Caucasian ethnic groups. Peoples of the North Caucasus

Trubetskoy Nikolai Sergeevich (1890-1938)- one of the most universal thinkers of the Russian diaspora, the largest linguist, philologist, historian, philosopher, political scientist. Born in 1890 in Moscow in the family of the rector of Moscow University, the famous professor of philosophy S.N. Trubetskoy. The family, which bore an ancient princely surname, belonged to the Gediminovich family, among which were such prominent figures of Russia as the boyar and diplomat Alexei Nikitich (died in 1680), field marshal Nikita Yuryevich (1699-1767), N.I. Novikov’s colleague writer Nikolai Nikitich (1744-1821), Decembrist Sergei Petrovich (1790-1860), religious philosophers Sergei Nikolaevich (1862-1905) and Evgenia Nikolaevich (1863-1920), sculptor Pavel (Paolo) Petrovich (1790-1860). The atmosphere of the family, which was one of the intellectual and spiritual centers of Moscow, favored the awakening of early scientific interests. Ever since her gymnasium years, N. Trubetskoy began to seriously engage in ethnography, folklore, linguistics, and also philosophy. In 1908 he entered the Faculty of History and Philology of Moscow University, attending classes in the cycle of the philosophical and psychological department and then in the department of Western European literatures. In 1912 he graduated from the first graduation of the department of comparative linguistics and was left at the university department, after which he was sent to Leipzig, where he studied the doctrines of the neo-grammar school.

Returning to Moscow, he published a number of articles on North Caucasian folklore, the problems of the Finno-Ugric languages ​​and Slavic studies. He was an active participant in the Moscow Linguistic Circle, where, along with questions of linguistics, together with scientists and writers, he seriously studied and developed mythology, ethnology, ethnography, and cultural history, approaching the future Eurasian topic closely. After the events of 1917, the successful university work of N. Trubetskoy was interrupted and he left for Kislovodsk, and then taught for some time at Rostov University. Gradually came to the conclusion that the Proto-Slavs in spiritual terms were more closely connected with the East than with the West, where, in his opinion, contacts were made primarily in the field of material culture.

In 1920, N. Trubetskoy left Russia and moved to Bulgaria, and began teaching and research at Sofia University as a professor. In the same year, he published his famous work "Europe and Humanity", which brings him close to the development of a Eurasian ideology. In the future, the activities of N. Trubetskoy developed in two directions: 1) purely scientific, devoted to philological and linguistic problems (the work of the Prague Circle, which became the center of world phonology, then years of research in Vienna), 2) cultural and ideological, associated with participation in the Eurasian movement . N. Trubetskoy becomes close to P.N.Savitsky, P.P.Suvchinsky, G.V.Florovsky, publishes in "Eurasian Times" and "Chronicles", periodically makes presentations in various cities of Europe. In the development of Eurasian ideas, the main achievements of N. Trubetskoy include his concept of the "tops" and "bottoms" of Russian culture, the doctrine of "true nationalism" and "Russian self-knowledge".

Due to his psychological characteristics, N. Trubetskoy preferred quiet, academic work to politics. Although he had to write articles in the genre of political journalism, he avoided direct participation in organizational and propaganda activities and regretted when Eurasianism made a bias into politics. Therefore, in the story with the Eurasia newspaper, he took an unequivocally irreconcilable position in relation to the left wing of the movement and left the Eurasian organization, resuming publications in updated editions only a few years later.

The last years of his life, N. Trubetskoy lived in Vienna, where he worked as a professor of Slavic studies at the University of Vienna. After the Anschluss of Austria, he was harassed by the Gestapo. A significant part of his manuscripts was confiscated and subsequently destroyed. According to L.N. myocardial infarction and early death. On July 25, 1938, at the age of 48, N. Trubetskoy died.

The article was written in 1925.

All nations surrounded me, but in the name of the Lord I brought them down.
Ps. 117, 10

There are Armenians in Transcaucasia who have always been and will adhere to the Russian orientation, no matter what the Russian government may be. There can be no serious Armenian separatism. It is always easy to come to terms with Armenians. But relying on Armenians would be a mistake. Strong economically, concentrating in their hands the leadership of the entire economic life of Transcaucasia, at the same time they have a general antipathy, reaching the hatred of their neighbors. To identify with them would be to bring upon oneself this antipathy and hatred. An example of the policy of the pre-revolutionary period, which eventually led to the fact that the Russians were left with only the Armenians and turned against themselves all the other nationalities of Transcaucasia, should serve as a lesson. Besides, the Armenian question is, to a certain extent, an international question. The attitude of the Russian government towards the Armenians in the Caucasus should be coordinated with the relations between Russia and Turkey.

Since the February Revolution, the Georgians have achieved recognition of the right to at least autonomy, and it is impossible to dispute these rights with them. But at the same time, since this provision gives rise to Georgian separatism, any Russian government is obliged to fight against it. If Russia wants to keep Baku's oil (without which it is hardly possible to keep not only the Transcaucasus, but also the North Caucasus), it cannot allow an independent Georgia. The difficulty and complexity of the Georgian problem lies precisely in the fact that it is now almost impossible not to recognize a certain degree of independence of Georgia, and it is not permissible to recognize its full political independence. A well-known middle line should be chosen here, moreover, one that would not give rise to the development of Russophobic sentiments in the Georgian environment ... It should also be learned that Georgian nationalism takes harmful forms only insofar as it is imbued with certain elements of Europeanism. Thus, the correct solution of the Georgian question can be achieved only if true Georgian nationalism emerges, that is, a special Georgian form of the Eurasian ideology.

The Azerbaijanis represent the most important element of Transcaucasia in terms of their numbers. Their nationalism is highly developed, and of all the peoples of Transcaucasia they are the most constant in their Russophobic moods. These Russophobic sentiments go hand in hand with Turkophile sentiments fueled by pan-Islamic and pan-Turan ideas. The economic importance of their territory (with Baku oil, Nukha sericulture and Mugan cotton plantations) is so great that it is impossible to allow them to separate. At the same time, it is necessary to recognize some, moreover, a rather significant dose of independence for the Azerbaijanis. The solution here also depends to a large extent on the nature of Azerbaijani nationalism, and sets as a task of paramount importance the creation of a national-Azerbaijani form of Eurasianism. Against pan-Islamism, in this case, the assertion of Shiism should be put forward.

The three national problems of Transcaucasia (Armenian, Georgian and Azerbaijani) are intertwined with the problems of foreign policy. The Turkophile policy could push the Armenians towards the British orientation. The same result would have been obtained with a bet on the Azerbaijanis. England, in any sense, will intrigue in Georgia, realizing that an independent Georgia will inevitably become an English colony. And in connection with the inevitability of this intrigue, it is unprofitable in Georgia to make Armenians Anglophiles and thus strengthen the ground for English intrigue in Transcaucasia. But the bet on the Armenians would lead to the Turkophile orientation of the Azerbaijanis and to the Russophobic mood of Georgia. All this should be taken into account when establishing relations with the peoples of Transcaucasia.

The complexity of the national question in Transcaucasia is exacerbated by the fact that individual nationalities are at enmity with each other. Part of the reasons for enmity is eliminated under the curial-multi-parliamentary system and the management technique associated with it. With this system, it is possible, for example, in a number of aspects of life to differentiate administration not by territory, but by nationality, which weakens the sharpness of disputes over belonging to one or another autonomous unit of regions with a mixed population. Thus, for example, the question of the language of instruction in schools in such areas loses all its acuteness: in the same locality there are schools with different languages ​​in which teaching is conducted, and each of these schools is under the jurisdiction of the corresponding national council of public education. But, of course, there are a number of aspects of life where management should naturally be based on a territorial, and not on a national principle. Not only the old division into provinces, based on random and often artificial features, but also the division into three main regions (Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan) must be abolished. The Transcaucasian ulus should be firmly divided into small districts, more or less corresponding to the former districts, with the only difference being that the boundaries of these districts should be more accurately fitted to ethnographic-historical, everyday and economic boundaries.

The ancient motto of imperialist statehood, "Divide and Conquer," is applicable only where the state power or the ruling nation deals with a hostile foreign population. Where the task of the state power is to create an organic association of the native population with the ruling nation for joint work, this principle does not apply. Therefore, in the Caucasus, one should not try to deepen friction and contradictions between individual nationalities. With all the variety of shades of democratic culture and way of life in different regions of Georgia, it nevertheless represents an ethnographic whole that cannot be artificially divided into parts. The Georgian language, as the language of church and literature, has been the common language of the educated classes of Georgia, Mingrelia and Svanetia since ancient times. Allowing, along with this, the existence of the Mingrelian and Svan languages ​​and not hindering the development of literature in these languages, one should in every possible way resist the artificial creation of some new, historically insufficiently justified, independent and independent (in relation to Georgia) national units.

From the foregoing, however, it does not yet follow that it is possible to encourage the desire of larger peoples to absorb smaller ones. Such aspirations exist in some border areas between the Transcaucasus and the North Caucasus: there is a desire to encroach on Abkhazia and South Ossetia, to Tatarize the southern districts of Dagestan and the Zakatala district. Since in these cases we are talking about the deformation of a certain national image, this phenomenon should be combated by supporting the national resistance of the respective nationalities.

In an effort to prevent the separation of the border regions, one should take into account all the psychological factors that feed the separatist aspirations of the border regions. At the same time, one cannot fail to notice that among the common people such aspirations are not developed at all or are very poorly developed, and the main bearer of separatist aspirations is the local intelligentsia. An important role in the psychology of this intelligentsia is played by the principle "it is better to be the first in the village than the last in the city." Often the sphere of activity of some minister of an independent republic that replaced the former province does not differ in any way from the sphere of activity of the former provincial official. But it is more flattering to be called a minister, and, therefore, the minister clings to the independence of his republic. With the transition of a province to the status of an independent state, a whole series of new posts is inevitably created, to which local intellectuals fall, who were previously forced either to be content with petty posts in their province, or to serve outside this province. Finally, independence flourishes especially in areas where the local intelligentsia is relatively small in number and therefore previously the main contingent of officials was made up of alien elements: when the alien element, who fell into the category of “foreign subjects”, is expelled, in the young republic, a shortage of intelligent forces and every local it is very easy for an intellectual to make a career. Independence is very often a "class" movement of the local intelligentsia, who feel that they, as a class, have benefited from independence. But, of course, the local intelligentsia carefully hides this class nature of independence and disguises it with “ideas”: they hastily invent “historical traditions”, local national culture, and so on. There is no doubt that the population of this region is more likely to suffer damage from such class-intellectual independence. After all, all this independence is aimed, on the one hand, at artificially increasing the demand for intelligent labor, at increasing the number of people receiving state salaries and living, thus, at the expense of taxes from the population, and on the other, at establishing competition among intellectuals from other areas, to a decrease in the field of competition, and consequently, to a decrease in the quality of local bureaucracy. Naturally, therefore, ordinary people are often hostile to the independent aspirations of the local intelligentsia and show centralist aspirations, on which, for example, the Bolsheviks, of course, played during the liquidation of the independence of various republics of the Transcaucasus.

