Oriental Elements in the Material Culture of Azaq and the Problem of Migrations of the Golden Horde Urban Population

Abstract

The data on the emergence of new Oriental material culture elements in the city of Azaq, such as new housing and pottery types, characteristic of the mid-14th-century Golden Horde cities of the Lower Volga region, are provided in the article. Particular attention is paid to the appearance of new types of dwellings with the kang-based system of heating. They make up about 10 per cent of all residential complexes studied in Azaq: mostly ground dwellings, as semi-subterranean dwellings with kangs are rarely met. It has been suggested that in the mid-14th century a considerable group of residents of the Golden Horde Lower Volga towns had migrated to Azaq. The reasons for this relocation can be discussed only hypothetically.

Keywords

• the Azov Sea region
• Azaq city
• the Lower Volga river region
• the Golden Horde period
• dwellings
• heating system
• kangs
• ceramics imports