The main activities and functions of the Kazan order. Administrative activities of the order of the Kazan Palace

PEOPLES OF RUSSIA

Wolf with a standard - a symbol of the Avar khans

"Our environment is online"- Avars - self-name maarulal (magIarulal), literally "highlanders" - one of the most significant peoples of Dagestan in terms of numbers. In total, there are 912,090 of them, including 850,011 in Dagestan. The Avar language belongs to the Avar-Ando-Tsez group of the Dagestan branch of the Caucasian languages. The distribution area of the Avar language stretched from north to south as a strip dividing Dagestan into two parts. The length of this strip is about 170 km to the south, and the maximum width is about 70 km.

The structure of the Avar language is characterized by a complex system of consonants, the presence of nominal classes, numerous local cases, and an ergative construction. Phonetics is characterized by mobile stress, which plays a semantic role.
The Avar-Ando-Tsez group, in addition to the Avar language itself, also includes the Andean and Tsez languages. The population of Avaria speaking them is related to the Avars not only in language, but also in the main features of culture and life, and is currently united with the Avars proper. The literary Avar language is based on the so-called military language - Bolmats I, which has long been used in oral communication between the Avarians and the Ando-Ceses.

The first Cyrillic-based Avar script was created by Baron Petr Karlovich Uslar in 1861 in Tiflis. In 1928, a decision was made to translate the Avar language into Latin, and in 1938 a new alphabet was introduced on a Russian graphic basis.

The village of Khunzakh, once the capital of the Avar Khanate

The history of the emergence of the Avars is complex and has not been fully elucidated to date. One of the ancient Georgian chronicles tells the biblical version of the birth of this people: it names the great-great-grandson of Noah, Lekos, as the ancestor of all the highlanders of Dagestan. One of the sons of Lekos, Khozonih, founded a city in a mountain gorge and named it after himself, Khozanikheti. It is believed that this is a distorted word Khanzakh - the ancient capital of the Avar khans.

If you do not delve into the complex ups and downs of the history of numerous nomadic peoples living in Eurasia thousands of years ago and constantly forming new ethnic groups, then the history of the Avars can be briefly told like this. Thousands of years BC the ancestors of the Avars were nomads, but around the third millennium BC. they began to lead a settled way of life, raise cattle and engage in agriculture. The life of the Avar tribes (the ancient sources mention the Savars tribes, which, most likely, were the ancestors of the modern Avars) took place in the mountains, in relative isolation from other tribes and peoples, which made it possible to preserve not only the language and distinctive external features of the people, but and many traditions and customs.

In the first millennium of our era, the kingdom of Sarir is mentioned in the Arab chronicles, in its place a little later the Avar Khanate was formed. It was a union of independent tribes and societies, which united under the leadership of the khan only in case of military necessity. The Avar Khanate existed until the 18th century, being dependent on neighboring Iran for the last several centuries. By the time the khanate joined Russia in 1813, the Avars had their own script, similar to Arabic, and professed Sunni Islam. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Avars took part in the war, in which, under the leadership of Shamil, the highlanders tried to defend their freedom. However, the Avars began to actively consolidate as a people after the formation of the Dagestan ASSR in 1921.

The leading sectors of the economy of the accident in the second half of the XIX and early XX centuries. were in the highlands - cattle breeding, lower in the mountains, as well as in the river valleys - agriculture (field farming and gardening).

From the second half of the XIX century. trade is especially developed in Avaria. In every significant village there was a local trader - bazargap, who bought goods from fellow villagers and resold them in Temir-Khan-Shura, Petrovsk, Kizlyar and other cities. The usual house of the Avar peasants was a quadrangular building with a flat roof. Its walls were built of unworked stone of various shapes, and sometimes a solution of local soil was used as a fastening material. The house was built either on a foundation or on rocky ground. One or more beams were laid on the steppes, on top of which boards or poles were laid, and brushwood, hay were laid on them and a thin layer of earth and clay was poured. The main beams of the ceiling were supported by special pillars. The earthen flooring was carefully compacted with a roller. Such a roof needed to be rolled after every rain.

In the lower floor of the house there were utility rooms - a barn, a hayloft, a pantry - and a winter living room. An external stone staircase led to the upper floor. Living rooms were located there - usually three in the houses of wealthy Avars, one in the poor, less often two. From each room there was an exit to a gallery hanging over the first floor or overlooking the roof of the lower house. The roof of the gallery was supported by several pillars. The gallery usually had a carved wooden sofa and several small benches.

In some houses in the middle of the room on the clay floor there was an open hearth, over which hung a chain for the boiler. The place near the hearth was considered the most honorable in the house; there was a wooden carved sofa - the seat of the eldest in the family, on which the guest was usually seated. The hearth divided the room into four parts: on the right side were placed men, on the left - women, between the pillar and the hearth - children during a meal; the place between the hearth and the outer wall of the house was intended for storing firewood and brushwood. In the old days, such a house was the dwelling of a large family, which was denoted by the same term tso ruqalul gIadamal, as a group of related families. At the beginning of the XX century. it already housed a small family.

Today, the vast majority of Avars are Sunni Muslims. Interestingly, the already mentioned medieval state of Sarir in the Caucasus chose Orthodox Christianity as its official religion. There is an opinion that before the adoption of Islam, a small part of the ancestors of the Avars professed Judaism, but there is no sufficient evidence for this. Be that as it may, Islam began to penetrate the territory of modern Dagestan already in the 7th century AD, and finally settled here around the 15th century.

The centuries-old history, as well as the freedom-loving disposition of the Avars, allowed them to preserve their own customs and traditions. In many ways, they are similar to the traditions of other Caucasian peoples. But there are also some features inherent only to them, concerning, first of all, the ethics of behavior.

Respectful appeal to elders is the main ethical tradition of the Avars. Moreover, the elders still play the leading role at the people's gatherings when making any decision. The more authoritative the elder, the more opportunities he has to make his vote decisive.

In addition, strict observance of etiquette when communicating is among the customs. For example, if male Avars talk among themselves, they comply with certain conditions of the age limit. The younger, having greeted the elder, is obliged to take two steps back and maintain this distance throughout the conversation. If a woman communicates with a man, then this distance becomes even greater and reaches two meters.

Avar traditions in everything related to communication are quite chaste, and the representatives of the ethnic group themselves are courteous. At the same time, folk traditions do not bypass the holding of various holidays - here the already mentioned chastity and courtesy are emphasized by the brightness of costumes and festive ceremonies.

The most common outerwear for men is the beshmet, in winter it was insulated with a lining. A shirt is put on under the beshmet, a large hat serves as a headdress. As for women's costumes, they are quite diverse. Avar women wear clothes decorated with local ethnic elements - by the decorations, the colors of the headscarf, the patterns, you can guess which village the woman comes from. At the same time, married and elderly women prefer clothes in muted shades, but girls are allowed to dress up more brightly.

It is worth visiting the wedding of the Avars to make sure - this is one of the most colorful spectacles. Here, according to tradition, the inhabitants of the entire village gather. During the first day, the fun takes place in the house of one of the groom's friends, and the guests should organize the table. Only on the second day the wedding takes place in the house where the groom lives, and in the evening the bride wrapped in a wedding veil is brought here. On the third day, gifts are given and traditional dishes are eaten, including the obligatory porridge.

By the way, the Avars have a wedding custom of kidnapping, only they steal here not the bride, but the groom. This is carried out by the bridesmaids, so the groom's friends must vigilantly ensure that he is not kidnapped.

Like other Dagestanis, the Avars still adhere to the custom of blood feud. Of course, today this tradition is a thing of the past, but in distant mountain villages it can still be practiced today. In the old days, blood feuds captured entire families, and the reason could be kidnapping, murder, as well as desecration of family shrines.

At the same time, the Avars are hospitable people. The guest here is always the main person in the house, and they are always ready for the arrival of even unexpected guests, leaving food for them at lunch or dinner.

The Avars made a great contribution to the culture of the Caucasus and Russia. First of all, it is folk art. The performances of national bands are always a great success with the audience. The songs of the Avars are very poetic and melodious. The rich possibilities of the language and the national musical flavor are equally widely used here. Therefore, to listen to how they sing, there are always a lot of listeners.

National holidays are no less colorful. Each such festival becomes the brightest spectacle. Here, songs, dances, and bright costumes - everything merges into one. It is worth mentioning that the Avars, like other local peoples, know how to amuse themselves and others. They are quite sharp on the tongue and are well aware of the peculiarities of their mentality. Therefore, according to experts, jokes about the Avars are composed by representatives of this people themselves.

Bright, melodious and full of poetic turns is their language, which belongs to the Nakh-Dagestan group of languages of the North Caucasus. At the same time, it has many local dialects. In many ways, this phenomenon reflects the features of the Avar history, when free societies of the highlanders arose.