In the North Caucasus there are Kabardians, Ossetians, Chechens, small nationalities (Circassians, Ingush, Balkars, Karachays, Kumyks, Turukhmens and Kalmyks, and finally, Cossacks).

The Kabardians and Ossetians have always adhered rather firmly to the Russian orientation. Most small nationalities in this respect do not present any particular difficulties. Definitely Russophobes in the North Caucasus are only Chechens and Ingush. The Russophobia of the Ingush is due to the fact that after the conquest of the Caucasus by the Russians, raids and robbery, which always constitute the main occupation of the Ingush, began to be strictly punished; meanwhile, the Ingush cannot move on to other occupations, partly due to an atavistic unaccustomed to manual labor, partly due to traditional contempt for work, which is considered an exclusively female business. An ancient eastern ruler like Darius or Nebuchadnezzar would have simply subjected this small robber tribe, which interferes with a calm and peaceful life not only for Russians, but also for all their other neighbors, to complete destruction, or would have taken its population somewhere far away from their homeland. If such a simplified solution of the problem is discarded, then it remains only to try, through the establishment of public education and the improvement of agriculture, to destroy the old conditions of life and the traditional neglect of peaceful labor.

The Chechen question is somewhat more complicated. Since, firstly, there are five times more Chechens than Ingush, and secondly, Chechen Russophobia is caused by the fact that Chechens consider themselves materially bypassed: their best lands were taken by Cossacks and Russian settlers and Grozny oil is being developed on their land, from which they receive no income. Of course, it is impossible to fully satisfy these claims of the Chechens. Good neighborly relations, however, must be established. This can be done again by staging public education, raising the level of agriculture and involving the Chechens in a common economic life with the Russians.

According to their social structure, the peoples of the North Caucasus are divided into two groups: peoples with an aristocratic system (Kabardians, Balkars, part of the Circassians, Ossetians) and peoples with a democratic system (part of the Circassians, Ingush and Chechens). The first group enjoyed the highest authority, on the one hand, the elderly, on the other - the Muslim clergy. The Bolsheviks are systematically working to destroy both social systems. If they succeed in this matter, then the peoples of the North Caucasus will be deprived of such groups and classes that would be authoritative in the eyes of the masses. Meanwhile, due to the properties of their characters, these peoples, without the leadership of such authoritative groups, turn into wild gangs of robbers, ready to follow any adventurer.

The North Caucasus also includes the Cossack regions - Terek and Kuban. There is no special Cossack issue in the Terek region: Cossacks and non-residents live together, realizing themselves as a single nation, opposed by foreigners. On the contrary, in the Kuban region the Cossack question is very acute. Cossacks and non-residents are at enmity with each other.

In the east and west of the Caucasus there are areas that cannot be completely attributed either to Transcaucasia or to the North Caucasus: in the East it is Dagestan, in the West it is Abkhazia.

The position of Dagestan is such that it needs to be granted a very broad autonomy. At the same time, Dagestan is not very popular both in terms of its ethnic composition and its historical division. Before the conquest by the Russians, Dagestan was divided into a number of small khanates, completely independent of each other and not subject to any supreme authority. The traditions of this former crushing have been preserved in Dagestan to this day. The lack of a common language greatly hinders the administrative unification of Dagestan. In the past, it came to the point that official correspondence and office work were conducted in Arabic, and Russian government announcements were published in the same language. There are too many native languages: in the Andean district, for 70 versts downstream of the Andean Koisu, 13 different languages ​​are spoken; there are about 30 native languages ​​in Dagestan. There are several "international" languages ​​that serve to communicate with the highlanders of various auls among themselves. These are the Avar and Kumyk languages ​​in the northern and Azerbaijani in the southern part of Dagestan. Obviously, one of these “international” languages ​​should be made the official language. However, it is far from indifferent which of the languages ​​to choose for this purpose. Kumyk is the "international" language of almost the entire North Caucasus (from the Caspian Sea to Kabarda inclusive), Azerbaijani dominates in most of the Transcaucasus (except the Black Sea coast) and, in addition, in Turkish Armenia, Kurdistan and Northern Persia. Both of these languages ​​are Turkic. It must be borne in mind that with the intensification of economic life, the use of "international" languages ​​acquires such importance that it displaces native languages: many auls of the southern districts of Dagestan have already completely "obazerbaidzhanilis". It is hardly in Russia's interests to allow such a Turkification of Dagestan. After all, if the whole of Dagestan becomes Turkic, then there will be a continuous mass of Turks from Kazan to Anatolia and Northern Persia, which will create the most favorable conditions for the development of Pan-Turan ideas with a separatist, Russophobic bias. Dagestan should be used as a natural barrier to the Turkization of this part of Eurasia. In the northern and western districts of Dagestan, the situation is relatively simple. Here, the official language should be recognized as Avar, which is already the native language for the population of the Gunib and Khunzak districts and the international language for the Andi, Kazikumukh, part of the Dargin and part of the Zakatala districts. The development of Avar literature and the press should be encouraged, and this language should be introduced into all the lower schools of the listed districts, as well as into the corresponding secondary schools as a compulsory subject.

The situation is more complicated in other parts of Dagestan. Of all the South Dagestan tribes, the largest is the Kyura tribe, which occupies almost the entire Kurinsky district, the eastern half of the Samur and the northern part of the Kubin district of the Baku province. Of all the non-Turkic native languages ​​of this part of Dagestan, the Kurin language is the simplest and easiest, and is closely related to some other native languages ​​of the same region. Therefore, it could be made "international" and official for this part of Dagestan. Thus, Dagestan would be linguistically divided between two native languages ​​- Avar and Kyurinsky.

Abkhazia should recognize Abkhazian as the official language, encourage the development of the Abkhazian intelligentsia and instill in them the awareness of the need to combat Georgianization.

Targamos is mentioned in the Bible, in the so-called "Table of Nations", being, as in the Georgian chronicles, the grandson of Japhet (see "Genesis", ch.10, article 3). True, in the Bible the name of this character sounds like Torgama

The scholar-monk Leonti Mroveli, who lived in the 11th century, wrote a historical work called “The Life of the Kings of Kartli”. This work, based on even more ancient chronicle sources of Georgians and, perhaps, Armenians, is the beginning of all known copies of the collection of ancient Georgian chronicles “Kartlis tskhovreba” (“Life of Georgia”), brought together in a single book between the 12th and 14th centuries. Leonti Mroveli draws the origin of the indigenous Caucasian peoples as follows: “First of all, we mention that the Armenians and Kartlians, Rans and Movakans, Ers and Leks, Mingrelians and Caucasians - all these peoples had a single father named Targamos. This Targamos was the son of Tarshish, the grandson of Japheth, the son of Noah. That Targamos was a hero. After the separation of the languages, when the tower of Babylon was being erected, the languages ​​differed and scattered from there throughout the whole world. Targamos came with all his tribe and established himself between two mountains inaccessible to man - Ararat and Masis. And his tribe was great and countless, he acquired many children, children and grandchildren of his sons and daughters, for he lived for six hundred years. And the lands of Ararat and Masis did not contain them.
The countries of the one that they inherited, these are the borders: from the east - the Gurgen Sea, from the west - the Pontic Sea, from the south - the Oretsky Sea and from the north - Mount Caucasus.

Among his sons, eight brothers distinguished themselves, powerful and glorious heroes, whose names were as follows: the first - Gaos, the second - Kartlos, the third - Bardos, the fourth - Movakan, the fifth - Lek, the sixth - Eros, the seventh - Kavkas, the eighth - Egros ... ” The circle of Caucasian peoples, perceived by the ancient historian as “descendants of Targamos”, is limited. If everything is clear with Armenians, Kartlians (Georgians), Mingrelians and Rans (Albanians), then other names require decoding, which we receive from G.V. Tsulai in the relevant notes. So, the Movakans turn out to be a tribe of Caucasian Albania, akin to the modern Lezghins, the eras are an ancient powerful people who lived in the adjacent territories of modern eastern Georgia and western Azerbaijan (historical Kakhetia), the Leks are “the Georgian name for the peoples of Dagestan as a whole“ and, finally, the Caucasians are the ancestors not only modern Chechens, Ingush and Batsbi, but also other Nakh tribes and ethnic groups that have not survived to our time.

The boundaries of the “country of Targamos” are clearly delineated, in which scientists see memories of the kingdom of Urartu during the period of its power. We would like to draw the attention of readers to the fact that by naming the eponym (the name of the legendary ancestor) of this or that people, Mroveli nowhere else confuses this relationship, that is, the Dagestanis for him always remain “descendants of Lekos”, Vainakhs - “descendants of the Caucasus”, Georgians - “descendants of Kartlos”, etc. At the same time, new eponyms can also be named (for example, among the Dagestani Khozonykh), but it is always emphasized that a new legendary character introduced into the pages of the narrative is a son, grandson or more distant, but always direct, a descendant of one of the eight brothers - the sons of Targamos.

In the future, Mroveli tells of the victorious struggle of the Targamosians (in which, as already noted, one can see the Urartian Khalds) with Assyria. Having repelled the onslaught of the Assyrians and defeated their forces, eight brothers - the sons of Targamos, receive their destinies in the Caucasus for residence. The six brothers and the peoples corresponding to them (Armenians, Georgians, Mingrelians, Movakans, Albanians, eras) remain in Transcaucasia. About the settlement of the North Caucasus, Mroveli writes as follows:
“The lands north of the Caucasus were not only not the lot of Targamos, but there were no inhabitants north of the Caucasus either. Those spaces from the Caucasus to the Great River that flows into the Daruband Sea (Caspian Sea; “Great River” - Volga - author) were deserted. That is why he chose Targamos from a multitude of two heroes - Lekan (Lekos) and Kavkas. He gave Lekan lands from the Daruband sea to the Lomek (Terek) river, to the north - to the Great Khazareti River. Kavkasu - from the Lomek River to the borders of the Caucasus in the West.

