Turkestan and the Rise of Eurasian Empires: A Study of Politics and Invented TraditionsIt has long been known that the origins of the early modern dynasties of the Ottomans, Safavids, Mughals, Mongols, and Shibanids in the sixteenth century go back to Turco Mongol or Turcophone war bands. However, too often has this connection been taken at face value, usually along the lines of ethno linguistic continuity. Turkestan and the Rise of Eurasian Empires argues that the connection between a mythologized Turkestani or Turco Mongol origin and