HUNS: Linguistic Explorations

 A research via linguistics could help in determining the ethnicity of the Huns. There are three branches in the Altaic language family: Mongolian, Turkic and Tunguzic. While Mongolian and Turkic share many similarities, possibly because of the fact that the Mongolians relied on Uygur Turks for creation of the Mongolian written language and consequent inter-exchange, the Tunguzic branch is very much a separate branch which would include today's Manchurians, Koreans and some Yayoi-origin Japanese. Conventional wisdom points to some speculation that the Huns belong to the Turkic branch. Though no linguist existed at that time to study the Hun language, it seemed that the Han Chinese had no difficulty in communicating with the Huns. The Huns were very enthusiastic in retaining Chinese as ministers in their court, and at one point in time, the Huns had worn Chinese clothes sent over by the Han emperors. They discarded the Chinese clothing after they were told that the Chinese emperors tried to 'sinicize' them by tricking them into silk clothing instead of the cavalry clothing. Most linguists assert that the Huns were Turkic-speaking and they spoke some kind of Turkic language. My point is that Altaic language family could be a derivative to Tibetan branch of Sino-Tibetan language family as well as a combinational product between Sino-Tibetan language family and Indo-European language family. It could be a bold proposal to suggest that the language branches did not distinguish themselves till much later. While the Huns left no written language, the Turks had possessed a so-called Orkhon scripts which, like the lost languages of the Khitans, Tanguts and Jurchens, had all appeared to contain some kind of revision on top of Chinese.
 
A simple comparison of some words in later Mongolian language yields the following interesting points: The word for the Mongolinas, Mongqol irgen, is the same word 'irgen' as used in ancient Chinese pronunciation which could be corrobated by the Cantonese pronunciation of 'irgen' and Japanese pronuncitation of 'nin' or 'dgen'. Still more interesting is the fact that Genghis Khan's name, Timuchin, shared the same prefix as some of his brothers and sister, with Ti meaning nothing more than a Chinese word 'Tie' for iron or smith. JOHANN WILHELM ADOLF KIRCHHOFF (1826-1908) mentioned two Kara-Kirghiz groups, i.e., "the On or "Right" in the east, with seven branches (Bogu, Sary-Bagishch, Son-Bagishch, Sultu or Solye, Cherik, Sayak, Bassinz), and the Sol or "Left" in the west, with four branches (Kokche or Kfichy, Soru, Mundus, Kitai or Kintai)". As stated at http://57.1911encyclopedia.org/K/KI/KIRGHIZ.htm, the "Sol section occupies the region between the Talass and Oxus headstreams in Ferghana (Khokand) and Bokhara, ... The On section lies on both sides of the Tian-shan, about Lake Issyk-kul, and in the Chu, Tekes and Narin (upper Jaxartes) valleys." Once again, ancient Chinese words, like right for 'you' (mutated into 'on') and left for 'zuo' (mutated into 'sol'), were adopted by nomadic tribes on the steppe. Note that the Huns used to designate their officials into rightside and leftside virtuous kings, similar to Qin Principality's adoption of rightside and leftside prime ministers. Isenbike Togan of Middle East Technical University stated that "written Chinese is also a system of signs... Central Asian people who were not Chinese used this system at some time in the past, including the Turks." Isenbike Togan concluded that the Turkish word for 'freezing' came from Chinese word 'dong[4]'. Reader jianx mentioned that "...many words have similar sound and meaning as chinese -- the madarin... A few examples: Chinese: Bo2: father's brother --> turkish: Bey: same meaning( more general); Wa(1)Di(4): low land --> Vadi: valley; Shui(3): water --> Sui: water; Jie(2): sister --> ajia: female relative, sister. ...Turkish people have chinese last names. For example, Turkish 'Tan' is obviously a chinese last name. In turkish, it means 'sunrise', which is nearly identical to 'Dan(4)' in chinese --- the Zhou Dynasty's famous Zhou(1)Gong(1) Dan(4) --- you should know it means that the sun is rising over the horizon."
 
As to Turkic language, there had existed a much earlier version of language than the Orkhon script. There is on record a poem written by the wife of a Chinese officer under the Di[1] nomads' Anterior Qin Dynasty (AD 351-394), and it was said that this love poem was sent to her husband who was exiled to the border post on China's silk road. The points to make here is that it was written in so-called 'Hui Wen' language, namely, a terminology that was to be used for denoting Turkic language later. Hui means something self-looping or percolating, in a similar fashion to the Iranian languages. The poem could be read from right to left and from left to right.
 
However, languages should not be the determinant factor in determining ethnicity since people could adopt other languages by inter-exchanges. The so-called Turkic language was a term denoting some common pronunciation components among the various nomadic groups of peoples roaming the Euroasian continent, and it is exactly due to this kind of mobility that could lead to the result that the Magyar or Hungarian language (which belongs to the Finno-Ugric family) contains many words of Turkish origin, relating to animal husbandry and political and military organization.
 
It is said that the Magyars had migrated (c.460) from the Urals to the Northern Caucasus region. Remained there for about 400 years, they were allied with the Khazars of Turkish origin. Late in the 9th cent, the Pechenegs forced the Magyars westward across Southern Russia and into present Romania. They defeated the Bulgar czar Simeon I, but Simeon, with the help of the Pechenegs, forced them northward into Hungary where they permanently settled in AD 895. They conquered Moravia and penetrated deep into Germany until they were checked (955) by Holy Roman Emperor Otto I at the Lechfeld. The terms Magyar and Hungarian are identical, but in non-Hungarian languages the word Magyar is frequently used to distinguish the Hungarian-speaking population of Hungary from the German, Slavic, and Romanian minorities. Székely, ethnic group of Transylvania and of present-day Romania, is another good example. The Székely (also known as Szeklers or Siculi) came into Transylvania either with or before the Magyars. Their organization was of the Turkic type, and they are probably of Turkic (possibly Avar) stock. By the 11th cent., however, they had adopted Magyar speech. Some scholars disputed the word 'adopt' since they believe that Székely were of Magyar family, related to one of the two sons of Attila the Hun. Székely later formed one of three privileged nations of Transylvania (the others were the Magyars and the Saxons).  

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