So, the Dagestanis settled from the Caspian Sea to the Terek, and the Vainakhs - from the Terek "to the borders of the Caucasus in the West." It is interesting that near Mroveli we also find the most ancient name of the Terek (Lomeki), which is composed of the Vainakh phrase “mountain river” (lome-khi). As for the geographical term “Caucasus”, it should be taken into account that the ancient Georgian authors, including Mroveli, always meant the Central Caucasus and specifically Mount Elbrus under this term. this mountain.

Further, after describing the settlement by the Dagestanis and Vainakhs of the North Caucasus, Mroveli returns to the events that took place in the Transcaucasus, in the “lot of Kartlos”. He talks about his descendants, about attempts to introduce royal power in Georgia, about internecine strife, and so on. The narrative is brought to the ancient era and, despite the chronological uncertainty, two characteristic moments are clearly emphasized - the rise and flourishing of the capital Mtskheta among the ancient Georgian cities and the paganism of the Georgians, who during the period under review worshiped “the sun and the moon and the five stars, and their first and main shrine was the tomb of Kartlos.

Here is a quote from the source:
“At that time, the Khazars intensified and started a war with the tribes of Leks and Caucasians. The Targamosians at that time were in mutual peace and love. The sons of Kavkas were ruled by Durdzuk, the son of Tiret. Six Targamosians decided to seek help in the fight against the Khazars. And all of the Targamosians gathered, overcame the mountains of the Caucasus, conquered the borders of Khazareti and, having erected cities on its approaches, returned.”

Let's stop quoting for a moment. Some clarification is needed here. In the ancient Armenian version of “Kartlis tskhovreba”, the passage cited above is transmitted by us in the following words: “At that time, the Khazrats tribe strengthened, they began to fight against the Lekats and Kavkas clans, who fell into sorrow because of this; they asked for help from the six houses of Torgom, who at that time were in joy and peace, so that they would come to them for salvation, who went in full readiness to help and crossed the mountains of the Caucasus and filled the lands of Khazrats with the hands of the son of Tiret - Dutsuk, who called them for help".

The ancient Armenian version significantly complements the Georgian one. Firstly, it becomes clear that the main burden of the war with the Khazars fell on the shoulders of the Vainakhs (Durdzuks, as Georgians called them almost until the 19th century), and it was they who turned to the Transcaucasians with a request for help. Help was provided, but the conquest of the Khazar lands was carried out by the Vainakh forces (“they captured the lands of Khazrats with the hands of the son of Tiret - Dutsuk ...”). Let us return, however, to the interrupted quote: “Following this (that is, after the military defeat - auth.), the Khazars elected a king for themselves. All the Khazars began to obey the elected king, and the Khazars led by him passed the Sea Gate, which is now called Darubandi (that is, Derbent - author). The Targamosians were unable to resist the Khazars, for there were countless of them. They captivated the country of Targamosians, crushed all the cities of Ararat, Masis and the North...”

Further, it is told about the frequent raids of the Khazars in Transcaucasia, about taking people into captivity, etc. It is noted that for the raids the Khazars used not only the Derbent passage, but also the Darial Gorge. Then Mroveli records the first appearance of Ossetians in the Caucasus: “On his very first campaign, the Khazar king crossed the mountains of the Caucasus and captured the peoples, as I wrote above. He had a son named Uobos, to whom he gave Somkhiti and Kartli captives (that is, Armenia and Georgia - author). Gave him part of the country of Kavkas, west of the Lomek River to the western reaches of the mountains. And Wobos settled. Its descendants are oats. This is Ovseti (Ossetia), which was part of the inheritance of the Caucasus. Durdzuk, who was the most famous among the sons of Kavkas, left and settled in a mountain gorge, to which he gave his name - Durdzuketi ... "

The Chechens once had three such symbolic items: "koman yai" ("national cauldron"), "koman teptar" ("national chronicle") and "koman muhar" ("national seal"). All of them were kept in Nashakh, in the ancestral tower of Mozar (Motsarkhoy), an ancient clan that was the custodian of these national Chechen relics.

On the bronze strips, which were vertically soldered to the outer side of the cauldron, the names of these 63 types were engraved.

The cauldron was destroyed on the orders of Imam Shamil by two Chechen naibs in 1845 or 1846. Naibs were representatives of Nashkho and Dishni types. Realizing what they had done, they began to blame each other for this sacrilege. An enmity ensued between them, and their descendants were reconciled only in the 30s of the XX century.

The original manuscript of Alan Azdin Vazar has recently been discovered. This Arabic manuscript was found by Jordanian historian Abdul-Ghani Hassan al-Shashani among 30,000 ancient manuscripts stored in the al-Azhar mosque in Cairo. Azdin, according to the manuscript, was born in the year of the invasion of the hordes of Tamerlane to the Caucasus - in 1395. He calls himself a representative of the “Alan tribe of Nokhchis”. Azdin's father, Vazar, was a high-ranking officer, one of the military leaders-mercenaries of the Mongol-Tatar army and lived in the capital of the Tatars - the city of Saray. Being a Muslim, Vazar sent his son to study in Muslim countries. Then he returned to his homeland in order to preach Islam among his compatriots. According to him, one part of the Alan-Vainakhs professed Christianity, the other - paganism (“magos tsIera din” - that is, the sun - and fire worship). The mission of Islamization of the Vainakhs at that time did not have tangible success.

In his book, Azdin Vazar describes the borders and lands of the settlement of the Alan-Vainakhs: north of the Kura and Tushetia rivers, from the Alazan river and Azerbaijan to the northern limits of the Darial and the Terek current. And from the Caspian (along the plain) to the Don River. The name of this plain, Sotai, has also been preserved. The manuscript also mentions some settlements of Alanya: Mazhar, Dadi-ke (Dadi-kov), Balanzhar Fortress, Balkh, Malka, Nashakh, Makzha, Argun, Kilbakh, Terki. The area in the lower reaches of the Terek, at its confluence with the Caspian Sea, is also described - the Keshan plain and the island of Chechen. Everywhere Alans and Vainakhs are completely identical for Azdin. Among the Vainakh clans listed by the missionary historian, the majority have survived to this day. However, he also mentions those clans that today are not in the Vainakh taip nomenclature, for example: Adoi, Vanoi, Subera, Martnakh, Nartnakh, etc.
took here

The Caucasus is a historical, ethno-graphic region, very complex in its ethnic composition. The peculiarity of the geographical position of the Caucasus as a link between Europe and Asia, its proximity to the ancient civilizations of Asia Minor played a significant role in the development of culture and in the formation of some of the peoples inhabiting it.

General information. In a relatively small space of the Caucasus, many peoples are settled, different in number and speaking different languages. There are few areas on the globe with such a motley population. Along with large peoples, numbering millions of people, such as Azerbaijanis, Georgians and Armenians, in the Caucasus, especially in Dagestan, live peoples whose number does not exceed a few thousand.

According to anthropological data, the entire population of the Caucasus, with the exception of the Nogais, who have Mongoloid features, belongs to a large Caucasoid race. Most inhabitants of the Caucasus are dark-pigmented. Light coloration of hair and eyes is found in some groups of the population of Western Georgia, in the mountains of the Greater Caucasus, and also partially among the Abkhazians and Adyghe peoples.

The modern anthropological composition of the population of the Caucasus was formed in remote times - from the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age - and testifies to the ancient ties of the Caucasus both with the regions of Western Asia and with the southern regions of Eastern Europe and the Balkan Peninsula.

The most widely spoken languages ​​in the Caucasus are the Caucasian or Ibero-Caucasian languages. These languages ​​were formed in ancient times and were more widespread in the past. In science, the question has not yet been resolved whether the Caucasian languages ​​represent a single family of languages ​​or whether they are not connected by a unity of origin. Caucasian languages ​​are combined into three groups: southern, or Kartvelian, northwestern, or Abkhaz-Adyghe, and northeastern, or Nakh-Dagestan.

Kartvelian languages ​​are spoken by Georgians, both eastern and western. Georgians (3571 thousand) live in the Georgian SSR. Separate groups of them are settled in Azerbaijan, as well as abroad - in Turkey and Iran.

The Abkhaz-Adyghe languages ​​are spoken by Abkhazians, Abazins, Adyghes, Circassians and Kabardians. Abkhazians (91 thousand) live in a compact mass in the Abkhaz ASSR; Abaza (29 thousand) - in the Karachay-Cherkess Autonomous Region; Adyghes (109 thousand) inhabit the Adygei Autonomous Region and some areas of the Krasnodar Territory, in particular Tuapse and Lazarevsky, Circassians (46 thousand) live in the Karachay-Cherkess Autonomous Region of the Stavropol Territory and other places in the North Caucasus. Kabardians, Circassians and Adyghes speak the same language - the Adyghe language.

The Nakh languages ​​include the languages ​​of the Chechens (756 thousand) and Ingush (186 thousand) - the main population of the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, as well as the Kistins and Tsova-Tushins or Batsbi - a small people living in the mountains in northern Georgia on the border with the Chechen- Ingush ASSR.

Dagestan languages ​​are spoken by numerous peoples of Dagestan, who inhabit its mountainous regions. The largest of them are the Avars (483 thousand), living in the western part of Dagestan; Dargins (287 thousand), inhabiting its central part; next to the Dargins live Laks, or Laks (100 thousand); the southern regions are occupied by the Lezgins (383 thousand), to the east of which live the Taba-Sarans (75 thousand). The so-called Ando-Dido or Ando-Tsez peoples adjoin the Avars in language and geographically: Andians, Botlikhs, Didoys, Khvarshins, etc.; to the Dargins - Kubachins and Kaitaks, to the Lezgins - Aguls, Rutuls, Tsakhurs, some of whom live in the regions of Azerbaijan bordering Dagestan.

A significant percentage of the population of the Caucasus is made up of peoples who speak the Turkic languages ​​of the Altaic language family. The most numerous of them are Azerbaijanis (5477 thousand) living in the Azerbaijan SSR, the Nakhichevan ASSR, as well as in Georgia and Dagestan. Outside the USSR, Azerbaijanis inhabit Iranian Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani language belongs to the Oguz branch of the Turkic languages ​​and shows the greatest similarity with the Turkmen.

To the north of the Azerbaijanis, on the flat part of Dagestan, live the Kumyks (228 thousand), who speak the Turkic language of the Kipchak group. The same group of Turkic languages ​​includes the language of two small closely related peoples of the North Caucasus - Balkars (66 thousand), inhabiting the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, and Karachays (131 thousand), living within the Karachay-Cherkess Autonomous Region. The Nogais (60 thousand), who settled in the steppes of Northern Dagestan, in the Stavropol Territory and other places in the North Caucasus, are also Turkic-speaking. A small group of Trukhmen, or Turkmen, people from Central Asia live in the North Caucasus.

