Komondor

This is a Komondor, a traditional Hungarian guard dog.

The Komondor,Canis familiaris pastoralis villosus hungaricus,is a large, white-coloured Hungarian breed of livestock guardian dog with a long, corded coat.

Sometimes referred to as 'mop dogs,' the Komondor is a long-established powerful dog breed that has a natural guardian instinct to guard livestock and other property. The Komondor was brought to Europe by the Cumans and it was mentioned for the first time in 1544 in a Hungarian codex. The Komondor breed has been declared one of Hungary’s national treasures, to be preserved and protected from modification.

The name Komondor derives from Koman-dor, meaning "Cuman dog". The breed descends from Tibetan dogs and came from Asia with the Cumans, whose homeland was near the Yellow River. In the late 900s, Mongols began to expand their territories at the expense of the Cumans, forcing them to move westwards. Fleeing from the Mongols, they reached the borders of Hungary in the 1100s. Cumans were granted asylum and settled in Hungary in 1239 under Köten Khan.Komondor remains have been found in Cuman gravesites.