Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of Dandanaqan

Battle of Dandanaqan was a battle fought on 23 May 1040 at Merv, in what is now Turkmenistan. It was part of the Seljuk–Ghaznavid Wars. The recorded result: Seljuk victory.

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Battle of Dandanaqan fought between Ghaznavids and Seljuks in 1040.
Battle of Dandanaqan fought between Ghaznavids and Seljuks in 1040.. Wikimedia Commons, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought23 May 1040
WhereMerv, Turkmenistan37.392N, 61.345E
OutcomeSeljuk victory
BelligerentsGhaznavid EmpireagainstSeljuk Turks
Part ofSeljuk–Ghaznavid Wars

Where it sits in the Seljuk–Ghaznavid Wars

Battle of Nisa, 1035Battle of Nishapur, 1038Battle of Sarakhs, 1038Battle of Dandanaqan, 1040Battle of Ghazni, 111710351117Battle of Dandanaqan, 1040
5 placed engagements of the Seljuk–Ghaznavid Wars in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date23 May 1040
PlaceMerv, Turkmenistan
37.392N, 61.345E
KindBattle, medieval
Territorial changeKhorasan annexed by the Seljuks
Strength16,000
Commanders
  • Masʽud I
  • Chaghri Beg
  • Tughril I
Battle of DandanaqanBattle of DandanaqanSiege of MervSiege of MervMashhadMaryKakaTejen100 km37.392N, 61.345E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Dandanaqan
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 5 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Dandanaqan today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-08-07. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 195 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 191 to 209 m, 19 m of relief, flat country and today it is 44% bare ground, 22% cropland, 19% shrubland.

bare ground: 44%cropland: 22%shrubland: 19%grassland: 15%bare ground 44%cropland 22%shrubland 19%grassland 15%
west to east, 10.0 km194 to 205 mnorth to south, 10.0 km193 to 200 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1040

Battle of Dandanaqan is one of 318 engagements of the 11th century in the atlas and one of 11 in present-day Turkmenistan.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q26493, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Dandanaqan, revision 1370438286, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.