Traces of military terminology in codex cumanicus on contemporary kipchak dialects

Abstract

Turks have been remembered as a military nation since the day they appeared on the stage of history, in addition to their many superior virtues. Military service and war were of vital importance for the Kipchak Turks. The titles and ranks, military clothing, items used in military service, defence equipment, horses and harnesses, which are so influential in the life of a nation, were also reflected in the vocabulary of the works written at that time. Codex Cumanicus is a source work consisting of religious texts, various words, word lists, riddles, proverbs and some texts compiled from the mouths of the Kipchaks living in the north of the Black Sea. In addition to being a dictionary compilation, the work also contains valuable information about the lifestyle, traditions, religious and commercial life of the Kipchak Turks and the vocabulary of the period. In this article, military terms in Codex Cumanicus were identified and classified under various headings. The situation of the identified military terms in the contemporary Kipchak group Turkic dialects was evaluated in terms of semantic events. In this way, it will be determined whether the military vocabulary retains its archaic meaning, acquires new meanings in addition to this meaning, or completely loses this archaic meaning.

Keywords

• codewx cumanicus
• historical kipchak turkic
• military terms