 Porphyrogenitus said the tribes did not " obey their own particular [ voivodes ] , but [ had ] a joint agreement to fight together with all earnestness and zeal ... wheresoever war breaks out " , suggesting the tribal chiefs were military rather than political leaders . According to Kristó , the emperor 's report also shows the tribal confederation was not a " solid political formation with strong cohesion " in the early 9th century . The Gesta Hungarorum referred to the seven Magyar chiefs as " Hetumoger " , or " Seven Magyars " . Similar ethnonyms – including Toquz Oghuz ( " Nine Oghuzes " ) and Onogur ( " Ten Ogurs " ) – suggest the Gesta preserved the name of the confederation of the Magyar tribes . According to Porphyrogenitus , Levedia was named after Levedi , one of the Magyar voivodes . During Levedi 's life , the Kangars , a distinct group within the Pechenegs ' tribal confederation whom the Khazars had expelled from their homeland , invaded Levedia and forced the Magyars to cede the territory . A Magyar group fled across the Caucasus Mountains as far as Persia . However , the masses departed for the West and settled in a region called Etelköz . Most historians agree the Magyars ' forced exodus from Levedia occurred around 850 . 
