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41ПО СТРАНИЦАМ ИСТОРИИ ЗАРУБЕЖНЫХ СТРАН CAUCASIAN ASPECTS OF THE HUNGARIAN NIMROD TRADITION*
Обружански Борбала Анна
к.и.н., старший преподаватель
Университет реформаторской церкви
им. Кароли Гаспара
Будапешт, Венгрия
borbala.obrusanszky@gmail.com
Аннотация:
В данном кратком исследовании сделана попытка сравнить данные венгерских хроник с источниковой базой Кавказского региона о венгерском короле Нимроде, в том числе грузинскими и дагестанскими. Данное исследование проведено с учетом данных, согласно которому Нимрод был правителем и предком не только венгров, но и некоторых кавказских народов. Одной из основных целей было стремление на основании источников доказать, что традиция Нимрода не была выдумкой венгерских летописцев, как утверждали ранее, но также присутствовала в хрониках других народов Кавказа. Ключевые слова: Нимрод, Венгрия, Кавказ, хроника, летописная традиция.
Borbala Anna Obrusanszki PhD (in Philoligy), senior lecturer, Karoli Gaspar University of the Reformed Church Budapest, Hungary borbala.obrusanszky@gmail.com Annotation:
In this short study, I will try to compare the data of the Hungarian chronicles with the literature of the Caucasus region and with reports on Nim-rod published in late antiquity, with special regard to the tradition of Nimrod in Georgian written sources. In the light of new research, according to which Nimrod was the ruler and ancestor of not only the Hungarians but also some Caucasian peoples, I tried to compare the existing traditions. One of my aims was to show that the Nimrod tradition was not a fiction of the Hungarian chroniclers, as it was previously claims, but was also present among other peoples in the Caucasus.
Keywords:
Nimrod, Hungary, Caucasus, chronicle, chronicle tradition.
In the medieval Hungarian royal court, scholars wrote several chronicles about the origin and deeds of the royal line. One of the unique topics in these chronicles is the ancestor of the Hungarian Royal Arpad dynasty being Nimrod, who was the first king of the world after the great flood. Originating from Nimrod is a core part of Hungarian tradition, both in written sources and in folk tradition. Nimrod was called by his original name, Menrot, Nemer. Nimrod had two sons, Hunor and Magor, who became the ancestors of the Huns and Hungarians. Some German and Hungarian scholars questioned the long lasting historical tradition at the end of the 19th century. They criticized the fact that sources other than the Hungarian chronicles and the Old Testament did not suggest that other dynasties derived from the great ruler. Subsequently, almost to this day, Hungarian historians have not examined the possibility that there may be some oriental sources in the area once inhabited by Hungarians, in the area of the Meotis swamp, which is links with Nimrod as a great king and dynasty founder. In the last decade, and even before that, so many studies and monographs on Nimrod have been publishes that it would be impossible to summarize them in a short study, therefore in my study I focus on those historical sources that show
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24411/2658-3836-2020-10006 * © Borbala Anna Obrusanszki
© POO « Ассоциация педагогов Республики Дагестан
«¡^^кна Creative Commons «Attribution» 4.0 International License 36
similarities with the Hungarian chronicles. This may be another thread in the study of the common past of the two regions.
Nimrod in the Hungarian tradition
Almost all medieval chronicles, which summaries the origins of the Hungarians, Nim-rod, the mighty king is mentioned. The special feature of the Hungarian chronicles is that not only the Hungarians, but also the Huns descended from the first king of the earth, the great hunter. The chronicle mentions Nimrod as a giant, his wife was called Eneh, from whom the Hungarians and Huns originated. The Hungarian chronicles also describe the residence of Nimrod and his sons. This fascinating topic is worth exploring further. Simon Kezai, the court historian of Laszlo IV (1272-1290), wrote about Nimrod as follows: «In the two hundred and first year after the great flood, Menroth, the son of Japhet, who was the son of Thana, began to build a tower with all his brethren, thinking of the past danger, so that if the flood was to come again, he would flee to the tower to escape. After the confusion of tongues, Giant Menroth went to the land of Evilath, known as a province of Persia at that time, and his wife, Eneth. She gave birth to two sons Hunor and Magor, from whom the Huns or Hungarians originated. However, giant Menroth had more wives besides Eneth, as we know, from whom he bore more sons and daughters besides Hunor and Magor; these sons and their remnants inhabit the province of Persia, resembling the Huns in stature and color, only that they differ slightly in speech like the German Saxons and Thuringians. Because of Hunor and Magor were firstborn boys, they separated from their father and stayed in separate tents»1.
