Thocomerius,[1][2] also Tihomir,[3][4] was the father of Basarab, who would become the first independent voivode of Wallachia.[1] Many Romanian historians, such as Vlad Georgescu and Marcel Popa, believe that Thocomerius was a voivode in Wallachia who succeeded Bărbat, who ruled around 1278;[3][4] others, such as Tudor Sălăgean, refer to him as a local potentate whose status cannot be specified.[1]

Name

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Thocomerius' name is only known from a diploma issued by King Charles I of Hungary on 26 November 1332.[2] The diploma refers to "the schismatic Basarab, son of Thocomerius, our disloyal Vlach." ("Basarab, filium Thocomerii, scismaticum, infidelis Olahus Nostris").[2]

The Hungarian László Rásonyi derives the name from a Cuman and Tatar name, Toq-tämir ("hardened iron"),[5] and refers to a Chingisid prince, Toktomer, mentioned in the Russian annals in 1295 as abiding in the Crimea.[2] According to István Vásáry, even if Basarab’s father bore a Turkic name, this person can by no means be identified with a Chingisid prince, because being descended from Genghis Khan was a matter of such significance that no one could, or would have wanted, to conceal it.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Sălăgean, Tudor. Romanian Society in the Early Middle Ages (9th-10th Centuries).
  2. ^ a b c d e Vásáry, István. Cumans and Tatars: Oriental Military in the Pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185-1365.
  3. ^ a b Georgescu, Vlad. The Romanians: A History.
  4. ^ a b Treptow, Kurt W.; Popa, Marcel. Historical Dictionary of Romania.
  5. ^ Djuvara, Neagu. Thocomerius - Negru Vodă. Un voivod de origine cumană la începuturile Țării Românești.

Sources

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  • Djuvara, Neagu: Thocomerius – Negru Vodă. Un voivod de origine cumană la începuturile Țării Românești / Thocomerius – Negru Vodă: A Voivode of Cuman Origin at the Beginnings of Wallachia, Humanitas, 2007
  • Georgescu, Vlad (Author) – Călinescu, Matei (Editor) – Bley-Vroman, Alexandra (Translator): The Romanians – A History; Ohio State University Press, 1991, Columbus; ISBN 0-8142-0511-9
  • Sălăgean, Tudor: Romanian Society in the Early Middle Ages (9th-10th Centuries); in: Ioan-Aurel Pop – Ioan Bolovan (Editors): History of Romania: Compendium; Romanian Cultural Institute (Center for Transylvanian Studies), 2006, Cluj-Napoca; ISBN 978-973-7784-12-4
  • Treptow, Kurt W. – Popa, Marcel: Historical Dictionary of Romania (table ‘Rulers of Romania - Wallachia’); The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1996, Lanham (Maryland, USA) & Folkestone (UK); ISBN 0-8108-3179-1
  • Vásáry, István: Cumans and Tatars: Oriental Military in the Pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185-1365; Cambridge University Press, 2005, Cambridge; ISBN 0-521-83756-1
Preceded by (?) Voivode in Wallachia
(unknown – c. 1310)
Succeeded by