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58-586: Similar tamga-like symbols were sometimes adopted by sedentary peoples adjacent to the Pontic–Caspian steppe both in Eastern Europe and Central Asia . branding of livestock was a common practice across most sedentary populations, as far back as the ancient Egyptians. It has been speculated that Turkic tamgas represent one of the sources of the Old Turkic script of the 6th–10th centuries, but since

116-545: A "firebrand", a burning stick. By the European Middle Ages , it commonly identified the process of burning a mark into stock animals with thick hides, such as cattle , so as to identify ownership under animus revertendi . The practice became particularly widespread in nations with large cattle grazing regions, such as Spain . These European customs were imported to the Americas and were further refined by

174-503: A capital letter. Uncapitalized letters are not used. Brands are usually “read” top to bottom and left to right. There are regional variations in how brands are read, and deference is given to the terminology preferred by the owner of the brand. Terms used include: Combinations of symbols can be made with each symbol distinct, or: Livestock branding causes pain to the animals being branded, seen in behavioural and physiological indicators. Both hot and freeze branding produce thermal injury to

232-561: A complex marking system still in use today. The act of marking livestock with fire-heated marks to identify ownership has origins in ancient times, with use dating back to the ancient Egyptians around 2,700 BCE. Among the ancient Romans , the symbols used for brands were sometimes chosen as part of a magic spell aimed at protecting animals from harm. In English lexicon, the word "brand", common to most Germanic languages (from which root also comes "burn", cf. German Brand "burning, fire"), originally meant anything hot or burning, such as

290-400: A defect, and can diminish the value of hides. This industry has a number of traditional terms relating to the type of brand on a hide. "Colorado branded" (slang "Collie") refers to placement of a brand on the side of an animal, although this does not necessarily indicate the animal is from Colorado . "Butt branded" refers to a hide which has had a brand placed on the portion of the skin covering

348-458: A few bronco branding competitions at rodeos and campdrafting days, etc. Some ranches still heat branding irons in a wood or coal fire; others use an electric branding iron or electric sources to heat a traditional iron. Gas-fired branding iron heaters are quite popular in Australia, as iron temperatures can be regulated and there is not the heat of a nearby fire. Regardless of heating method,

406-560: A freeze brand the hair coat of the animal is first shaved very closely so that bare skin is exposed. Then the frozen iron is pressed to the animal's bare skin for a period of time that varies with both the species of animal and the color of its hair coat. Shorter times are used on dark-colored animals, as this causes follicle melanocyte death and hence permanent pigment loss to the hair when it regrows. Longer times ‍ — sometimes as little as five additional seconds ‍ — are needed for animals with white hair coats. In these cases

464-446: A harness horse collar , is used to rope the selected calf. The calf is then pulled up to several sloping topped panels and a post constructed for the purpose in the centre of the yard. The unmounted stockmen then apply leg ropes and pull it to the ground to be branded, earmarked and castrated (if a bull) there. With the advent of portable cradles, this method of branding has been mostly phased out on stations. However, there are now quite

522-404: A hundred tamga signs used on coins, although only about half of them can be assigned to a specific ruler, and some of them are variant forms or presentation forms of the same tamga. Tamgas are also stamped using hot irons on domesticated animals such as horses in present-day Mongolia and others to identify that the livestock belongs to a certain family, since livestock is allowed to roam during

580-572: A lip tattoo , to be identified at the track. Some breed associations have, at times, offered freeze branding as either a requirement for registration or simply as an optional benefit to members, and individual horse owners may choose branding as a means by which to permanently identify their animals. As of 2011, the issue of whether to mandate horses be implanted with RFID microchips under the National Animal Identification System generated considerable controversy in

638-442: A long hair coat the freeze brand is still visible, but its details are not always legible. Thus it is sometimes necessary to shave or closely trim the hair to obtain a sharper view of the freeze brand. Besides livestock, freeze branding can also be used on wild, hairless animals such as dolphins for purposes of tracking individuals. The brand appears as a white mark on their bare skin and can last for decades. Immediately after

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696-477: A scar into the animal's skin, a freeze brand damages the pigment-producing hair cells, causing the animal's hair to grow back white within the branded area. This white-on-dark pattern is prized by cattle ranchers as its contrast allows some range work to be conducted with binoculars rather than individual visits to every animal. Scientists also value the technique for keeping tabs on studied wildlife without having to approach to read, for example, an ear tag. To apply

