Abstract:

The legends of Dede Korkut contain lots of information about the early period of Oghuz tribe as they show up in Sir-derya region, after they came to this area they fought war with other tribes they encountered and Oghuz tribe were shaped in that area. When Oghuz tribe arrived in Sir-derya region they had war with Pechenegs who ruled Aral steppes. In earlier, Pechenegs seemed to surprassed but afterwards Oghuzs had the upper hand and they extirpated Pechenegs from the region. We encounter stories narrating the struggles of Oghuzs especially Salur Kazan's against his enemies. According to Dede Korkut legends and resources of the period we see that Oghuzs had war with not only Pechenegs but also Kipchaks. In legends we directly see the term "the iron bowed Kipchak Melik". It is certainly known that in history there were wars between Kipchaks and Oghuz Yabgu power in the region of Sir-derya and Aral region. Kipchaks put an end to the short life of Oghuzs. In this paper we present information about Oghuzs' struggles with enemy tribes and these struggles find place in Dede Korkut's legends.

Keywords: