Nökör Explained

The term nökör (Mongolian: нөхөр comrade, companion, friend)^{[1] [2]} was applied in the time of Genghis Khan to soldiers who abandoned their family ties and devoted themselves exclusively to their leader.^[3] The nature of their bond to the leader was of friendship or individual pledges, rather than hereditary obligations.^[4] They were valiant and loyal fighters.^[5] Many of the most prominent generals of Genghis Khan were nökhör.^[3]

Today the term is used more loosely.^[3] Derivatives of the term are found in several languages, including Azerbaijani (nökər), Armenian (նոքար nokʽar), Persian (نوکر nokar), Hindustani (نَوکَر‎/नौकर naukar), Bengali (নওকর nôukôr) and Hungarian (nyögér).^[6]

Notes and References

1. Book: Togan, Isenbike. Flexibility and Limitation in Steppe Formations The Kerait Khanate and Chinggis Khan. 111. Brill. 1998. 9789004108028.
2. Book: Russian History: Histoire Russe Volume 28, Issues 1-4. 164. University Center for International Studies, University of Pittsburgh. 2001. 9789004108028.
3. Web site: Nökhör. Britannica. 17 May 2021. https://archive.today/20210517175139/https://www.britannica.com/topic/nokhor. 17 May 2021.
4. Book: Hope, Michael. Power, Politics, and Tradition in the Mongol Empire and the Īlkhānate of Iran. 36–37. Oxford University Press. 2016. 9780191081071.
5. Book: Herbert Franke . Denis C. Twitchett . The Cambridge History of China. 6, Alien Regimes and Border States, 907-1368. 22. Cambridge University Press. 1978. 10.1017/CHOL9780521243315 . 9780521243315.
6. Róna-Tas and Berta. (2011) West Old Turkic, vol. 2, p. 623-25