Who were Scythians?

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   An interesting exerpt from some work by Fred Hamori based on works by Gyula Mészáros on Scythian roots:

REAL SCYTHAINS OF MESOPOTAMIA

It is a common
fallacy to call Scythians Iranians based on the fact that the Greeks continued
to use the Scythian name long after the disappearance of the Northern
Mesopotamian & Anatolian Scythians who were conquered and absorbed by the
Iranian Suoramata. The association of the conquered with the conqueror however
is common but still inaccurate. After this event there occurred such a
confusion in the minds of the Greeks concerning their previous northern
neighbors that they applied the term to other nomadic or equestrian people with
similar outward habits, including the Saurmatians, Huns, Turks and later even
Germanic tribes. This progression only occurred over a long time when the
"Scythian" term became a gross generalization of a horse-nomad. Yet
the original Scythians were not nomads and had cities, ships arts and trades,
which the early Greeks admired. The later Pseudo Scythians often copied some of
their arts and habits but were but a poor imitation of the original. 

The real Scythians, however lived first in Anatolia before the 7th century BC,
then moved in large numbers to the Kuban Region in early 6th century BC, then
to the Pontic Steppes and later to eastern Europe and to Turkestan. Before this
time they must have conducted long term trade with the region also. They
greatly influenced the culture of the peoples they interacted with including
the so called Finnougrians in the north and also the Hunic-Turkic peoples in
the east and probably also some Indo Europeans. The important question which we
may never be able to answer with absolute certainty is, were they the real
ancestors of the common language strata in Ural-Altaic? This can only be
partially true unless their influence was from a much much earlier time then
their northern migration. The reason I even mention this is that it appears
that the decoded words I have found in Scythian is often found in these
languages also, as well as their late descendants in the Kartwelian Languages
of the lace wt="on">Caucasuslace>. Following this historical
introduction a systematic review of the Scythian language remains will be
introduced using early Anatolian languages as comparison, based on the
linguistic researches of Gyula Mészáros (Hattic and Pakhy languages), with some
addition from my own review of Hurrian and Sumerian. 

We know relatively little of the early Scythian language, except that it came
from ancient lace wt="on">Anatolialace> and therefore must be
related to the languages of that region such as Hattic, Hurrian, Subarian.
Indeed if these are used as a guide much of the language of these "real
Scythians" from 6century BC to the 2nd century BC can be decyphered,
whereas they cannot be understood with the help of Iranian languages. Only the
later Sauromata and later pseudo Scyth language remains can be understood with
Iranian. To make the confusion more complete, the conquering Sauromata also
must have absorbed large Scythic elements which often kept many of their old
customs, but were forced to change their languages. Therefore outwardly they
must have seemed to be the same people. The explosion of Scythic peoples in the
east could not just be a population explosion of one people but the whole
conquered patchwork of peoples. 

First of all a comparison of early Scythian customs, art forms, religious
beliefs and even their first historic mention is all from Anatolia and Northern
Messopotamia. First in Assyrian documents. The early Greek writers confirm this
also. Therefore they were not a northern people at all ! Nor an eastern one
from lace wt="on">Central Asialace>. Plinius writes of their
origins "Ultra sunt Scytharum populi, Persae illos Sacas in universum
appellavere a proxima gente, antiqui Arameos." They came from an area in
Northern Messopotamia often called Arameos, which is but a name of Urartu whose
first king was called t="on">lace wt="on">Aramlace>.
Later the term was also applied to t="on">Syria
where another colony of Scythians & Hati-Hittites (2000BC to 714BC) settled
after the collapse of their old empire in lace wt="on">Anatolialace>.
Indeed this was but one of the reasons for the spreading of Anatolian people to
the north also. Both Assyrian and Mede attacks forced them to look for new
lands to settle./Meszaros 

Herodotus also tells of the origin of the Scythians from the area of eastern
Anatolia watered by the laceName wt="on">AraxeslaceName> laceType wt="on">RiverlaceType> (modern Turkish Aras) and not the lace wt="on">Amu Daryalace> which the historians of Alexander invented to
enlarge their own conquests. Herodotus writes: "The nomad Scythians living
in Asia (once only the near east) were attacked by the Sarmatians and were
forced to cross the lace wt="on">Araxeslace> and wander to the
land of the Kimmerians." 

