Cuman

The Cumans, called Polovtsians by the Rus', were the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation, Turkic nomads who dominated the Pontic and Caspian steppe for two centuries, trading and fighting with Rus' and Byzantium.

The Mongol advance shattered them: in 1239 Khan Köten led many into Hungary, and after Cuman rule ended in 1241, those who stayed east joined the Golden Horde, while others fled to Bulgaria, Byzantium and Egypt, where Cuman-born Mamluks such as Baybars rose to the sultanate.

In Hungary they settled on the Great Plain in districts called Greater and Little Cumania, keeping chiefs, herds and Kipchak speech; princess Elizabeth became queen in 1270, mother of Ladislaus IV. Later they farmed and spoke Hungarian, yet kept privileges until around 1702, when districts were sold to the Teutonic Order. In 1745 the Cuman and Jasz bought their freedom as free farmers, not serfs.