Definition of a Greek yataghan?

[kronckew]

The Balkan machaira/Greek kopis was carried (and presumably some were lost in battle) by Alexander thru Anatolia, Persia, Afghanistan, the 'Hindu kush', thru the Himalayas and through India, and back though the northern gulf coast, and after his death into Egypt and beyond. Considering the active well used trading routes of the time, the design as well as the weapons themselves could easily travel to north africa and thru India to SE asia. 'Parallel evolution' can easily be cultural appropriation. Hey, this vase is cool, can you make me a big knife like that greek fellow on my wine jug? We tend to forget even the Romans, as well as the greeks traded with India and beyond, for silks and spices, and it was a two way system connecting from the bronze age up till the modern age, without gaps.

[kronckew]

p.s.- my Balkan/Romanian 'greek' shepherds knife or karakulak yat, 24 in. blade, small ears, integral bolster.

[TVV]

Originally Posted by kronckew

p.s.- my Balkan/Romanian 'greek' shepherds knife or karakulak yat, 24 in. blade, small ears, integral bolster.

I am curious about the Romanian attribution - can you explain?

Thank you,
Teodor

[kronckew]

Originally Posted by TVV

I am curious about the Romanian attribution - can you explain?

Thank you,
Teodor

I bought it from a Romanian dealer in Bucharest who got it from 'somewhere in the mountains'.

[TVV]

Originally Posted by kronckew

I bought it from a Romanian dealer in Bucharest who got it from 'somewhere in the mountains'.

I would not trust the dealer, unless the mountains were to the south and he had to cross the Danube Bridge to get there.

[ariel]

Originally Posted by TVV

I would not trust the dealer, unless the mountains were to the south and he had to cross the Danube Bridge to get there.

I agree: dealer descriptions are notoriously unreliable and often frankly misleading.

Golden rule: Buy the object, not the story:-)

Could some Romanian shepherd get a Bulgarian karakulak or some Romanian village bladesmith make a “novelty” example? Possible. After all, there was and still is a common border between Romania and Bulgaria, although their status within the sphere of Ottoman influence differed.
But as a rule, different ethnicities and/or tribes tended to create weapons according to their deeply ingrained national/local traditions.

For me, the most stark example of it is the difference between kindjals from Meghrelia ( Samegrelo) and Guria. Both are tiny Western Georgian principalities next to each other. But the Meghrelians wore small to medium length narrow kindjals with sharp points, suitable for stabbing, whereas Gurians had gigantic wide ones with somewhat rounded points,- almost short swords, good for slashing. And I do not even start enumerating differences in decorative arrangements!

[ariel]

Kubur,
You are correct: there are Yataghans with blades of different length and configurations( curved, straight, recurved) and different handles. There was also a term yataghan bichaq, a short bladed, usually eared one.

The Ottomans were never as pedantic as the Japanese, with their “ katana- wakizashi-tanto” that differed only according to the length of the blade. And, to be even more anal-retentive, they had ko-wakizashi and o-wakizashi for the in-between cases.

The variability of Yataghans was bewildering, and because of that ( pure IMHO) we define a yataghan as such strictly on the basis of general gestalt: at least one of the parts is a typical one. Highly subjective, but dictated by the reality.

There are some sources that claim definition of Yataghans that served as swords ( kilij) to have their blade lengths only around and above 70 cm. The rest were allegedly yataghan bichaqs.

How about ko-yataghan kilij and o- yataghan bichaq. :-)

[kronckew]

Originally Posted by TVV

I would not trust the dealer, unless the mountains were to the south and he had to cross the Danube Bridge to get there.

He did mention Bulgaria if I recall. My car is named after the original name for the area. (Dacia) Bulgaria/Romania, all relatively modern names for the area which has been fought over and name-changed for millennia.

[Kubur]

Originally Posted by kronckew

I bought it from a Romanian dealer in Bucharest who got it from 'somewhere in the mountains'.

Mmmm it's what i say if someone ask me where i found my mushrooms...
It's synonym of "mind your own business"