This is but one late version of a confused story, other early Greeks tell it
differently that the warlike Scythians crossed over on their own account. The
Sarmatian attack was a later event, but they must have been a long time thorn
in their side because Herodotus mentioned them living to the north of the
Scythians of the Black Sea regions and not close to their old homelands along
the lace wt="on">Araxeslace>. 

Hesiod, 7th Century BC, writes: The inventors of bronze working were the
Scythians. The early Messopotamian name of the metal Zubur, indicates that the
northern Messopotamian Subartuan's or a people of the region were indeed the inventors
of the process. The Scythians also of this region were therefore but a
different designation of such people that the Greeks associated with them. 

The Greeks also associated the invention of iron working with the Scythians.
This again is a northern Messopotamian and Anatolian invention and being
Anatolian in origin the Scythians also had some great iron working tribes like
the Kalybs tribe which gave steel its name in many early European languages. In
time they became absorbed by the Sarmatians and Yazig. They must have also been
remembered by the Yazig cavalry taken by the Romans to early t="on">lace wt="on">Britainlace> and
were the foundation of the King Arthur myths of Ex-Calibur, and the sword myths
which are all early Anatolian traditions. These traditions were also found in
Hun and Magyar traditions and mentioned by Herodotus amongst the early
Scythians. 

Besides bronze and iron they are credited by the early Greeks to have invented
the bellows used for metal smelting. The invention of the pottery wheel and the
boat anchor. Products of a very early civilization. 

Therefore when Justinius II writes that the Scythians are one of the most
ancient races in the world, older than the Egyptians, He cannot be talking of
simply the late Scythian immigrants to the Pontic steppes but the early
northern Messopotamian cultures. Similarly he cannot be talking of the Iranian
tribesmen which spread into lace wt="on">Central Asialace>. Nor
is he talking of the later Hun tribes for sure, since they were hardly known
for a such a long time in the west. 

It is Deodorus Siculus who talks of the death and disappearance of the true
Scythians at the hands of the Sarmatians, who could not have been their
relatives, and therefore not real Scythians. The early Scythian art style is an
extension of Messopotamian art, a fact which cannot be denied any longer. The
illustration of early Scythians also looks like a branchycephalic Anatolian
race, which from early times has also been slowly spreading into lace wt="on">Eastern Europelace> (Körös Culture). They absorbed some
northern dolycephalic peoples also but these represented less then 10% of their
population. Today in Europe the lace wt="on">laceType wt="on">territorylaceType>
 of laceName wt="on">Old HungarylaceName>lace> is the
center of branchycephalic types. This type is growing throughout Europe and
dolycephalic types last remnants are in t="on">lace wt="on">Englandlace> and the northern Germanic
areas. Looking at early Scythian representation one may as well be looking at
the representation of a Hurrian or Assyrian, minus the curly hair. 

One of the main introductions of the Scythians is iron weapons and horse
riding. Both of Anatolian origin. 

Representation of horse soldiers from the Mitani-Hurrian state from 12century
BC and Hittite reliefs from the 14th and 12th century show its early sporadic
use, just waiting for the right equipment to be developed. 

The horse is utilized mainly to pull a chariot rather than an unstable back of
the horse, until basic saddles are invented by the scythians and much better
saddles and stirrups are invented by the Hunno-Turkic peoples. (1AD Hun
stirrups). The name of the horse, warhorse and charriot in Hungarian are all
from northern Messopotamia. Horse riding equipment like saddles, reins,
strirrups are from Hunno-Turkic languages. None by way of any Indo European
language.. 

The Scythians were famous above all because of their horsemanship and great
knowledge of raising and riding horses. This comes from their old homeland as
is shown by the documents of Sargon (722-705BC). 

