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Numerous records about Esegels in sources and works of many languages across the span of the Eurasia left numerous variations of their name.Golden P.B., "Khazar studies. Historico-philological inguiry into the origins of the Khazars", Vol. 1, Budapest, Akadémiai Kiadó, 1980 M. Räsänen suggested Uralo-Altai etymology of this word: Es-kil, Es-gil "Old city",Räsänen M. "Uralaltaische Wortforschungen" // STUDIA ORIENTALIA, 18–3, 1955, p. 5, in Golden P.B., "Khazar studies", p. 241 Lev Gumilyov initially linked the Izgils to the Sijie (思结) of the Toquz Oghuz;Gumilyov, L. (1964) Ancient Turks. p. 265. (in Russian)Golden, Peter B. (1992). An Introduction to the History of the Turkic People. Otto Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden. p. 143 only to later re-identify Izgils with Xijie (奚結), another Tiele tribe. Old Book of Tang, Vol. 199b TieleGumilyov, L. (2009) Searches for an Imaginary Kingdom: The Legend of the Kingdom of Prester John. p. 340 (in English; translated by R.E.F. Smith). Russian original; quote: "Изгили (кит. Сицзе =)" However, Zuev (2002) distinguished Izgil (> Ch. * a-siək-kiet 阿悉結 > Axijie, a Western Tujue tribe according to Chinese sources Tongdian vol. 199 "Beidi 6: Tujue B" Old Book of Tang vol. 194 "Tujue B: Western Tujue") from Igil (> Ch. * ɣiei-kiet 奚結 > Xijie, a Tiele tribe Old Book of Tang, Vol. 199b Tiele) though Zuev controversially links the Igils 奚結 to the Bulgarian clan Uokil and the Indo-European-speaking AugaloiBlažek, V. & Schwartz, M. "Tocharians: Who they were, where they came from, and where they lived" in Tocharian Studies: Works 1 (2011), p. 119 in Transoxania.Wang Pu, " Summary review of Tang dynasty, 618–907 (Tang Huiyao)", Shanghai, 1958, ch. 72, p. 1307, in Yu. Zuev, "Early Türks: Sketches of history and ideology" (2002), p. 45
Róna-Tas proposes an Iranian origin: Old Turkic Askil, Äsägäl < äθägäl < haθyaka arya "the very aliens" (cf. Ossetian æcægælon < æcægæ + ælon).Róna-Tas, András "Bayan and Asparuh. Nine Notes on Turks and Iranians in East Europe", Turcologia 105, Harrassowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden (2016). pp. 65-78 However, Tatár (2012) disagrees that Ossetian æcægælon was cognate with Äskäl, as the expected Hungarian cognate to Ossetian would have been ** Æčgæl (Hg. ** Ecsgel), not székely, the Székely people's endonym which, in Tatár's opinion, might have developed from Äskil with these sound-changes: loss of first vowel before or after another vowel's appearance between /s/ & /k/, not in Hungarian but in a foreign source language. Tatár reconstructs * Äskil as the Western Turkic tribe's endonym, containing Turkic languages plural and generalizational suffix -GIlAlyılmaz, Semra. "On Plurality Category and Teaching in Turkish" in Journal of Education and Training Studies, Vol. 5, No. 9; September 2017 and Iranian peoples tribal name Asii; she proposes that the As had been originally part of Iranian-speaking Massagetae and joined the Alans in the 1st century CE, yet one group later split from the Iranian-speaking As community, became allies or subjects of the Turks and subsequently Turkicized as Äskils, only to later become enemies of the Second Turkic Khaganate.Tatár, Maria Magdolna. "Red Huns and Hungarian Székelys: Etymological Remarks to the Tradition" in Hsiung-nu Empire and the Study of Ancient Mongolian History. Published by Institute of History, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Ulaanbataar. 2012. pages 32-38 of 31-43 Tatár also remarks that if székely had developed from æcægæl (even in a Turkic source language and not Hungarian), "the Volga Bulgarian Äskils and the Székelys must be of different origin because æcægæl is not the source of Askil."Tatár (2012). p. 38
Yury Zuev proposes connections with the Āxījiē of the Nushibi half of the Ten Arrows tribal confederation of the Western Turkic Khaganate, and the Xionite personal name Askil/Askel, as mentioned in the Chronography of Theophanes the Confessor (760–818):
"the same month (July 563) ambassadors of Askil/Askel, the king of Hermihions (Greek Ερμηχιονιονων; Lat. Ermechionorum), a tribe living among barbarians near the ocean, came to Constantinople".Zuev Yu.A. "The Strongest Tribe". Historical And Cultural Relations Between Iran And Dasht-i Kipchak in the 13-18th c.c. Materials of International Round Table, Almaty, 2004 . p. 33 (in Russian)
Zuev (2004)Zuev (2004) p. 45, 47-48 summarized scholarly opinions on the link between Izgils and Turkic-speaking tribes mentioned by sources in Chinese:
A Chinese annalistic account in New Book of Tang about the Western Turkic Khaganate in 651 CE listed five west tribes collectively as Nushibi (弩失畢) and noted that Kül-Irkin (闕俟斤 Què-sìjīn), the leader of first tribe, Āxījiē (阿悉結), (whom Zuev identifies as Esegels) "was most prosperous and strong, the number of his soldiers reached several tens of thousands" .Zuev (2004) p. 47, with reference toOuyang Xiu, "Xin Tang shu (History of Tang dynasty"'', 618–907, New Edition)], Peking, Bo-na, 1958, Ch. 215b, p. 1506, f. 56
Arab ambassador Ibn Fadlan, who visited Itil ( Volga) banks in the 921–922, mentioned in his journal the Bulgarian tribe Askel, besides the Bulgars proper, the Suvars (Savan), the Bersula, and the Barandzhar.Kovalevsky A.P. "Ahmed ibn Fadlan's book on travel to Volga in 921–922", Kharkiv, 1956, p. 139 ( Translation) Persian ethnographer Ahmad ibn Rustah listed three branches of the Volga Bulghars: "the first branch was called Barsils, the second Esegel, and the third Oghuz". The ancient ruins of the city belonging to the Askel tribe are located in Aşlı
Among other writers who mentioned Esegels, the Persian “Geography“ of 982 named Ishkils as one of three Bulgarian tribes, who were constantly conflicting among themselves.Minorsky V., "Hudud al-'Alam" (The regions of the World, London, 1937, p. 162) Gardizi, the author of the composition Zain al-ahbar (mid-11th century), wrote: "Between possessions of Bulgars and possessions of Eskels, who also belong to Bulgars, is a Magyar area. These Magyars are also a Türkic tribe".Vasily Bartold, "Extracts from Gardizi composition "Za ahbar" //Collection of Works, vol. 5. Moscow-Leningrad, 1973, p. 37, 58 Constantine VII wrote that endoethnonym of the "Magyar Türks" was Savartoiaskaloi, i.e. Savart (Suvar/Sabir) and Eskel.Vasari I., "Runic systems of the Eastern Europe script" // Altaica 2, Moscow, 1998, p. 37 Zuev summarized that "It is held that Eskels (Esegels) merged with Hungarians (Magyars). Zuev proposes that the ethnographic group Székely (also known as Szekler) are Esegels' descendants."Zuev (2004) p. 34 However, Róna-Tas rejected identification of Esegels with Székely, as well as the link between the names Esegels and Chigils, on historical and phonological grounds.Róna-Tas, András. "Bayan and Asparuh. Nine Notes on Turks and Iranians in East Europe", Turcologia 105, Harrassowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden (2016). pp. 65-78
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