Reconstructing the Biography of Noyon Ket-Buga of the Naiman Tribe

Research article

Abstract

 This article examines the identity of Noyon Ket-Buga of the Naiman tribe and his affiliation with a specific Chinggisid ulus. The narrative concerning the death of Chinggis Khan’s son Jochi, and the account of how Ket-Buga informed him of this event – preserved in Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and Nogai folklore – emerged during the Golden Horde period. The most complete and earliest version of this story is the Nogai one. It displays direct parallels with the version found in Mirza Ulugh Beg’s Ulus-i Arba-yi Chingizi, which suggests that the author had access to a Golden Horde historical source. While this written source did not name the individual or his tribal affiliation, the consistent mention of Ket-Buga in all three folkloric versions, and his identification as a Naiman in the version most closely aligned with Ulugh Beg’s account (the Nogai version), supports the conclusion that there once existed a variant of the narrative in the Golden Horde wherein a Naiman named Ket-Buga informed Chinggis Khan of his eldest son's death. Genealogies of the Naiman indeed mention a figure named Ket-Buga, identified as either the son or grandson of the legendary tribal founder, Naiman. Based on generational estimates in various genealogies, this individual likely lived during the Golden Horde period. The only Ket-Buga of the Naiman tribe documented in written sources is the famous general who died in battle against the Mamluks of Sultan Qutuz at Ain Jalut in 1260. A central problem in identifying this military commander with the Ket-Buga of folklore and Naiman genealogies is that, according to Persian historians, this commander served under Hülegü. Given the deep hostility between Hülegü (a son of Tolui) and the Jochids – which led to war in the early 1260s – it is difficult to reconcile Ket-Buga’s association with Jochi, implied in the folklore, with his alleged loyalty to Hülegü. However, analysis of written sources reveals that the tradition of Ket-Buga as Hülegü’s loyal general was shaped by Ilkhanid historiography. These historians aimed to obscure the fact that Hülegü’s territories were initially intended to be a collective Chinggisid domain, with the Jochids enjoying a dominant role. Only through an alliance with Khubilai and the physical elimination of Jochid princes, their armies, and vassals during the winter of 1261–1262 did Hülegü secure full control over Iran, Iraq, and Anatolia, which thereafter became hereditary Ilkhanid territory. On the other hand, a report from the History of Herat, along with a number of indirect references, suggest that Ket-Buga was a noyon subordinate to the Jochids. Further supporting this interpretation is the fact that Noyon Baidar, who served under Ket-Buga’s command, was killed during the anti-Jochid purges of the winter of 1261–1262