As Kezai points out, it may have been a common view in the Hungarian tradition that Nimrod was the son of Japheth. In the Bible and other Middle Eastern sources, however, he was listed as the son of Kus. The Chronicle tries to bridge this contradiction by deriving the Hungarians from the son of Japheth, King Magog. Anonymus, the notary of King Bela preserved the tradition about the origins of Hungarians. He also stated that they originated from Japhet. He did not mention Nimrod but King Magog as follows: «The Scythians are certainly an ancient people and the strength of Scythia lies in the east, as we said above. And the first king of Scythia was Magog, son of Japhet, and his people were called after him Moger, from whose royal line the most renowned and mighty King Attila descended...» The Chronicum Pictum, like Anonymus, states that Nimrod was the son of Japheth. In addition to these, Nimrod is often mentioned in the Hungarian legends as the ancestor of the Huns and Hungarians2.
« Whence it is clear for all to see that the words of those are not true who say that Hunor and Magor, the fathers of the Hungarians, were the sons of Nimrod, who was the son of Cush, who was the son of Kham, who was cursed by Noah. For then the Hungarians would not be of the seed of Japheth, as says the blessed Jerome; nor at any time did Nimrod live near the river Tanais, which is to the east, but he lived towards the seas of the ocean. Therefore as the sacred Scripture and the holy doctors say, the Hungarians are descended from Magog, the son of Japheth, who in the fifty-eighth year after the flood, as says St. Sigilbert, the bishop of Antioch, in his chronicle of the eastern nations, came into the land of Evilah, and upon his wife Enee begat Magor and Hunor, from whom are named the Magyars and the Huns».
The Chronicle of Pozsony, compiled after 1350, calls Nimrod as Membrot and derives him from Japhet. The rest of the description is the same as the above Hungarian chronicles, e.g. Nimrod, his wife, their sons and the scene of the miracle deer chasing [1., p. 14].
Based on the Hungarian chronicle of the 16th century, the Tarihi Üngürüs written in Turkish language wrote the following: «One day Nimrod went hunting and took his sons with him. While hunting, Nimrod encountered a deer to be killed, immediately followed in his footsteps and began to chase him. His sons also looked fo it everywhere in the wild. Following the magnificent deer, they were galloping with their horses, however, the deer fled and disappeared into the mountains on the border of Ajem (Persia). The two princes searched for the deer for a long time but they couldn't find it. It has disappeared without a trace. The two princes got exhausted, plunged into a sea of sadness and sorrow. Then they wondered what to do. Then they returned to their father and asked him to build a sanctuary for them on the border of Ajem, in the mountainous area (where the wonderful deer disappeared), in which they could live by renouncing the world and retreating from the peoples of the world to deal with their own worries... When Nemrod died, another Padisah was placed on the throne of Ajem in his place. The region (of which Hunor was the prince of) is called the province of Jiddiya and the Tatar province, which stretches from Samarkamd typo the Black Sea». The Chronicum Pictum - following the Biblical genealogy- criticized by the other historical sources mentioned above, which state that Nimrod was the son of Japheth. In addition to these, Nimrod is often mentioned in the Hungarian legends as the ancestor of the Huns and Hungarians. This suggests that the name of the great king was widely known not only in the royal court but also among Hungarians.
