Genetics A 2013 study on Argyns' genetics identifies twenty
Y-chromosome DNA haplogroups: of these, G1a-P20 constitutes 71% of 2186 samples; R1a*-M198(xM458) 6%, C3c-M48 5%, C3* - M217(xM48) 3%; and other haplogroups represent less than three percent. The authors noted that "Tribe Argyn took on graph an isolated position, demonstrating the absence of genetic links with other Kazakh tribes." Genetic studies based on Y-chromosome markers of nine Argyn clans have shown that the ancestral gene pool of the Argyns is primarily marked by Y-haplogroup
G1, with 67% of Argyns carrying haplotypes belonging to haplogroup G1-M285. Paternally, this lineage traces back to the heritage of peoples from the
Indo-Iranian language family. Genetic distance analyses show the closest affinity between Argyns and the peoples of
Iran — including
Persians,
Assyrians,
Baloch,
Iranis,
Mazanderanis, and
Kurds. A combined analysis of Argyn genetics and genealogy has confirmed that the direct ancestor of the tribe was the Golden Horde emir Karakhodzha (14th century), or his immediate ancestors. The study also disproved the hypothesis of András Bíró regarding a genetic relationship between the Madjar clan and the Magyars (
Hungarians), as the divergence between the ancestral lines of the Argyns and the Hungarians dates back approximately 20,000 years. In addition to G1, the Argyns also exhibit the presence of
C2 (9%) and
R1a1a (7%). The appearance of C2 is associated with Mongol influence, while R1a1a may have two different sources: one marked by M417 and Z2125, found among the
Kyrgyz and
Pashtuns of
Afghanistan (>40%), some populations of Iran and the
Caucasus (>10%), and among Kazakhs (~1.5%); the second, marked by M780, is found in
South Asia (India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, the Himalayas) and
West Asia (Iran), as well as among the Kazakh Sarykopa clan (Babasan sublineage), of likely "Sart" origin. Genetic data have confirmed a traditional belief that the common ancestor of the Tarakty clan was not the biological son of the Argyn progenitor, but rather an adopted one. As a result, their connection to other Argyns is traced only through the maternal line. Overall, the genetic affinity of the Argyns with the peoples of the
Iranian Plateau suggests the presence of an ancient genetic substratum introduced by proto-Argyns through early migrations of Iranian-speaking peoples or their descendants. On the other hand, the similarity with the Kazakhs of the Altai Highlands and the Mongols points to the existence of a later superstratum introduced by migrations of Turkic- and Mongolic-speaking peoples. As a result, by the time the Argyn tribal confederation was fully formed, they had already become a Turkic-speaking group — as was their genealogical founder, Karakhodzha.
Argyns and Basmyls A historical bilingual, yet steadily Turkicizing, people,
Basmyls, likely contributed to the ethnogenesis of Argyns because both Basmyls and Argyns occupied roughly the same geographic location, in
Beiting Protectorate, where Basmyls made their first recorded appearance and which is now in
western China, and still home to a
Kazakh minority.
Kara-Khanid scholar
Mahmud al-Kashgari wrote that Basmyls spoke their own language besides
Turkic. Golden proposes that the Arghu were Iranian speakers undergoing Turkicization.
Argyns and Mongols According to a number of scholars, the original core of the Argyns traces its origin to
Mongol tribes. One hypothesis holds that the ethnonym "Argyn" or "Argun" comes from Mongolian, meaning "union of ten", and may also be associated with the Argun River in the Buryat region and with the legendary location Ergene-kun. translates from Mongolian as "broad" or "wide". G. G. Musabayev traced the word Argyn to the Mongolian arguy ("cattle breeder"). N. A. Aristov linked it to the name of the Argun River (or Argut) in the
Altai region. In Mongolian, the suffix "-t" denotes plural, while "-n" indicates singular.
Chokan Valikhanov classified the Argyns as a Mongol tribe of the
Chagatai Khanate. Another theory links the Argyns to Arghun Agha, an Oirat governor who served under the
Ilkhanate of
Hulagu. According to Christopher Atwood, the Argyns (or Arguns) descended from conquered steppe peoples of the
Mongolian Plateau who were subjugated by the Mongols and brought westward during the Mongol conquests. In his view, the Argyns represented a branch of the Ongut clan that rose to prominence in the Blue Horde of the
Jochids, and later formed part of the Kazakh and Moghul populations In modern Mongolia, surnames such as Argun, Arguud, Arguun, Arguut, Argyn, and Arigan are registered. Among present-day Argyn clans, the Tarakty and Tobykty are genetically closest to the Mongols. The estimated age of the shared G1 cluster among Kazakhs and Mongols is around 3,000 years, indicating that this haplogroup was already present in the Eurasian Steppe during the Early Iron Age. ==Etymology==