754-927: A very early date something like a European coat of arms or crest, and as such appears at the head of several Türkü and many O[ld] Kir[giz] funary monuments". Among modern Turkic peoples , the tamga is a design identifying property or cattle belonging to a specific Turkic clan, usually as a cattle brand or stamp . In Turkestan , it has remained what it originally was: a cattle brand and clan identifier. The Turks who remained pastoral nomad kings in eastern Anatolia and Iran, continued to use their clan tamgas and in fact, they became high-strung nationalistic imagery. The Aq Qoyunlu and Qara Qoyunlu , like many other royal dynasties in Eurasia, put their tamga on their flags and stamped their coinage with it. When Turkish clans took over more urban or rural areas , tamgas dropped out of use as pastoral ways of life became forgotten. That

812-833: Is a steppe extending across Eastern Europe to Central Asia , formed by the Caspian and Pontic steppes. It stretches from the northern shores of the Black Sea (the Pontus Euxinus of antiquity) to the northern area around the Caspian Sea , where it ends at the Ural-Caspian narrowing, which joins it with the Kazakh Steppe in Central Asia, making it a part of the larger Eurasian Steppe . Geopolitically,

870-649: Is contained in a wooden box. From Turkic, the term "tamga" has also been loaned into Caucasian languages, e.g., Adyghe : тамыгъэ , romanized:  tamığə ; Kabardian : дамыгъэ , romanized:  damığə . Among the Circassians , almost every family has a tamga to this day. Throughout the early Middle Ages, the Rurikid nobles of Rus' used Tamga-like symbols to denote property rights over various items ( Rurikid symbols ). Very likely, these are of Khazar (Turkic) origin and have been adopted along with

928-443: Is done with paint, crayons, spray markers, chalk, and much more. These can last for up to several months at a time. The sheep's identification number is painted or sprayed with an indelible but non-toxic paint designed for the purpose onto their sides or back. In stark contrast to traditional hot-iron branding, freeze branding uses an iron that has been chilled with a coolant such as dry ice or liquid nitrogen . Instead of burning

986-433: Is less common today than in the past. However, branding still has its uses. The main purpose is in proving ownership of lost or stolen animals. Many western US states have strict laws regarding brands, including brand registration, and require brand inspections. In many cases, a brand on an animal is considered prima facie proof of ownership. (See Brand Book ) In the hides and leather industry, brands are treated as

1044-676: Is most evident in the Turkish clans that took over western and eastern Anatolia after the Battle of Manzikert . The Turks who took over western Anatolia founded the Sultanate of Rûm and became Roman-style aristocrats. Most of them adopted the then-Muslim symbol of the Seal of Solomon after the Sultanate disintegrated into a mass of feuding ghazi states (see Isfendiyarids , Karamanids ). Only

1102-428: Is referred to as “calling the brand“. Brands are called from left to right, top to bottom, and when one character encloses another, from outside to inside. Reading of complex brands and picture brands depends at times upon the owner's interpretation, may vary depending upon location, and it may require an expert to identify some of the more complex marks. In general, the following usage of the term "symbol" usually means

1160-554: Is still used in two contexts. One is a tax or fee when dealing with the government. It is normally in the form of stamps that have to be purchased and affixed to government forms, such as a driver license or a registration deed for a contract. The term is derived from the Ottoman damga resmi . Another is a stamp put on every piece of jewelry made from gold or silver to indicate it is genuine, and not made of baser metals. Pontic%E2%80%93Caspian steppe The Pontic–Caspian Steppe

1218-496: The vaquero tradition in what today is the southwestern United States and northern Mexico . In the American West , a "branding iron" consisted of an iron rod with a simple symbol or mark, which cowboys heated in a fire. After the branding iron turned red hot, the cowboy pressed the branding iron against the hide of the cow. The unique brand meant that cattle owned by multiple ranches could then graze freely together on

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1276-779: The Northern Caucasus of southern Russia , and into the Lower Volga region of western Kazakhstan , to the east of the Ural Mountains . The steppe is bounded by the East European forest steppe to the north, a transitional zone of mixed grasslands and temperate broadleaf and mixed forests . To the south, the steppe extends to the Black Sea, except the Crimean and western Caucasus mountains' border with

1334-626: The Turgai Sea , an extension of the Paratethys which extended south and east of the Urals and covering much of today's West Siberian Plain in the Mesozoic and Cenozoic . Livestock branding Livestock branding is a technique for marking livestock so as to identify the owner. Originally, livestock branding only referred to hot branding large stock with a branding iron , though