In the Caucasus, there are also peoples who speak the Iranian languages ​​of the Indo-European language family. The largest of them are the Ossetians (542 thousand), inhabiting the North Ossetian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic and the South Ossetian Autonomous Region of the Georgian SSR. In Azerbaijan, Iranian languages ​​are spoken by the Taly-shi in the southern regions of the republic and the Tats, settled mainly on the Absheron Peninsula and other places in Northern Azerbaijan, some of the Tats who profess Judaism are sometimes called Mountain Jews. They live in Dagestan, as well as in the cities of Azerbaijan and the North Caucasus. The language of the Kurds (116 thousand), who live in small groups in different regions of the Transcaucasus, also belongs to Iranian.

The language of Armenians stands apart in the Indo-European family (4151 thousand). More than half of the Armenians of the USSR live in the Armenian SSR. The rest of them live in Georgia, Azerbaijan and other regions of the country. More than a million Armenians are scattered throughout various countries of Asia (mainly Western Asia), Africa and Europe.

In addition to the peoples listed above, the Caucasus is inhabited by Greeks who speak Modern Greek and partly Turkish (Uru-mas), Aisors, whose language belongs to the Semitic-Hamitic language family, Gypsies who use one of the Indian languages, Jews of Georgia who speak Georgian, and etc.

After the annexation of the Caucasus to Russia, Russians and other peoples from European Russia began to settle there. Currently, there is a significant percentage of the Russian and Ukrainian population in the Caucasus.

Before the October Revolution, most of the languages ​​of the Caucasus were unwritten. Only the Armenians and Georgians had their own ancient script. In the 4th c. n. e. Armenian educator Mesrop Mashtots created the Armenian alphabet. Writing was created in the ancient Armenian language (grabar). Grabar existed as a literary language until the beginning of the 19th century. A rich scientific, artistic and other literature has been created in this language. At present, the literary language is the modern Armenian language (ashkha-rabar). At the beginning of N. e. there was also writing in the Georgian language. It was based on the Aramaic script. On the territory of Azerbaijan, during the period of Caucasian Albania, there was writing in one of the local languages. From the 7th c. Arabic writing began to spread. Under Soviet rule, writing in the Azerbaijani language was translated into Latin, and then into Russian graphics.

After the October Revolution, many non-written languages ​​of the peoples of the Caucasus were written on the basis of Russian graphics. Some small peoples who did not have their own written language, such as, for example, the Aguls, Rutuls, Tsakhurs (in Dagestan) and others, use the Russian literary language.

Ethnogenesis and ethnic history. The Caucasus has been mastered by man since ancient times. Remains of early Paleolithic stone tools - Shellic, Achellian and Mousterian - were found there. For the era of the late Paleolithic, Neolithic and Eneolithic in the Caucasus, one can trace the significant proximity of archaeological cultures, which makes it possible to talk about the historical relationship of the tribes inhabiting it. In the Bronze Age, there were separate cultural centers both in Transcaucasia and in the North Caucasus. But despite the originality of each culture, they still have common features.

Starting from the 2nd millennium BC. e. the peoples of the Caucasus are mentioned on the pages of written sources - in Assyrian, Urartian, ancient Greek and other written monuments.

The largest Caucasian-speaking people - Georgians (Kartvels) - formed on the territory they currently occupy from ancient local tribes. They also included part of the Khalds (Urartians). Kartvels were divided into western and eastern. The Kartvelian peoples include the Svans, Mingrelians, and the Laz, or Chans. Most of the latter live outside of Georgia, in Turkey. In the past, Western Georgians were more numerous and inhabited almost all of Western Georgia.

Georgians began to form their statehood early. At the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e. in the southwestern regions of the settlement of Georgian tribes, tribal unions of Diaohi and Kolkh were formed. In the first half of the 1st millennium BC. e. known association of Georgian tribes under the name Saspers, which covered a large area from Colchis to Media. Saspers played a significant role in the defeat of the Urartian kingdom. During this period, part of the ancient Khalds was assimilated by the Georgian tribes.

In the 6th c. BC e. in Western Georgia, the Colchis kingdom arose, in which agriculture, crafts, and trade were highly developed. Simultaneously with the Kingdom of Colchis, there was an Iberian (Kartli) state in Eastern Georgia.

Throughout the Middle Ages, due to feudal fragmentation, the Kartvelian people did not represent a monolithic ethnic array. Separate extraterritorial groups remained in it for a long time. Particularly distinguished were the highlander Georgians living in the north of Georgia in the spurs of the Main Caucasian Range; Svans, Khevsurs, Pshavs, Tushins; The Adjarians, who had been part of Turkey for a long time, converted to Islam and somewhat differed in culture from other Georgians, separated themselves.

In the process of development of capitalism in Georgia, the Georgian nation was formed. Under the conditions of Soviet power, when the Georgians received their statehood and all the conditions for economic, social and national development, the Georgian socialist nation was formed.

The ethnogenesis of the Abkhazians proceeded from ancient times on the territory of modern Abkhazia and adjacent regions. At the end of the 1st millennium BC. e. two tribal unions developed here: Abazgians and Apsils. From the name of the latter comes the self-name of the Abkhaz - ap-sua. In the 1st millennium BC. e. the ancestors of the Abkhaz experienced the cultural influence of the Hellenic world through the Greek colonies that arose on the Black Sea coast.

In the feudal period, the Abkhazian people took shape. After the October Revolution, the Abkhaz received their statehood and the process of formation of the Abkhaz socialist nation began.

The Adyghe peoples (the self-name of all three peoples is Adyghe) in the past lived in a compact mass in the lower reaches of the river. Kuban, its tributaries the Belaya and Laba, on the Taman Peninsula and along the Black Sea coast. Archaeological research carried out in this area shows that the ancestors of the Adyghe peoples inhabited this area from ancient times. Adyghe tribes, starting from the 1st millennium BC. e. perceived the cultural impact of the ancient world through the Bosporan kingdom. In the 13th - 14th centuries. part of the Circassians, who had significant development of cattle breeding, especially horse breeding, moved east, to the Terek, in search of free pastures, and later became known as Kabardians. These lands were formerly occupied by the Alans, who during the period of the Mongol-Tatar invasion were partly exterminated, partly driven south, into the mountains. Some groups of Alans were assimilated by the Kabardians. Kabardians who migrated at the beginning of the 19th century. in the upper reaches of the Kuban, received the name of the Circassians. The Adyghe tribes that remained in the old places made up the Adyghe people.

The ethnic history of the Adyghe peoples, like other highlanders of the North Caucasus and Dagestan, had its own characteristics. Feudal relations in the North Caucasus developed at a slower pace than in Transcaucasia, and were intertwined with patriarchal-communal relations. By the time the North Caucasus was annexed to Russia (mid-19th century), the mountain peoples were at different levels of feudal development. The Kabardians, who had a great influence on the social development of other highlanders of the North Caucasus, advanced further than others along the path of forming feudal relations.

The uneven socio-economic development was also reflected in the level of ethnic consolidation of these peoples. Most of them retained traces of tribal division, on the basis of which ethnoterritorial communities were formed, developing along the line of integration into the nationality. Earlier than others, this process was completed by the Kabardians.

Chechens (Nakhcho) and Ingush (Galga) are closely related peoples, formed from tribes related in origin, language and culture, which were the ancient population of the northeastern spurs of the Main Caucasian Range.

The peoples of Dagestan are also descendants of the most ancient Caucasian-speaking population of this region. Dagestan is the most ethnically diverse region of the Caucasus, in which, until recently, there were about thirty small peoples. The main reason for such a diversity of peoples and languages ​​in a relatively small area was geographical isolation: rugged mountain ranges contributed to the isolation of individual ethnic groups and the preservation of original features in their language and culture.

During the Middle Ages, early feudal state formations arose among a number of the largest peoples of Dagestan, but they did not lead to the consolidation of extraterritorial groupings into a single nationality. For example, one of the largest peoples of Dagestan, the Avars, had the Avar Khanate with its center in the village of Khunzakh. At the same time, there were the so-called "free", but dependent on the khan, Avar societies, which occupied separate gorges in the mountains, ethnically representing separate groups - "compatriots". The Avars did not have a single ethnic identity, but the compatriotic one was clearly manifested.

With the penetration of capitalist relations into Dagestan and the growth of otkhodnichestvo, the former isolation of individual peoples and their groups began to disappear. Under Soviet rule, ethnic processes in Dagestan took a completely different direction. Here there is a consolidation in the nationality of larger peoples with the simultaneous consolidation of small kindred ethnic groups in their composition - for example, the Ando-Dido peoples, related to them in origin and language, are united together with the Avars.

The Turkic-speaking Kumyks (Kumuk) live on the flat part of Dagestan. Their ethnogenesis involved both local Caucasian-speaking components and newcomer Turks: Bulgars, Khazars, and especially Kipchaks.

Balkarians (Taulu) and Karachays (Karachails) speak the same language, but are geographically separated - Balkars live in the Terek basin, and Karachais live in the Kuban basin, and between them is the Elbrus mountain system, which is difficult to access. Both of these peoples were formed from a mixture of the local Caucasian-speaking population, Iranian-speaking Alans and nomadic Turkic tribes, mainly Bulgars and Kipchaks. The language of the Balkars and Karachays belongs to the Kipchak branch of the Turkic languages.

The Turkic-speaking Nogais (no-gai) living in the far north of Dagestan and beyond its borders are descendants of the population of the Golden Horde ulus, headed at the end of the 13th century. Temnik Nogai, from whose name their name comes. Ethnically, it was a mixed population, which included the Mongols and various groups of Turks, especially the Kipchaks, who passed on their language to the Nogais. After the collapse of the Golden Horde, part of the Nogai, who made up the large Nogai horde, in the middle of the 16th century. accepted Russian citizenship. Later, other Nogais, who roamed the steppes between the Caspian and Black Seas, became part of Russia.

The ethnogenesis of the Ossetians proceeded in the mountainous regions of the North Caucasus. Their language belongs to the Iranian languages, but it occupies a special place among them, revealing a close connection with the Caucasian languages ​​both in vocabulary and in phonetics. In anthropological and cultural terms, the Ossetians form a single whole with the peoples of the Caucasus. According to most researchers, the basis of the Ossetian people was made up of aboriginal Caucasian tribes, mixed with the Iranian-speaking Alans pushed back into the mountains.

