Árpád "pajzsra emelésének" keleti párhuzamai

Abstract

Byzantine Emperor, Constantine Porphyrogenitus wrote about the enthronement of the Hungarian prince in the 38th Chapter of his book entitled De administrando imperip> It is said: „and so they made him prince according to the custom, or 'zakanon', of the Chazars, by lifting him upon a shield" As the Roman and Byzantine emperors were lifted upon a shield during the ceremony of their enthronements, the custom by the Hungarians was considered as an imitation of the Byzantine practice. The context however emphasized the Khazar origin of the enthonment. The aim of the paper is to prove that the Hungarians could borrowed this custom from the neighbouring nomadic tribal unions too, since similar ceremony was widespread among the peoples of the Eurasian steppe. The ritual of the inauguration of nomadic rulers were described as follows, the nobles lift up a felt rug on which the new ruler sits. The ceremony is attested among the T'o-pa, Turks, Uygurs and Mongols. The Byzantine author may interpret the nomadic ritual as lifting upon a shield adapting the custom of enthronemnet in his own civilization.