In the middle of the 16th century, Miklós Oláh, the former archbishop of Esztergom, summarized the history of Hungary in his book titled Hungaria as follows: «The Hungarian royal chronicles claim that they were the children of Nemroth, who came from Chus, and Chus from Noah's son, Kham». He returned to the geneology of the Bible, where Nimrod was son of Khus. Apart from the above mentioned Hungarian historical sources, it seems consistent that Nimrod is mentioned as the Hungarians' ancestor in most historical summaries. The Hungarian sources had no doubt that Nimrod was a legendary king, he was seen as a real historical figure, but they mention only the Hebrew nickname as 'rebel', they did not preserve the original name. Some local Hungarian legends named Him as 'Nemere', but it may derive from the name Nimrod.
We would notice that Hungarian kings did not follow the Western European „fashion" of creating ancestors of heroes of Troyes or Julius Caesar. They insisted having eastern ancestors, Nimrod and Attila, despite the fact that both persons were regarded as negative characters in Christian Europe. They probably insist on Nimrod because they have brought his descent from their eastern homeland, where the cult of the great king lived alive in certain places.
Not only is the person of Nimrod special in the Hungarian chronicles, but also the names of places that are mentioned. The examination of these on the Hungarian side was largely delayed, only the Turkish historian József Thúry tried to identify the geographical names.
First of all there are four toponyms in the Hungarian chronicles - as mentioned above-that refer to the Caucasus region: the land of Evliat, Ajem, Jiddiya (Scythia) and Maeotis. The latter is the eastern coast of the Sea of Azov, where Hunor and Magor moved and set-
tled down. The province of Ajem can be identified with Persia or Media3. Jiddiya is an alternative name for Scythia. Jozsef Thury mentioned the location of the province of Evliath in his study of Eastern Hungarians who remained in the Caucasus [2]. According to him, Hungarian sources relatively accurately preserved the location of the previous homeland, which was in the former homeland of Nimrod in the province of Evliat. Hunor and Magor migrated north from there. Throughout history, it has often been the case that part of the tribal alliance remains in the old place in the event of a change of accommodation. According to Jozsef Thury, Evliath was just approximately the Meotian swamps, which is the same as the land of Chavilah in the Book of Genesis, which is the same as the biblical Garden of Eden4. He also noticed that Evliath might have been the part from present-day Georgia to northern Iran from which the archaeological legacy of equestrian peoples was unearthed. Unfortunately, the Hungarian researchers did not investigate of the above-mentioned sites. Thury's theory may contain mistakes. But it seems certain that at a period of time Hungarians were linked to the Caucasus region, and the most possible territory is Georgia and the northern part of the Caucasus, where lots of objects, connected with steppe civilisation have been unearthed [3].
Nimrod in the Ancient Eastern Chronicles
Not only the Hungarian chronicles recorded Nimrod as their ancestor, but other ancient books and chronicles also mention him. Some of them only repeated the records of the Old Testament, and described Nimrod as the mighty king, the first king to build a tower in Babylon after the flood. Flavius noted that he made preparation against the flood, that's why he built towers. (Flavius Book I. Chapter 4) There are historical sources that provide new data about Nimrod. Moses Khoreni's History of Armenia presents interesting data on the great king. In the book, among other things, we also find the family tree of Nimrod, from which we can be sure that his genus did not become extinct, but had descendants, as the Hungarian chronicle suggests6. Later, Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History also listed the descendants of Nimrod, and even believed that his dynasty ruled for 224 years. The Georgian chronicle -Kartlis Tshokreva - also mentions, that the Persians became stronger from the side of the rising Sun; they were Nebroth's ten descendants. Moreover, among Nebroth's descendants, one man stood out, a hero, and his name was Apridon, «the one who put Bevrasp, the lord of snakes, in chains, who fastened him to a mountain that is inaccessible to man »[4]. If we pay attention to the Georgian chronicle, it is said the earliest period of history the local Caucasian tribes were subjected to Nebroth. It was the first period, where the Caucasian people met the historical person or the first king over the world. Later on we can find additional stories regarding the successors of Nimrod, who conquered the Caucasian regions. Ardam, the son of one of Nebroth's descendants came to Kartli and devastated all its towns and fortresses. Then he built a town by the Sea Gate and called it Derbent, which is translated as «the closed gate». He also surrounded the town of Mtskheta with a wall of stone and mortar. Up to that, time there was no precedent in Kartli for using these construction materials. People here learned from him how to built forts. Ardam enclosed with a wall of stone and mortar the fortress of Armazi, extending the wall up to the edge of Mount Armazi and down to the banks of the Mt'k'vari7. Ardam ruled for
many years. When Apridon divided his country among his three sons, he gave Persia and Kartli to the same son, Iared, but he was not able to rule the kingdom.