The further ethnic history of the Ossetians has much in common with other peoples of the North Caucasus. Existing among the Ossetians until the middle of the 19th century. socio-economic relations with elements of feudalism did not lead to the formation of the Ossetian people. Separated groups of Ossetians were separate compatriot associations, named after the gorges they occupied in the Main Caucasian Range. In the pre-revolutionary period, part of the Ossetians descended to the plane in the Mozdok region, forming a group of Mozdok Ossetians.

After the October Revolution, the Ossetians received national autonomy. The North Ossetian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed on the territory of the settlement of North Caucasian Ossetians. A relatively small group of Transcaucasian Ossetians received regional autonomy within the Georgian SSR.

Under Soviet rule, the majority of North Ossetians were resettled from the mountain gorges, which were inconvenient for life, to the plain, which violated the compatriot isolation and led to a mixture of individual groups, which, in the conditions of the socialist development of the economy, social relations and culture, put the Ossetians on the path of forming a socialist nation.

In difficult historical conditions, the process of ethnogenesis of Azerbaijanis proceeded. On the territory of Azerbaijan, as well as in other regions of the Transcaucasus, various tribal associations and state formations began to emerge early. In the 6th c. BC e. the southern regions of Azerbaijan were part of the powerful Median state. In the 4th c. BC e. in South Azerbaijan, an independent state of Lesser Media or Atropatena arose (the word "Azerbaijan" itself comes from the distorted "Atropatena" by the Arabs). In this state, there was a process of rapprochement of various peoples (Mannaeans, Cadusians, Caspians, parts of the Medes, etc.), who spoke mainly Iranian languages. The most common among them was a language close to Talysh.

During this period (4th century BC), an Albanian union of tribes arose in the north of Azerbaijan, and then at the beginning of AD. e. the state of Albania was created, the borders of which in the south reached the river. Araks, in the north it included South Dagestan. In this state, there were more than twenty peoples who spoke Caucasian languages, the main role among which belonged to the language of Uti or Udin.

In 3-4 centuries. Atropatena and Albania were incorporated into Sasanian Iran. The Sassanids, in order to strengthen their dominance in the conquered territory, resettled there the population from Iran, in particular the Tats, who had settled in the northern regions of Azerbaijan.

By the 4th - 5th centuries. refers to the beginning of the penetration of various groups of Turks into Azerbaijan (Huns, Bulgarians, Khazars, etc.).

In the 11th century Azerbaijan was invaded by the Seljuk Turks. Subsequently, the influx of the Turkic population into Azerbaijan continued, especially during the period of the Mongol-Tatar conquest. In Azerbaijan, the Turkic language was spreading more and more, which became dominant by the 15th century. Since that time, the modern Azerbaijani language began to form, belonging to the Oguz branch of the Turkic languages.

In feudal Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani nationality began to take shape. As capitalist relations developed, it took the path of becoming a bourgeois nation.

During the Soviet period in Azerbaijan, along with the consolidation of the Azerbaijani socialist nation, there was a gradual merger with the Azerbaijanis of small ethnic groups speaking both Iranian and Caucasian languages.

One of the major peoples of the Caucasus are the Armenians. They have an ancient culture and an eventful history. The self-name of Armenians is hai. The area where the process of formation of the Armenian people took place lies outside Soviet Armenia. There are two main stages in the ethnogenesis of the Armenians. The beginning of the first stage dates back to the 2nd millennium BC. e. The main role at this stage was played by the Hay and Armin tribes. Hayi, who probably spoke languages ​​close to Caucasian, in the 2nd millennium BC. e. created a tribal union in the east of Asia Minor. During this period, the Indo-Europeans, the Armins, who penetrated here from the Balkan Peninsula, mixed with the Khays. The second stage of the ethnogenesis of the Armenians took place on the territory of the state of Urartu in the 1st millennium BC. e., when the Khalds, or Urartians, took part in the formation of the Armenians. During this period, the political association of the ancestors of the Armenians Arme-Shupriya arose. After the defeat of the Urartian state in the 4th c. BC e. Armenians entered the historical arena. It is believed that the Iranian-speaking Cimmerians and Scythians, who penetrated during the 1st millennium BC, also became part of the Armenians. e. from the steppes of the North Caucasus to Transcaucasia and Asia Minor.

Due to the prevailing historical situation, due to the conquests of the Arabs, Seljuks, then the Mongols, Iran, Turkey, many Armenians left their homeland and moved to other countries. Before the First World War, a significant part of the Armenians lived in Turkey (more than 2 million). After the Armenian massacre of 1915, inspired by the Turkish government, when many Armenians were killed, the survivors moved to Russia, the countries of Western Asia, Western Europe and America. Now in Turkey the percentage of the rural Armenian population is negligible.

The formation of Soviet Armenia was a great event in the life of the long-suffering Armenian people. It has become a true free homeland of Armenians.

Economy. The Caucasus, as a special historical and ethnographic region, is distinguished by great originality in the occupations, life, material and spiritual culture of the peoples inhabiting it.

In the Caucasus, agriculture and cattle breeding have been developed since ancient times. The beginning of agriculture in the Caucasus dates back to the 3rd millennium BC. e. Previously, it spread to the Transcaucasus, and then to the North Caucasus. The most ancient grain crops were millet, wheat, barley, gomi, rye, rice, from the 18th century. began to grow corn. Different cultures prevailed in different areas. For example, the Abkhaz-Adyghe peoples preferred millet; thick millet porridge with spicy gravy was their favorite dish. Wheat was sown in many regions of the Caucasus, but especially in the North Caucasus and Eastern Georgia. In Western Georgia, corn dominated. Rice was bred in the humid regions of South Azerbaijan.

Viticulture has been known in Transcaucasia since the 2nd millennium BC. e. The peoples of the Caucasus have bred many different varieties of grapes. Along with viticulture, horticulture also developed early, especially in Transcaucasia.

Since ancient times, the land has been cultivated with a variety of wooden arable tools with iron tips. They were light and heavy. The lungs were used for shallow plowing, on soft soils, mainly in the mountains, where the fields were small. Sometimes the highlanders arranged artificial arable land: they brought earth in baskets to the terraces along the slopes of the mountains. Heavy plows, which were harnessed by several pairs of oxen, were used for deep plowing, mainly in flat places.

Harvest was harvested everywhere with sickles. The grain was threshed with threshing boards with stone inserts on the underside. This method of threshing dates back to the Bronze Age.

Cattle breeding appeared in the Caucasus in the 3rd millennium BC. e. In the 2nd millennium BC. e. it became widespread in connection with the development of mountain pastures. During this period, a peculiar type of transhumance cattle breeding developed in the Caucasus, which exists to this day. In summer, cattle grazed in the mountains, in winter they were driven to the plains. Transhumance cattle breeding developed into nomadic only in some areas of Eastern Transcaucasia. There, cattle were kept on grazing all year round, driving them from place to place along certain routes.

Beekeeping and sericulture also have an ancient history in the Caucasus.

Caucasian handicraft production and trade were developed early. Some crafts are more than one hundred years old. The most common were carpet weaving, jewelry making, weapons manufacturing, pottery and metal utensils, cloaks, weaving, embroidery, etc. The products of Caucasian craftsmen were known far beyond the Caucasus.

After joining Russia, the Caucasus was included in the all-Russian market, which made significant changes in the development of its economy. Agriculture and cattle breeding in the post-reform period began to develop along the capitalist path. The expansion of trade caused the decline of handicraft production, since the products of artisans could not withstand the competition of cheaper factory goods.

After the establishment of Soviet power in the Caucasus, a rapid rise in its economy began. Petroleum, oil refining, mining, machine-building, building materials, machine tool building, chemical, various branches of light industry, etc. began to develop; power stations, roads, etc. were built.

The creation of collective farms made it possible to significantly change the nature and direction of agriculture. The favorable natural conditions of the Caucasus make it possible to grow heat-loving crops that do not grow in other parts of the USSR. In subtropical areas, the focus is on tea and citrus crops. The area under vineyards and orchards is growing. Farming is carried out on the basis of the latest technology. Much attention is paid to the irrigation of drylands.

Cattle breeding also stepped forward. Collective farms are assigned permanent winter and summer pastures. A lot of work is being done to improve the breeds of livestock.

material culture. When characterizing the culture of the peoples of the Caucasus, one should distinguish between the North Caucasus, including Dagestan and Transcaucasia. Within these large areas, there are also features in the culture of large peoples or groups of small peoples. In the North Caucasus, a great cultural unity can be traced between all the Adyghe peoples, Ossetians, Balkars and Karachays. The population of Dagestan is associated with them, but still, the Dagestanis have a lot of originality in culture, which makes it possible to distinguish Dagestan as a special region, to which Chechnya and Ingushetia adjoin. In Transcaucasia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Eastern and Western Georgia are special regions.

In the pre-revolutionary period, the bulk of the population of the Caucasus were rural residents. There were few large cities in the Caucasus, of which Tbilisi (Tiflis) and Baku were of the greatest importance.

The types of settlements and dwellings that existed in the Caucasus were closely related to natural conditions. This relationship continues to some extent even today.

Most of the villages in the mountainous areas were characterized by a significant crowding of buildings: the buildings were closely adjacent to one another. On the plane, the villages were located more freely, each house had a yard, and often a small plot of land.

All the peoples of the Caucasus for a long time preserved the custom, according to which relatives settled together, forming a separate quarter. With the weakening of family ties, the local unity of kindred groups began to disappear.

In the mountainous regions of the North Caucasus, Dagestan and North Georgia, a typical dwelling was a quadrangular stone building, one- and two-story with a flat roof.

The houses of the inhabitants of the flat regions of the North Caucasus and Dagestan differed significantly from the mountain dwellings. The walls of the buildings were built of adobe or wattle. Turluch (wattle) structures with a gable or four-slope roof were typical for the Adyghe peoples and for the inhabitants of some regions of the flat Dagestan.

The dwellings of the peoples of Transcaucasia had their own characteristics. In some regions of Armenia, South-Eastern Georgia and Western Azerbaijan, there were original buildings, which were structures made of stone, sometimes somewhat recessed into the ground; the roof was a wooden stepped ceiling, which was covered with earth from the outside. This type of dwelling is one of the oldest in Transcaucasia and is closely related in its origin to the underground dwelling of the ancient settled population of Western Asia.

In other places in Eastern Georgia, dwellings were built of stone with a flat or gable roof, one or two stories high. In humid subtropical places in Western Georgia and in Abkhazia, houses were built of wood, on poles, with gable or four-slope roofs. The floor of such a house was raised high above the ground to protect the dwelling from dampness.

In East Azerbaijan, adobe, covered with clay, one-story dwellings with a flat roof, facing the street with blank walls, were typical.

