Octar or Ouptaros was a Hunnic ruler. He ruled in dual kingship with his brother

Rugila Rugila or Ruga (also Ruas; died second half of the 430s AD),Lee, A.D. (2013) ''From Rome to Byzantium AD 363 to 565: The Transformation of Ancient Rome''. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, pp. 118-119. was a ruler who was a major factor in th ...

, possibly with a geographical division, ruling the Western Huns while his brother ruled the Eastern Huns.

History

Octar ruled along with his brother

as reported by Jordanes in his ''

Getica ''De origine actibusque Getarum'' (''The Origin and Deeds of the Getae oths'), commonly abbreviated ''Getica'', written in Late Latin by Jordanes in or shortly after 551 AD, claims to be a summary of a voluminous account by Cassiodorus of th ...

'': "''...Mundzucus, whose brothers were Octar and Ruas, who were supposed to have been kings before Attila, although not altogether of the same erritoriesas he''". Their brother

Mundzuk Mundzuk was a Hunnic chieftain, brother of the Hunnic rulers Octar and Rugila, and father of Bleda and Attila by an unknown consort. Jordanes in ''Getica'' recounts "''For this Attila was the son of Mundzucus, whose brothers were Octar and Ruas, w ...

was the father of

Attila Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European traditio ...

, but he was not a supreme ruler of the Huns. According to

Priscus Priscus of Panium (; el, Πρίσκος; 410s AD/420s AD-after 472 AD) was a 5th-century Eastern Roman diplomat and Greek historian and rhetorician (or sophist)...: "For information about Attila, his court and the organization of life generall ...

their fourth brother

Oebarsius Oebarsius or Aybars (died after 448) was a Hun nobleman, brother of Mundzuk and uncle of Bleda and Attila. He was held in great honor, and sat next to Attila at royal banquets. Oebarsius was probably never a king, and had no dominion of his own. H ...

was still alive in 448 AD. Their ancestors and relation with previous rulers

Uldin Uldin, also spelled Huldin (died before 412) is the first ruler of the Huns whose historicity is undisputed. Etymology The name is recorded as ''Ουλδης'' (Ouldes) by Sozomen, ''Uldin'' by Orosius, and ''Huldin'' by Marcellinus Comes. On the ...

and

Charaton Charaton (Olympiodorus of Thebes: ''Χαράτων'') was one of the first kings of the Huns. History In the end of 412 or beginning of 413, Charaton received the Byzantine ambassador Olympiodorus sent by Honorius. Olympiodorus travelled to Cha ...

are unknown. He ruled with his brother in dual kingship, possibly a geographical division where Rugila ruled over Eastern Huns while Octar over Western Huns, possibly like Attila and

Bleda Bleda () was a Hunnic ruler, the brother of Attila the Hun. As nephews to Rugila, Attila and his elder brother Bleda succeeded him to the throne. Bleda's reign lasted for eleven years until his death. While it has been speculated by Jordanes th ...

. According to

Socrates of Constantinople Socrates of Constantinople ( 380 – after 439), also known as Socrates Scholasticus ( grc-gre, Σωκράτης ὁ Σχολαστικός), was a 5th-century Greek Christian church historian, a contemporary of Sozomen and Theodoret. He is the ...

, Octar, identified with Ouptaros, died in 430 near the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

, "'' r the king of the Huns, Uptaros by name, having burst asunder in the night from surfeit, the

Burgundians The Burgundians ( la, Burgundes, Burgundiōnes, Burgundī; on, Burgundar; ang, Burgendas; grc-gre, Βούργουνδοι) were an early Germanic tribe or group of tribes. They appeared in the middle Rhine region, near the Roman Empire, and ...

attacked that he Huns of Uptarospeople then without a leader; and although few in numbers and their opponents many, they obtained victory''".

Etymology

The name is recorded in two variants, Greek ''Ούπταρος'' (Ouptaros), and Latin ''Octar''. The change from ''-ct-'' to ''-pt-'' is characteristic of Balkan Latin.

Otto J. Maenchen-Helfen Otto John Maenchen-Helfen (German: Otto Mänchen-Helfen; July 26, 1894 – January 29, 1969) was an Austrian academic, sinologist, historian, author, and traveler. From 1927 to 1930, he worked at the Marx-Engels Institute in Moscow, and from 193 ...

considered the name to be of unknown origin.

Omeljan Pritsak Omeljan Yosypovych Pritsak ( uk, Омелян Йосипович Пріцак; 7 April 1919, Luka, Sambir County, West Ukrainian People's Republic – 29 May 2006, Boston) was the first Mykhailo Hrushevsky Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvar ...

derived the name from Turkic- Mongolian word ''*öktem'' (strong, brave, imperious; proud, boastful; pride) and verb ''ökte-'' / ''oktä-'' (to encourage). He argued that the deverbal Turkic-Mongolian suffix ''m'' was replaced in Turkic by ''z'' while in Mongolian by ''ri''. The reconstructed form is appellative ''*öktä-r''.

References

Sources

* * {{Huns Hunnic rulers 5th-century monarchs in Europe 5th-century Hunnic rulers 430 deaths