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The Karaitswere a Christian clan within the Kipchak Khanate. They are not to be confused with, although their name may be related to the names of, the Mongol Khereid or the modern Kara'i Tatars.

Name

Karait is the spelling their name used by Robert Kerr (writer), Johann Reinhold Forster, Henry Howorth, E.J.Brill, David H. James and Douglas Morton Dunlop. The name is derived from a Mongol-Turkic word for "cross" (kheres) in reference to their Christian religion. Historically, however, the name has been conflated with the Turkic word for "black", qarā, cognate with the Mongolian word for "crow", which was the tribal name of the Khereid.

The Karaits have been referred to by a variety of different names in different places at different times. In Kazakh they are called Керейт (Kereit). In Old Polish sources they are called Karaici (Karaitsi). In Old Russian sources they were called Караиты (Karaiti). In various pre-Bolshevik Turkic sources they are called كرايلر (Karailar).

Origins

They are first noted in Syriac Church records which mention them being absorbed into the Church of the East around 1000 CE by Metropolitan AbdEsho of Merv (modern day East Turkmenistan). Their territory corresponded to that of the earlier the Kara-Khanid Khanate who appear after the Kara-Khazars were evicted by the Aq-Khazars in the Khazar civil war in the 830s CE.

Religious practice

The Karaits were converted to Church of the East Christianity, early in the 11th century. Other tribes evangelized entirely or to a great extent during the 10th and 11th centuries were the Naiman and the Ongud.

An account of the conversion of the Karaits is given by the 13th-century Jacobite historian Gregory Bar Hebraeus and also in Mari ibn Suleiman's "Book of the Tower" (Kitab al-Majdal) written in 1145–1150. According to Bar Hebraeus and Mari ibn Suleiman, in 1007 or 1012, a Karait king lost his way during a snowstorm while hunting in the high mountains of his land. When he had abandoned all hope, a saint (Mar Sergius or Saint Sergius) appeared in a vision and said, "If you will believe in Christ, I will lead you lest you perish." The king promised to "become a lamb in the Christian sheepfold" (join the Church). The saint told him to close his eyes and he found himself back home (Bar Hebraeus' version says the saint led him to the open valley where his home was). When he met Christian merchants, he remembered the vision and asked them about the Christian religion, prayer and the book of canon laws. They taught him some prayers and at their suggestion, he sent a message to Abdisho, the Metropolitan of Merv, for priests and deacons to baptize him and his tribe. Abdisho (whose name means Servant or Abd of Jesus) sent a letter to Yohannan VI, the Catholicos or Patriarch of the Church of the East in Baghdad. Abdisho informed Yohannan VI that the Karait Khan asked him about fasting, whether they could be exempted from the usual Christian way of fasting, since their diet was mainly meat and milk. Yohannan (John) replied to Abdisho telling him one presbyter (priest) and one deacon was to be sent with altar paraments to baptize the king and his people. Yohannan also approved the exemption of the Karaits from strict church law, stating that while they had to abstain from meat during the annual Lenten fast like other Christians, they could still drink milk during that period, although they should switch from "sour milk" (fermented mare's milk) to "sweet milk" (normal milk) to remember the suffering of Christ during the Lenten fast. The Catholicos also told Abdisho to endeavor to find wheat and wine for them, so they can celebrate the Paschal Eucharist. As a result of the mission that followed, the king and 200,000 of his people were baptized (both Bar Hebraeus and Mari ibn Suleiman give the same number).

The primitive Karait "eucharist" was normally carried out at a Pavilion located in an Oak grove where milking takes place. The Pavilion is traditionally dedicated to Mar Sergius (Jierjis) of Cappadocia, the patron saint of the Karaits. Three prayers, Aboun Dishmaya, Lakhu Mara and Qadisha Alaha are recited over a cup of fresh (originally Mare's) milk laid upon a Gospel and Cross. A Sign of the Cross is then made over the cup before the Khan takes a sip followed by his people. During Lent Karaits abstain from meat, fat and fresh milk products (symbolic of First Fruits) except milk itself. In the last days of Paschal Holy Week yeast is also prohibited. At the start of the following week, the Karaits bring dried or smoked meats, Kvas, and Kulich, with fresh butter and fresh sweet Pasha cheese to be blessed before everyone sits down around to enjoy these Firstfruits.