Nevertheless, although they live in different parts of the earth, they can always understand each other. There are also common linguistic and cultural traditions that are identical for the entire Avaria. For example, many are interested in why the Avars treat wolves with special reverence. This is because the wolf is considered a symbol of courage and nobility. Therefore, the image of the wolf is repeatedly sung in folklore and in literature.

Rasul Gamzatov

Famous Avarian writers made a great contribution to the culture of Russia. Among them, of course, is Rasul Gamzatov, one of the most famous poets of Dagestan. It was he who created a kind of anthem, composing the poem "Song of the Avars". Since then, this work has become the unofficial anthem of the people. The poetess Fazu Aliyeva also brought glory to the Avars.

Achievements of athletes are also known - first of all, Jamal Azhigirey, master of sports in wushu, 12-time European champion, as well as Khabib Nurmagomedov, UFC professional in MMA (he is the world champion).

Today, the Avar nationality speaks volumes. This is a proud and independent people, which over the course of many centuries of its development has repeatedly proved that it can fight for its own freedom. Despite the fact that they were once considered warlike, the Avars have developed cattle breeding and agriculture, various crafts. At many national festivals, expositions of traditional carpets, caskets, dishes, and jewelry are created.

Sources and photos: tanci-kavkaza.ru/avarcy/, www.anaga.ru/avarcy.htm, etokavkaz.ru/nacionalnosti/avarcy

Faces of Russia. "Living Together, Being Different"

The Faces of Russia multimedia project has existed since 2006, telling about the Russian civilization, the most important feature of which is the ability to live together, remaining different - this motto is especially relevant for the countries of the entire post-Soviet space. From 2006 to 2012, as part of the project, we created 60 documentaries about representatives of various Russian ethnic groups. Also, 2 cycles of radio programs "Music and songs of the peoples of Russia" were created - more than 40 programs. Illustrated almanacs have been released to support the first series of films. Now we are halfway to creating a unique multimedia encyclopedia of the peoples of our country, a picture that will allow the inhabitants of Russia to recognize themselves and leave a picture of what they were like for posterity.

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"Faces of Russia". Avars. "Wedding character"

General information

Avars- the people of Dagestan, inhabiting the mountainous part of this republic. According to the 2002 census, 758,438 people live here. In total, according to the 2009 census, 912 thousand 90 Avars live in Russia. In addition, about fifty thousand Avars live in the Zakatala and Belokan regions of Azerbaijan.

Avars are an ancient people, already in the 7th century they are mentioned in the “Armenian Geography” by Anania Shirakatsi. The Avar language belongs to the Dagestan branch of the Iberian-Caucasian family of languages. Until 1928, the Avars used the Arabic alphabet, using some additional signs for specific Avar consonants. In 1938, the current alphabet based on Russian graphics was adopted, which compares favorably with the previous ones in that it uses the letters of the Russian alphabet with the addition of only the “I” sign.

The poet Rasul Gamzatov, famous throughout Russia, wrote his works in the Avar language. Many of his poems have folklore roots. For example, those that are included in the popular cycle "Inscriptions on doors and gates." (“Don’t stand, don’t wait, passerby, at the door. You come in or go away quickly”).

Believing Avars profess Islam. For a long time it had to compete with local pagan beliefs. Gradually, some of them acquired a new Islamic coloring, while some survived only in the form of legends and superstitions. But they are also very interesting and can tell a lot about the Avar people. For example, bouduals are spirits patronizing hunting. On the hunt for a person who has committed some kind of sinful act, the spirits throw stones at him. On the contrary, they welcome and treat a normal hunter, that is, a righteous one.

Essays

The softness of the pencil overcomes the hardness of the saber

Avars are the people of Dagestan, inhabiting the mountainous part of this republic. According to the 2002 census, 758,438 people live here. In total, according to the same census, 814,473 Avars live in Russia. In addition, about fifty thousand Avars live in the Zakatala and Belokan regions of Azerbaijan. Avars are an ancient people, already in the 7th century they were mentioned in the “Armenian Geography” by Anania Shirakatsi.

Avars profess Islam. For a long time it had to compete with local pagan beliefs. Gradually, some of them acquired a new Islamic coloring, while others survived only in the form of legends and superstitions. But they are also very interesting and can tell a lot about the Avar people.

They brought the groom to the bride's family

There are legends about Avar wisdom. In general, the Avars know how to find a way out of very difficult situations. Let's listen to one Avar parable.

They brought the groom to the bride's family. He brought a ram and sweets as a gift. The bridegroom's brothers ask:

Why did you choose our sister as your bride?

And the bridegroom answered them with a fairy tale-parable.

A long time ago, a huge and terrible azhdaha dragon captured the only source in Avaria. People were left without water. Women were crying, children were moaning from thirst.

The bravest and strongest horsemen attacked the monster with sabers in their hands, but he swept everyone away with blows from his long tail.

Azhdha built a huge beautiful palace at the source. He fenced it with a palisade and planted the heads of the dead on it.

The people were in despair. Who will defeat the terrible dragon?

At that time, a son was born to a poor widow. He went to drink water from the spring at night. And he gained unprecedented strength, courage and prowess. He saw how ugly the dragon was at the source, and he hated him. And he swore before all the people to free the country from the monster.

His mother, relatives, neighbors and friends dissuaded him for a long time:

You just grew up. Still young. You will die in your prime. Have pity on yourself!

But the young man mounted his horse and went to fight the monster.

The azhdaha dragon sensed it from a distance and roared in a terrible voice:

Who dared to approach the source?!

I want to fight you, damned monster! The young man replied proudly.

The dragon cackled:

Insane! Don't you know that I don't fight with weapons? You must know that there is no one in the world equal to me in strength. To all my opponents, I ask only one question. If he can't answer it correctly, then I'll kill him with one blow of my huge tail!

And if you answer correctly, then I myself will die right there!

Ok, I agree! - the young man answers. - Ask a question!

The dragon roared loudly, and two women appeared in the window of his palace. One is an incredibly dazzling beauty, the other is an ordinary simple woman.

Which one is more beautiful? the dragon asked.

The young man looked at the women and answered:

Better than the one you like best!

You're right! - croaked the dragon and expired.

So Avaria was spared the monster.

The groom finished the fairy tale-parable and said: “I like your sister!”

You're right! exclaimed the brothers of the bride.

And they said the words of prayer for the newlywed:

May Allah bless you, and may He send His blessings to you, and may He unite you in goodness!

A wedding enriched with new customs

Once the conversation about the newlyweds came up in this Avar parable, then it's time to talk about the Avar wedding. Marriage is one of the oldest solemn and important events in a person's life, which marks the creation of a new family. The Avars have their own wedding customs and traditions that date back to ancient times. They are enriched with new rituals, amusements, ideological content, consonant with modernity, the interests of different peoples and young people.

But the main thing remains unchanged: weddings serve as a means of transferring cultural traditions, folklore knowledge, social experience and moral norms from generation to generation.

Until the last century, the Avars mainly lived in mountain villages, so folk wedding ceremonies were formed mainly there.

In the past, when concluding a marriage, it was required that the bride and groom come from families of equal nobility, influence and power. Back in the 19th century, the Avars, like many other Dagestan peoples, adhered to endogamy, that is, they tried to marry within their village. The Avars preferred to conclude such marriage unions between close relatives and namesakes.

The strongest was considered a marriage concluded between fellow villagers. Inter-aul marriages of the Avars were not numerous.

As for international marriages, they were extremely rare until the mid-40s of the twentieth century. In the past, the prerogative of concluding a marriage mainly belonged to the parents. And this was especially true for my daughters. Recently, these traditions are not preserved everywhere, for example, in cities there are much more liberties and innovations. But still, when concluding a marriage, nationality, village, region are taken into account.

Sharia marriage (magar) and divorce (talaq) continue to persist in our time and are complemented by civil marriage and divorce.

It is interesting to note that the collection of kalym for the Avars, as well as for some other Dagestan peoples, was not a typical custom. In modern conditions, the adat of giving kalyma is intensifying and spreading rapidly, which is explained by the improvement in the economic situation of people.

In rural areas, many positive aspects of customs and traditions are preserved to a greater extent, in particular, etiquette emphasizing the status of elders. According to this adat, the younger sister or brother does not marry before the older ones. Marriage between siblings is not allowed.

Currently, the Avars have two types of weddings. The first type, which is followed by the majority of the rural population, is traditional. It is practiced with only minor innovations. In the second type of wedding, modern elements predominate and traditional rites are partially observed.

And the men sing heroic songs

Well, where there is a wedding, there is music, there is singing. Avar music is distinguished by its bright originality. Experts have long noticed that natural minor modes predominate in the music of the Avars, most of all - Dorian. Two-part and three-part meter are widespread. One of the characteristic sizes is 6/8. There are also complex and mixed sizes.

