Yataghan or Flyssa?

Oliver Pinchot · 28th September 2016, 01:32 AM

To clarify:
The flyssa is particular to certain Algerian Berber groups; it is a local adaptation of the Ottoman yataghan. Yataghans which are much more closely recognizable as Ottoman in style (although with distinct characteristics) were used at urban centers such as Algiers and Tunis, where Ottoman influence dates from the early 16th century.

While all manner of weapons which can at least be loosely termed "Ottoman" were used throughout Greece, the yataghan was particularly well suited to the kind of fighting done there, i.e. guerillas operating on foot in difficult terrain. There is one distinctively Greek form of yataghan blade which is virtually straight, with a distinctive upturned tip; it is often hollowground and/or fullered. The form survives on the Cretan dagger. Mounts range from very simple to remarkably elaborate.

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28th September 2016, 01:32 AM	#13
Oliver Pinchot Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 462	To clarify: The flyssa is particular to certain Algerian Berber groups; it is a local adaptation of the Ottoman yataghan. Yataghans which are much more closely recognizable as Ottoman in style (although with distinct characteristics) were used at urban centers such as Algiers and Tunis, where Ottoman influence dates from the early 16th century. While all manner of weapons which can at least be loosely termed "Ottoman" were used throughout Greece, the yataghan was particularly well suited to the kind of fighting done there, i.e. guerillas operating on foot in difficult terrain. There is one distinctively Greek form of yataghan blade which is virtually straight, with a distinctive upturned tip; it is often hollowground and/or fullered. The form survives on the Cretan dagger. Mounts range from very simple to remarkably elaborate.