During the years of Soviet power, the dwellings of the peoples of the Caucasus underwent significant changes and repeatedly acquired new forms, until the types that are widespread at the present time were developed. Now there is no such variety of dwellings as existed before the revolution. In all the mountainous regions of the Caucasus, stone remains the main building material. These places are dominated by two-story houses with flat, gable or hipped roofs. On the plain, adobe brick is used as a building material. Common in the development of the dwellings of all the peoples of the Caucasus is the tendency to increase its size and more careful decoration.

The appearance of collective farm villages has changed compared to the past. In the mountains, many villages were moved from inconvenient places to more convenient ones. Azerbaijanis and other peoples began to build houses with windows facing the street, high blank fences that separate the yard from the street disappear. The landscaping of villages and water supply improved. Many villages have water pipes, planting of fruit and ornamental plants is increasing. Most large settlements do not differ from urban settlements in terms of their amenities.

In the clothes of the peoples of the Caucasus in the pre-revolutionary period, a great variety was traced. It reflected ethnic characteristics, economic and cultural ties between peoples.

All the Adyghe peoples, Ossetians, Karachays, Balkars and Abkhazians had a lot in common in clothes. The men's costume of these peoples spread throughout the Caucasus. The main elements of this costume are: a beshmet (caftan), tight pants tucked into soft boots, a hat and a cloak, as well as a narrow belt-belt with silver decorations, on which they wore a saber, dagger, armchair. The upper classes wore a cherkeska (upper oar fitted clothes) with gazyrs for storing cartridges.

Women's clothing consisted of a shirt, long pants, a swinging dress at the waist, high headdresses and bedspreads. The dress was tied tightly at the waist with a belt. Among the Adyghe peoples and Abkhazians, a thin waist and flat chest were considered a sign of a girl's beauty, so before marriage, girls wore tight tight corsets that tightened their waist and chest. The costume clearly showed the social status of its owner. The costumes of the feudal nobility, especially women's, were distinguished by wealth and luxury.

The men's costume of the peoples of Dagestan in many ways resembled the clothes of the Circassians. Women's attire varied slightly among different peoples of Dagestan, but in general terms it was the same. It was a wide tunic-shaped shirt, belted with a belt, long trousers that were visible from under the shirt and a bag-like headdress in which hair was removed. Dagestan women wore a variety of heavy silver jewelry (belt, chest, temple) mainly of Kubachi production.

Shoes for both men and women were thick woolen socks and pads made from a whole piece of leather that covered the foot. Soft boots for men were festive. Such shoes were typical for the population of all mountainous regions of the Caucasus.

The clothes of the peoples of Transcaucasia differed to a large extent from the clothes of the inhabitants of the North Caucasus and Dagestan. Many parallels were observed in it with the clothes of the peoples of Western Asia, especially with the clothes of Armenians and Azerbaijanis.

The men's costume of the entire Transcaucasus as a whole was characterized by shirts, wide or narrow trousers tucked into boots or socks, and short swinging outerwear, belted with a belt. Before the revolution, the Adyghe male costume, especially the Circassian, was widespread among Georgians and Azerbaijanis. The clothes of Georgian women in their type resembled the clothes of women of the North Caucasus. It was a long shirt, which was worn with a long oar fitted dress, tied with a belt. On their heads, women wore a hoop covered with cloth, to which a thin long coverlet was attached - lechaks.

Armenian women dressed in bright shirts (yellow in western Armenia, red in eastern Armenia) and no less bright trousers. The shirt was worn with loose, lined clothing at the waist with shorter sleeves than the shirt. Armenian women wore small hard caps on their heads, which were tied with several scarves. It was customary to cover the lower part of the face with a handkerchief.

Azerbaijani women, in addition to shirts and trousers, also wore short jackets and wide skirts. Under the influence of the Muslim religion, Azerbaijani women, especially in cities, covered their faces with a veil when they went out into the street.

It was typical for women of all the peoples of the Caucasus to wear a variety of jewelry made by local craftsmen mainly from silver. Belts were especially richly decorated.

After the revolution, the traditional clothing of the peoples of the Caucasus, both male and female, began to quickly disappear. At present, the male Adyghe costume is preserved as the clothing of members of artistic ensembles, which has become widespread almost throughout the Caucasus. Traditional elements of women's clothing can still be seen on older women in many parts of the Caucasus.

social and family life. All the peoples of the Caucasus, especially the North Caucasian highlanders and Dagestanis, in public life and everyday life to a greater or lesser extent retained traces of the patriarchal way of life, family ties were strictly maintained, which were especially clearly manifested in patronymic relations. Neighbor communities existed everywhere in the Caucasus, which were especially strong among the Western Circassians, Ossetians, as well as in Dagestan and Georgia.

In many regions of the Caucasus in the 19th century. large patriarchal families continued to exist. The main type of family in this period was small families, the way of which was distinguished by the same patriarchy. The dominant form of marriage was monogamy. Polygamy was rare, mainly among the privileged sections of the Muslim population, especially in Azerbaijan. Among many peoples of the Caucasus, kalym was common. The patriarchal nature of family life had a heavy impact on the position of women, especially among Muslims.

Under Soviet power, family life and the position of women among the peoples of the Caucasus changed radically. Soviet laws made women equal in rights with men. She got the opportunity to actively participate in work, social and cultural life.

religious beliefs. By religion, the entire population of the Caucasus was divided into two groups: Christians and Muslims. Christianity began to penetrate the Caucasus in the first centuries of the new era. Initially, it was established among the Armenians, who in 301 had their own church, which received the name "Armenian-Gregorian" after its founder, Archbishop Gregory the Illuminator. At first, the Armenian Church adhered to the Eastern Orthodox Byzantine orientation, but from the beginning of the 6th century. became independent, joining the Monophysite doctrine, which recognized only one "divine nature" of Christ. From Armenia, Christianity began to penetrate into southern Dagestan, northern Azerbaijan and Albania (6th century). Zoroastrianism was widespread in South Azerbaijan during this period, in which fire-worshipping cults occupied a large place.

Christianity became the dominant religion in Georgia by the 4th century. (337). From Georgia and Byzantium, Christianity came to the Abkhazians and Adyghe tribes (6th - 7th centuries), Chechens (8th century), Ingush, Ossetians and other peoples.

The emergence of Islam in the Caucasus is associated with the aggressive campaigns of the Arabs (7th - 8th centuries). But Islam did not take deep roots under the Arabs. It really began to assert itself only after the Mongol-Tatar invasion. This primarily applies to the peoples of Azerbaijan and Dagestan. Islam began to spread in Abkhazia from the 15th century. after the Turkish conquest.

Among the peoples of the North Caucasus (Circassians, Circassians, Kabardians, Karachays and Balkars) Islam was spread by Turkish sultans and Crimean khans in the 15th - 17th centuries.

He penetrated to the Ossetians in the 17th - 18th centuries. from Kabarda and was adopted mainly only by the upper classes. In the 16th century Islam began to spread from Dagestan to Chechnya. The Ingush adopted this faith from the Chechens in the 19th century. The influence of Islam in Dagestan and Checheno-Ingushetia was especially strengthened during the period of the highlanders' movement under the leadership of Shamil.

However, neither Christianity nor Islam supplanted the ancient local beliefs. Many of them have become an integral part of the Christian and Muslim rituals.

During the years of Soviet power, a large amount of anti-religious agitation and mass work was carried out among the peoples of the Caucasus. The majority of the population has moved away from religion, and only a few, mostly elderly people, remain believers.

Folklore. The oral poetic creativity of the peoples of the Caucasus is rich and varied. It has centuries-old traditions and reflects the complex historical fate of the peoples of the Caucasus, their struggle for independence, the class struggle of the masses against the oppressors, and many aspects of folk life. The oral creativity of the Caucasian peoples is characterized by a variety of plots and genres. Many famous poets and writers, both local (Nizami Ganje-vi, Mohammed Fuzuli, etc.) and Russians (Pushkin, Lermontov, Leo Tolstoy, etc.), borrowed stories from Caucasian life and folklore for their works.

In the poetic work of the peoples of the Caucasus, epic tales occupy a significant place. Georgians know the epic about the hero Amirani, who fought the ancient gods and was chained to a rock for it, the romantic epic Esteriani, which tells about the tragic love of Prince Abesalom and the shepherdess Eteri. Among the Armenians, the medieval epic "Sasun bogatyrs" or "David of Sasun" is widespread, reflecting the heroic struggle of the Armenian people against the enslavers.

In the North Caucasus, among the Ossetians, Kabardians, Circassians, Adyghes, Karachays, Balkars, and also Abkhazians, there is a Nart epic, legends about heroic Narts.

Fairy tales, fables, legends, proverbs, sayings, riddles are diverse among the peoples of the Caucasus, in which all aspects of folk life are reflected. Musical folklore is especially rich in the Caucasus. Georgian songwriting reached great perfection; they have a wide variety of voices.

Wandering folk singers - gusans (Armenians), mestvirs (Georgians), ashugs (Azerbaijanis, Dagestanis) acted as spokesmen for people's aspirations, keepers of a rich treasury of musical art and performers of folk songs. Their repertoire was very diverse. They performed their songs to the accompaniment of musical instruments. Especially popular was the folk singer Sayang-Nova (18th century), who sang in Armenian, Georgian and Azerbaijani.

Oral poetic and musical folk art continues to develop today. It has been enriched with new content. The life of the Soviet country is widely reflected in songs, fairy tales and other types of folk art. Many songs are dedicated to the heroic labor of the Soviet people, the friendship of peoples, and heroic deeds in the Great Patriotic War. Ensembles of amateur performances enjoy wide popularity among all the peoples of the Caucasus.

Many cities of the Caucasus, especially Baku, Yerevan, Tbilisi, Makhachkala, have now turned into major cultural centers where diverse scientific work is carried out, not only of all-Union, but often of world significance.

The indigenous peoples of the Caucasus prefer to live on their lands. Abazins settle in Karachay-Cherkessia. More than 36 thousand of them live here. Abkhazians - right there, or in the Stavropol Territory. But most of all, Karachays (194,324) and Circassians (56,446 people) live here.

850,011 Avars, 40,407 Nogais, 27,849 Rutuls (south of Dagestan) and 118,848 Tabasarans live in Dagestan. Another 15,654 Nogais live in Karachay-Cherkessia. In addition to these peoples, Dargins live in Dagestan (490,384 people). Almost thirty thousand Aguls, 385,240 Lezgins and a little more than three thousand Tatars live here.

Ossetians (459,688 people) settle on their lands in North Ossetia. About ten thousand Ossetians live in Kabardino-Balkaria, a little more than three in Karachay-Cherkessia, and only 585 in Chechnya.