Avar men sing epic-heroic songs. They differ in the three-part structure of the melody. The last parts play the role of introduction and conclusion. And in the middle (recitative warehouse) the main content of the poetic text is stated.

Typical female genre: lyrical song. The female style of vocal performance is characterized by "throat" singing. Solo singing with instrumental accompaniment also prevails.

There are also unison ensemble (female duet) and choral (male) singing. For ancient lyrical songs, a dialogic manner of singing is characteristic. Marching and dance melodies are used as independent works. Women's singing is often accompanied by a tambourine. In addition to national instruments, the Avars widely use the harmonica, button accordion, accordion, balalaika, and guitar. Traditional instrumental ensemble - zurna and drum. The first recordings of Avar folk music were made in the second half of the 19th century.

A few words about the Avar language. It belongs to the Dagestan branch of the Iberian-Caucasian family of languages. The Avars received their written language only after the establishment of Soviet power. Until 1928, the Avars used the Arabic alphabet, using some additional signs for specific Avar consonants. In 1938, the current alphabet based on Russian graphics was adopted, which compares favorably with the previous ones in that it uses the letters of the Russian alphabet with the addition of only the sign I.

Lettering on doors and gates

As you know, the poet Rasul Gamzatov, famous throughout Russia, wrote his works in the Avar language. Many of his poems have folklore roots. For example, those that are included in the popular cycle "Inscriptions on doors and gates."

Don't stand, don't wait, passer-by, at the door.
You come in or away go quickly.

Passer-by, don't knock, don't wake up the hosts,
With evil came - go away
come in with goodness - come in.

Neither early nor late
Do not knock on the door, friends:
And my heart is open for you
And my door.

I am a horseman, and there is only one
I request:
Do not enter if you do not praise
my horse.

But not only horse we want to praise. I would like to praise the anonymous author who composed the instructive Avar tale "The Fox and the Snake".

Once a fox and a snake became friends and decided to wander around the world. For a long time they walked through forests, fields, mountains and gorges, until they came to a wide river where there was no ford.

Let's swim across the river, - suggested the fox.

But I don’t know how to swim at all,” the snake lied.

Nothing, I'll help you, wrap yourself around me.

The snake coiled around the fox and they swam.

It was hard for the fox, but she did not show it and swam, exhausted.

Already at the very shore, the snake began to tightly squeeze the fox with its rings.

What are you doing? After all, you can choke! the fox screamed.

So you need it, - the snake answered.

Well, apparently, death cannot be avoided, - moaned the fox. - I only regret one thing. How many years we have been friends, but I have never seen your face up close. Do me one last favor - let me have a good look at you before you die.

Good. Yes, and I also want to take a last look at you, ”said the snake and brought her head closer to the fox.

The fox immediately gnawed off the snake's head and went ashore.

Here she freed herself from the dead snake and exclaimed:

Don't trust friends who squirm!

It is easy to guess that this thought very soon became an Avar proverb. Here are some more interesting proverbs of the Avar people that are worth winding up:

One word is enough for a good man, one lash for a good horse.

The bee and the fly don't work together.

While the game is still in the mountains, do not put the cauldron on fire.

From one man there will be no army, from one stone there will be no tower.

And here is a very interesting proverb that emphasizes the high role of education, as well as art in Avar society:

The softness of the pencil overcomes the hardness of the saber.

From myself we will add, but only if this pencil falls into talented hands.

Household and life

Traditional occupations are cattle breeding and arable farming. Archeol. and letters. sources testify to the antiquity of origin and developed forms of agriculture in A. In the mountainous regions and foothills, agriculture was combined with cattle breeding, in the highlands the leading role belonged to cattle breeding. They created arts, terraced fields, fortified with stone walls on dry masonry; terracing was combined with a drainage device. They practiced a three-tiered use of plots (corn was planted under fruit trees, beans, potatoes, and vegetables were planted between rows), crop rotation without fallow, and alternation of agricultural crops. cultures. The fields were fertilized with manure and ash. In the mountain valleys, an irrigation system was developed (canals, gutters, trees, self-pumping wheels).

Labor tools: a wooden plow with an iron plowshare, a hoe, a pickaxe, a small scythe, a sickle, threshing boards, shovels, pitchforks, rakes, vil. shovel; in the gardener x-wakh in mountain valleys used a special shovel for manual plowing. Barley, wheat, naked barley, rye, oats, millet, legumes, corn, and potatoes were cultivated.

From tech. crops were sown with flax and hemp. The grain was ground in water mills with a horizontal wheel. In the mountain valleys they were engaged in horticulture and viticulture; there were endemic varieties. Peaches, apricots, cherries, apples, pears, cherry plums, etc. were grown. 19th century - their processing at handicraft canning factories, as well as their export outside the Accident for sale and for exchange for grain. From the best varieties of grapes they made wine for sale.

From con. 19th century began to grow onions, garlic, in owls. period - cabbage, cucumbers, tomatoes. In the owls time, zonal specialization has intensified, in a number of districts there are branches of prom. enterprises, canning factories.

It is believed that already in the Bronze Age, cattle breeding on the territory. A. had a sedentary character. Bred small (sheep, goats), as well as kr. cattle, horses, donkeys, mules. Sheep breeding prevailed, especially in the high-mountain districts, a cut already from the 16th century. developed as a commodity industry with geographic. division of labor.

Traditional sheep breeds are coarse-wooled (Andean, Gunib, Avar), in owls. time appeared and fine-fleeced. In the high-mountain zone, distant-pasture cattle breeding prevailed; Ancillary occupations are hunting (wild goats, deer, aurochs, foxes, etc.) and beekeeping (especially in gardening districts).

Home crafts and crafts: women. - weaving (cloth, carpets), wool knitting (socks, shoes), felting, felting, embroidery; husband. - leather processing, stone and wood carving, blacksmithing, copper chasing, weapons, jewelry, wooden utensils. Cloth has been made since antiquity (there are medieval archeological finds) and were considered the best in Dagestan, exported outside of it (especially white ones - in Tbilisi); cloth was replaced by factory fabrics only in the beginning. 20th century There are archeol. finds of the 8th-10th centuries. bronze openwork belt buckles, plaques.

Silversmithing stands out (masters worked for sale and to order), naib. cr. centers - Sogratl, Rugudzha, Chokh, Gotsatl, Gamsutl, Untsukul. They made daggers, gazyrs, harness sets, my husband. and wives. belts, women jewelry (bracelets, rings, chains, plaques, pendants, necklaces, earrings, etc.), in owls. time - also dishes, decomp. Houseware.

Products of the 19th century often repeated older designs. In Gotsatl in 1958 was the main. arts, combine. Metalworking technique: engraving, blackening, filigree (especially laid on), notch, granulation; inserts made of natural stones, colored glass, chains, and other type-setting parts were used. In modern In the art of Gotsatl, the blackening technique plays an important role.

From con. XIX - early. XX centuries Products from Untsukul are world famous: household items (pipes, cigarette cases, caskets, canes, sticks, ink sets, boxes, caskets, etc.) made of dogwood with a fine notch (geom. pattern) made of silver, copper, later and cupronickel; in owls time here is open thin. factory.

Main carpet production centers - Khunzakhsky, Tlyaratinsky districts, part of the village. Levashinsky and Buynaksky districts: tufted and lint-free double-sided carpets, smooth double-sided rugs, patterned felt carpets, chibta mats (marsh sedge is added to wool yarn), small carpet products (khurjina saddlebags, saddlers, blankets, pillows, etc. .).

Woodcarving was practiced in almost every village; it was used to decorate window and door frames, columns, poles, balconies, furniture, chests and other utensils and crockery. Main types of thread - contour, flat-silhouette, trihedral-shaped. Facades of residential buildings, mosques, tombstones were decorated with stone carvings. Carvers from it were especially famous.

Rugudzha, Chokha, Kuyadinsky farms (Gunibsky district). Traditional motifs of the ornament - stylized images of animals, astral symbols, geometric, floral, ribbon patterns, wickerwork.

Avars are the most numerous people of modern Dagestan. They inhabit most of the mountainous territory of Dagestan, and partly also the plains (Buinaksky, Khasavyurtovsky, Kizilyurtovsky and other regions). In addition to Dagestan, they live in Chechnya, Kalmykia and other subjects of the Russian Federation (814.5 thousand people), The main area of \u200b\u200bsettlement of Avars in Dagestan is the basins of the Avar-or (Avar Koysu), Andi-or (Andiyskoye Koysu) and Cheer-or rivers (Kara-Koysu). 28% of Avars live in cities (2001).