Regarding Nimrod's descendants, the next phase was when King Saurmag chose Mirvan as successor from Nebroth-dynasty, who lived in Persia or Parthia, because he had no son. The chronicle mentioned that the king's daughter married him and adopted Mirvan as his son. He became the fourth king of the Georgians, after the collapse of the Empire of Alexander the Great. The fourth king was Parnajom, who intensified the construction works in all the city-fortresses. He built the fortress Zadeni, and created an idol by name of Zaden, erecting him in Zadeni. He also began to build yhe town of Nelkari in K'akheti, which is Nek'resi. He was defeated the Armenian branch of the Arsakid-dynasty, who belonged to the Parthians. He occupied most of the Caucasus. They occupied Georgia. The last king, who belonged to Nebrothid was King Arshak II, who was on his mother's side an Arshak'id, and on his father's side - a Nebrothid and Parnavazid. Arshak' completed the building of Nelkari, a town in K'akheti, that is Nek'resi, and reinforced the fortress of Uplis-tsikhe. The later royal lines, or Bagratoni wanted to get a Biblical ancestor, and claimed to be the descendant of Kind David of Israel, but Queen Tamara mentioned that one of her ancestors was Nimrod. Based one he contemporary Georgian, Armenian and Syrian sources, we can confirm that the tradition of Nimrod still existed in Georgia in the middle Ages [4. pp. 228, 238].
Researchers of the Georgian chronicle Kartlis Tshovreba believe that the Nimrod tradition is not one of the peculiarities of the Caucasian region, but came from another country, because in the Mesopotamian and Near-Asian regions, the name Nimrod is mentioned almost constantly in antiquity. Rapp, who studied the Nimrod's tradition of the Caucasian region, summarized his research as follows: „The Georgian Nimrod is reminiscent of many other traditions, both oral and written, circulating throughout the world of late antiquity. Infused with local political meaning and significance, the two Georgian traditions about Nimrod are a brilliant cross-cultural vestige of the dynamic, tightly integrated Caucasian, Near-Eastern and Eurasian worlds to which Georgia and its neighbors belonged [5. p. 211].
The Syrians, who made missionary work in the Caucasus, had information about Nim-rod's cult and summarized it. One great book, «The Origin of the Tribes, or the Treasure Cave» speaks of the deeds of the great king. The work reveals many interesting things about the great ruler, such as the introduction of the cult of the white horse, the respect for the springs and even the introduction of the fire cult. Later these became the basis of faith in the Eurasian steppe region, and the fragile remnants can be found in Hungarian folk tradition. Hungarians respected the white horse; they sacrificed them for the sake of Heaven. The white horse is a magical animal, which helps the heroes to solve the most difficult tasks. The springs are sacred places and in some places, they tightened ribbons next to it. In the book, we can read about the crown of Nimrod, which came down from heaven8. According to the Syrian chronicle, Nimrod the mighty man, the first king on the earth, reigned for sixty-nine years; and the beginning of his kingdom was Babel. The chronicle continues the story as follows: «And in the days of Nimrod, the mighty man (or giant), a fire appeared which ascended from the earth, and Nimrod went down, and looked at it, and worshipped it, and he established priests to minister there, and to cast incense into it. From that day the Persians began to worship fire, [and they do so] to this day. And Sisan, the king, found a spring of water in Droghin, and he made a white horse and set it over it,
and those who bathed in the water used to worship the horse»[6, p 86]. In this book Nim-rod is a positive figure.
