Climate Change and Migration: Migration of the Oghuzes to Transoxiana and Iran

Abstract

The reasons for the migration of the Oghuzs to Transoxiana are usually mentioned in
political history narratives as the political dispute between them and the Oghuz Yabgu.
In addition to this, lack of pasture and lack of space also play an important role among
the reasons for migration. However, while political conflicts are usually emphasised,
there is no clear information on whether the lack of pasture was exactly due to climate.
This article analyses the debate among some scholars on the migration of the Oghuz
Turks and examines the arguments of these scholars who discuss whether climate change
played a role in this migration event. Some historians argue that the Oghuz migrations
were primarily triggered by the climate factor. According to this view, significant climatic
changes in Central Asia forced the Oghuz to migrate to more habitable regions, namely
Transoxiana and Iran. On the other hand, some historians reject this view and attribute
the migrations to political and human factors, such as conflicts, invasions and socioeconomic
conditions of the period. The main purpose of this article is to draw attention
to the potential influence of climate on historical migrations in the context of the Oghuz
migration, rather than to provide a definitive answer. Due to the limitations of historical
sources and the lack of a detailed analysis of these sources, this article does not aim to
resolve the debate definitively. Instead, it emphasises that climate should be considered
as an important factor in historical research alongside political, economic, etc. fields, and
aims to present the climate issue among the causes of migration as a more prominent
argument.