Avars also live in Azerbaijan, mainly in the Belokan and Zakatala regions, where, according to the 1999 census, their number was 50.9 thousand people. “The question of the size of the Avar diaspora outside of Russia was forced to state with annoyance in 2005 the Dagestani scientist B. M. Ataev was very difficult and controversial today,” he said. This is primarily due to the fact that in their countries of residence, for political and other reasons, population censuses are not conducted indicating nationality. Therefore, the data given in various sources on the number of descendants of the Avars are very approximate, in particular, in the Republic of Turkey.

Thus, the largest Avar diaspora outside the borders of the former USSR and, probably, outside the Russian Federation in general, is represented in Turkey. At the same time, it should be noted that small islands of the descendants of the Avar "Muhajirs" of the former Ottoman Empire were also recorded in Syria and Jordan, where, due to their small number, they experienced a strong cultural and linguistic influence of both the local Arab population and other North Caucasians, mainly Adygs and Chechens.

Avar crosses and spiral swastika. Stone carving.

Areas of historical residence of the Avars

Akhvakhsky, Botlikhsky, Gunibsky, Gumbetovsky, Khunzakhsky, Bezhtinsky, Tsuntinsky, Tsumadinsky, Charodinsky, Shamilsky, Gergebilsky, Untsukulsky, Tlyaratinsky.

Anthropology

According to A.G. Gadzhiev, most of the Avaro-Ando-Tsezes are characterized by the western version of the Caucasian anthropological type of the Balkan-Caucasian race. Distinctive features of the West Caucasian variant are: a large body length, a wide, high and medium-profile face, a large nose height with a small width, convex forms of the nasal bridge profile predominate, the tip of the nose and base are represented mainly by a lowered variant. The hair is predominantly dark brown, there is a small admixture of dark blond and red hair. The color of the iris of the eyes is dominated by mixed shades. There is a significant percentage of light eyes. The skin is very light compared to other Caucasian populations. Age anthropology data record the presence of a higher percentage of chestnut, red and blond hair in the Avar-Ando-Tsez population in childhood than in adolescence.

The Caucasian type is considered by some scientists to be the end result of the transformation of the Caspian type in conditions of high-mountain isolation. In their opinion, the formation of the Caucasian type in Dagestan dates back to the 14th century BC. e. It should be emphasized that in Dagestan, starting from the Soviet period, the official ideological attitude (reminiscent of the Dagestan version of “Yugoslavism”) reigns supreme, which boils down to active propaganda of the “exceptional proximity” (in a deliberately exaggerated form) of all Dagestanis to each other, which often serves as a convenient excuse for the suppression of national identity and the associated desire to revive the lost ethno-statehood. The same Alekseev V.P., for example, in 1974 testified: “The Caspian combination of features is not expressed in its pure form among any of the Dagestan peoples, we can only talk about its more or less noticeable admixture, mainly in the composition of the peoples of the Lezgin group and Kumyks ". In his opinion, - the territory of Dagestan was not included in the formation zone of the Caspian population group; apparently it spread from the south along the Caspian coast to the plains and foothills of Dagestan, and only along the Samur and Chirakh-Chai valleys did representatives of this group penetrate high into the mountains.

G. F. Debets testified to the similarity of the Caucasian anthropological type with the ancient population of the East European Plain and further up to Scandinavia, while expressing the idea of the penetration of the ancestors of the Caucasian type into the area of their modern settlement from the north.

Despite all its originality, outside the Caucasus, the Dinaric anthropological type of the Balkan-Caucasian race is closest to the Caucasians, characteristic primarily of Croats, Montenegrins and genetically closely related to haplogroup I - the so-called. "Northern barbarian genome".

Language

The language - Avar belongs to the Nakh-Dagestan group of the North Caucasian family, has dialects divided into northern and southern groups (dialects), which partly reflects the former division of Avaria into the Khunzakh Khanate and "Free Societies". The first includes Salatav, Khunzakh and Eastern, the second - Gidatli, Antsukh, Zakatal, Karah, Andalal, Kakhib and Kusur; the intermediate position is occupied by the Batlukh dialect. There are phonetic, morphological and lexical differences between individual dialects and dialect groups as a whole. The Ando-Cesian languages are related to the Avar language. In Russian linguistics, there is an established point of view, shared by some foreign scientists, according to which the North Caucasian family is related to the Yenisei and Sino-Tibetan languages. According to I. M. Dyakonov, Avar (together with other languages of the Nakh-Dagestan group) is a living continuation of the ancient Alarodian language world, which included such now dead languages as Caucasian-Albanian (Agvanian), Hurrian, Urartian, Kutian.

Within Russia, the Russian language is widely spoken among the Avars (by the beginning of the 21st century, more than 60% of the Dagestan Avars spoke Russian). The Avars of the Khasavyurt and Buynak regions of Dagestan, as a rule, are fluent in the Kumyk language. The ability to speak and understand Turkic among the Avars can be traced, in part, outside these areas, since the Turkic language in the plains of Dagestan for many centuries acted as a macro-intermediary language. Ethnic Avars living in Turkey and Azerbaijan speak, respectively, Turkish and Azerbaijani at the native level.

Writing until 1927 based on Arabic graphics, in 1927 to 1938 - Latin, from 1938 - Cyrillic. On the territory of Dagestan, schooling among the Avars up to the third grade is conducted in their native language, then in Russian. But this applies only to rural schools with a mono-ethnic population, while in cities the teaching of native languages is de facto prohibited. The Avar language in 2007 acquired the status of "official", meanwhile, Russian was declared the only "state" language in Dagestan, even in the original Avar territory with an exclusively Avar population.

In the 50-60s of the XX century, there were national schools in the cities of Dagestan. From 1938 to 1955, education in the schools of Western Dagestan up to the 5th grade was conducted in the Avar language, and in the senior classes in Russian. From the 6th grade, the Avar ("native") language and literature were studied as separate subjects. In the 1955-56 academic year, teaching in the schools of the Accident from grade 1 was translated into Russian. From the 1964-65 academic year, all urban national schools in the republic were closed.

Religion

Carved stone from Hotoda. (Gidatl)

The vast majority of believing Avars are Sunni Muslims of the Shafi'i persuasion. However, as is known from numerous sources, the Avar state Sarir (VI-XIII centuries) was predominantly Christian (Orthodox). In the mountains of Avaria, the ruins of Christian churches and chapels are still preserved. The most famous Christian landmark is the temple near the village of Datuna (Shamilsky district), built in the 10th century. Near the villages of Urada, Tidib, Khunzakh, Galla, Tindi, Kvanada, Rugudzha and others, archaeologists discovered typical Christian burial grounds of the 8th-10th centuries. Beginning in the middle of the 7th century the first steps on the territory of Dagestan, in the region of Derbent, the Islamic religion slowly but systematically expanded its area of influence, covering one possession after another, until it penetrated into the 15th century. to the most remote regions of Dagestan.

According to historical legends, some insignificant part of the Avars professed Judaism before converting to Islam. A certain Žuhut-khan (i.e. "Jewish khan"), who supposedly ruled in Andi, is also mentioned. Dagestan scientists regard these vague and fragmentary information as echoes of memories of long-term contacts with the Khazars. Among the examples of stone carvings in Avaria, one can occasionally find “stars of David”, which, however, cannot serve as evidence in favor of the fact that the mentioned images were made by Jews.

Origin and history

Hunz - Caucasian Huns of the "Land of the Throne"

Wolf with a standard - a symbol of the Avar khans

One of the ancestors of the Avars were the Silva and Andak tribes who lived in the ancient era on the territory of modern Dagestan (including where Avaria was located in the medieval period). At least, it is these ethnonyms that most correctly convey the names of the later Avar tribal groups and political associations. There is also an opinion in the literature that the Avars descended from the Legs, Gels and Caspians, however, these statements are speculative. Neither in the Avar language nor in the Avar toponymy are there any lexemes that could be linked with the Legs, Gels or Caspians, and the Avars themselves never identified themselves with the listed tribes. Moreover, the Legs have direct descendants - the Lezgins. According to ancient sources, the Caspians lived on the plains, not in the mountains. In the 6th century, through the North Caucasus, the Avars ("Varkhuns") invaded Europe - a nomadic people from Central Asia, probably of Proto-Mongol-East-Iranian origin, who at an early stage absorbed a certain number of so-called "Sino-Caucasians", (and later Ugrians, Turks), although there is no complete unity on the issue of their ethnogenesis. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, the Eurasian Avars are a people of obscure origin. Apparently, some of them, having settled in Dagestan, gave rise to the state of Sarir or made a significant contribution to its strengthening. The supporters of this "infiltration" point of view on the Avar ethnogenesis and the formation of statehood include: J. Markvart, O. Pritsak, V. F. Minorsky, V. M. Beilis, M. G. Magomedov, A. K. Alikberov, T. M. Aitberov, . The latter believes that the alien ethnic element contributed to the reorganization and consolidation of the Avar people not only by force of arms: “There is reason to believe that the rulers of the pre-Islamic “Avar”, located in the Dagestan mountains, relying, apparently, on their knowledge coming from Asia, understood the significance of a single language within the state formation, claiming to exist for centuries, and, moreover, a specific language, quite isolated from the speech of neighbors. Spending certain and considerable funds, the rulers contributed to its formation and development - at least within the Sulak basin. It is not without interest in this connection that the early medieval Christian propaganda in this territory, which was successfully carried out by the apparatus of the Catholicos of Georgia, was also carried out in the same language for all Avars. Later, in the 12th century, the Arab-Muslim intelligence officer al-Gardizi noted that in southern Dagestan and in the traditionally Dargin zone, contemporary culture developed in several closely related languages, and in the Avaro-Ando-Tsez mountains, where local dialects were and are - in one only Avar. In this circumstance, we see a direct result of the purposeful language policy of the Avar rulers.

