History Is Messy: lessons in research, the hard way

So, I did a little cursory grammatical searching based off of the leads I left myself in my last post on the Titles Project, because this blog is just as much for my own reference as it is for anyone who's reading it to dive into my insanely, esoterically quirky interests.

As a review, I mentioned exploiting the Wikipedia page for Middle Mongol's references.  I went back to that today and one of the links piqued my interest.

Lingua Mongolica is listed as a source on that page.

I was doing a read through on the intro page for them.  There was something that stuck out to me in particular:

The term 'classical Mongolian' technically refers only to the language of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, when the written Mongolian language was standardised in order to facilitate the translation of Buddhist literature. 

That stuck out to me because non-standard ways of writing, while not unique to Mongolian, means there's no one way, both in spelling and alphabet, to write pre-classical Mongolian.

Now, what that amounts to is a conceit that pre-classical Mongolian, in my case Middle Mongol, is entirely non-standard and, therefor, unreliable.  I had backtracked my way into figuring that out previously, but seeing a source explicitly state as much is both comforting and frustrating.

There's more that also piqued my interest here in the resource (emphasis mine):

The focus of Lingua Mongolia is not strictly the classical language but rather the literary language of the Mongols over the last eight hundred years; from the pre-classical Mongolian of the Secret History right up to modern literary Mongolian, as it still exists in Inner Mongolia. It is worth noting however that the term classical Mongolian is sometimes used to distinguish Uighur-script Mongolian from the Cyrillic Mongolian used by the Mongols north of the Gobi.

 With that in mind, I could, possibly, use Uighar vertical, sometimes also called Sogdian vertical, script and bring it to "close enough".  Introduction the first source is based specifically in Sogdian vertical, kicking it back into contention.

We'll see how much matches between the notes on Introduction I took and "Lingua Mongolica's" modelling of the language to see what I can suss out.  Introduction is a linguistic basis; I've yet to dig in far enough to see what "Lingua" has.

Something Mongol and NOT grammar or titles?! WHAT CRAZY IS THIS

I've put a lot of time into the Grammar and Titles project recently, which has been reflected here, but I also have been looking at my next garb project for generally usable garb -- so not a special challenge or theme.

I'm multi-talented, or maybe ADD, like that.  I like to think multi-talented, but sometimes I get bored and my interests wander off to something which isn't my main focus for a while.

I want to make something inspired by this:

source

Now, you might be thinking "this doesn't look that much different than what you usually do" and you'd be both right and a bit off base.

First, the general construction of Mongol deels hasn't really changed much over the passing centuries.  I believe I've talked to the basic construction before, but in case I haven't, the general pattern I have memorized is here.  I do some modifications, like I will take out the panel extensions because of the fit I usually do, which is loose in the lower half, but you can see the basics of it in any of the pictures of me I've posted up here for head-to-toe analysis and the like.

Now, unsurprising to most people who study it, but history is messy.  People then, like now, don't fall into these discrete and easy groupings, and with that, comes variations across.

In China, the strong influence of the Chinese ethnic groups means that I generally haven't seen the deels like the above.  They tend to be less fitted, longer and more simple in design and construction, relying on the strength and prominence of the fabric to do the talking.

The example above, is from the Persian sphere of influence.  What that means is that the Mongols changed their deel a bit, the longer they were there, until it becomes the cross-over coat that the early Mughals wore, at least until Period ends in the early 17th century.

It looks like this:

source

Jumping back, though, I've got some working out to do on the pleating.  Pleating is not something I readily understand in terms of how to construct them.  I know there are different kinds of pleats which sit different ways.

First, a close up of the pleating:

Same source as extant at beginning

I really enjoy this detail shot because I have seen numerous examples from the Persian sphere of Mongol cross-over coats having this silhouette and general construction pattern.

I was talking with Elvira yesterday about garb fantasies and my sticking points.  And there are two with this particular deel construction.

The pleats and the belt.  The belt I'll get to in a minute, but the pleats I want to dive into more.

They way they sit they look like cartridge pleats.  I've laid out cartridge pleats for other members of the household's garb.  I know how to do it, but I have literally no evidence (there's no inside detail shot I can find) that this is, in fact, a type of cartridge pleat.

