Tatar, also spelled Tartar, any member of several Turkic-speaking peoples that collectively numbered more than 5 million in the late 20th century and lived mainly in west-central Russia along the central course of the Volga River and its tributary, the Kama, and thence east to the Ural Mountains.

Are Tatars the same as Mongols?

The Tatars is a name used to describe several distinct groups of Muslim Turkic people who speak a Turkic language. Many Russians have traditionally linked the Tatars with the Mongols that terrorized Russia in the 16th century but in fact they are different groups. ...

Was Genghis Khan a Tatar?

Born in north central Mongolia around 1162, Genghis Khan was originally named "Temujin" after a Tatar chieftain that his father, Yesukhei, had captured. ... Upon hearing of his father's death, Temujin returned home to claim his position as clan chief.