Nor does the linguist Harald Haarmann, who also links the Dagestani ethnonym "Avar" with the heritage of the Eurasian Avars ~ Varhonites, see any serious reasons for doubting the correctness of the supporters of the infiltration point of view. The Hungarian archaeologist and historian Istvan Erdeyi, although he approaches this topic with extreme caution, still does not deny the possibility of a connection between the Eurasian Avars and the Caucasian Avars: “... According to ancient authors, among the rulers of the Serir Avars (the ancient name of Dagestan) there was one named Avar. Perhaps the nomads of the Avars, moving west, temporarily stopped in the steppes of Northern Dagestan and politically subjugated or made Serir their ally, the capital of which until the 9th century. was in the village Tanusi (near the modern village of Khunzakh). A similar position is taken by the Dagestan historian Mamaikhan Aglarov. The prominent German researcher Carl Menges considered the Avars to be proto-Mongols, "whose traces" allegedly "are found in Dagestan."

Perhaps the situation with the existence of different "Avars" is somewhat clarified by the statement of G.V. In this case, we are apparently dealing with something like a formidable nickname: “The word“ Avars ”was, first of all, not the name of a certain people, but was the designation of mythical creatures with superhuman abilities. The Slavic designation of the giants "obra" - Avars also allows us to assume this old meaning. The most complete myths related to the Avars are presented by Herodotus. So, it says about one Avar (the Greek form of Herodotus sounds like Abaris) who, with an arrow in his hand, rushed through the countries of the world ...

The Avars have not been sufficiently studied by geneticists to judge how genetically they can be related to the Eurasian Avars. No special archaeological research aimed at searching for the Avar (Varkhun) heritage in Dagestan has yet been carried out by anyone, although archaeologists still found rich military burials of representatives of the Iranian-speaking nomadic world in the high-mountainous Avar village. Bezhta, dated VIII-X centuries. and conditionally classified as "Sarmatians". However, the situation is complicated by the fact that all the artifacts of the excavations of the burial grounds left by the Iranian-speaking nomads on the territory of Avaria receive only a vague definition of "Scythian-Sarmatian". Such sliding characteristics are devoid of specifics and do not contribute in any way to highlighting the actual Avar (Varkhun) contribution to the ethnogenesis and culture of the Avars, if there was, of course, any. The data of genetic and molecular analysis of the maternal line of origin (mtDNA) prove that the genetic distance between the Avars and the Iranians of Tehran, the Iranians of Isfahan is much less significant than between the first and almost all currently studied both Dagestan and Caucasian populations (the only exception - Rutulians). The results of mtDNA analyzes of Avars confirm that Russians, Poles (and even Slavs in general) are genetically closer to Avars than Karachays, Balkars, Azeris, Ingush, Adyghes, Kabardians, Chechens, Circassians, Abkhazians, Georgians, Armenians, Lezgins of Dagestan. At the same time, the indicators of Ossetians, Kurds, Dargins, Spaniards, and Abazins demonstrate a relatively close relationship. The Russians are second only to the Rutuls, the Iranians of Tehran, the Iranians of Isfahan in terms of kinship, and the Lezgins of Dagestan turn out to be a population less related to the Avars than the territorially distant British. Following the Russians (with a slight difference in distance) are again not Caucasian-speaking populations, but Poles and Ossetians-Ardonians.

State formations

Remains of a castle in Hotoda (Gidatl)

The territory inhabited by the Avars was called Sarir (Serir). The first mention of this possession dates back to the 6th century. In the north and northwest, Sarir bordered on the Alans and Khazars. The presence of a common border between Sarir and Alania is also emphasized by al-Masudi. Sarir reached its peak in the 10th-11th centuries, being a major political entity in the North-Eastern Caucasus. Its rulers and the bulk of the population during this period professed Christianity. The Arab geographer and traveler Ibn Ruste (X century) reports that the king of Sarir is called "Avar" (Auhar). From the 10th century there are close contacts between Sarir and Alania, which probably developed on anti-Khazar soil. An agreement was concluded between the rulers of the two countries, and they mutually gave sisters for each other. From the point of view of Muslim geography, Sarir, as a Christian state, was in the orbit of the Byzantine Empire. Al-Istakhri reports: "... The state of Rum includes the limits ... Rus, Sarir, Alan, Arman and all others who profess Christianity." Sarir's relations with the neighboring Islamic emirates of Derbent and Shirvan were tense and were full of frequent conflicts on both sides. However, in the end, Sarir managed to neutralize the danger emanating from there and even interfere in the internal affairs of Derbent, providing support, at his own discretion, to one or another opposition. By the beginning of the 12th century, Sarir, as a result of internal strife, as well as the formation of a broad anti-Christian front in Dagestan, which entailed an economic blockade, fell apart, and Christianity was gradually replaced by Islam. The names of the kings of Sarir that have come down to us, as a rule, are of Syrian-Iranian origin.

The territory of Avaria, unlike the rest of Dagestan, was not affected by the Mongol invasion of the 13th century. During the first campaign of the Mongol detachments led by Jebe and Subudai against Dagestan (1222), the Sarirs took an active part in the struggle against the enemy of the Mongols, the Khorezmshah Jalal ad-Din and his allies, the Kypchaks. The events associated with the second campaign took place as follows: in the spring of 1239, a strong detachment under the command of Bukdai separated from a huge army that was besieging the Alanian capital Magas in the foothills of the Central Caucasus. Having passed Northern and Primorsky Dagestan, he turned into the mountains in the Derbent region and by autumn reached the Agul village of Richa. It was taken and destroyed, as evidenced by the epigraphic monuments of this village. Then the Mongols went into the lands of the Laks and in the spring of 1240 captured their main stronghold - the village of Kumukh. Mohammed Rafi notes that “the inhabitants of Kumukh fought with great courage, and the last defenders of the fortress - 70 young men - died in the Kikuli quarter. Saratan and Kautar devastated Kumukh ... and all the princes of Kumukh, descended from Khamza, scattered to different parts of the world. Further, according to Rashid-ad-Din, it is known that the Mongols reached the "region of Avir" - this is the Avar land. However, there is no information about the hostile actions of the Bukdai Mongols towards the Avars. Mohammed Rafi writes about the alliance between the Mongols and the Avars - "such an alliance was based on friendship, harmony and brotherhood" - reinforced, moreover, by the bonds of dynastic marriages. According to the modern researcher Murad Magomedov, the rulers of the Golden Horde contributed to the expansion of the borders of Avaria, entrusting it with the role of a tribute collector from numerous peoples conquered in the Caucasus: “Initially established peaceful relations between the Mongols and Avaria can also be associated with the historical memory of the Mongols. They obviously had information about the warlike Avar Khaganate, which took shape in the 4th century. on the ancient territory of Mongolia ... Perhaps the consciousness of the unity of the ancestral home of the two peoples determined the loyal attitude of the Mongols towards the Avars, whom they could perceive as ancient tribesmen who found themselves in the Caucasus long before them ... Obviously, the sharp expansion of borders noted in the sources should also be associated with the patronage of the Mongols of the state and the development of economic activity in Avaria ... This can be judged from the messages of Hamdulla Kazvini, who notes the rather extensive size of Avaria at the beginning of the 14th century. (allegedly one month's journey), uniting the plains and mountainous regions.

By 1404, the first reliable mention of the population of Highland Dagestan under the name "Avars" belongs to John de Galonifontibus, who wrote that "Circassians, Leks, Yasses, Alans, Avars, Kazikumukhs" live in the Caucasus. In the testament of the nutsalkhan (that is, the "ruler") of the Avar - Andunik, dated 1485, the latter also uses this term, calling himself "the emir of the Avar vilayat."