William of Rubruck, who encountered many Church of the East Christians during his stay at the court of Mongke Khan the prince of the Karaits as well as at Karakorum in 1254–1255, notes that Church of the East Christianity in Mongolia was tainted by shamanism and Manicheism and very confused in terms of liturgy, not following the usual norms of Christian churches elsewhere in the world. He attributes this to the lack of teachers of the faith, power struggles among the clergy and a willingness to make doctrinal concessions in order to win the favour of the Khans.

Contact with the Catholicos was lost after the Turco-Mongol ruler Timur (reigned 1370–1405) effectively destroyed the Church of the East (leaving only a small remnant) in a violent Islamic jihad. The Church of the East in Karakorum was destroyed by the invading Ming dynasty army in 1380.

The legend of Prester John, otherwise set in India or Ethiopia, was also brought in connection with the Church of the East rulers of the Karaits. In some versions of the legend, Prester John was explicitly identified with Toghrul. But Mongolian sources say nothing about his religion.

Khanate

The Karait appear to have been the most prominent Christian clan in the Kipchak Khanate of greater Cumania although their ruling dynasty was short lived. The first of their Khans known to us by name is the 11th century Markus Buyruk Khan who was succeeded by Saryk Khan (12th century) then Kurchakus Buyruk Khan (12th century). In union with the Khitan they became vassals in the the Kara-Khitai state.

When their last Khan Tughrul Khan (12th century-1203) was by Church of the East ceremony of Adelphopoiesis legally made a brother to Yesugei the father of Timujin who having disposed of all Tughrul's sons was the only one in line to inherit the title Khan when he had Tughrul beheaded. Thus the Genghisids were grafted into the Karait dynasty and Cumania became the founding basis of the Mongol Empire.

The Karaits first enter into history as the ruling faction of the Zubu confederacy, a large alliance of tribes that dominated Mongolia during the 11th and 12th centuries and often fought with the Liao Dynasty of northern China, which controlled much of Mongolia at the time. After the Zubu confederacy broke up, the Karaits retained their dominance on the steppe right up until they were absorbed into Genghis Khan's Mongolian state.

Markus Buyruk Khan, was a Karait leader who also led the Zubu confederacy. In 1100, he was killed by the Liao Dynasty. Kurchakus Buyruk Khan was a son and successor of Bayruk Markus, among whose wives was Toreqaimish Khatun, daughter of Korchi Buiruk Khan of the Naiman. Kurchakus's younger brother was Gur Khan. Kurchakus Buyruk Khan had many sons. Notable sons was Toghrul, Yula-Mangus, Tai-Timur, Bukha-Timur.

After Kurchakus Buyruk Khan died, Ilma's servant — Eljidai from Tatar — became the de facto regent. This upset Toghrul who had his younger brothers killed and then claimed the throne. After this, Gur Khan raided Toghrul. Yesugei Baghatur helped Toghrul.

Karaits who joined western khanates became Tatars, Kazakhs and Khirgizs while there currently exists Khereid clan of Mongols in present-day Mongolia.

Role in the rise of the Genghisids

Tooril, who was the son of Kurchakus by Ilma Khatun, reigned from 1160s to 1204. His palace was located at present-day Ulan Bator and he became brother by Adelphopoiesis to Yesugei. Genghis Khan called him khan etseg ('khan father').

The Tatars rebelled against the Jin dynasty (1115–1234) in 1195. The Jin commander sent an emissary to Temujin. A fight with the Tatars broke out and the Karait-Mongol alliance defeated them. In 1196, the Jin Dynasty awarded Tooril the title of "Wang" (king). After this, Tooril was recorded under the title "Wang Khan".