It's insanely neat and ordered, but without the evidence for cartridge pleating, I have to believe it's probably insanely small, and well organized, gathers.  They appear to be sewn in 3 spots: one to the upper part of the coat, one in the center and then one a bit further down to reinforce the drape.  Kind of like a proto-smocking, I suppose.

However, I really am not sure.  I'll have to experiment, and likely fail, a few times before I work it out.

Now the belt.

That belt is a braided in small, smell braids, then sewn together.  As a belt, it is not part of the actual coat itself, but holds it together between the waist and the hips.  That's a lot of braiding. I don't braid well.  That's a problem.

So, I've got some working out to do, which will require some experimentation.  I would not expect as much about this ongoing experiment that I would about the other project, as it's more clear-cut in when I can start and stop, and what that will look like in terms of progress.

Photography and Garb Snobbery

I had started another post on variants in Mongol garb in period (which make it sound like some sort of terrible thesis paper), and I got sidetracked into something which should really be its own post.  So, here I am! It's like a bonus update born out of my own rambling!  Everyone hopefully wins!

This arose because I have seen gentles of all statures dabble in and out of Mongol.  I think it's great, but I am often concerned about what their source materials are.  From what I typically see from folks who don't entrench in Mongol, it's usually a turn into the "folk costume" trap.

This happens to a lot of people and how we got something like the "Irish Dress" which is questionably medieval and questionably ever worn as real clothing, outside of costume.

Taking the folk costume (like, from a Ren Faire or a cultural festival) and assuming it's "what they wore back then".  Sometimes it's pretty close to the truth, which is real in the case of the Mongols.  Often, though, it's gone through some changes and is really more of a costume than a heritage clothing piece, or throwback.

So, how does this all tie in together?

I'm a terrible, internal garb snark.  I'm also pretty entrenched in what I'm doing at this point.  I have a decent eye, now, to see where in the deel evolution something lies.  And, more importantly, if someone is copying from a tribe they probably shouldn't.

This isn't to say I've not fallen into the trap, but to keep myself more accountable for myself, I created a Pinterest board dedicated to things which could look like or pass as period Mongol, but aren't.

The bottom line, though, is that if you can find it in a photograph -- whether colorized, color or black and white -- that's not of a piece of art or a surviving artifact, it's out of period.

This isn't to say that I'm not hugely excited to see someone swim in the warm waters of Mongol.  There aren't many of us, to my understanding, that do it as a main persona. To see others do it makes me excited because visibility is huge, especially in a social organization like the SCA.  I just have a gatekeeper/protective mentality when what I do doesn't look like what they do because my focus, intensity and sourcing is different.

A Little Off Topic -- King's and Queen's Equestrian Champions

I want to take a few inches to update on things that aren't about my research, but are relevant to this as an SCA blog.

I've mentioned before, most notably in my Birka posts, that I am a member of a robust household in Society -- House Strangewayes. We started out as a group of friends who played together, dipping our fingers into the different parts of what the SCA has to offer and, over time, we've started to take flight a bit, as well as grow.

I was part of the first real expansion of the House, and there's been a steady expansion since I came on board, almost 10 years ago.

Yesterday at KQ Equestrian Tournament and Champions, was a big day for the House.

First, one of our newest members, Gritta (who I don't believe has a blog, yet, for her work) received her Award of Arms.  She's still very new into playing -- having attended her first event closing in on a year ago.  In that time, she's really come right into making some quite exceptional German garb.  Her sewing skills floor me, as I'm not the greatest craftsman at sewing.

Gritta is on the bottom right-hand side in the feathered cap.  At Birka 2016 (this photo), she won a special award for having the most historically accurate dress, by the eye of the judges, in the Fashion Show.  It was well deserved and it was her first German garb ever!  From there, she's been upping her skills and looking around at more examples of German.

I'm excited to see what else she does as the continues to wade into the SCA, and especially the Arts and Sciences.  She's also become a fast friend of mine, specifically, so I was overjoyed to see her recognized by the Crown for the great work and even better conduct example she's been setting.  She is a true asset to the Society and I'm thrilled that I get to call her a friend.  I'm so proud of her recognition that I could gush for ages!

Fortune also received an induction into The Order of the Burdened Tyger.  I've linked to the awards page for the East Kingdom, but it's a service award that is granted for exceptional service, typical for an event that required a huge amount of logistical rejiggering to work.  Fortune, Lord Aleksei and other gentles I don't know in any way, received the induction for their work during Coronation.