In the subsequent period, the ancestors of modern Avars were recorded as part of the Avar and Mekhtuli khanates; some united rural communities (the so-called "free societies") retained a democratic system of government (similar to ancient Greek policies) and independence. Andalal (‘Ẅandalal) and Gidatl (Hid) are known as the most influential “free societies”. At the same time, the Avars had a single legal system. The morale and military training of the representatives of the "free societies" of Avaria were traditionally very high. So, for example, in September 1741, on the territory of Andalal, they, despite the significant numerical and technical superiority of the enemy, managed to inflict a crushing defeat on the Iranian conqueror Nadirshah Afshar, who did not know before the collision with the Avar "jamaats" (that is, "societies") one military failure and at the zenith of its power. After the fighting in the Aimakinsky Gorge, as well as near the villages of Sogratl, Chokh and Oboh, more than 100,000-strong army of Nadir - Russia's ally in the anti-Turkish coalition - thinned to 25-27 thousand, with which the Persian autocrat first retreated to Derbent, and in February 1743 city and generally left the borders of Dagestan. According to a contemporary - a Russian resident at the Persian court I. Kalushkin: "But even ten Persians are unable to stand against one Lezghian (that is, a Dagestanian)."

Expansion of the XVI-XVII centuries.

XVI-XVII centuries characterized by processes of strengthening feudal relations in the Avar nutsalstvo. In territorial terms, it was quite extensive: the southern border ran along the Avar Koisu River, and the northern border reached the Argun River. Using the favorable moment of weakening, and then the collapse of Shamkhalism, the Avar khans subjugated the neighboring rural communities of the Bagvalians, Chamalins, Tindins and others, due to which they significantly expanded their territory. The greatest success in this was achieved by Umma Khan of Avar (nicknamed "The Great"), who ruled in 1774-1801. Under him, nutsalism expanded its borders both by subordinating the Avar "free societies" and by the neighboring Chechen territory (primarily the Cheberloy society). During the reign of Umma Khan, tribute was paid to the Avar Khanate by the Georgian king Erekle II, the Derbent, Cuban, Sheki, Baku, Shirvan khans, as well as the vassal of Turkey, Pasha Akhaltsikhe. During the hostilities, the societies allied with the Khunzakh Khan were obliged to supply the army and provide it with everything necessary. Speaking about Umma Khan, Kovalevsky S. S. notes that he is a man of big enterprises, courage and bravery. His own possession was small, but the influence on the surrounding peoples "is very strong, so that he represents himself, as it were, the ruler of Dagestan." According to Y. Kostenetsky, “The accident not only owned many, now already dependent societies, but was the only sovereign in this part of the mountains, and all neighbors trembled from her khans.”

Joining Russia

In 1803, the Avar Khanate voluntarily became part of the Russian Empire. However, initially, the tsarist administration made a number of serious mistakes and miscalculations. Heavy extortions and taxes, land expropriation, deforestation, construction of fortresses, widespread oppression caused dissatisfaction among the people, first of all, its most freedom-loving and militant part, the “bridles” (that is, “free community members”), who had never before lived under such kind of government. All supporters of Russia were declared by them to be "godless" and "traitors", and the tsarist administration were "leaders of a slave system, humiliating and insulting for true Muslims." On this socio-religious basis in the early 20s of the XIX century. the anti-tsarist movement of the highlanders began under the slogans of Sharia and Muridism. It was headed by an Avar - Mullah Gazi-Mukhammed from the village of Gimry. He, with a small detachment of his followers, introduced Sharia in the Avar villages, often by force of arms. Having organized the Chumgesgen fortified camp at the beginning of 1831, Gazi-Mohammed made a number of campaigns against the Russians. In 1832, he made a successful raid towards Chechnya, as a result of which most of the region went over to his side. Soon, during the battle in his native village, Gazi-Mohammed died.

The second imam was elected Gamzat-bek from the village of Gotsatl, who for two years continued the work of Gazi-Mohammed - "ghazavat" ("holy war"). In 1834, he exterminated the Khan's dynasty, which caused anger among the Khunzakhs. After they killed Gamzat-bek, Shamil was elected imam - a student and associate of Gazi-Mohammed, who led the national liberation movement of the mountaineers for 25 years. All these years, Shamil remained the sole political, military and spiritual leader not only of Avaria, but also of Chechnya. He bore the official title - Imam. In 1842-1845. on the territory of the entire Avaria and Chechnya, Shamil created a military-theocratic state - the imamate, with its own hierarchy, domestic and foreign policy. The entire territory of the imamate was divided into 50 naibs - military-administrative units, headed by naibs appointed by Shamil. Based on the experience of the war, Shamil carried out a military reform. Mobilization was carried out among the male population aged 15 to 50 years, the army was divided into "thousands", "hundreds", "tens". The core of the armed forces was the cavalry, which included the guards of "Murtazeks". The manufacture of artillery pieces, bullets, gunpowder was established. He had the rank of marshal of the Ottoman Empire, and in July 1854 he officially received the title of generalissimo. The long war destroyed the economy, brought huge human and material losses, many villages were destroyed and burned. Shamil had no real help from the Ottoman Empire. It got to the point that, by secret agreement with Russia, those who were ready to go to the Caucasus to Shamil as volunteers were arrested in Turkey. In this regard, Shamil repeatedly spoke extremely negatively about the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and his subjects. He, in view of the relative small number of the Avar and Chechen peoples, tried to find as many allies as possible among fellow Muslims, but was not at all eager to join Turkey. But not only Avars and Chechens participated in the war, but also Tabasarans, Kumyks, Laks, Lezgins, Dargins, and other peoples of Dagestan.

End of holy war

Imam Shamil

Tsarism, however, did not fail to learn from its mistakes and failures and radically changed its tactics, temporarily abandoning the policy of harsh colonial oppression. Under such conditions, Muridist slogans about the need to wage a “holy war” with Russia until the last teenager capable of holding a weapon, regardless of any victims or losses, began to be perceived by the highlanders as extravagant and disastrous. The authority of Shamil and his naibs began to melt. Shamil often had to fight not only with the Russians, but also with his "frondeurs". So, part of the Avars (first of all, the Khunzakhs and Chokhs) fought on the side of Russia in the units of the mountain police and the Dagestan cavalry regiment. After the capitulation of Shamil, all the Avar lands were included in the Dagestan region. In 1864, the Avar Khanate was liquidated, and the Avar District was formed on its territory. In fairness, it should be noted that despite the cruel, inhuman methods of the tsarist command, which they used in the course of suppressing the national liberation movement of the highlanders of Dagestan and Chechnya, tsarist Russia, nevertheless, as far as possible, in general, did not touch the national-religious the traditions of these peoples. In relation to the Avars in Dagestan, there are numerous facts indicating that they were endowed with such benefits and privileges that even the vast majority of the Russians themselves were deprived of. In particular, this concerns the rapid provision of high military awards, noble ranks, and officer ranks. The captive Shamil was given maximum honors by the king. The tsarist administration and Russian military leaders spoke highly of Shamil as a courageous and decent person, emphasizing his outstanding talent as a commander and politician. Under Emperor Alexander II, the Avars were part of the Life Guards units of the royal escort, including guard duty in the royal chambers of the royal family.

By the beginning of the Caucasian War, about 200 thousand Avars lived in Dagestan, and more than 150 thousand Chechens lived in Chechnya. The wars with the Russian Empire led to the fact that less than half of the Avars and Chechens remained by the end of the Caucasian War. In 1897, 18 years after the end of the war, the number of Avars reached only 158.6 thousand people. In 1926, there were 184.7 thousand Avars in Dagestan. One of the consequences of the Caucasian War was also the emigration of Dagestanis to the Ottoman Empire. At first, the tsarist administration even encouraged this phenomenon, but after the emigration began from year to year to acquire the character of a mass and even - complete - exodus of the Avar people to Turkey, they began to hastily prevent it. On the one hand, tsarism could not populate the Avar mountains with Cossacks, and on the other hand, it witnessed the use of the North Caucasian ethnic element by the Ottoman Empire as shock military formations against its internal and external enemies.

As part of the USSR

In 1921, the Dagestan ASSR was formed. In the late 1920s, collectivization and industrialization began on the lands inhabited by Avars.

In 1928, the Avar alphabet was created on a Latin basis (translated into Cyrillic in 1938). Numerous Avar schools were opened, the language began to be taught in universities, and a national secular intelligentsia appeared.

In the 1940s-1960s, many Avars moved from the highlands to the plains.

Culture and customs

traditional way of life

The social organization of the people was based on the rural community, which consisted of consanguineous associations - tukhums; community members were private owners, but at the same time co-owners of community property (pastures, forests, etc.). The average community included 110-120 households. The head of the community was an elder (since the end of the 19th century - a foreman), who was elected at a village meeting (jamaat) by the entire male population over 15 years old. By the end of the 19th century, the role of rural communities in the life of the Avars had noticeably decreased; the foremen were under strong pressure from the Russian authorities.

