Kypchak
/ˈkɪp.tʃæk/noun
A member of a medieval Turkic confederation or a speaker of the Kipchak branch of Turkic languages.
Did you know?Many Mamluk rulers of medieval Egypt were recruited from Kipchak-speaking steppe peoples, including Sultan Baybars, who became one of the Islamic world’s most formidable leaders.
Etymological Timeline
11th Century
Middle Turkic
qïbčaq
“The earliest widely documented form of the ethnonym, used for a Turkic steppe people; its original meaning is uncertain.”
11th Century
Arabic
Qifjāq
“An Arabic rendering of the name in geographical and historical writing about the Eurasian steppe.”
13th Century
Persian
Qïbčāq
“A designation for the Kipchak confederation and its territories during the Mongol period.”
13th–14th Century
Latin
Cumanus / Cy(p)chak
“European sources used Cuman and related spellings for peoples associated with the Kipchak confederation.”
14th Century
Old Russian
Kipčakъ
“A name for the steppe groups commonly called Polovtsy in Rus’ chronicles.”
Modern English
English
Kipchak / Kypchak
“The conventional English names for the medieval Turkic confederation, its people, and its linguistic branch.”