Burtas

The Burtas were a medieval tribe of uncertain ethnolinguistic origin living north of the Caspian Sea (modern-day Penza, Ulyanovsk, and Saratov oblasts). They were subjects of the Khazars. Their ethnic identity is disputed: some scholars suggest they may have been a Uralic confederation later assimilated into Turkic languages or related to Volga Bulgars, while others propose an Alanic (Sarmatian) origin, linking their name to "fort" in Middle Iranian. Soviet and Russian historians like A.E. Alikhova connected them to the Chechens, noting that Avars called them "Burti."

The Burtas are believed to have settled in the Temnikov Principality by the 1380s. Nikolai Ashmarin theorized a linguistic connection between "Burtas" and "Mordas," arguing it evolved through Bulgar and Oguz languages, where sounds shifted from "m" to "b/p." This theory suggests "Burtas" influenced terms like "Mordvins," with Erzya and Moksha groups. The Burtas' name appears in surnames and place names across European Russia.

The text references works by Kevin Alan Brook and the Tatar Encyclopaedia, noting ties to medieval states like the Temnikov Principality and broader linguistic influences.