The Identity of Silzibul, the Early Monarch of Western Turks

Authors : Ken Chen

Pages : 7-30

Doi:10.35236/jots.1441010

View : 30 | Download : 13

Publication Date : 2025-02-26

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Silzibul, the early monarch of the Western Turks, can be identified as neither the Ištemi Qaghan, nor the Western Junior Qaghan of the Eastern Turks, Buli Qaghan. The name Silzibul cannot be decomposed into Silzi+bul, but should be decomposed into Sil+zibul. Its exact etymology comes from the Persian *srčypwk, which means “Lord Yabghu”. It is a Hephthalite style name given by the Persian monarch to the early Turkic monarch. A lot of evidence shows that Silzibul’s true identity should be the son of Ištemi and the brother of Tardu. Silzibul and Mughan Qaghan are not uncle and nephew but cousins. In the early days of the establishment of the Turkic state, the most powerful and critical founders were not the first-generation brothers Bumïn and Ištemi, but the second-generation cousins Mughan and Silzibul. The two conquered and pacified the Mongolian Plateau and Central Asia respectively and reigned for almost the same period, when the Eastern and Western Turkic countries were in a state of relatively independence and non-interference most of the time but supporting each other occasionally.
Keywords : Silzibul, Ištemi, Tardu, Western Turkic, Yabghu, title, genealogy