Thocomerius

For other uses, see Tihomir.

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

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 ıron’),^[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

• Țara Litua

References

1. Sălăgean, Tudor. Romanian Society in the Early Middle Ages (9th-10th Centuries).
2. Vásáry, István. Cumans and Tatars: Oriental Military in the Pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185-1365.
3. Georgescu, Vlad. The Romanians: A History.
4. 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

• 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 Bărbat	(?) Voivode in Wallachia (unknown – c. 1310)	Succeeded by Basarab I