A Herman Ottó Múzeum Évkönyve 32. Kunt Ernő emlékére. (1994)

TANULMÁNYOK - FODOR István: A magyar őstörténet vázlata (magyar és angol nyelven)

this group is called Kabar (meaning "insurgent"). Assimilation of these insurgents most likely spoiled Hungarian-Khazar relations. This deterioration, together with the Hungarian sovereigns' independence ambitions resulted in the Hungarians' moving to territories located more to the west during the 850s. Etelköz This new habitation area located in the lower Danube, Dniester and Dnieper rivers' region was occupied by the Hungarians during the second half of the 9th century. Their contacts significantly improved with Eastern-Slavic tribes and Norman groups who lived north of this area. This pattern is also supported by the archaeological evidence (such as Hungarian artifact types found in Kiev, Chernigov and the environs of Smolensk). Additional proof is provided by Eastern-Slavic loanwords in the Hungarian language. Hungarian equestrian units fighting with nomadic warfare tactics appeared in the eastern provinces of the Frank Empire in 862 as documented in written sources. Subsequently, such raids became increasingly frequent. Hungarians represented a considerable military force. According to an Arabic source, they could manage to mobilize as many as 20,000 horsemen in times of war. Repeated incursions of this kind, often referred to as "adventurous raids" in Hungarian, provided a good opportunity for discovering the geographical and political conditions of the then disunited Carpathian Basin. In 893, the Uz people won over the Pecheneg who appeared on the EasternEuropean steppe after having crossed the Volga river. In 894, the Hungarians, in alliance with the Byzantians achieved victory over the Danube-Bulgarians. In the same year they also devastated what had been the Roman province of Pannónia (western part of the Carpathian Basin). This latter offensive was most probably a preparation for the conquest of the Carpathian Basin. The cause behind this plan was, in all likelihood, the fact that the Etelköz plain was difficult to defend against attacks by the dangerous Pecheneg army. The Carpathian Mountain range, on the other hand, represented a formidable natural defense line along the eastern border of the Carpathian Basin. During 895, the Hungarian army's main body descended onto the Great Hungarian Plain through the Verecke Pass in the liortheastern Carpathian Mountain under the command of the sovereign Árpád. Meanwhile, the Bulgarians established an alliance with the Pechenegs and attacked the remaining Hungarian population and rear guard left behind in the Etelköz region. Although Hungarians suffered significant losses, the majority of this population managed to flee behind the mountain range crossing the passes and straits into Transylvania. During this year, which brought military success and loss of people simultaneously, the Hungarians occupied Transylvania and the Great Hungarian Plain. Transdanubia (formerly Pannónia) and the western part of Upper Hungary (in the border region with modern Slovakia) were invaded in 900 without any resistance on the way back from a successful military offensive against Italy. The conquering Hungarians, who may have numbered half a million people, met a variety of groups in their new homeland. These predominantly included Slavic population groups as well as remnants of the former Avar occupants, in addition to Frank and Bavarian settlers. The people thus encountered, however, may have been only half the numbers of the conquering Hungarians. * The ancient history of the Hungarian people is instructive from a variety of aspects. During the process of its formation, the community of ancient Hungarians 1 121