Fortune outlines all that went into the event here, and it's a really great run down of how she in particular, and her leadership team overall, earned the Burdened Tyger.  It's a "wow, awesome, big deal" kind of award.  Fortune and I have been friends for over a decade now, before either of us were SCAdians.  She's jumped into SCA and really has blossomed, both personally and skills-wise, since joining up.  To see her receive an Award of Honor made my heart smile.

Between the two awards, it was a great day for good friends, for the Household, and I had a tinge of pride myself at knowing these people and helping to support them as they grow themselves, which is really what SCA is all about -- helping each other pursue our interests and growing together as humans.

Vivant to you both, and to all the recipients of awards, including the Shire as the first recipient of the Company of Fellowship for our willingness to come together as a community.  Her Majesty, in her description, said beautifully that it shows the Shire is a group who thinks of the "we" instead of the "I" (and may be a tinge on the nutty side). I think it's a great testament that the Shire got awarded this new honor on the same day others received Burdened Tyger, which wouldn't have been possible without that same "we not me" attitude.

It was a good day yesterday for all of us -- Shire, and House.

Continued Research in the Titles Project

I hit a snag with the resource I lifted from yesterday as far as being a truly period (read: pre-1600) resource. Classical Mongolian comes into real life around 1700.  That century is troublesome.

It provides some workable thoughts, but just like Old English, Middle English and Modern English are related, but significantly different, so also is Modern, Classical and Middle Mongolian would suffer many of the same problems.

It's a good launching pad, but I need to find a dictionary and grammatical syntax rules book like Introduction to Classical has.

In an attempt to get things rolling again in a more solid direction, I'm starting with Wikipedia's article on Middle Mongolian as a jumping point.  They list their sources and they're fairly extensive.  While I may find different information from those sources, this is Wikipedia after all, I can get in the dirt in the very least focusing on the language the Mongols of the SCA period actually spoke.

Quest/Titles Project Update

I had mentioned before how the information listed on the EK Alternative Titles page was a bit lackluster, which inspired me to go on an extended project based on a quest given to me by Her Majesty, Queen Avelina.

Well, I made some major progress, but before I get to that, let me take a step back.

Looping into today's earlier post, I have to rely on newer Mongolian vocabulary and grammar than the time period I focus on.  I've come to accept that I don't yet have the research skills, nor the linguistic know-how to get a truly good insight into what I want for my exact person.  And, since this is turning into something which could go to the common good of the Society, having something workable, if not up to my specific persona, is much better than being in perpetual frustration and doubt.

With that being said, I took a look at the resources that are available for Mongol Naming Practices and got my hands on (thanks to a Household member who's a professional librarian) an out-of-print book that focuses specifically on Mongol Grammar.

It's titled Introduction to Classical (Literary) Mongolian (parenthesis theirs),  It is, in a word, a gold mine that I'm super happy I pursued on a gut instinct.

I just got through the read of the title and took, well, copious notes including vocabulary listings, and the grammatical structures for Mongol nouns, adjectives and adverbs.  I know, I'm weird. I like understanding grammar rules.  It's as close to mathy as I think I could ever get.

Anyhow, I started a quick and dirty list of words I think could be helpful, not only for titles themselves but also general use at a Royal level.  In my own notes, I cite the page I found the word so when I submit everything will be properly documented.

Here's the list, unedited and raw (meaning lacking diacritical markings and only Roman letters):

Qagan -- King

Koebgun -- son/boy

Degu - younger brother

Eke - mother

Bars - tiger

Aqa - elder brother

Qatun - Queen

Cerig - soldier

lama - priest/lama

moritu - rider/horseman

noyan - prince/lord

Qan - minor prince, lord (this would be the title I was asked to find, guys.  STOKED)

ulus - people/nation

tusimel - minister/official

arsalan - lion

abagan - master, sire

juljagan - young, offspring

ocuguken - minor/subordinate

degedu - high, elevated

aldartan said -- celebrities, famous poeple

ama|n - family, household

arga - art, craft, plan; trick

ayag-qa - rank of priest; gelung

baga - small, young

bagsi - teacher/scholar

bars, baras - tiger

elci - envoy, embassador

erkim - supreme, chief, outstanding

jarudasu|n - slave, servant, messenger (messenger is the meaning I'm going for)

keukid - children

nokor - comrade, friend, companion (pl. nokod)

Qan kobegun - prince

qaragulci - guard, shepherd

qaragul - sentinel, guard

tusimel - official, minister

quda - brother-in-law, cousin

I think this is a good base to start from.  I do want to find more resources, aside from Wikipedia the open encyclopedia of sometimes ok information, to bolster the list.  But, it's definitely a strong start.