1392-516: The Urdu language (which absorbed Turkic vocabulary), Tamgha is used as medal . Tamgha-i-Jurat is the fourth highest Military medal of Pakistan . It is admissible to all ranks for gallantry and distinguished services in combat. Tamgha-i-Imtiaz or Tamgha-e-Imtiaz (Urdu: تمغہ امتیاز ), which translates as "medal of excellence", is fourth highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both

1450-419: The coat of arms of Ukraine . The modern version has been designed by Vasyl Krychevsky (1918) and Andriy Grechylo , Oleksii Kokhan, and Ivan Turetskyi (1992). In the late medieval Turco-Mongol states, the term tamga was used for any kind of official stamp or seal. This usage persisted in the early modern Islamic Empires ( Ottoman Empire , Mughal Empire ), and in some of their modern successor states. In

1508-693: The Ottoman ghazi state (later to become the Ottoman Empire ) kept its tamga , which was so highly stylized that the bow was stylized down eventually to a crescent moon. Tamgas of the 21 Oghuz tribes (as Charuklug had none) according to Mahmud al-Kashgari in Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk : "Tamga", or "tamag'a", literally means "stamp" or "seal" in Mongolian and designates emblematic symbols which were historically used by various Mongolic tribes or clans in Central Asia. According to Clauson (1972, p.504), it

1566-771: The Pontic-Caspian Steppe extends from northeastern Bulgaria and southeastern Romania through Moldova and eastern Ukraine , through the North Caucasus of southern Russia , and into the Lower Volga region where it straddles the border of southern Russia and western Kazakhstan . Biogeographically, it is a part of the Palearctic realm , and of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome . The area corresponds to Cimmeria , Scythia , and Sarmatia of classical antiquity . Across several millennia, numerous tribes of nomadic horsemen used

1624-471: The United States. Most brands in the United States include capital letters or numerals , often combined with other symbols such as a slash, circle, half circle, cross, or bar. Brands of this type have a specialized language for "calling" the brand. Some owners prefer to use simple pictures ; these brands are called using a short description of the picture (e.g., "rising sun"). Reading a brand aloud

1682-534: The animal is restrained, size and location of the brand, and whether analgesics are applied for pain relief. A 2018 study in Sri Lanka , where hot-iron branding is illegal but still widely practiced, concluded that it impairs animal welfare and that there is no real way to improve the procedure. However, this particular study looked at four small dairy farms that used a technique where multiple applications of irons (“drawing”) created large brands extended across

1740-492: The battlefield could be identified. The hooves of the dead horses were then removed and returned to the Horse Guards with a request for replacements. This method was used to prevent fraudulent requests for horses. Merino rams and bulls are sometimes firebranded on their horns for permanent individual identification. Some types of identification are not permanent. Temporary branding may be achieved by heat branding so that

1798-580: The birth order, then the tag is either attached to the animal’s ear or to some form of neck collar. Nose printing or use of indelible ink elsewhere on the skin and hair is used at some farms, sales and exhibitions. This method is like fingerprinting: it uses ink and cannot be modified. As hair or skin cells shed, the mark eventually fades. Microchip identification and lip or ear tattooing are generally permanent, though microchips can be removed and tattoos sometimes fade over many years. Microchips are used on many animals, and are particularly popular with horses, as

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1856-724: The brand is applied for long enough to outright kill the cells of the growth follicle, preventing them from regrowing new hair filaments and leaving the animal permanently bald in the branded area. The somewhat darker epidermis then contrasts well with a pale animal's coat. Horses are frequently freeze-branded. Neither hogs nor birds can presently be freeze branded successfully, as their hair pigment cells are better protected. Other downsides of freeze branding include its time consuming preparation, greater expense in material and time, low tolerance for sloppy application, long wait until success (sometimes as much as five months) and absence of legal grounding in some American states. When an animal grows

1914-411: The brand will begin to take on its permanent appearance. In Australia, all Arabian , Part Bred Arabians, Australian Stock Horses , Quarter Horses , Thoroughbreds , must be branded with an owner brand on the near (left) shoulder and an individual foaling drop number (in relation to the other foals) over the foaling year number on the off shoulder. In Queensland , these three brands may be placed on

1972-421: The brand. Brand identification may be difficult on long-haired animals, and may necessitate clipping of the area to view the brand. Horses may also be branded on their hooves , but this is not a permanent mark, so needs to be redone about every six months. In the military, some brands indicated the horses' army and squadron numbers. These identification numbers were used on British army horses so dead horses on