Armenian tradition also preserved Nimrod's memory. The Armenian scholar, Vardan Arevelci translated the Chronicle of Michael the Great, Patriarch of the Syrians. We can find a report of Nimrod: «At the beginning of the days of Reu they commenced building the Tower in the Shinar country. Now the giant Nimrod hunted game for the builders and fed them. The principals were Lamsour [Assur], Hayk, and Nimrod. They built for 40 years, fearing Noah's curses for they had violated the oath and were liable to his anathemas, having deprived one another of land and water. Therefore, they conceived this plan [of building the Tower] to survive». Then the Lord descended and divided their languages, turning one language into 72 [different languages]. Many of the builders were killed, and some claim that Nimrod too died in the collapse. However, we have confirmed that it was only subsequently that [Nimrod] was slain by Hayk, son of Torgom, son of Tiras, son of Gomer, son of Japheth. Hayk had refused to make an image of Bel and regard it as God, and so Bel came against him with a great multitude. Moreover, Hayk killed him. Now when the Tower collapsed, language became confused. God separated the one [universal] language into 72 [languages]. The line of Japheth had 15; the line of Ham, 32; and the line of Shem, 25. Moreover, each man went by his own road. Nimrod built the cities of Erech (Areg), Nisibis (Mtsbin) and Edessa (Ur'ha). Now let us return to our narration beginning with the series of monarchs of Babylon, where Nimrod reigned during the first 69 years...[Samandros] also said that [Samir] had three eyes and horns, was a powerful, gigantic person, and expelled the line of Nimrod from Chaldea[6. p. 12].
The above source recorded that Hayk, son of Togormakh killed Nimrod. However, other source also claims that Nimrod died in an accident, so Nimrod's death is unclear. Nimrod was a creative king; he founded many settlements both in Near-Asia and in the Caucasus region. The Book of The Cave of Treasure provides important information about the residence of the great king, describing that Nimrod built many settlements and countries: Nineveh, Resaina, Seleucia, Ctesifon and Adorbajgan, and three other forts. It shows that Nimrod extended his dominion northward, to the mountainous parts of Near East and they probably reached the Caucasus region as well. Most of the names listed are in the northern part of present-day Iraq, with the exception of Adorbajgan, which refers to Azerbaijan. (We do not know which part it applied to, but it probably meant southern Azerbaijan, which belongs to Iran today.)
One of the reasons for the migration of the descendants of Nimrod is also mentioned in the source. His descendants were expelled from Chaldea. Then it is conceivable that they fled north. It means to us that the one part of ancestors of the Hungarians lived close to their former place of Nimrod's residence. According to the Georgian Kartlis Tskhovreba chronicle, the descendants of the Iranian (Parthian) Nebrothids, from the 3rd century BC, dominated Iberia and a major part of the Caucasus region [4, pp. 25-26]. According to the Hungarian chronicle, the ancestors of Huns and Hungarians moved from the country of Nimrod to the Meotis-swamp. They probably used the Darial-pass, which led from present Tbilisi to Alans (today North-Ossetia). It was the connecting point, where ancestors of the Hungarians and the Georgians had the traditions of Nimrod.
There are several theories about Nimrod. Many do not consider him a real historical person, perhaps because of his name, which by the way in Hebrew means "rebel". If he was a historical person, his name must have been different. Some identify with Gilgamesh, some with some Sumerian or Assyrian king [8]. As its tradition has remained very strong in the Caucasus and among Hungarians, we can assume that he was a real person. The fact that Nimrod is a positive character in the areas studied above, while negative elsewhere draws attention to the fact that some have indeed considered him ancestral. In the absence of written sources, chronicles of folk memory and royal lines may be important evidence of this. In the absence of sufficient evidence, we cannot decide exactly who Nimrod was; all we know is that he may have been the first king after the flood. The name Nimrod has not been forgotten for centuries either, which also suggests that he must have been a significant ruler whose activity was a milestone in the past of the peoples of the region.
