Alans Alani

   has anyone any sensible info as to who the alani actually were and where they may have come from originally. (ie before 650bc northern China region).

 thanks for the tip; i'll try the search facility.

       basically i was trying to research prior to the Yancai Alan period 300 BC - 0 AD. Assyrian sources first mention Alans/ Asses around 650BC. Were the Alani the Wusun?   i reckon they were both in the same area and were neighbouring tribes but general opinion states the Wusun were the Alani. any opinions?

      lmao 

      i reckon most of the real deal Alans crossed the Rhine with Resplendial in  406AD and the more sensible ones defected with Goar in 411AD. 

The problem is that we do not have any information specifically about the Alans prior to the Chinese references to them in central Asia, in 126 BC when Chang Ch'ien, sent by the Emperor to gain an alliance with the Yueh-Chih in Sogdiana, returned with information about western peoples.  His report mentioned the Alans as being located to the northwest of Sogdiana and "close to a great sea" (probably north of the Caspian Sea) which would put them in Kazakhstan. 

There are no references to Alans in Assyrian sources. 

No.  Chang Ch'ien in his report to the Emperor mentions the Alans and the Wusun as two different peoples.  Part of his narrative shows that the Wusun were formerly located further in the east before they drove the Yueh-Chih out of the region of Lake Balkash which they then settled.  

They were definitely different peoples inhabiting different regions.  Chang Ch'ien's report states that the customs of the Wusun resembled that of the Xiongnu, while the customs of the Alans resembled those of the Sogdians.  Also, because the Wusun came from a region further to the east, their original home would have been adjacent to regions known to have spoken Tocharian languages.  Hence, the Wusun may have been Tocharian speakers while the Alans were Iranic speakers.