The Golden Horde's islamicization started early. Berke Khan, chief of the Golden Horde from 1256-1267, was a muslim. By the end of the 1200's, Turkish became the Horde's language of administration. In 1313, Ozbeg Khan made Islam the official religion of the Horde. Russian princes fought over the "honor" of swinging the knout in the Khan's name - to be his yarlyk, or tribute-extractor.