Most Chechens, quite predictably, live in Chechnya itself. There are more than a million of them here (1,206,551), moreover, almost a hundred thousand know only their native language, about a hundred thousand more Chechens live in Dagestan, and about twelve thousand live in Stavropol. About three thousand Nogais, about five thousand Avars, almost one and a half thousand Tatars, the same number of Turks and Tabasarans live in Chechnya. 12,221 Kumyks also live here. There are 24,382 Russians left in Chechnya. 305 Cossacks also live here.

The Balkars (108587) populate Kabardino-Balkaria and almost do not settle in other places of the northern Caucasus. In addition to them, half a million Kabardians live in the republic, about fourteen thousand Turks. Among the large national diasporas, one can single out Koreans, Ossetians, Tatars, Circassians and Gypsies. By the way, the latter are most numerous in the Stavropol Territory, there are more than thirty thousand of them. And about three thousand more live in Kabardino-Balkaria. There are few gypsies in other republics.

Ingush in the amount of 385,537 people live in their native Ingushetia. In addition to them, 18765 Chechens, 3215 Russians, 732 Turks live here. Among rare nationalities there are Yezidis, Karelians, Chinese, Estonians and Itelmens.

The Russian population is concentrated mainly on the arable land of Stavropol. There are 223,153 of them here, another 193,155 people live in Kabardino-Balkaria, about three thousand live in Ingushetia, a little over one hundred and fifty thousand live in Karachay-Cherkessia and 104,020 live in Dagestan. 147,090 Russians live in North Ossetia.

1. Features of ethnic history.

2. Economy and material culture.

3. Features of spiritual culture.

1. The Caucasus is a kind of historical and ethnographic region, characterized by a complex ethnic composition of the population. Along with large peoples, numbering millions of people, such as Azerbaijanis, Georgians and Armenians, in the Caucasus, especially in Dagestan, live peoples whose number does not exceed a few thousand.

According to anthropological data, the indigenous population of the Caucasus belongs to a large Caucasoid race, to its southern Mediterranean branch. Three small Caucasoid races are represented in the Caucasus: Caucasian-Balkan, Western Asian and Indo-Pamir. The Caucasian-Balkan race includes the Caucasian anthropological type, which is common among the population of the central foothills of the Main Caucasian Range (eastern Kabardians and Circassians, mountain Georgians, Balkars, Karachays, Ingush, Chechens, Ossetians), as well as Western and Central Dagestan. This anthropological type has developed as a result of the conservation of the anthropological features of the most ancient local Caucasoid population.

The Caucasian-Balkan race also includes the Pontic type, the carriers of which are the Abkhazian-Adyghe peoples and Western Georgians. This type was also formed in ancient times in the process of gracilization of the massive protomorphic Caucasian type under conditions of high mountain isolation.

The Asiatic race is represented by the Armenoid type, the origin of which is connected with the territory of Turkey and Iran and neighboring regions of Armenia. Armenians and eastern Georgians belong to this type. The Indo-Pamir race includes the Caspian anthropological type, which arose within Afghanistan and Northern India. Azerbaijanis belong to the Caspian type, and as an admixture to the Caucasian type, this type can be traced among the Kumyks and the peoples of Southern Dagestan (Lezgins and Dargins-Kaitags). Of all the peoples of the Caucasus, only the Nogais, along with the Caucasoid, also have Mongoloid features.

A significant part of the indigenous population of the Caucasus speaks the languages ​​of the Caucasian language family, numbering about 40 languages, which fall into three groups: Abkhazian-Adyghe, Kartvelian and Nakh-Dagestan.

The languages ​​of the Abkhaz-Adyghe group include Abkhaz, Abaza, Adyghe, Kabardino-Circassian and Ubykh. Abkhazians (Apsua) live in Abkhazia, partly in Adjara, as well as in Turkey and Syria. The Abazins (Abaza) living in Karachay-Cherkessia and other regions of the Stavropol Territory are close to the Abkhaz in terms of language and origin. Some of them live in Turkey. Adyghes, Kabardians and Circassians call themselves Adyghes. Adyghes inhabit Adygea and other regions of the Krasnodar Territory. In addition, they live in Turkey, Syria, Jordan and other countries in the Middle East and the Balkans. Kabardians and Circassians live in Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay-Cherkessia. They are found in the countries of the Middle East. In the past, the Ubykhs lived along the Black Sea coast, north of Khosta. Currently, a small number of them live in Syria and Turkey.

The Kartvelian languages ​​include the Georgian language and three languages ​​of the western Georgians - Mingrelian, Laz (or Chan) and Svan. The Nakh-Dagestan group of languages ​​includes Nakh and Dagestan. The closely related Chechen and Ingush belong to the Nakh. Chechens (Nakhcho) live in Chechnya, Ingush (Galga) in Ingushetia, some Chechens also live in Georgia (Kists) and Dagestan (Akkins).

The Dagestan group consists of: a) Avaro-Andocese languages; b) Lak-Dargin languages; c) Lezgi languages. Of all the listed languages, only Georgian had its own ancient script based on the Aramaic script. The peoples of the Caucasus also speak the languages ​​of the Indo-European, Altaic and Afroasian language families. The Indo-European family is represented by the Iranian group, as well as the Armenian and Greek languages. Iranian speakers are Ossetians, Tats, Talysh and Kurds. The Armenian language stands apart in the Indo-European family. Part of the Caucasian Greeks (Romans) speaks Modern Greek.

After the annexation of the Caucasus to Russia, Russians and other peoples from European Russia began to settle there. The Altai family of languages ​​in the Caucasus is represented by its Turkic group. Turkic-speaking are Azerbaijanis, Turkmens (Truhmens), Kumyks, Nogais, Karachays, Balkars and Urum Greeks.

Assyrians speak the language of the Semitic group of the Afroasian language family. They live mainly in Armenia and other places in Transcaucasia.

The Caucasus has been mastered by man since ancient times. Archaeological cultures of the Lower and Middle Paleolithic were discovered there. Based on the materials of linguistics and anthropology, we can conclude that the descendants of the oldest "autochthonous" population of the Caucasus are the peoples who speak the languages ​​of the Caucasian language family. In the course of their further ethnic development, they entered into ethno-cultural contacts with other ethnic groups and, depending on specific historical conditions, mixed with them, incorporating them into their ethnic environment, or were themselves subjected to assimilation.

In the I millennium BC. and in the first centuries A.D. the steppe spaces north of the Caucasus range were occupied by successive Iranian-speaking nomadic tribes: Cimmerians, Scythians, Sarmatians and Alans. In the middle of the IV century. Turkic-speaking nomads, the Huns, invaded the North Caucasus. At the end of the IV century. here there was a large confederation of Turkic tribes at the head.

In the VI-VII centuries. part of the nomads switched to semi-settled and sedentary life in the plains and foothills, engaged in agriculture and pastoral cattle breeding. During this period, processes of ethnopolitical consolidation took place among the Caucasian-speaking population: among the eastern and western Circassians.

In the middle of the VI century. Avars migrated to the Ciscaucasian steppes because of the Volga. At the beginning of the 7th century in the Western Ciscaucasia a new confederation of Turkic tribes arose, known as "Great Bulgaria", or"Onoguria", which united under its rule all the nomads of the North Caucasian steppe. In the middle of the 7th century this confederation was defeated by the Khazars. The Khazar Khaganate dominated the population of the North Caucasian steppe. During this period, nomads began to settle on the ground not only in the foothills, but also in the steppe regions.

From the middle of the X to the beginning of the XIII century. in the foothill and mountainous regions of the North Caucasus, the productive forces were rising, primitive communal relations continued to collapse, and the process of class formation was going on within the framework of stable political associations that had embarked on the path of feudalization. During this period, the Alanian kingdom stood out in particular. In 1238-1239. Alania was subjected to the Mongol-Tatar invasion and was included in the Golden Horde.

The Adyghe peoples in the past lived in a compact mass in the lower reaches of the river. Kuban, its tributaries the Belaya and Laba, as well as on the Taman Peninsula and along the Black Sea coast. in the upper reaches of the Kuban, received the name of the Circassians. The Adyghe tribes that remained in the old places made up the Adyghe people. Chechens and Ingush were formed from tribes related in origin, language and culture, which were the ancient population of the northeastern spurs of the Main Caucasian Range.

The Caucasian-speaking peoples of Dagestan are also descendants of the most ancient population of this region.

The formation of the peoples of Transcaucasia took place in different historical conditions. Georgians are descendants of the most ancient autochthonous population. The ethnogenetic processes that took place in ancient times on the territory of Georgia led to the formation of East Georgian and West Georgian ethnolinguistic communities. Western Georgians (Svans, Mingrelians, Lazians, or Chans) occupied larger areas in the past.

With the development of capitalism, Georgians were consolidated into a nation. After the October Revolution, in the process of further development of the Georgian nation, local ethnographic features gradually weakened.

The ethnogenesis of the Abkhazians proceeded from ancient times on the territory of modern Abkhazia and adjacent regions. At the end of the 1st millennium BC. two tribal unions developed here: Abazgians and Apsils. From the name of the latter comes the self-name of the Abkhaz - Apsua.

In the 1st millennium BC, within the boundaries of the Urartian state, the process of the formation of the ancient Armenian ethnos took place. The Armenians also included Hurrians, Khalds, Cimmerians, Scythians and other ethical components. After the fall of Urartu, the Armenians entered the historical arena.

Due to the prevailing historical situation, due to the conquests of the Arabs. the Seljuks, then the Mongols, Iran, Turkey, many Armenians left their homeland and moved to other countries. Before the First World War, a significant part of the Armenians lived in Ottoman Turkey (more than 2 million). After the acts of genocide inspired by the Ottoman government in 1915-1916. Armenians, including those deported, began to move to the countries of Western Asia, Western Europe and America.

The ethnogenesis of the Azerbaijani people is closely connected with the ethnic processes that took place in Eastern Transcaucasia in the Middle Ages.

In the IV century. BC. in the north of Azerbaijan, an Albanian union of tribes arose, and then at the beginning of our era, the state of Albania was created, the borders of which in the south reached the river. Araks, in the north it included South Dagestan.

By IV-V centuries. refers to the beginning of the penetration of various groups of Turks into Azerbaijan (Huns, Bulgarians, etc.).

In the feudal era, the Azerbaijani nationality was formed. In Soviet times, along with the consolidation of the Azerbaijani nation, there was a partial merger with the Azerbaijanis of ethnic groups speaking both Iranian and Caucasian languages.

