Color Ethnonyms among the Turkic Peoples: An Attempt at Generalization and Conceptualization

Abstract

In this article, we attempt to assess the distribution of color designations or color markers in the ethnonymy of the Turkic peoples and to consider the practice of their use in a specific historical and cultural context, that is taking into account the chronology and geography of the recording of such ethnonyms. The article focuses on two-component ethnonyms where the word denoting color is used as an adjective. Dominant in the nomenclature of ethnonyms of Turkic peoples are usually color markers such as qara (black), sarïγ (yellow), and aq (white), while less commonly these might be qïzïl (red) or kök (blue). Historically, we encounter the opposition “black–yellow” earlier, and “black–white” later. In all historical periods, the word qara (black), based on its original semantics, had the meaning of “ordinary”, “common”, which implied the presence of a contextual opposition. In some cases, this marker may be added to the names of secondary or subordinated groups that have separated from the original community designated by the main ethnonym; in others, this marker designates the original communities, as opposed to the bearers of the same name with other markers. We argue that, at present, there are no reliable grounds for talking about the identification of any specific patterns. The existing explanations relating color ethnonyms to the designation of political-administrative divisions or markers of spatial-geographical orientation remain at the level of hypotheses and cannot be applied to all cases.