The Reconstruction of The Name Yuezhi 月氏 / 月支

Abstract

One of the most important problems of Central Asian history is undoubtedly the origin of the people referred to as Yuèzhī (月氏 / 月支) in Chinese sources. So far, historical or archaeological research could not convincingly explain the origins of the Yuezhi. The study attempts to present and critically evaluate various theories concerning the origin of the Yuezhi and their relationship to the Tocharians. To address this problem, it investigates Uyghur and Chinese place names and tries to list Yuezhi ethnotoponyms in Afghanistan and Xinjiang. At the end of the study, two maps based on Yuezhi ethnonyms are also given to illustrate the former geographical distribution of Yuezhi in Afghanistan and Xinjiang. Based on these toponyms and historical data, the study also makes an attempt to reconstruct the name Yuèzhī.

Keywords

• Yuezhi,Tocharians,Tocharian question,Turkic-Tocharian relations

Yuezhi Adının Yeniden Yapılandırılması

Abstract

Orta Asya tarihinin kuşkusuz en önemli problemlerinden biri Çin kaynaklarında Yuèzhī (月氏 / 月支) olarak geçen halkın kökenidir. Bugüne kadar tarihi veya arkeolojik araştırmalar Yüecilerin kökenini ikna edici bir biçimde açıklayamadılar. Bu çalışma, Yüecilerin kökenine ve Toharlarla ilişkilerine ilişkin çeşitli kuramları tanıtarak onları eleştirel bir yaklaşımla ele almaya çalışıyor. Bu sorunu çözebilmek için Uygur ve Çin yer adlarını inceleyerek Afganistan ve Doğu Türkistan’daki Yüeci boy adı kökenli yer adlarını tespit etmeye çalışıyor. Çalışmanın sonunda, Yüecilerin Afganistan ve Doğu Türkistan’daki eski coğrafi dağılımlarını göstermek için Yüeci boy adı kökenli yer adlarını gösteren iki de harita veriliyor. Boy adı kökenli bu yer adlarına ve tarihsel verilere dayanarak Yuèzhī adının asli biçiminin yeniden kurgulanması yönünde bir deneme de yapılıyor.

Keywords

• Yuezhi,Toharlar,Tohar sorunu,Türkçe-Toharca ilişkileri

References

1. Adams, D. Q. (2013): A Dictionary of Tocharian B: Revised and Greatly Enlarged. New York–Amsterdam.
2. Aydemir, H. (2009): Bemerkungen zu den tocharisch-türkischen und tocharisch-uigurischen Beziehungen: türk. twqry, sogd. twγr’k, pers. t(u)ġr(a)k. Journal of Oriental and African Studies 18, 2009: 159-180.
3. Aydemir, H. (2014): Sogdian traces in Central Asian Onomastics. Gazi Türkiyat, Güz 15, 2014: 53-66.
4. Bailey, H. W. (1936): Ttaugara. Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, 8, 1936: 883-917.
5. Baxter, W. H. (1992): A Handbook of Old Chinese Phonology. Berlin-New York.
6. Baxter, W. H. / Sagart, L. (2014 ): Old Chinese: A New Reconstruction. Oxford-New York.
7. Beckwith, C. I. (2009): Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton.
8. Beckwith, C. I. (2010): A Note on the Heavenly Kings of Ancient Central Eurasia. Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi, 17, 2010: 7-10.

