Alp Iluetuer

Alp Ilutuer was the Ilutuer (vassal ruler) of the North Caucasian Huns during the 680's CE.

He is mentioned in the account of Bishop Israel of Caucasian Albania, who travelled to Alp Ilutuer's court in an unsuccessful attempt to convert him and his people to Christianity. Alp is an Old Turkic word meaning "hero", though it also sometimes was used as a personal name. Ilutuer is believed to be a cognate of the ancient Turkic title for a vassal ruler (in this case, vassal to the Khazars). Therefore, it is unclear whether Alp Ilutuer is a proper name, a title, or a combination of the two.

In 670s he provoked some raids against the Khazars and heroically died in war. Alp Iluetuer is still remembered in Bulgar and Chuvash legend.

His name's correct construction must be Alp İlteber according to Old Turkic.

Further reading

• Kevin Alan Brook. The Jews of Khazaria. 2nd ed. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2006.
• Douglas M. Dunlop. The History of the Jewish Khazars, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1954.
• Peter B. Golden. Khazar Studies: An Historio-Philological Inquiry into the Origins of the Khazars. Budapest: Akademia Kiado, 1980.