2030-445: The cattle crush or squeeze chute (for larger cattle), which may close on either side of a standing animal, or a branding cradle, where calves are caught in a cradle which is rotated so that the animal is lying on its side. Bronco branding is an old method of catching cleanskin (unbranded) cattle on Top End cattle stations for branding in Australia. A heavy horse, usually with some draught horse bloodlines and typically fitted with

2088-456: The chip leaves no external marks. Tattooing the inside of the upper lip of horses is required for many racehorses , though in some localities, microchips are beginning to replace tattoos. Temporary branding is particularly common for sheep and goats. Ear marking or tattooing are usually used on goats under eight weeks of age because regular branding would harm them. Techniques similar to these are also used on sheep. Temporary branding on sheep

2146-472: The day. Each family has their own tamga markings for easier identification. Tamga marks are not very elaborate, since they are made from curved pieces of iron by the individual families. A tamag'a is also used as the "state seal" of Mongolia , which is handed over by the President of Mongolia as part of the transition to a new president. In the presidential case, the tamag'a is a little more elaborate and

2204-649: The descendants of Chinggis Khan in the various khanates of Central Asia during the 13th and 14th centuries, in particular the Chaghatai Khanate . Tamga are of immense interest to numismatists, and are discussed in many academic works relating to the medieval Islamic coins of Central Asia. However, numismatists and historians currently have limited options for representing tamga symbols in text, and cannot reliably interchange text including tamga symbols because they are either represented as images, or are handdrawn, or use an ad hoc font. Doctor Nyamaa identifies nearly

2262-779: The expansion of the Rus into steppe territory. A similar process of acculturation of steppe elements can also be suspected for (or before) the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396), as its flags closely resemble the Rurikid symbols in taking the shape of a trident. In East Slavic languages, the term tamga (Russian тамга) survived in state institution of border customs, with associated cluster of terms: rastamozhit' (Russian растаможить, Belarusian растаможыць, pay customs duties), tamozhnya (Russian таможня, customs), tamozhennik (Russian таможенник, customs officer), derived from

2320-432: The freeze branding iron is removed from the skin, an indented outline of the brand will be visible. Within seconds, however, the outline will disappear and within several minutes after that, the brand outline will reappear as swollen, puffy skin. Once the swelling subsides, for a short time, the brand will be difficult or impossible to see, but in a few days, the branded skin will begin to flake, and within three to four weeks,

2378-556: The government; however, there are a few exceptions: captured Mustangs made available for adoption by the BLM are freeze branded on the neck, usually with the AABS or with numbers, for identification. Horses that test positive for equine infectious anemia , that are quarantined for life rather than euthanized , will be freeze branded for permanent identification. Race horses of any breed are usually required by state racing commissions to have

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2436-414: The hair is burned, but the skin is not damaged. Because this persists only until the animal sheds its hair, it is not considered a properly applied brand. Other temporary, but for a time, persistent marking methods include tagging, and nose printing. Tagging usually uses numbering system as a way to identify animals in a herd. It does this by putting together a letter and number to represent the year born and

2494-412: The iron is only applied for the amount of time needed to remove all hair and create a permanent mark. Branding irons are applied for a longer time to cattle than to horses, due to the differing thicknesses of their skins. If a brand is applied too long, it can damage the skin too deeply, thus requiring treatment for potential infection and longer-term healing. Branding wet stock may result in the smudging of

2552-551: The later phases of the Bosporan Kingdom , the ruling dynasty applied personal tamgas, composed of a fragment representing the family and a fragment representing the individual king, apparently in continuation of steppe traditions and in an attempt to consolidate seditary and nomadic factions within the kingdom. According to Clauson (1972, p.504f.), Common Turkic tamga means "originally a `brand' or mark of ownership placed on horses, cattle, and other livestock; it became at

2610-436: The mid-20th century, this hypothesis is widely rejected as being unverifiable. Tamgas originate in pre-historic times, but their exact usage and development cannot be continuously traced over time. There are, however, symbols represented in rock art that are referred to as tamgas or tamga-like. If they serve to record the presence of individuals at a particular place, they may be functionally equivalent with medieval tamgas. In

2668-432: The military and civilians. Tamgha-i-Khidmat or Tamgha-e-Khidmat ( تمغۂ خدمت ), which translates as "medal of services", is seventh highest honour given by the Government of Pakistan to both the military and civilians. It is admissible to non-commissioned officers and other ranks for long meritorious or distinguished services of a non-operational nature. In Egypt , the term damgha ( Arabic : دمغة ) or tamgha ( تمغة )

