Origin of the Alans

[Alanus]

Hi, Michael

No doubt Rudenko had a firm case for dissention among steppe tribes; also we can include drastic changes in climate. My belief is perhaps more mundane-- tribal expansion across a cultural frontier, thus creating a "domino effect." The formation of the Alan confederation appears to be directly related to the demise of the Saka one. I would prefer going back much earlier; and at the same time, try to discover origins of several Alan aspects which appear to be inter-related, each following the other:

a) origin of the Asiatic admixture, which appears to be Sinicization rather than proto-Mongolian influence.
b) an identification of the Pazyryk culture as seen by the Chinese. 
c) historical birth of the Chinese Type 1 "Sarmatian" sword."
d) origin of the "heavenly horse," aka the Akhal teke.
e) demise of the once-strong Saka confederation.
f) the resulting rise of the Alans as a steppe "super-power."

I believe they follow an archaeological/historical timeline beginning with the formation of the Xiongnu and the abandonment of the Altai culture (which moved southeast). These radical changes actually began in 4th to 3rd centuries B.C. I'm also speculating the Altai "Scythians" were part of the Saka culture (same customs, same dress, same tall hats worn by the women), and they were a northern extension of the Yuezhi and Wusun or at least kindred neighbors.

The last statement seems almost incredulous. But if we consider Pazyryk's archaeological evidence and combine it with the oldest ms recorded in the Hanshu, we discover an amazing connection. Originally, I believed the Pazyryk people were the Issedones mentioned by Herodotus, but they actually appear to be his "Arimaspi" (asp = horse), not the "horse-people" but the "Horse-breeding People," exactly like the Chinese-documented Yuezhi and Wusun. We see a strong trade connection between China and the Altai, not just silks but even this carriage, pictured by Rudenko as the marriage-vehicle which brought a Chinese princess to Pazyryk to marry a "Scythian" king.
   

Could the Yuezhi and Wusun be related to the Pazyrk Saka?  Some of the earliest references are still extant in the Hanshu, dating back to the 7th century BC; and as Taishan Yu notes, "Pre-Qin records show the Yuezhi had expanded their sphere of influence as far as Hetao in the east and the eastern end of the Altai Mountains in the west." Another and later pre-Qin reference mentions, "On the day of Jiawu the Son of Heaven crossed the steep slope of Yu (Mountain); on the day of Jihai, he arrived in the vast plain of the Yanju and Yuzhi."

Today, "Yu Mountain" is known as Yanmen Mountain in Shanxi Province just east of the Ordos. Early in the Spring and Autumn Period, the heart of Yuezhi territory was in the state of Jin; but by 403 BC, Jin was broken into the states of Han, Wei, and Zhao. By 300 BC, the Xiongnu began raiding Chinese settlements in Zhao. To thwart the Xiongnu, King Wuling built the "doorway" fortification at Yanmen Mountain, and then "modernized" his army by adding cavalry, training archers, and commanding his men to wear suitable barbarian clothing. Obviously, he hired his friendly  neighbors-- the Yuezhi-- as instructors and the primary source for horses.

Throughout these early conflicts with the Xiongnu, the Wusun and Yuezhi lived beside one another, most likely due to similar customs and language, and the Wusun appear to be a vassal tribe. Then, in 177/176 BC, the Xiongnu attacked the Yuezhi and displaced them. The Yuezhi migration created a domino effect, up-rooting the entire steppe area from Zhao to Sogdiana and even down into India for the next 150 years. Among the other principles were the Wusun, Kangju (Sogdians), and Central Asian Saka. Here's a map of what was going on:
   

Could these constant battles, uprooting one tribe after another, create a new federation from the disenfranchised remainder of "what was left"? Possibly? Or Probably? And am I complicating the "origin" by going back to the beginning?