2. The main occupations of the peoples of the Caucasus since ancient times have been agriculture and cattle breeding. The development of these branches of the economy, especially agriculture. was in direct proportion to the level of location of the natural zones of this G mountain region. The lower zone was occupied by arable land, which rose up to one and a half thousand meters above sea level. Hayfields and spring pastures were located above them, and mountain pastures were located even higher.

The beginning of agriculture in the Caucasus dates back to the 3rd millennium BC. Previously, it spread to the Transcaucasus, and then to the North Caucasus. Farming in the highlands was especially labor intensive. The lack of arable land led to the creation of artificial terraces descending in steps along the mountain slopes. On some terraces, the earth had to be brought in baskets from the valleys. Terraced agriculture is characterized by a high culture of artificial irrigation.

Centuries-old experience in farming made it possible to develop for each natural zone special varieties of cereals - wheat, rye, barley, oats, frost-resistant in mountainous areas and drought-resistant in the plains. Millet is an ancient local crop. Since the 18th century corn began to spread in the Caucasus.

Harvest was harvested everywhere with sickles. The grain was threshed with threshing discs with stone inserts on the underside. This method of threshing dates back to the Bronze Age. Viticulture, which has been known since the millennium BC, has deep roots in the Caucasus. There are many different varieties of grapes grown here. I will sit down with viticulture, and horticulture was also developed early.

Cattle breeding appeared in the Caucasus along with agriculture. In the II millennium, it began to spread widely in connection with the development of mountain pastures. During the period in the Caucasus, a peculiar type of transhumance cattle breeding has developed, which exists to this day. In summer, cattle were grazed in the mountains, in winter they were driven to the plains. Cattle and small cattle, especially sheep, were bred. On the plains, the cattle spent the winter in stalls. Sheep were always kept on winter pastures. As a rule, the peasants did not breed horses, the horse was used for riding. Oxen served as draft force.

Crafts were developed in the Caucasus. Carpet weaving, jewelry making, the manufacture of weapons, pottery and metal utensils, and cloaks were especially widespread.

When characterizing the culture of the peoples of the Caucasus, one should distinguish between the North Caucasus, including Dagestan, and Transcaucasia. Within these large regions, there are features in the culture of large peoples or entire groups of small ethnic groups. In the pre-revolutionary period, the bulk of the population of the Caucasus were rural residents.

The types of settlements and dwellings that existed in the Caucasus were closely related to natural conditions, with vertical zonality characteristic of the Caucasus. This dependence can be traced to some extent at the present time. Most of the villages in the mountains were distinguished by a significant tightness of buildings: the buildings were closely adjacent to each other. For example, in many mountain villages of Dagestan, the roof of the underlying house served as a yard for the overlying one. On the villages were located more freely on the plain.

All the peoples of the Caucasus for a long time preserved the custom according to which relatives settled together, forming a separate quarter.

The dwellings of the peoples of the Caucasus were characterized by great diversity. In the mountainous regions of the North Caucasus, Dagestan and North Georgia, a typical dwelling was a one- and two-story stone building with a flat roof. AT these battle towers were built in the districts. In some places there were houses-fortresses. The houses of the inhabitants of the flat regions of the North Caucasus and Dagestan differed significantly from the mountain dwellings. The walls of the buildings were built of adobe or wattle. Turluch (wattle) structures with a gable or four-slope roof were typical for the Adyghe peoples and Abkhazians, as well as for the inhabitants of some regions of the flat Dagestan.

The dwellings of the peoples of Transcaucasia had their own characteristics. In some regions of Armenia, South-Eastern Georgia and Western Azerbaijan, there were original buildings made of stone, sometimes somewhat recessed into the ground. The roof was a wooden stepped ceiling, which was covered with earth from the outside. This type of dwelling (darbazi - among the Georgians, karadam - among the Azerbaijanis, galatun - among the Armenians) is one of the oldest in Transcaucasia and is associated in its origin with the underground dwelling of the ancient settled population of Western Asia. In other places in Eastern Georgia, dwellings were built of stone with a flat or gable roof, one or two-story. In the humid subtropical regions of Western Georgia and in Abkhazia, houses were built of wood, on poles, with gable or four-slope roofs. The floor of such a house was raised high above the ground, which protected the dwelling from dampness.

At present, the urban population prevails over the rural population in the Caucasus. Small-yard auls disappeared and large comfortable rural settlements with several hundred households arose. The layout of villages has changed. On the plain, instead of crowded, villages appeared with a street layout, with personal plots near houses. Many high-mountain villages descended lower, closer to the road or river.

Housing has undergone major changes. In most regions of the Caucasus, two-story houses with large windows, galleries, wooden floors and ceilings were widely used. In addition to traditional building materials (local stone, wood, adobe bricks, tiles), new ones are used.

In the clothes of the peoples of the Caucasus in the pre-revolutionary period, a great variety was traced. It reflected ethnic characteristics, class affiliation and cultural ties between peoples. All the Adyghe peoples, Ossetians, Karachays, Balkars and Abkhazians had a lot in common in the costume. Everyday clothes for men included a beshmet, trousers, rawhide dudes with leggings, a sheepskin hat, and a felt hat in summer. A mandatory accessory for a man's costume was a narrow leather belt with silver or solid jewelry, on which a weapon (dagger) was worn. In damp and wet weather they put on a cap and a cloak. In winter they wore a sheepskin coat. Shepherds of her time wore a coat of cloak felt with a hood.

Women's clothing consisted of a tunic-shaped shirt, long pants, a swinging waist dress with an open chest, headdresses and bedspreads. The dress was tightly belted with a belt. The men's costume of the peoples of Dagestan in many ways resembled the clothes of the Adygs

The traditional clothing of the peoples of the Transcaucasus was largely different from the clothing of the inhabitants of the North Caucasus and Dagestan. Many parallels with the clothes of the peoples of Western Asia were observed in it. The men's costume of the entire Transcaucasus as a whole was characterized by shirts, wide or narrow trousers, boots, and short swing outerwear. Women's clothing among different peoples of Transcaucasia had own curvy features. The costume of the Georgian women resembled the clothes of the women of the North Caucasus.

Armenian women dressed in bright shirts (yellow in Western Armenia, red in Eastern) and no less bright pants. On the shirt they put on a swing - lined clothes with shorter sleeves than the shirt. They wore small hard hats on their heads, which were tied with several scarves. It was customary to cover the lower part of the face with a handkerchief.

Azerbaijani women, in addition to shirts and trousers, also wore short jackets and wide skirts. Under the influence of Islam, they, especially in cities, covered their faces with a veil. It was typical for women of all the peoples of the Caucasus to wear a variety of jewelry made by local craftsmen, mainly silver. The festive attire of Dagestan women was especially distinguished by the abundance of jewelry.

After the revolution, traditional clothing, both for men and women, began to be replaced by urban costume, this process was especially intensive in the post-war years.

At present, the male Adyghe costume is preserved as the clothes of the participants of artistic ensembles. Traditional elements of clothing can be seen on older women in many parts of the Caucasus.

The traditional food of the peoples of the Caucasus is very diverse in composition and taste. In the past, these peoples observed moderation and unpretentiousness in food. The basis of everyday food was bread (from wheat, barley, oatmeal, rye flour) from both unleavened dough and sour (lavash).

Significant differences were observed in the nutrition of the inhabitants of mountainous and lowland areas. In the mountains, where cattle breeding was significantly developed, dairy products, especially sheep's milk cheese, occupied a large diet, in addition to bread. Meat was not often eaten. The lack of vegetables and fruits was compensated by wild herbs and forest fruits. Flour dishes, cheese, vegetables, fruits, wild herbs prevailed on the plain, meat was occasionally eaten. For example, among the Abkhazians and Adyghes - thick millet porridge (paste), bread was replaced. Among the Georgians, a dish of beans was widely used, among the Dagestanis, pieces of dough boiled in broth with garlic in the form of dumplings.

There was a rich set of traditional dishes during the holidays, during weddings and commemorations. Meat dishes predominated In the process of urbanization, city dishes penetrated into the national cuisine, but traditional food is still widespread.

By religion, the entire population of the Caucasus was divided into Christians and Muslims. Christianity began to penetrate the Caucasus in the first centuries of the new era. In the IV century. it took root among Armenians and Georgians. The Armenians had their own church, which received the name "Armenian-Gregorian" after the name of its founder, Archbishop Gregory the Illuminator. At first, the Armenian Church adhered to the Eastern Orthodox Byzantine orientation, but from the beginning of the 6th century. became independent, adopting the Monophysite doctrine, recognizing only one "divine" nature of Christ. From Armenia, Christianity began to penetrate into Southern Dagestan and Northern Azerbaijan - into Albania (VI century). Zoroastrianism was widespread in South Azerbaijan during this period, in which fire-worshipping cults occupied a large place.

From Georgia and Byzantium, Christianity came to the Abkhazians and Adyghe tribes, to the Chechens, Ingush, Ossetians and other peoples. The emergence of Islam in the Caucasus is associated with the aggressive campaigns of the Arabs (VIII-VIII centuries). But Islam did not take deep roots under the Arabs. It really began to assert itself only after the Mongol-Tatar invasion. This primarily applies to the peoples of Azerbaijan and Dagestan. Islam began to spread in Abkhazia from the 15th century. after the Turkish conquest.

Among the peoples of the North Caucasus (Adyghes, Circassians, Kabardians, Karachais and Balkars) Islam was planted by Turkish sultans and Crimean khans. From Dagestan, Islam came to the Chechens and Ingush. The influence of Islam in Dagestan was especially strengthened. Chechnya and Ingushetia during the liberation movement of the highlanders under the leadership of Shamil. Most Muslims in the Caucasus are Sunnis; Shiites are represented in Azerbaijan. However, neither Christianity nor Islam supplanted the ancient local beliefs (cults of trees, natural phenomena, fire, etc.), many of which became an integral part of Christian and Muslim rituals.

The oral poetic creativity of the peoples of the Caucasus is rich and varied. The oral creativity of the Caucasian peoples is characterized by a variety of plots and genres. Epic stories occupy a significant place in poetic creativity. In the North Caucasus, among the Ossetians, Kabardians, Circassians, Adyghes, Karachays, Balkars, and also Abkhazians, there is a Nart epic, legends about heroic Narts.

The Georgians know the epic about the hero Amirani, who fought the ancient gods and was chained to a rock for this; romantic epic "Eteriani", which tells about the tragic love of Prince Abesalom and the shepherdess Eteri. Among the Armenians, the medieval epic "Sasunian bogatyrs" or "David of Sasun" is widespread, which glorifies the heroic struggle of the Armenian people against the enslavers.