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Revision as of 04:03, 8 September 2003 by Zestauferov (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)"Hephthalite" is the English transliteration of the Greek rendering of "Hayathelite", the name used by Persian writers to refer to a 6th century empire on the northern and eastern periphery of their land. In China they were known as 厌哒 or 厭達 (pinyin Yanda). This has been given various latinised renderings, such as "Yeda", although the Korean pronunciation "Yoptal" (엽달) is much more recognisable and is certainly a much more archaic fossilisation.
The chinese classic 梁 職貢圖 describes their origin China as Hua Country (滑國) and indicates that "Yoptal" was the name of a Yuezhi (月氏) family who had come to rule a people calling themselves Hua (滑). .
They are Procopius's "White Huns" which Simokattes calls Uar (reminicient of their 滑 self designation according to the 梁職貢圖) and are identified as the "true" Avars of the east and the true political force behind what he calls the "pseudo" Avars who eventually settled down in Transylvania. White supremacists have argued that they were "Aryan" Caucasoids and much that has been written about them has been influenced by such ideas. Various theories concerning the origin of the name Yoptal include references to the number Seven and the biblical Patriarch Japheth. However, according to many authors (for example Dr. David Nicolle, Osprey) they were of Turko-Mongoloid stock.
Variations in spelling include "Ephthalite", "Epthalite", "Ephtalite", "Eptalite", "Hepthalite", "Hephtalite", and "Heptalite". It has been suggested that Oghur & Oghuz from which derives the Russian Yugor mean White Huns (Ak-Gunz or Aq-Guzz).