Ancestor of Seljuk dynasty (B. 900 ? - D. Cend, 1007 ?). Seljuk Bey, after
whom the Seljuk Empire was named, was the son of Dukak Subaşı, who was one of
the commanders of Oghuz State that dominated the region between the Aral Sea
and the Caspian Sea, and a member of Kınık tribe of Oghuzes. The name Seljuk
comes from the word “salçuğ” that means “combatant”. Dukak, father of Seljuk
Bey, was known by the nickname “Temür-Yalığ” (of the iron bow) due to his
courage, power, ability to foresee the future and successes in state affairs.
Upon Yabgu (emperor) of Oghuz saw that Seljuk, who
grew up near him, had commanding skills, he appointed Seljuk as the subaşı (T.N. an Ottoman officer).
According to the information from the sources, a mounted force of 100 with a
large court and a large number of herds moved from Yenikent, where the center
of yabgu of Oghuz for winter was located, to Cend that was located at the lower
course of the Syr Darya in 961 due to Kipchaks’ pressure on Oghuzes, lack of
space and grazing land.
Seljuk Bey told his court that as long as they
did not adopt the religion and tradition of the people, they had to live
together in Cend, where was located at the border region between non-Muslim
Turkish states and Islamic states, they were going to remain as a small
community that got stuck and said that he decided to become Muslim. Later, he
sent ambassadors to the rulers of Zendek in Harzem and Bukhara, and asked the
rulers to send people that were going to teach them the Koran and Islam to them.
Thanks to the teachers that were sent by the rulers with various presents,
Islam started to spread among Oghuzes that were faithful to Seljuk Bey.
After having become a Muslim, Seljuk Bey cut his
relationship with the Oghuz Yabgu State and non-Muslim Turkish tribes and
joined to the jihad movement that was carried out against them. Also, his son Mikail
was martyred in such a campaign. Oghuzes that were faithful to Seljuk Bey was
started to be called by the names Selâcika, Selcûkıyyân and Turkmen.
Large crowds gathered around Seljuk Bey, whose
reputation was increased a lot after becoming Muslim. The Seljuks took Cend as
a result of the campaigns that were launched against non-Muslim Turks and the
battles that were fought with Oghuz Yabgu State, and Cend became the center of the
Seljuk Beylik. Seljuk Bey was started to be called by the nickname “the Veteran
Emperor” after this date. Owing to the jihad movement that he started, a large
number of Turks from various countries flocked to Cend in order to join Seljuk
Bey, who also took the cities Belâc and Beruket.
Seljuk Bey gained reputation not only among the
Oghuzes that were faithful to him but also among the two great states such as the
Samanids and the Karakhanids that ruled in the region. The Samanids requested
Seljuk Bey’s help against the Karakhanids that occupied the land of the
Samanids, and the Samanids took the land that they lost back with the help of
Arslan (Arslan Yabgu), who was the son of Seljuk Bey, and this event became the
turning point of Seljuk Bey’s and his family’s life. Thereby, Seljuk Bey went
beyond being a local ruler and became a great leader that interfered in the
events between the two states. In return for this help, the Samanids gave Nur,
which was located near Bukhara, to Oghuzes. Seljuk Bey stayed in Cend when the
Oghuzes that were faithful to his son Arslan Yabgu immigrated to Nur in 985-86.
The Samanids also defeated the Karakhanids with the help of Seljuks in 1004.
Sultan Seljuk Bey, who played an important role
in the history of Islam with the great services he had done by serving to the
spread of Islam among the Turks, died in Cend around 1007 when he was around
100 years old. Seljuk Bey, who married to daughter of one of the Turkmen rulers,
had three children.
Tuğrul Bey, the grandson of Sultan Seljuk
Bey, captured Khorosan in 1040 and established the first Seljuk Empire. This
state that was called the Great Seljuk Empire was divided into different sections
and Anatolian Seljuks, which was the last one, lasted until the Ottomans
entered the stage of history.