Atug (Mongolian:туг[tʰʊɡ],Turkish:tuğ,Ottoman Turkish:طوغṭuġ orتوغtuġ,Old Turkic:𐱃𐰆𐰍,romanized: tuğ) orsulde (Mongolian:сүлд,Tibetan:བ་དན) is a pole with circularly arranged horse tail hairs of varying colors arranged at the top. It was historically flown byTurkic tribes such asTuğluğ Confederation[2] and also during the period of theMongol Empire, and later used in derivedTurco-Mongol khanates. It was also used by theOttoman Empire, a state which was founded by TurkicOghuz tribes.[3] In the 17th century, it was also adopted by Slavic cavalry (cossacks,haidamaka), under the namebunchuk (Ukrainian:бунчук,Polish:buńczuk) which is the reflection of the original Turkic wordboncuk. This word is derived from the Mongolian wordsmontsog, moltsog and is likely an evolution of it. It is still used by some units of thePolish military.[4]
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According toGerard Clauson, the Turkic wordtu:ğ, for traditional Turkic standards made from horse-tails or bunches of horse-hair, was borrowed fromMiddle Chinese *dok 纛 "banner, standard" (whose ancestor isOld Chinese *du:g (ZS)[5] ~dˤuk[6] and one of whosemany descendants isstandard Chinesedú). In contrast, according to linguistSevan Nişanyan, the author ofthe first etymological dictionary of Turkish, it is more likely in terms of cultural history that the Chinese wordtu ordú is borrowed fromTurkic orMongolic.[7]Annemarie von Gabain (1955) (apud Maenchen-Helfen, 1973) was inclined to derive Chinese 纛 *duok from Turkic *tuɣ; however,Otto J. Maenchen-Helfen thought that the loan direction had been apparently from Chinese into Turkic, as 纛 (GS 1016) was the same as 翿dào <d'âu <d'ôg, "staff with feathers" (GS 1090z) 斿 (variant of 旒)liú ~yóu <iâu <diôg "pendants of a banner" (GS 1080a) 游liú ~yóu < "pennon" (GS 1080f), which had been attested in theClassic of Poetry andZuo Zhuan, centuries before the first appearance of the allegedly Turkic-speakingXiongnu.[8][9] Chinese observers stated that the medievalGöktürks displayed a tuğ decorated with a wolf's head at their camp's gate in order not to forget their origin from a she-wolf ancestress.[10][11] AWestern Turkictribal confederation, theDuolu, was possibly named after tuğ, if Old TurkicTuğluğ (𐱃𐰆𐰍𐰞𐰍), which was "mentioned in the Chinese annals under various names:Duolu MChnLtuet-lǐuk[...],Dulu 都陸 MChnLtuǝ-liwk,Duolu 咄禄 MChnLtuet-luk", means "have flags (banners), have standards".[12]
It was also used by Mongolic tribes too. The white-haired banner is used as a peacetime symbol, while the black banner was for wartime. Usage of the horse tail is symbolic becausehorses were central to the Mongols' livelihood. This is similar to the use of horse tail hairs for themorin khuur. The original white banner disappeared early in history, but the black one survived as the repository of Genghis Khan's soul. The Mongols continued to honor the banner, andZanabazar (1635–1723) built a monastery with the special mission of flying and protecting the black banner in the 17th century.[13] Around 1937, the black banner disappeared amidst thegreat purges of the nationalists, monks and intellectuals, and the destruction of monasteries.
The Nine White banners came into renewed significance in Mongolia after democracy was adopted in the early 1990s as a symbol of the traditional Mongolian state, replacing the previouscommunistred flags.
The state banner flown by the Mongols, theЕсөн хөлт цагаан туг,(Yesön Khölt tsagaan tug, 'Nine Base White Banners)', is composed of nine flag poles decorated with white horse tail hairs hanging from a round surface with the Mongolian symbol of the 3 pronged flame, which appears on theSoyombo (Representing the past, present, and future[14]), on the top. The Nine White Banners was a peacetime emblem used exclusively by theKhans in front of their yurt. The central banner is larger in size than the rest and is placed in the center of the other eight. The modern Mongolian nine white banners are kept in theGovernment Palace inUlaanbaatar. On National Pride Day, a traditional ceremony for the Nine White Banners is held.[15]
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TheDörvön khölt khar sulde[16][17] (Дөрвөн хөлт хар сүлд) or thelit. 'Four Base Black Banners' was used in wartime. It is made of black horse tail hairs and flown in the same fashion. According to the illustrated Japanese chronicleMōko Shūrai Ekotoba, the banner ofthe Mongolian Yuan fleet that invaded Japan was black. The modern Mongolian black banners are kept in theMinistry of Defense.
Within theMongolian Armed Forces, the black tug is used as thefinial inmilitary colours' flagpoles, while the white tug is used by theMongolian State Honor Guard and is the finial in the colours of the civil security services.
Doerfer II.969, Gerard Clauson, An Etymological Dictionary of Pre-Thirteenth Century Turkish sf. 464 Çinceden alıntı olarak değerlendirirler ise de, Çince sözcüğün Türkçe veya Moğolcadan alıntı olması kültür tarihi açısından daha güçlü olasılıktır.