The traditional settlement of the Avars is a fortress, consisting of houses tightly adjacent to each other (stone, with a flat roof, usually two or three stories) and combat towers. All settlements are oriented to the south. In the center of the settlements, a square was usually arranged, which was a place of public gathering; here, as a rule, a mosque was located. The life of an Avar family almost always proceeded in one room, which was much larger in comparison with other rooms. The most important element of the room was the hearth, located in its center. The decoration of the room was also a pillar with an ornament. Currently, the interior of the dwellings of the Avars is close to city apartments.

Avar complex spiral swastika. stone carving

The most popular and typically Avar symbols in Dagestan are swastikas, primarily spiral-shaped and with rounded curved edges, as well as Maltese crosses, labyrinths found in large numbers on carved stones, antique carpets and women's jewelry. It is also worth mentioning that the Khunzakh khans often used the image of a “wolf with a standard” as a state emblem (including on banners), and the Andians used an “eagle with a saber”.

Avars are engaged in animal husbandry (on the plains - cattle breeding, in the mountains - sheep breeding), field farming (terraced agriculture is developed in the mountains; rye, wheat, barley, oats, millet, pumpkin, etc. are grown), gardening (apricots, peaches, plums, cherry plums and etc.) and viticulture; carpet weaving, cloth-making, leather processing, chasing on copper, carving on stone and wood have long been developed. By the end of the 20th century, the zonal specialization of agriculture increased; Thus, in the mountains, the importance of agriculture fell. Avars are also employed in industry and services.

Swastika and crosses of the Maltese type from Avaria. Stone carving.

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Avars who are Avars Wikipedia
avaral, magiarulal

Number and range

Total: over 1 million people
Russia, Russia
912 090(2010)
(+168 people with the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol)

- Dagestan Dagestan 850 011 (2010)
  - Makhachkala: 186 088
  - Botlikh region: 51 636
  - Kizilyurtovsky district: 51,599
  - Khasavyurtovsky district: 44 360
  - Khasavyurt: 40 226
  - Kazbekovsky district: 36,714
  - Kizlyar district: 31,371
  - Kizilyurt: 31 149
  - Khunzakh district: 30 891
  - Untsukulsky district: 28 799
  - Buynaksk: 28,674
  - Shamil district: 27 744
  - Gunibsky district: 24 381
  - Tsumadinsky district: 23 085
  - Akhvakhsky district: 21 876
  - Tlyaratinsky district: 21 820
  - Gumbetovsky district: 21 746
  - Gergebil region: 19 760
  - Tsuntinsky district: 18 177
  - Buynaksky district: 17,254
  - Levashinsky district: 15 845
  - Kaspiysk: 14,651
  - Charodinsky district: 11 459
  - Kizlyar: 10 391

- Stavropol Territory Stavropol Territory 9 009 (2010)
- Moscow Moscow 5 049 (2010)
- Chechnya Chechnya 4 864 (2010)
- Astrakhan region Astrakhan region 4,719 (2010)
- Rostov region Rostov region 4 038 (2002)
- Kalmykia Kalmykia 2 396 (2010)

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan
49 800 (2009)

Zaqatala region: 25,578 (2009)
Belokanskiy district: 23 874 (2009)

Georgia Georgia
1 996 (2002)

- Kakheti
  1 900 (2002)
  - Kvareli municipality
    1 900 (2002)

Turkey Turkey
53 000

Ukraine Ukraine
1 496 (2001)

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan
1 206 (2009)

Language

Avar language

Religion

Islam (Sunni)

Racial type

Caucasoids

Included in

caucasian family,
North Caucasian family,
Nakh-Dagestan group,
Avaro-Ando-Tsez branch,
Avaro-Andean sub-branch

Avars(Avar. Avaral, MagIarulal) - one of the many indigenous peoples of the Caucasus, historically living in mountainous Dagestan, eastern Georgia and Northern Azerbaijan, the most numerous people of modern Dagestan.

The Avars include the Ando-Tsez peoples related to them, as well as the Archins.

1 Ethnonym
2 Population and settlement
3 Anthropology
4 Language
5 Religion
6 Origins and history
- 6.1 Huns - Caucasian Huns of the "Land of the Throne"
- 6.2 State entities
  - 6.2.1 From the Mongols to the wars with the Persians
- 6.3 Coat of arms of the Avar Khanate
  - 6.3.1 Comparison to a wolf as a compliment
- 6.4 Expansion of the 16th-17th centuries
  - 6.4.1 Relations with Chechens
- 6.5 Caucasian War and Shamil's Imamat
- 6.6 End of the holy war
- 6.7 composition of the USSR
7 Culture and customs
- 7.1 Traditional way of life
- 7.2 Traditional dress
8 Avar cuisine
9 Notes
10 Literature
- 10.1 References
11 Links

Ethnonym

There are several versions about the origin of the ethnonym Avar. The vast majority of scientists, in particular J. Markvart, O. Pritsak, V. F. Minorsky, V. M. Beilis, S. E. Tsvetkov, M. G. Magomedov, A. K. Alikberov, T. M. Aitberov and others, call the ancestors of the modern Avars the ancient Avars, arguing that the latter had a great influence on the ethnogenesis of the Avar people.

In the pre-revolutionary period, the modern name of the people was used occasionally, the designation "Avar" dominated in literature. The Encyclopedia of Efron and Brockhaus, speaking about the inhabitants of the Avar district, writes that these lands, due to "the advantage of the Avars, or Avars, one of the Lezghin tribes, once, especially in the 18th century, were very strong, intimidating their neighbors. Apparently, over time, the Avars transformed into Avars, which is very typical for the Russian language.In many countries, due to the absence of the prefix "ets" in their languages, Avars are distinguished into Eurasian and Caucasian.

According to another version, the name of this people was given by the Turks, from whom the Russians adopted it. The Turkic words "Avar", "Avarala" mean "restless", "anxious", "warlike", etc. There is also an assumption that the Avars got their name from the name of the king of the medieval Avar state - Sarir, whose name was "Avar".

Until the beginning of the 20th century, the Avars were also known as Tavlins and Lezgins. Vasily Potto writes that the Avar tribe:

Calling himself by the common name maarulal, but known to his neighbors under names alien to himself, either Tavlins or in the south; on the other side of the mountains, in Georgia, - Lezgins.

The ethnonym "Lezgins", in addition to the Avars, denoted the entire mountain population of Dagestan. Some contemporary sources believe that this designation was erroneous. From the 20s. XX century, the general Dagestan ethnonym passed to the Kyurints - residents of South-Eastern Dagestan.

Number and settlement

They inhabit most of the mountainous territory of Dagestan, and partly also the plains (Buinaksky, Khasavyurtovsky, Kizilyurtovsky and other regions). In addition to Dagestan, they live in Chechnya, Kalmykia and other subjects of the Russian Federation (912,090 people in total). The main area of \u200b\u200bsettlement of the Avars in Dagestan is the basins of the Avar-or (Avar Koysu), Andi-or (Andiyskoye Koysu) and Cheer-or (Kara-Koysu) rivers. 28% of Avars live in cities (2002).

Avars also live in Azerbaijan, mainly in the Belokan, Zakatala regions, as well as in Baku, where, according to the 1999 census, their total number was 49.8 thousand people.

“The question of the size of the Avar diaspora outside of Russia was forced to state with annoyance in 2005 the Dagestani scientist B. M. Ataev was very difficult and controversial today,” he said. This is primarily due to the fact that in their countries of residence, for political and other reasons, population censuses are not conducted indicating nationality. Therefore, the data given in various sources on the number of descendants of the Avars are very approximate, in particular, in the Republic of Turkey. But if we take into account the statements of the Dagestan orientalist A. M. Magomeddadaev, that “in the territory of modern Turkey by the 1920s. 20th century there were more than 30 Dagestan villages, 2/3 of which consisted of Avars "and," according to the old-timers of Dagestan living in this country, there are currently no more than 80 thousand Dagestanis here, "then by simple calculations you can deduce the number of descendants of the Avars, currently living in the Republic of Turkey - over 53 thousand people.

Thus, the largest Avar diaspora outside the borders of the former USSR and, probably, outside Russia in general, is represented in Turkey. At the same time, it should be noted that small islands of the descendants of the Avar "Muhajirs" of the former Ottoman Empire were also recorded in Syria and Jordan, where, due to their small number, they experienced a strong cultural and linguistic influence of both the local Arab population and other North Caucasians, mainly Adygs and Chechens. As the author of the two-volume monograph “Emigration of Dagestanis to the Ottoman Empire” Amirkhan Magomeddadaev testifies: “Representatives of the North Caucasian, and in particular the Dagestan diaspora have played and are playing a significant role in the socio-economic and socio-political, spiritual and ethnic life of Turkey, Jordan and Syria ... Speaking of modern Turkey, it is enough, in our opinion, to point out that the Minister of State Security of the Republic of Turkey in the government of Tansu Çiller was Mehmet Gölhan, a descendant of the Muhajirs from the village of Kuletsma, or Abdulhalim Mentesh, the commander of the air regiment who suppressed the coup attempt in 1960 in Turkey.

