Mention the names Attila the Hun, Genghis Khan or Tamerlane, and the picture that typically emerges is of angry hordes of warriors on horseback, galloping across dusty plains on a mission to plunder and kill.
Missing from such crude sketches is the sophisticated role these nomads played in spreading technology, ideas and religion across the world.
“Unfortunately, because we don’t have much in the way of writing from these people, at least from themselves, there is a tendency to always look upon them as the outsiders, destroyers of civilisation,” says professor Kenneth W Harl, author of Empires of the Steppes: A History of the Nomadic Tribes Who Shaped Civilisation.
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Harl also blames advertising and Hollywood – which when tackling historical epics likes to have “barbarians” lurking there.
“It is hard to overcome those stereotypes. Even in history textbooks in the United States, these people are scarcely mentioned. The Huns might appear as the scourge of God – Attila the Hun. The Mongols might be known, but many people in the West don’t really have much knowledge of these people, and they are all lumped together as barbarians,” he says.
There are historical records offering glimpses into the mindset of these peoples. There is The Secret History of the Mongols, the earliest surviving work in Mongolian about Genghis Khan. The Orkhon inscriptions in Mongolia also offer clues.
“These are monuments that are the earliest examples of Turkish, and there is actually a very good copy of it in the garden of the museum of the Anatolian Civilisations in Ankara today,” Harl says.
The professor, who lives in New Orleans, has tried to write from the perspective of the nomadic people, who have largely been known by the writings of their opponents or victims.
“I am not an apologist for what Genghis Khan committed against the cities of Transoxiana, or massacres that went on in North China. These were actions that even to the people at the time were seen as really out of bounds,” he says.
Harl says that in the wars between clans and tribes, the defeated were often massacred, because the victors didn't have the means to feed them. “When this is applied on a grand scale to break the resistance of cities and sedentary civilisations, you get atrocities that moderns would call essentially genocidal,” he says.
Nomadic Legacy
But there were also important achievements, he notes, above all by the Mongols. Take paper currency, invented in China, which was introduced by the Ilkhanids – the south-western branch of the Mongols – into the Islamic world. But that is not all.
“The most devastating one is the transmission of gunpowder from China – which leads to the military revolution, which eventually puts the steppe nomads out of business, militarily – that sees the invention of the cannon and then hand-held firearms.”
The legacy of the nomads survives into the present era. Harl worked in Turkey for 25 years, excavating ancient sites, and caught glimpses of the steppes in everything from political rhetoric to culinary heritage:
“Yoghurt comes from the steppes and that has been mixed with the Mediterranean grilled-diet to create a much more varied diet than you would have in neighbouring Greece, which hasn’t had the same influences," he says.
Harl worked in Greece and moved to Turkey, describing it as one of the “best decisions” he made professionally, because there was so much more to do. He also met his future wife in Turkey. He recalls it took about a year and a half to get all the paperwork in order before they could tie the knot.
"If you marry a foreign national as a US citizen you better really love that person because the US government puts you through the wringer. They investigated me even more than they investigated her,” he says.
Having married late in life, he notes that “up until the current generation, more than half of all scholars in the classics never married because they are so devoted to their work. They didn’t have time for family.”
Harl had accepted that as part of his vocation, seeing his work as a lifetime dedication to understanding people of the past.
“I have always felt that I am not very important as an individual, what I do is important,” he says.
Still, marriage has professional upsides, too.
“I learnt a lot more about Turkish history being married to her than my years travelling to Greco-Roman sites,” he says with a laugh.
Raconteur of history
Besides writing, Harl, who retired last year as professor in Classical and Byzantine history at Tulane University, has also recorded 11 series of lectures for The Great Courses by The Teaching Company – a notable producer of long-form audio and video lectures. Harl covered diverse topics such as The Vikings, The Ottoman Empire and Alexander the Great and the Macedonian Empire.
There is also a series about the nomads – The Barbarian Empires of the Steppes – recorded around 10 years ago to meet customer demand for a course about the Silk Road. It proved to be popular.
“I was approached by an agent in London who suggested that I return to that topic and write a book about it. And in those 10 years I have learnt a lot more, and I rethought a lot of my ideas from that course I recorded,” he says.
