Theyam orjam (Russian:ям), also called theörtöö (Mongolian:өртөө,lit. 'checkpoint'), was aMongol postal system orsupply point route messenger system.[1][2] It was extensively used and expanded byÖgedei Khan and also used by subsequentgreat khans andkhans.[3]
Relay stations provided food, shelter and spare horses forMongol armymessengers.[1] Ögedei Khan gave special attention to theyam because Mongol armies travelled quickly; their messengers had to be even faster, and they covered 200–300 kilometres (120–190 mi) per day.[3] The system was used to speed up the process of information andintelligence.
The system was preserved inRussia after the disintegration of theGolden Horde in the 15th century.[4][5]
The nameyam dates back to theTuoba period; the wordghiamchin ("post station staff") in theTuoba language is related to the Mongolian wordjamuchin and they both have the same meaning.[5] The postal system had already been used for a long time by nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples.[5] In addition, theSong,Liao andJin dynasties had already maintained a system of posts in northern China; therefore, it is believed that the Mongolyam originated from the systems found in theEurasian Steppe and in northern China.[5]
According toThe Secret History of the Mongols, theyam was founded byÖgedei Khan.[2] Other sources show that a rudimentary postal system had already existed during the reign ofGenghis Khan.[2]The Secret History and some Persian sources credit Ögedei with installing post stations across theMongol Empire.[2] As the Mongols expanded into northern China, the existingJin posts were incorporated into theyam system.[2]
Theyam operated with a chain of relay stations at certain distances to each other, usually around 20–40 miles (32–64 km) apart. A messenger would arrive at a station and give his information to another messenger, and meanwhile rest and let the other messenger go on to the next station to hand the document to yet another messenger. This way information or documents were constantly on the move without each messenger getting tired. In each relay station, there would be spare horses, food, and shelter.[3]
The service has been described in great detail by European travellers includingGiovanni da Pian del Carpine,William of Rubruck,Marco Polo, andOdoric of Pordenone. While it was not the first messenger system in history (earlier ones existed in thePersian andRoman Empires), it was unprecedented in size and efficiency. As the yam was constantly expanding, the Mongol war routes were transformed into commercial routes.[6] People and messages could be sent from Korea to Persia or Mongolia to Vietnam through the use of horses or camel caravans.[6]
The Mongols replaced the old system of tax collection in Russia with a new one.[7] After the death ofAlexander Nevsky in 1263, the new grand prince allowed the Novgorodians to organize their own system of tax collection, as long as payments to the Mongols continued.[7] At first, the Mongols sent their own tax collectors.[8] To keep Russian nobles on their side, although the nobles paid taxes, they were allowed to keep their lands and their authority in local politics was respected.[8] Post roads with fixed stations were built after 1300 when the Mongols changed their method of having resident agents (known asbasqaq) to sending envoys whenever the tribute needed to be collected.[9]
 | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(May 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
The system was preserved inRussia after the disintegration of theGolden Horde in the 15th century, as a means of fast governmental communication and later for use in the postal service, called theyam courier service [ru]. It was implemented in the form ofyam duty [ru] levied onto both urban and rural populations. It was controlled by ayamskoyprikaz. The coachman performing the yam service was called ayamshchik [ru].
The wordyam was adopted by the Russians.[10] Many major Russian cities had whole suburbs and villages (sloboda) settled byyamshchiki and were calledyamskaya sloboda [ru]. A number of places existing along the old roads retain the wordyam in their names, such asYam-Tyosovo [ru] orGavrilov-Yam. To the east of theIrtysh River,Lake Yamysh, which is derived from the wordyam, was likely a post in the Mongols'yam system in prior centuries and it supplied salt to the city ofTobolsk.[10]