In 1203, Temüjin defeated the Karaits, who were distracted by the collapse of their own coalition. Tooril tried to escape to the Naimans, but was killed by a Naiman warrior who did not recognize him. The remaining Karaits submitted to Temüjin's rule, but out of distrust, Temüjin dispersed them among the other Mongol tribes.

Tooril's younger brother was Jakha Khambu, a lifelong ally of Genghis Khan, and the father of Sorghaghtani Beki. Toghrul's son was Nilkha Sengum. Sorghaghtani Beki, daughter of Jakha Khambu, became Tolui's khatun. She was mother of the khagans Kublai, Möngke and the Ilkhanate-founder Hulagu Khan. Rinchin protected Christians when Ghazan began to persecute them but he was executed by Abu Sa'id Bahadur Khan when fighting against his custodian, Chupan of the Taichiud in 1319.

Timujin inherited the Karait Khanate from Tooril Khan, who had gained fame as far away as Europe for his battles with Muslims, and several women from the Karait nobility became influential women in the Mongol court. Sorghaghtani Beki, the younger daughter of Tooril's brother Jakha Khambu, married Tolui a son of Genghis Khan, and their four sons, including Kublai Khan who later ruled China and Möngke Khan who ruled the Karaits and conquered Eastern Europe with Batu Khan.

Their importance in Molgol affairs around the turn of the 1300s is evidenced by Rashid-al-Din Hamadani (1247–1318), the official historian of the Genghisid court in Persia, says in Section Three of the Jami' al-tawarikh under کریت ("Karait") that the Karaits were still Christians at that time:

At that time they had more power and strength than other tribes. The call of Jesus - peace be upon him - reached them and they entered his faith. They belong to the Mongol ethnicity. They reside along the Onon and Kerulen rivers, the land of the Mongols. That land is close to the country of the Khitai.

Migrations

Karaits arrived in Europe with the Tatar armies led by Batu Khan and Mongke Khan. A portion were settled in Carpathian Galicia as a result of a hostage exchange treaty between Batu Khan and the Catholic Rus' Prince Daniel of Carpathian Galicia in 1246AD.

From the 1380s onward, many more sought refuge in Christendom under the leadership of Tokhtamysh as a result of the Ming conquest of Karakorum and of the Timurid "Jihad" in Central Eurasia which isolated them from their Mother Church of the East which which they appear to have lost contact with after the schism of 1552. Many were absorbed into other churches, some adopted Islam, while still others became Judaizers.

Presently, various tribes either claiming descent from or which have been proposed as related to the original Karaits of greater Kirghizia, are distributed across North Eurasia from Eastern Europe to as far as North Korea. Thus Karaits exist today among the Karakalpak, Karachay-Balkar, Karaimean, Kara-Tatar, and other Kipchak heritages such as Bashkirs, Kazakhs and of course Kirghiz. Koreans of "Koran" (거란 i.e. Khitan) heritage and modern Mongolians designated as "Khereid (Хэрэйд) also claim descent. Y-DNA Haplogroup R, especially R1a, is most prevalent among modern people of Karait origin confirming Kyrgyz origin. In the modern Kyrgyz language they are called Kireis. (Dunlop 1944)

Some descendants of Karaits formed part of the Middle Juz of the Kazakhs.

Dejudaized Kara'im

Some Kara'im (a religious group which practices Karaite Judaism) in Lithuania have also recently laid claim to this same "Turkic Karaite" identity (whom they relate to the Kara-Khazars) by going through a process of "Dejuzaization" in the 20th century led by Seraja Szapszal in order to survive the anti-Semitic climate.

In Pop-Culture

The critically acclaimed Chinese series "Genghis Khan" depicts Wang Khan Toghrul as a devout Christian, with a cross mounted on top of his royal yurt which has a Christian altar inside and shows him regularly making the sign of the cross. The Japanese-Mongolian film "Genghis Khan: To the Ends of the Earth and Sea" also depicts Tooril of the Karaits as Christian, with a church bell behind his royal yurt and Christian cross signs on his flag, his throne as well as covering his yurt.