9. Beckwith, C. I. (2011): İpek Yolu İmparatorlukları. Bronz Çağı’ndan Günümüze Orta Asya Tarihi. (Translator) K. Yıldırım. Ankara.
10. Benjamin, C. G. R. (2007): The Yuezhi. Origin, Migration and the Conquest of Northern Bactria. Turnhout.
11. Carling, G. (2009): Dictionary and Thesaurus of Tocharian A. Volume 1: A-J. Compiled by Gerd Carling, in collaboration with Georges-Jean Pinault and Werner Winter. Wiesbaden.
12. Enoki, K. / Koshelenko, G. A. / Haidary, Z. (1996): The Yüeh-Chih and their migrations. In: (Ed.) Harmatta, J.: History of Civilizations of Central Asia. The development of sedentary and nomadic civilizations: 700 B.C. to A.D. 250. Vol. II. Paris, 1996: 165-183.
13. Fracasso, R. (1993): Shan hai ching 山海經. In: Loewe, M.: Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. New Haven. 1993: 357-368.
14. Haloun, G. (1937): Zur Üe-tṣï Frage. Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft. 91, 1937: 243-318.
15. Henning, W. B. (1938): Argi and the “Tokharians”. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 9, 1938: 545-571.
16. Henning, W. B. (1978): The First Indo-Europeans. In: (Ed.) Ulmen, G. L.: Society and History, Essays in Honor of Karl Wittfogel. The Hague, 1978: 215-230.
17. Hirotoshi, O. (2014): Fragments of secular documents in Tocharian A. In: Tocharian and Indo-European Studies. 2014: 103-129.
18. Krause, W. / Thomas, W. (1964): Tocharisches Elementarbuch. Heidelberg. 1960.
19. Liu, X. (2001): Migration and Settlement of the Yuezhi-Kushan: Interaction and Interdependence of Nomadic and Sedentary Societies. Journal of World History, Vol. 12, No. 2, 2001: 261-292.
20. Loewe, M. (19932): Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. New Haven.
21. Maenchen-Helfen, O. (1945): The Yüeh-Chih Problem Re-Examined. Journal of the American Oriental Society, 1945: 71-81.
22. Mallory, J. P. / Mair, V. H. (2000): The Tarim Mummies. London.
23. Mallory, J. P. (2015): The Problem of Tocharian Origins: An Archaeological Perspective. Sino-Platonic Papers. Number 259, 2015: 1-63.
24. Marquart, J. (1901): Ērānšahr nach der Geographie des Ps. Moses Xorenac’i. Berlin.
25. Mathieu 1993= Mu t'ien tzu chuan 穆天子傳. In: Loewe, M.: Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. New Haven. 1993: 242-346.
26. Mızrak. E. Ç. (2014): Yüeh-Chih’lerin Kökenleri ve Göç Süreçleri. Journal of History School. Eylül 2014. Yıl 7. Sayı XIX, 2014: 371-404.
27. Müller, F. K. (1913): Ein Doppelblatt aus einem manichäischen Hymnenbuch: (Maḥrnâmag). (Mit 2 Tafeln). Abhandlungen der Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin. 1912, Nr. 5. Berlin, 1913: 1-40.
28. Pelliot, P. (1936): A propos du “tokharien”. T'oung Pao. Second Series, Vol. 32, Livr. 4: 259-284.
29. Peyrot, M. (2008): Variation and change in Tocharian B. Amsterdam – New York.
30. Poucha, P. (1955): Thesaurus Linguae Tocharicae Dialecti A. Monografie Archivu Orientálního, Vol. XV. Praha.
31. Pulleyblank, E. G. (1962): The consonantal system of Old Chinese. Asia Major 9, 1962: 58-144, 206-265.
32. Pulleyblank, E. G. (1966): Chinese and Indo-Europeans. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. 1-2, 1966: 9-39.
33. Pulleyblank, E. G. (1983): The Chinese and Their Neighbours in Prehistoric and Early Historic Times. (Ed.) Keightley, D. N.: The Origins of Chinese Civilisation. Berkeley-Los Angeles, 1983: 441-446.
34. Pulleyblank, E. G. (1991): Lexicon of reconstructed pronunciation in Early Middle Chinese, Late Middle Chinese, and Early Mandarin. Vancouver.
35. Pulleyblank, E. G. (1995): Why Tocharians? The Journal of Indo-European Studies, 23, 3-4, 1995: 415-430.
36. Pulleyblank, E. G. (1999 ): Central Asia at the dawn of history. Journal of Chinese Linguistics, 27, 1999: 146-174.
37. Rickett, W. A. (1993): Kuan tzu 管子. In: Loewe, M.: Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. New Haven. 1993: 244-251.
38. Sabit / Nasir (1994): ﺖﯩﺑﺎﺳ ﺖﯩﺸﯦﺭﯗﺪﺑﺎﺋ Sabit, A. /ﺮﯩﺳﺎﻧ ﻯﺩﺭﯘﺗ Nasir, T., ﻰﺘﯩﻏﯘﻟ ﻯﺮﯩﻠﻣﺎﻧ ﺭﻪﻳ ﯓﺎﺠﻨﯩﺷ ﻪﭼﺭﯘﻐﻳﯘﺋ-ﻪﭼﯗﺰﻧﻪﺧ Ḫenzuče-Uyġurče Šinjiang Yer Namliri Luġiti. ﻰﺗﺎﻴﯨﺮﺷﻪﻧ ﻖﻟﻪﺧ ﯓﺎﺠﻨﯩﺷ Šinjiang Ḫelk Nešriyati. 2nd edition.
39. Schuessler, A. (2007): ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese. Honolulu.
40. Shaughnessy, E. L. (1993): I Chou shu 逸周書: In: Loewe, M.: Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. New Haven. 1993: 229-233.
41. Sieg, E. (1937): Und dennoch “Tocharisch”. Sitzungsberichte der Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1937: 130-139.
42. Starostin, S. A. (1989): Реконструкция древнекитайской фонологической системы. Moscow.
43. Thierry, F. (2005): Yuezhi et Kouchans, Pièges et dangers des sources chinoises. In: (Eds.) Bopearachchi, O. / Boussac, M-F.: Afghanistan, Ancien carrefour entre l’est et l’ouest, Indicopleustoi. Brepols, Turnhout. 2005: 421-539.
44. van Windekens, A. J. (1976): Le Tokharien confronté avec les autres langues indoeuropéennes. Vol. I: La phonétique et le vocabulaire. Louvain. Watson, B. (1993): Records of the Grand Historian by Sima Qian: Han Dynasty II. Revised Edition. Hong Hong–New York.
45. Witek, M. (2018): The Mystery of Tocharians and Tocharian-speaking peoples in Western China. Linguistic evidence for the presence of Indo-European peoples in Western China – Analysis of current Issues. Kultura – Historia – Globalizacja, Nr. 24: 193-211.
46. Xiyu tong wenzhi: Fu Heng 傅恒 et al. (1763): 欽定西域同文志 Qingding xiyu tong wenzhi. 共卷 gong juan. 影印本 yingyinben (facsimile). 臺北 taibei (Taipei). 1986.
47. Yıldırım, K., (2015): Doğu Türkistan’ın Yer Adları. Ch’in-ting hsi-yü t’ung-wen-chih 欽定西域同文志 (1763). İstanbul.
48. Yu, T. (2010a): The Earliest Tocharians in China. Sino-Platonic Papers. Number 204, 2010: 1-78.
49. Yu, T. (2010b): The Communication Lines between East and West as Seen in the Mu Tianzi Zhuan. Sino-Platonic Papers. Number 197, 2010: 1-57.
50. Zhong, X. (2008): 西域地名考录 Xiyu diming kaolu. 北京 Beijing.
51. Zhong/Wang/Han (2002): 钟兴麒 Zhong Xingqi / 王豪 Wang Hao / 韩慧 Han Hui, Xiyu tuzhi 西域图志. 乌鲁木齐 Wūlǔmùqí (Urumqi).