slavic tribes, defeated the Alans and attacked the Volga Bulgars, and at times was allied with the Pechenegs and Magyars (Hungarians).
Atil, also Itil, was the capital of the Khazar Khaganate from the mid-8th century to the late 10th century. Known to have been situated on the Silk Road, in the vicinity of the Caspian Sea, its precise location has long been unknown.
Oleg, also known as Oleg the Wise, was a Varangian prince of the Rus' who became prince of Kiev, and laid the foundations of the Kievan Rus' state.
Tmutarakan was a medieval principality of Kievan Rus' and trading town that controlled the Cimmerian Bosporus, the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov, between the late 10th and 11th centuries. Its site was the ancient Greek colony of Hermonassa founded in the mid 6th century BCE, by Mytilene (Lesbos), situated on the Taman peninsula, in present-day Krasnodar Krai, Russia, roughly opposite Kerch. The Khazar fortress of Tamantarkhan was built on the site in the 7th century, and became known as Tmutarakan when it came under the control of Kievan Rus'.
The Schechter Letter, also called the Genizah Letter or Cambridge Document, was discovered in the Cairo Geniza by Solomon Schechter in 1912. It is an anonymous Khazar letter discussing several matters including the wars of the early 940s, involving the Byzantine Empire, the Khazar Khaganate, and Kievan Rus'. Scholars have debated its authenticity.
The Krymchaks are Jewish ethno-religious communities of Crimea derived from Turkic-speaking adherents of Rabbinic Judaism. They have historically lived in close proximity to the Crimean Karaites, who follow Karaite Judaism.
Phanagoria was the largest ancient Greek city on the Taman peninsula, spread over two plateaus along the eastern shore of the Cimmerian Bosporus.
A Khazar ruler, mentioned in the Schechter Text and the Khazar Correspondence, Benjamin was the son of the Khazar ruler Menahem and probably reigned in the late ninth and early tenth centuries CE.
The Bulanids were the ruling dynasty of the Khazar Khaganate during the 9th century and 10th century CE.
The Taman Peninsula is a peninsula in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, which borders the Sea of Azov to the north, the Kerch Strait to the west and the Black Sea to the south.
Hanukkah Khagan was a Khazar Khagan who reigned during the mid to late ninth century CE. Hanukkah was the brother of Obadiah and succeeded his great-nephew Manasseh I to the throne. No contemporary records from his reign survive; however, he is known from the Khazar Correspondence between Hisdai ibn Shaprut and the Khazar king Joseph. Historical authenticity and accuracy of the only document mentioning his name has been questioned.
Hezekiah ben Obadiah was a hypothetical ruler of the Khazars, probably in the mid ninth century CE. He was the son of Obadiah, the descendant of Bulan who brought rabbinical scholars to and built yeshivot in Khazaria. Nothing is known about Hezekiah's reign and the historical authenticity and accuracy of the only document mentioning his name has been questioned. As with other Bulanid rulers, it is unclear whether Hezekiah was Khagan or Khagan Bek of the Khazars, although the latter is more likely.
Menasseh ben Hezekiah was a hypothetical Turkic ruler of the Khazars mentioned in the Khazar Correspondence. He probably reigned in the mid to late ninth century CE. He was the son of Hezekiah, the son of Obadiah. Little is known about his reign. Historical authenticity and accuracy of the only document mentioning his name has been questioned. As with other Bulanid rulers, it is unclear whether he was Khagan or Khagan Bek of the Khazars, although the latter is more likely.
Isaac ben Hanukkah was a hypothetical Jewish ruler of the Khazars mentioned in the Khazar Correspondence. He probably reigned in the mid to late ninth century CE. Little is known about his reign. As with other Bulanid rulers, it is unclear whether Isaac was Khagan or Khagan Bek of the Khazars, although the latter is more likely. He was succeeded by his son Zebulun. Historical authenticity and accuracy of the only document mentioning his name has been questioned.
Zebulun or Zevulun ben Isaac was a hypothetical Jewish Turkic ruler of the Khazars mentioned in the Khazar Correspondence. He probably reigned in the late ninth century CE. Little is known about Zebulun's reign. As with other Bulanid rulers, it is unclear whether he was Khagan or Khagan Bek of the Khazars, although the latter is more likely. Historical authenticity and accuracy of the only document mentioning his name has been questioned.
Menasseh ben Zebulun was a hypothetical Jewish ruler of the Khazars mentioned in some extant editions of the Khazar Correspondence. In some versions he is called Moshe or Moses, but this may be a result of the degradation of the text. He probably reigned in the late ninth century CE. Little is known about his reign. As with other Bulanid rulers, it is unclear whether Menasseh was Khagan or Khagan Bek of the Khazars, although the latter is more likely. Historical authenticity and accuracy of the only document mentioning his name has been questioned.
Al-Fadhl ibn Muhammad al-Shaddadi (also al-Fadl ibn Muhammad, Fadl ibn Muhammad, Fadlun ibn Muhammad, Fadhlun ibn Muhammad, or Fadl I was the Shaddadid emir of Arran from 985 to 1031. Of Kurdish origin, al-Fadhl was called "Fadhlun the Kurd" by ibn al-Athir and other Arabic historians. Al-Fadhl was the first Shaddadid emir to issue coinage, locating his mint first at Partav and was later transferred to Ganja.
The Mandgelis Document or Mandgelis Letter was a letter in Hebrew dated AM 4746 (985–986). It refers to "our lord David, the Khazar prince" who lived in Taman. The letter said that this David was visited by envoys from Kievan Rus to ask about religious matters. This consultation may have been connected to the conversion of Vladimir I of Kiev which took place during roughly the same time period. Taman was a principality of Kievan Rus around 988, so this successor state may have been conquered altogether. The authenticity of this letter has however been questioned by such scholars as D. M. Dunlop, as it passed through the hands of Abraham Firkovich, who is known to have forged documents and inscriptions on occasion.
Rusʹ Khaganate, or kaganate of Rus is a name applied by some modern historians to a hypothetical polity suggested to have existed during a poorly documented period in the history of Eastern Europe between c. 830 and the 890s.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