Further reading

• "The Karaits of East Asia", in Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 1944. Douglas Morton Dunlop
• "Flexibility and Limitation in Steppe Formations: the Kerait Khanate and Chinggis Khan" by Togan, İsenbike, in The Ottoman Empire and its Heritage, Vol. 15. 1998. Leiden: Brill.
• "The Conversion of the Kerait to Christianity in A.D. 1007," by Hunter, Erica C. D., 1989/1991. in Zentralasiatische Studien, Vol. 22, 142-163.
• "Kereit, Kérey, Giray," by Németh, Julius, 1965. in Ural-Altaische Jahrbücher, Vol. 36, 360-365.
• "The Summer and Winter Camping Grounds of the Kereit," by Boyle, John Andrew, 1973. in Central Asiatic Journal, Vol. 17, 108-110.
• "History of the Mongols from the 9th to the 19th Century: The Mongols Proper and the Kalmyks" Henry Hoyle Howorth
• "Turks in E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam 1913-1936"
• "The Rise and Fall of the Japanese Empire" By David H James
• "Historical Claims over Crimean Territory" Vox Ukraine JUNE 3, 2015 I. Kazas, K. Dronova, O. Zholud
• "History of the voyages and discoveries made in the north translated from the German of Johann Reinhold Forster and elucidated by several new and original maps"
• "A General History And Collection of Voyages And Travels, Arranged In Systematic Order: Forming A Complete History of The Origin And Progress of Navigation, Discovery, And Commerce By Sea And Land, From The Earliest ages to the present time." Robert Kerr (writer).

References

1. G. Németh, A Hongfoglaló Magyarság Kialakulása 1930, pp264-68.
2. ^ Li, Tang (2006). "Sorkaktani Beki: A prominent Nestorian woman at the Mongol Court". Jingjiao: the Church of the East in China and Central Asia. Steyler Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH. ISBN 978-3-8050-0534-0. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |editors= ignored (|editor= suggested) (help)
3. Erica C. D. Hunter, “The Conversion of the Kerait to Christianity in A.D. 1007”, Zentralasiatische Studien, 22 (1989–1991), pp.143-163.
4. Silverberg, Robert (1972). The Realm of Prester John. Doubleday. p. 12.
5. Kingsley Bolton; Christopher Hutton (2000). Triad Societies: Western Accounts of the History, Sociology and Linguistics of Chinese Secret Societies. Taylor & Francis. pp. xlix–. ISBN 978-0-415-24397-1.
6. From the account of Bar Hebraeus, Abdisho also related that the Karait Khan had already "set up a pavilion to take the place of an altar, in which was a cross and a Gospel, and named it after Mar Sergius, and he tethered a mare there and he takes her milk and lays it on the Gospel and the cross, and recites over it the prayers which he has learned, and makes the sign of the cross over it, and he and his people after him take a draft from it."
7. R. Grousset, The Empire of the Steppes, New Brunswick, New Jersey, Rutgers University Press, 1970, p191.
8. Moffett, A History of Christianity in Asia pp. 400-401.
9. Atwood, Christopher P. Encyclopedia of Mongolia and the Mongol Empire. ISBN 0816046719.
10. Compendium , Paris, 1866, p.362
11. "Galicia: A Historical Survey and Bibliographic Guide", Paul R. Magocsi, University of Toronto Press, 1983. p.252
12. "Historical Claims over Crimean Territory" Vox Ukraine JUNE 3, 2015 I. Kazas, K. Dronova, O. Zholud
13. "Identity in Transition: The Case of Polish Karaites in the First Half of the 20th Century" Dovile Troskovaite
14. A scene from "Genghis Khan" showing Genghis Khan presenting a gift to Wang Khan (his father's sworn brother) and asking for military assistance (starting from 09:08) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C56vUXPz5XY

• The Karaits of East Asia" 1944. Douglas Morton Dunlop

• History of Central Asia
• History of the Turkic peoples
• Nomadic groups in Eurasia
• Ethnic groups in Asia
• Turkic tribes