I'm also going to organize my notes in a way which makes presenting the declensions easier to understand for a non-grammatically inclined person.  The grammar becomes important for naming practices with the heralds, as well as any other awards or designations that may be created or given out.

But, that is where I sit right now with the project.  It feels great to have some progress made and something workable I can present to Her Majesty.

Challenges of Researching Mongols, and Strategies I Employ

I'm going to take a second to talk through why I usually take what probably looks like a ludicrously roundabout way to piece together information for my persona.  I think it's a good reminder that not all topics are created equal, and also to demonstrate that sometimes you've just got to work smart to get where you want to be.

The Big Thing to Remember about the Mongols is that for much of their early history, even into the start of their Golden Age, they were an illiterate culture.  That's not to say that they didn't have any culture, or stories, or beliefs.  It is only to point out that they used oral tradition to pass these stories, information and skills between generations.

The lack of a first-person written record does not typically come from the Mongols, but rather their enemies and subjects from settled (and literate) cultures.

Towards the end of Temujin (aka Genghis Khan's) life, there is evidence of a growing literacy, and the use of different alphabets, with a preference in some places to use the alphabet used by the Uighars, others the Chinese and many places Arabic.  The Chinese and Arabic are the ones I see most often in my own research, given when I look at and when it is, but it's not uncommon to see Sogdian (Uighar, in the reference above) Vertical on some artifacts, like the Mongol "Passport".

In some ways, what that leaves a researcher with is a couple options.  The first is to just focus on when the Achievement Unlock screen pops up and study only after Mongol literacy.  It makes things easier in terms of knowing you have some good in-culture sources, but it also is like in Legend of Zelda when you suddenly get the hook shot and the entire game is changed for how you play.  You were a bad Zelda player before, but you've got a new and highly useful tool now.

In all honesty, it's what I'm going to have to do for the Mongol Titles project which has evolved out of my Queen's Quest I've written about previously.  The Mongols would have had to have settled before they would have the structure necessary for equivalents, so I have to use well-post grappling hook resources to flesh out the equivalencies chart.  It's frustrating because it's well after I've seen most people declare their Mongol personae (including me), but it's the best I've got to work with at my disposable.  Hopefully, a future Mongol will come along with better access and resources, and more research will be done by the professional academics that us amateur historians can rely on.  Until then, that's where that is.

Focusing back, though, the biggest roadblock I usually encounter is that I have to use other people's accounts and depictions to figure out what is going on with Mongol "stuff".  It's something I've written a bit on before, but it's worth retouching.

There's a great example of the strain a researcher has to go through when looking at "unskewing" a resource, as much as that's impossible. When Americans first began knocking on the door of Japan for trade, their looks were copied onto woodcuts.  You can see some here.

This is what analyzing another culture's clothes look like when you're been completely ignorant to their existing in the first place.  All you have is what you already wear to compare it to, so you make your best guess and hope.

This is pretty well expressed in Persian miniatures.  The Mongols came roaring through, sacked a bunch of their cities, took over their empire and installed themselves in a governmental system.  It was highly traumatic for any culture and country, but especially since the knowledge of the Mongols was minimal at best.

So, you need to depict your new leaders, but you don't know what they're wearing?  Well, that's where some license comes in.  You can see some basic construction, but their weaving is odd to you, the fit is a little different and there are other things.  So, you make an exaggeration -- a sleeve here, a waist there -- until you've got something of a hybrid.  Not quite Persian, but not quite Mongol, either.

This means that you need to look at many sources from different places and see what they have in common.  That's why my Mongol tends to be baggier with a definite square construction.  It's the most in-common aspects of the trends I see across the miniatures.

This also translates to needing more resources to feel confident, if you're like me.  In my best garb and garb ideas, I pull from multiple sources, in multiple cultures and sometimes across time.  Part of that is a cultural sensitivity concern (Mongol express tribal affiliation through their deel) and part of it is to generically show what a Mongol of the 13th to 14th century could have looked like.  There's scant graves and there's even fewer Mongol first-person depictions, especially with pictures.