North East of Urmia-lake in Urartu, there was a Sangi-buti land with two cities
famous for its horses. 

The Chaldi (Urartu) signs from the 8th century BC also talk of the land between
the Transcaucasian Kura and lace wt="on">laceName wt="on">AraxeslaceName>
 laceType wt="on">RiverlaceType>lace> area and often
mentions their horses. From a military expedition they obtained 10,000s of
horned cattle and 100, 000 s of sheep, and 100s of horses. /Mescaninov, t="on">lace wt="on">Leningradlace> (Chaldi ...?) 

After this introduction I have used the pioneering work of Gyula Meszaros, into
a comparative study of the language of the Scythians. Introducing basic words
and their application in recorded Scythian names and titles which remain in
many examples. Unfortunately no large textual remains are found today making it
difficult to validate all of his comparisons. Even so this is a great lurch
forward in a long stalemated study which up to now were utilizing simplistic
associations with sound alike names, that could be described in many random
ways, but forming no cohesive system. 

Before the end of this sections let me at least give a few examples of what
will follow in a later report. 

Sco-lo-et-i =the name of the ruling Scythian people 

Sco-lo-pi-t-(us) = a Scythian kings name /Justinius II 

1)Sco =rule, chief /Scyth 

&#353;xa =man, sir /Pakhy 

sha =chief /Hatti 

i&#353;ha =sir /Hittite 

sag' =head, isag=chief /Sumer 

sang =head, peak /Ugrian 

2)lo =people, folk, (army-large group) 

lu-lu =people /Sumerian 

la =army /Hatti 

?lo-fu =chief -head ruler of the late Huns near China 

3) et =to be/being 

They believed that they originated from the son of the sky/weather god, called
TAR 

Hence the name TAR-gi-ta or more correctly tar-xu-ta =HIGH/WEATHER God.+son's+
land./Meszaros. 

His children therefore are TAR-XU, which is one possible source of the TURK
name also. 

History has also shown that the Magyar term is generally found in early
references in association with Scythians rather than in the north and the
Hungarian Chronicles state their Scythian links. But these are different
branches of a once related group to which Scythians serve only as a later
offshoot. Each group with languages that have somewhat different phonetic
characteristics, but often with similar terms and an agglutinative language
structure, no gender in pronouns, and so on. The following sections will cover
the proposals of Gyula Meszaros written in the 30s and ignored ever since. 

Mészáros claims that the Scythians had a triple kingship system, which is
symbolized in their legend of origin and also at times when under attack three
leaders arise to rally the people against the invaders. This is like the
Khazars and Magyars, who each ruled a special area of society. One, the
theocratic king or the ruler of the royal house, which is Leipoxis is much like
the Hungarian Kende, who had no power outside of his area. There was the ruler
of all the armies, the Scythian Arpoxais, who wielded considerable power over
the free men, the nobles and army, this was the Gyula title whose name was
Árpád, who was the Jula in Kazaria. Then there was the last ruler Kolaxis in lace wt="on">Scythialace> and the Hungarian Horka, who was the ruler over
the common people. The Hungarian Horka was the chief judge also. He ruled over
the "black heads", the common workers, farmers, craftsmen etc. Horka?
Kara=black in Turkic. The common people were called the "Pa-ra-la-ti"
in Scythian. Pa-ra=land-black-people, but this also means dust, sand in
Sumerian "par-im", Hungarian "por" and Turkic
"bar" also. The "Para-szt" are the lowly peasants in
Hungarian. The only strange thing with this explanation is that the legend
seems to emphasize the importance of Kolax(is) as the chose one of god, when he
alone is able to lift the various tools of gold that god rains down from above.
Perhaps these too just represent the tools of the workers, which the warrior
king and the theocratic king cannot and must not touch! But not so, only the
first two the golden plow and yoke are work tools, the sword should be for
Arpoxais and the golden goblet generally used for prayers should be for
Leipoxais.>>