2726-886: The most prevalent theory in Indo-European studies , speculates that the Pontic–Caspian steppe was the homeland of the speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language . With the scientific advances in DNA genome mapping and the introduction of bioarchaeology , the Kurgan hypothesis is today widely considered to have been validated. The Pontic–Caspian steppe covers an area of 994,000 km (384,000 sq mi) of Central and Eastern Europe , that extends from northeastern Bulgaria and southeastern Romania , through Moldova , and southern and eastern Ukraine , through

2784-497: The near shoulder in the above order. Stock Horse and Quarter Horse classification brands are placed on the hindquarters by the classifiers. Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds in Australia and New Zealand are freeze branded. Standardbred brands are in the form of the Alpha Angle Branding System (AABS), which the United States also uses. In the United States, branding of horses is not generally mandated by

2842-505: The open range. Cowboys could then separate the cattle at "roundup" time for driving to market . Cattle rustlers using running irons were ingenious in changing brands. The most famous brand change involved the making of the X I T brand into the Star-Cross brand, a star with a cross inside. Brands became so numerous that it became necessary to record them in books that the ranchers could carry in their pockets. Laws were passed requiring

2900-580: The registration of brands, and the inspection of cattle driven through various territories. Penalties were imposed on those who failed to obtain a bill of sale with a list of brands on the animals purchased. From the Americas, many cattle branding traditions and techniques spread to Australia , where a distinct set of traditions and techniques developed. Livestock branding has been practiced in Australia since 1866, but after 1897 owners had to register their brands. These fire and paint brands could not then be duplicated legally. Free-range or open-range grazing

2958-449: The rump area of the animal. A native hide is one without a brand. Outside of the livestock industry, hot branding was used in 2003 by tortoise researchers to provide a permanent means of unique identification of individual Galapagos tortoises being studied. In this case, the brand was applied to the rear of the tortoises' shells. This technique has since been superseded by implanted PIT microchips (combined with ID numbers painted on

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3016-601: The sea, where the Crimean Submediterranean forest complex defines the southern edge of the steppes. The steppe extends to the western shore of the Caspian Sea in the Dagestan region of Russia, but the drier Caspian lowland desert lies between the steppe and the northwestern and northern shores of the Caspian. The Kazakh Steppe bounds the steppe to the east. The Ponto-Caspian seas are the remains of

3074-402: The shell). The traditional cowboy or stockman captured and secured an animal for branding by roping it, laying it over on the ground, tying its legs together, and applying a branding iron that had been heated in a fire. Modern ranch practice has moved toward use of chutes where animals can be run into a confined area and safely secured while the brand is applied. Two types of restraint are

3132-479: The skin, but hot-iron branding creates more inflammation and pain than freeze branding does. Although alternative methods of identification such as ear tags are suggested, the practice of branding is still common worldwide. Standard hot iron branding can take about eight weeks to heal. Use of analgesics helps reduce discomfort. Topical treatments such as cooling gels helps speed healing in pigs, but results are less clear for cattle. Common concerns include how long

3190-501: The steppe; many of them went on to conquer lands in the settled regions of Central and Eastern Europe , West Asia , and South Asia . The term Ponto-Caspian region is used in biogeography with reference to the flora and fauna of these steppes, including animals from the Black, Caspian, and Azov Seas . Genetic research has identified this region as the most probable place where horses were first domesticated . The Kurgan hypothesis ,

3248-399: The term now includes alternative techniques. Other forms of livestock identification include freeze branding , inner lip or ear tattoos , earmarking , ear tagging , and radio-frequency identification (RFID), which is tagging with a microchip implant . The semi-permanent paint markings used to identify sheep are called a paint or color brand. In the American West , branding evolved into

3306-489: The use of tamga as a certificate of State . In East Slavic, the steppe term competes with forms assumed to originate from Germanic (Old Church Slavonic мꙑто toll, Russian (historical) мы́то "customs duty", Ukrainian мито "toll, customs duty", and Belarusian мытня, Ukrainian митниця "customs"; cf. German Maut "street toll" and Medieval Latin mūta "toll"). In the 20th century, the Rurikid trident, colloquially called tryzub (тризуб), has been adopted as national symbol and

3364-570: Was originally a Turkic word also "used for a Chinese 'seal' and passed into Mong[olian] in this meaning as tamaga ". In the Mongol Empire , a tamgha was a seal placed on taxed items and, by extension, a tax on commerce (see Eastern Europe below). Over a hundred different Mongolian tamga are known. Certain tamga were adopted by individual medieval Mongolic and Turkic rulers, and were consequently used on coins and seals issued by these rulers. Tamga are most widely found on Islamic coins issued by

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