0021-1818_islam_98-1-2-i-259

Notes on Some Turkish Personal Names in Seljūq Military History 101
life and literature. Specifically, Baski has commented that „Turkic anthroponyms
imply melody, rhyme and alliteration, pun and metaphor, polysemy and monosemy,
myth and religion“. 6 In his article „The psychology and categories of name
giving among the Turkish peoples“, Rásonyi classified names under several
headings, of which the ones significant for our present purpose are: totemistic
names; desiderata names „which express the parents’ wish, protection and intention
towards the spiritual world“; protective or atropaic names; symbolic, fortuitous
or omen names; and theophoric names. Rásonyi’s system has become regarded
as the basic one of categorisation, even though it may require fine tuning
(see Baski, Introduction to Onomasticon turcicum, I, p. XXXVII).
Totemistic names, whether clan ethonyms (Gyula Németh observed in his
note, „Le système des noms de peuples turcs“, Journal Asiatique, CCXXXIX, 70,
that totemistic names are not found for larger groups such as tribes) or anthroponyms,
imply that the human group or person has a special relationship of respect
and honour with a particular animal, bird, reptile or even plant, the connection
being cherished because of an attribution to the totem or onghun of outstanding
strength, speed, courage, etc., which a human can acquire through the relationship.
With particular regard to the Seljuqs, Rash\d al-D\n records that the
twenty-four component units of the Oghuz (from one of which, the Qïnïq, the Seljuq
family was descended) were made up of six groups of four, each with its own
onghun (as conveniently listed, from Rash\d al-D\n, by M.Th. Houtsma in his „Die
Ghuzzenstämme“, Wiener Zeitschrift für die Kunde des Morgenlandes, II [1888],
219–33). The Turks believed themselves to be descendants of the wolf so that totemistic
names like Boz-qurt „grey wolf“, a chief of the Dhu l-Qadr Oghullarï of
southeastern Anatolia, and Kök-böri „Blue wolf“, a Begtiginid Atabeg of Irbil,
occur, whilst one species of raptor, the toghrïl, also held a special place in Turkish
onomastic (see below, Names, no. 29).
Names which express desiderata or have an intentional aim are connected
with the effects of spirits, good or evil, on human character or behaviour, hence
they express e.g. wishes for a newly-born child’s success in life, strength, wealth,
happiness, etc. Here are found names of vigorous and powerful animals such as
arslan „lion“, bars „ panther“ (see below, Names, no. 15), bugha „bull“, bughra
„camel stallion“, etc., clearly overlapping, and doubtless connected, with names
of totemistic origin; imperatives such as toqta „stand [fast]!“ and bek bol „be
strong, healthy!“; and epithets and substantives denoting favourable mental or
physical features, such as bilge „wise“ and ïnanch „faithfulness, confidence“ (see
below, Names, no. 13).
6 Onomasticon turcicum, I, p. XXII.