A case in point is Kublai Khan, who Harl says was perhaps even more significant than his grandfather Genghis Khan. “I failed to appreciate until I wrote the book how Kublai Khan united China for the first time in 400 years. One wonders if he had not conquered Song China, whether China would have ever reunited and become the world power we see today,” he says.
Each lecture was 20 minutes, which Harl says forced him to leave out a lot of information. However, in writing there is more opportunity to give detailed explanations.
It took Harl two years to complete Empires of the Steppes, and he is already working on his next book, which looks at the Middle East before Islam, stretching from 3000BC to the arrival of Islam and the Rashidun caliphs.
“I have a final chapter talking about the synthesis, say in the reign of Harun Al Rashid – the height of the Abbasid caliph – how these civilisations contributed to the high civilisation of Islam,” he says.
“That then becomes the basis for the Middle East today. And again, it would be along the same theme of Empires of the Steppes: what is the continuity and change from these earlier civilisations?”
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MATCH INFO
Al Jazira 3 (O Abdulrahman 43', Kenno 82', Mabkhout 90 4')
Al Ain 1 (Laba 39')
Red cards: Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain)
Emirates Cricket Board Women’s T10
ECB Hawks v ECB Falcons
Monday, April 6, 7.30pm, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
The match will be broadcast live on the My Sports Eye Facebook page
Hawks
Coach: Chaitrali Kalgutkar
Squad: Chaya Mughal (captain), Archara Supriya, Chamani Senevirathne, Chathurika Anand, Geethika Jyothis, Indhuja Nandakumar, Kashish Loungani, Khushi Sharma, Khushi Tanwar, Rinitha Rajith, Siddhi Pagarani, Siya Gokhale, Subha Srinivasan, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish
Falcons
Coach: Najeeb Amar
Squad: Kavisha Kumari (captain), Almaseera Jahangir, Annika Shivpuri, Archisha Mukherjee, Judit Cleetus, Ishani Senavirathne, Lavanya Keny, Mahika Gaur, Malavika Unnithan, Rishitha Rajith, Rithika Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Shashini Kaluarachchi, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Vaishnave Mahesh
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
The biog
Favourite pet: cats. She has two: Eva and Bito
Favourite city: Cape Town, South Africa
Hobby: Running. "I like to think I’m artsy but I’m not".
Favourite move: Romantic comedies, specifically Return to me. "I cry every time".
Favourite spot in Abu Dhabi: Saadiyat beach
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Virtuzone GCC Sixes
Date and venue Friday and Saturday, ICC Academy, Dubai Sports City
Time Matches start at 9am
Groups
A Blighty Ducks, Darjeeling Colts, Darjeeling Social, Dubai Wombats; B Darjeeling Veterans, Kuwait Casuals, Loose Cannons, Savannah Lions; C Awali Taverners, Darjeeling, Dromedary, Darjeeling Good Eggs
What is an FTO Designation?
FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes.
It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.
Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.
Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.
Source: US Department of State
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
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The view from The National
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
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- Professional ethics.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Porsche Macan T: The Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec
Top speed: 232kph
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
On sale: May or June
Price: From Dh259,900
RESULTS
6.30pm Handicap (TB) US$65,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner Golden Goal, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
7.05pm Dubai Racing Club Classic Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (Turf) 2,410m
Winner: Walton Street, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
7.40pm Dubai Stakes Group 3 (TB) $130,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner Switzerland, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
8.15pm Singspiel Stakes Group 3 (TB) $163,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner Lord Giltters, Adrie de Vries, David O’Meara
8.50pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Military Law, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.
9.25pm Al Fahidi Fort Group 2 (TB) $163,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Land Of Legends, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
10pm Dubai Dash Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (T) 1,000m
Winner Equilateral, Frankie Dettori, Charles Hills.
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
WWE Super ShowDown results
Seth Rollins beat Baron Corbin to retain his WWE Universal title
Finn Balor defeated Andrade to stay WWE Intercontinental Championship
Shane McMahon defeated Roman Reigns
Lars Sullivan won by disqualification against Lucha House Party
Randy Orton beats Triple H
Braun Strowman beats Bobby Lashley
Kofi Kingston wins against Dolph Zigggler to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Mansoor Al Shehail won the 50-man Battle Royal
The Undertaker beat Goldberg
TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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