The above-mentioned theories did not take into account the possibility of the existence of a local tradition, although we cannot rule out the possibility that there was a local surviving tradition preserved by families on Nimrod for posterity. It is probable that the former mighty ruler may have had many descendants in the area that ruled one province at a time and inherited some traditions from Nimrod. By comparison, the descendants of the Mongolian Genghis Khan were those who could form a right to govern an area even after the death of their great predecessor. Being descended from a great, distinguished ancestor gave them a privilege. Genghis Khan currently has about 16 million descendants around the world.
Summary
From the source presented above, it can be seen that Nimrod's tradition in the Hungarian chronicles is not unique, but several Caucasian and Near-Eastern historical sources have recorded the history of Nimrod's descendants. In this respect, the territory of present-day Caucasus region is a very important area for further study, where the descendants of Nimrod lived and ruled. The Hungarians probably brought this tradition from the Caucasus to Europe and the Royal lines of Hungarians preserved it despite of Nimrod being a negative person in Europe.
Annex:
1. Kezai or Kezai Simon was the royal priest, who served Laszlo IV or Laszlo the Cuman (12721290). He also summarised the history of Hungarians from the earliest time until Laszlo's reign. The name of the chronicle is Gesta Hungarorum or History of Hungarians [2-3].
2. Chronicon Pictum is the greatest Hungarian chronicle written in Latin language and decorated with pictures. It summarises the history of Hungary from the beginning until 1330.
3. Adjem-Persian part of Irak, where Turks and Persian live. It borders with Azerbaijan. The Turks and Arabs call the whole Persia as Adjem. Conder, 1830. 515.
4. The eastern shore of the Azov Sea. It was the centre of Royal Scythians.
5. Mesdrim begot Nembroth (Nimrod), Nembroth begot Bab, Bab begot Anebi, Anebi begot Arbel, Arbel begot Kayal, Kayal begot Arbel. Arbel begot Ninus, Ninus begot Ninias." (Horeni 1892, 14.)
6. Mesdrim begot Nembroth (Nimrod), Nembroth begot Bab, Bab begot Anebi, Anebi begot Arbel, Arbel begot Kayal, Kayal begot Arbel. Arbel begot Ninus, Ninus begot Ninias." (Horeni 1892, 14.)
7. It is situates near Mtskheta.
8. Budge, 1927. 87. A strange coincidence that the Hungarian Holy Crown is also considered by the tradition to be a crown landed from heaven. There is no any parallel to the Hungarian belief, just into him Caucasus.
References:
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2. Thury J. A magyaroknak a szavarti aszfali neve. In Szazadok. 1897. 391-403.
3. Archaeological Treasury. Catalogue. Lordkipanidze D. (ed.). Tbilisi: Georgian National Museum, 2011.
4. Kartlis Tskhovreba. The Georgian Chronicle. Mroveli R., Jones S. (eds.). Tbilisi: Artanuji Publishing, 2014.
5. Rapp Jr.S. New Perspectives on "The Land of Heroes and Giants": The Georgian Sources for Sasanian History. Sam Houston State University. E-Sasanika 13. 2014. 1-32.
6. Budge W.A. (trans.). The Book of the Cave of Treasures: a History of the Patriarchs and the Kings, their Successors from the Creation to the Crucifixion of Christ. London: Forgotten Books, 2007.
7. Chabot J.B. Chronique de Michel le Syrien, patriarche jacobite d'Antioche 1166-119, 4 vols., Paris, 1899-1910. New ed. Brussels, 1964.
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15. Conder J. The Modern Traveller: Book XII. Persia. London, W. Clowes. 1830.
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Статья поступила: 15.02.2020
