Katagans


The Katagans are a Middle Ages Mongol tribe kindred to Genghis Khan. In the period of mongol conquest and assimilation with enslaved by Turkic tribes played its role in the ethnogenesis of modern Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Karakalpaks, Uzbeks, Buryats, Uygur and others.

Origins

tribe Katagan takes its origin from Buha-Hatagi - the eldest son of Mongol’s mother Alan-goa. Katagan tribe came to Transoxania together with the son of Genghis Khan Chagatay and played a big role in the political history and ethnogenesis of many modern Turkic people.
Evidence about Katagans are seen in the works of Rashid ad Din, namely in his historical ethnographic work Jami' al-tawarikh written in the early 14th century.
According to The Secret History of the Mongols the origin of Katagans is the following:
In the sources there are evidences that speak of Katagans being as part of known of Uzbek tribes in the mid XVI. Katagans are mentioned in the lists of 92 uzbek tribes.
Famous descendant of Uzbek Katagan tribe was a historian of XVI century - Muhammad Yar Arab Katagan, who is the author of Musahhir al-bilad in Persian language. It speaks of the history of Shaybanids.
Uzbek Katagans used to live on the territories of Horzem, Tashkent, Surhandaryinsk, Kashkadayins regions and in the Fergana of Uzbekistan. Katagans used to live on the territories of Tajikistan and Afghanistan as well. According to population census of Tajikistan in 2010 the number of Katagans was 7601 people.
According to historical data, in the 40s XVII century Katagans were one of the strong tribes living in Balha and partly in Kunduz. In times of Ashtarhanids the Balha region was given to Katagans as a nomad camp. At the same time Katagans were forming a strong political alliance. In the beginning of XVII during the reign of Muhmudbyi, Balh and Badahshan became to be known as land of Katagans.
In XIX numerous Uzbek-Katagans lived in Kunduz, Afghanistan.
Katagans of Kunduz and Tash-kurgan were considered to be descendants of 16 sons, each of whom was a descent of a separate kin. 5 sons were from one mother - the besh bola group. Other 11 sons were from a different mother - the group of Chegun. Besh bola divided into next kins: kesamir, djung, katagan, luhan, tas, munas. Munas divided to: chuchugar, chechka, yugul, sirug, temuz, burka, berdja. Chegun consisted from: murad, basuz, ssiri katagan, churag, djuduba, katagan kurasi, murad shaih, adjigun, kin, kudagun, semiz.
Uzbek-katagans of southern Uzbekistan speak kipchak and karluk-chigil dialects of uzbek language, which is evidenced by ethno linguistic research.
Tohchi-katagans that used to live in Surhan-Sherabad oasis speak on the dialect of karluk-chigil with “yi” later, such as turks and karluks.

Katagans as part of Kazakhs

According to Tynyshpayev - katagans made the major power of kazakh khan, the ruler of Tashkent, Tursun khan, who was defeated in a war of 1628 by another kazakh khan Esim. afterwards, numerous and powerful katagan tribe split into several: one part which remained with the title shanshykyly became part of the kazakhs Elder Zhuz, other parts of katagan became part of uzbeks, karakalpaks and kyrgyzs.
Accordingly to Abu-k-Gazi-bahadur-khan in “Shadjara-yi va mogul” kazakh-katagans were destroyed in 1628 together with the assassination of Tursun-Muhammed khan. Such an easy of destruction is explained by the fact that most part of this tribe left to Kashgariya at the end of 16th century, in time of ruling in Yarkend Abd ak-Karim khan. As the result of aforementioned it became few in number and very vulnerable. Katagans that migrated to Kashgariya were headed by Sultan Gazi-sultan, he was given by the khan of Yardkend a land Kargarlyk. His descendants were on state positions later on, and katagans assimilated among local uygurs.
From the work of Muhammedjan Tynyshpayev “Kyrgyz-kazakhs of XVII and XVIII centuries” :
In the year of 1627 the historian Abulgazy Bogadurkhan fled Khiva from his brother Asfendiar and was received by Yesim, who lived in the mountains of Turkestan. Three months later, another Kazakh khan Tursun, who owned Tashkent, arrived there. An honorary refugee Yesum handed over to Tursun, with whom Abulgazy moved to Tashkent. Further, Abulgazy reports that two years later Yesim attacked Tursun, "killed him and killed the Katagans"
Traditions that have survived among the clan of the Chanshchk of the Tashkent district, say that once their khan was Tursun, who was killed by Yesim. After that, most of the katagans fled to Bukhara, and the remaining ones began to be named after the branch of the "Chanshkly" katagans.
Chokan Valikhanov, speaking about the Elder Zhuz of Kazakhs, notes:
Katagans are the most ancient people living in the south of Central Asia and Kazakhstan. At the beginning of the XVII century. they formed the main support force of the ruler of Tashkent - Tursun-khan, and in the middle of the 17th century, part of them became part of the Uzbek people, and the other part was part of the Kazakh Chaniishki tribe.