Areas of historical residence of the Avars in Dagestan:

Avar Koysu

Ahvakhsky,
Gergebilsky,
Gumbetovsky,
Gunibsky,
Kazbekovsky,
Tlyaratinskiy,
Untsukulsky,
Khunzakhsky,
Charodinsky,
Shamilsky.

Anthropology

Fragment of a tombstone of the 20th century (Gunib district, Sekh farm)

The Caucasian type is considered by some scientists to be the end result of the transformation of the Caspian type in conditions of high-mountain isolation. In their opinion, the formation of the Caucasian type in Dagestan dates back to the 14th century BC. e. Considering the problem of the origin of the Caucasian type, academician V.P. Alekseev noted: “Theoretical disputes around the problem of the origin of this type led to a more or less unambiguous solution of the issue in the composition of the local population of the central foothill Caucasian ridge no later than in the Bronze Age, or maybe and earlier." However, there is another, more justified and widespread point of view, according to which the Caspian anthropological type is not directly related to the Caucasian, being somewhat depigmented as a result of mixing with the Caucasians, an offshoot of the Indo-Pamir race. It should be emphasized that from the Caspian coast along the plain and foothill regions of Dagestan and only along the Samur and Chirakh-Chay valleys, representatives of this group penetrated high into the mountains.

Avar crosses and spiral swastika. stone carving

Despite all its originality, outside the Caucasus, the Dinaric anthropological type of the Balkan-Caucasian race, which is characteristic primarily of Croats and Montenegrins, is closest to the Caucasians.

The anthropological type closest to the "classic" Cro-Magnon is usually associated with the spread of the Corded Ware culture. The latter is often regarded as the original Indo-European. In the late Neolithic and Bronze Ages, Corded Ware cultures are localized over large expanses of the north-west of the European coast and the Baltic states, in Nadporozhye and the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov, as well as in some areas of Central Europe, where it comes into contact with the culture of Corded Ware. In the II millennium BC. e. an offshoot of this culture extends to the Upper Volga (Fatyanovo culture). On this occasion, A. G. Kuzmin writes the following: “It was the main anthropological type of the population associated with the Corded Ware cultures that puzzled anthropologists with the extremely wide geography of its distribution, especially since the Caucasus (Caucasian population group) and the Balkans must also be added to the above areas. (Dinaric type in the region of Albania and Montenegro). There are various explanations for this similarity in the literature. One of the pillars of German nationalist archeology, G. Kossin, wrote about the “Germanic” expansion from the north up to the Caucasus. In addition to German archaeologists, this point of view was supported by the Swedish scientist N. Oberg and the Finnish A.M. Thalgren. our literature rightly pointed out the unscientific basis of Kossina's concept. But the problem itself exists, and relatively recently this issue was raised again, and the opinion about the migration of the population from the north-west of Europe to the Caucasus was also supported by some domestic scientists. With regard to the Caucasus, this opinion was challenged by V.P. Alekseev. Recognizing that "the similarity of the Caucasian type with the anthropological type of the population of Eastern Europe and Scandinavia ... undoubtedly", he explained it by the uneven evolution of the same Paleolithic ancestor, that is, he moved the common source deeper. At the same time, he admits a direct relationship between the Caucasian and Dinaric types.

Language

Main articles: Avar language, Avar alphabet Distribution map of the Avar language (Av., Latin). Zhirkov L. I. 1934

The Avar language belongs to the Nakh-Dagestan group of the North Caucasian family, has dialects subdivided into northern and southern groups (dialects), which partly reflects the former division of Avaria into the Khunzakh Khanate and "Free Societies". the first includes Salatav, Khunzakh and Eastern, the second - Gidatli, Antsukh, Zakatal, Karakh, Andalal, Kakhib and Kusur; the intermediate position is occupied by the Batlukh dialect. There are phonetic, morphological and lexical differences between individual dialects and dialect groups as a whole. The Ando-Cesian languages are related to the Avar language. According to I. M. Dyakonov, Avar (together with other languages of the Nakh-Dagestan group) is a living continuation of the ancient Alarodian language world, which included such now dead languages as Caucasian-Albanian (Agvanian), Hurrian, Urartian, Gutian

The Avars of the Khasavyurt and Buynak regions of Dagestan, as a rule, are fluent in the Kumyk language. The ability to speak and understand Turkic among the Avars can be traced, in part, outside these areas, since the Turkic language in the lowland Dagestan for many centuries acted as an intermediary language. Ethnic Avars living in Turkey and Azerbaijan speak, respectively, Turkish and Azerbaijani at the native level.

Writing until 1927 was based on the Arabic script (ajam), in 1927-1938. - in Latin.

There were national schools in Dagestan. From 1938 to 1955, education in the schools of Western Dagestan up to the 5th grade was conducted in the Avar language, and in the senior classes in Russian. From the 6th grade, the Avar ("native") language and literature were studied as separate subjects. In the 1955-56 academic year, teaching in the schools of the Accident from the 1st grade was translated into the Avar language. From the 1964-65 academic year, all urban national schools in the republic were closed. Currently, on the territory of Dagestan, schooling among Avars up to the third grade is conducted in Arabic, then in Avar. But this applies only to rural schools with a mono-ethnic population, while in cities teaching is conducted mainly in Russian. According to the constitution of Dagestan, the Avar language in Dagestan, along with other national languages, has the status of "state"

Since 2002, the North Caucasian studio of the American radio station Liberty/Free Europe, funded by the US Congress, has been broadcasting daily in Avar from Prague.

Religion

The vast majority of believing Avars are Sunni Muslims of the Shafi'i persuasion. However, as is known from numerous sources, the Avar state Sarir (VI-XIII centuries) was predominantly Christian (Orthodox). the mountains of Avaria still have ruins. An attraction is the Datuna mosque in the village of Datuna (Shamil district), built in the 10th century. Near the villages of Urada, Tidib, Khunzakh, Galla, Tindi, Kvanada, Rugudzha and others, archaeologists discovered typical Muslim burial grounds of the 8th-10th centuries. Beginning in the middle of the 7th century the first steps on the territory of Dagestan, in the region of Derbent, the Islamic religion slowly but systematically expanded its area of influence, covering one possession after another, until it penetrated into the 15th century. to the most remote regions of Dagestan.

According to historical legends, some insignificant part of the Avars before converting to Islam. Dagestan scientists regard these vague and fragmentary information as echoes of memories of long-term contacts with the Khazars. Among the samples of stone carvings in Avaria, one can occasionally find “stars of David”, which, however, cannot serve as evidence in favor of the fact that the mentioned images were made by the Jews.

Origin and history

Main article: Sarir

Hunz - Caucasian Huns of the "Land of the Throne"

A wolf with a standard is a symbol of the Avar khans on the cover of a book on Caucasian mythology. Coat of arms of Avaria/Leketi.

There is an opinion in the literature that the Avars descended from the Legs, Gels and Caspians, however, these statements are speculative. Neither in the Avar language nor in the Avar toponymy are there any lexemes that could be linked with the Legs, Gels or Caspians, and the Avars themselves never identified themselves with the listed tribes. According to ancient sources, the Caspians lived on the plains, not in the mountains. In the 6th century, the Avars (“Varkhuns”) invaded Europe through the North Caucasus - a nomadic people from Central Asia, probably of Proto-Mongol-East-Iranian origin, who at an early stage absorbed a certain number of so-called “Sino-Caucasians”, ( and later - Ugrians and Turks), although there is no complete unity on the issue of their ethnogenesis. According to the British Encyclopedia, the Eurasian Avars are a people of ancient origin. Apparently, some of them, having settled in Dagestan, gave rise to the state of Sarir or made a significant contribution to its strengthening. The supporters of this "infiltration" point of view on the Avar ethnogenesis and the formation of statehood include: J. Markvart, O. Pritsak, V. F. Minorsky, V. M. Beilis, M. G. Magomedov, A. K. Alikberov, T. M. Aitberov. The latter believes that the alien ethnic element contributed to the reorganization and consolidation of the Avar people not only by force of arms: “There is reason to believe that the rulers of the pre-Islamic “Avar”, located in the Dagestan mountains, relying, apparently, on their knowledge coming from Asia, understood the significance of a single language within the state formation, claiming to exist for centuries, and, moreover, a specific language, quite isolated from the speech of neighbors. Spending certain and considerable funds, the rulers contributed to its formation and development - at least within the Sulak basin. It is not without interest in this connection that the early medieval Christian propaganda in this territory, which was successfully carried out by the apparatus of the Catholicos of Georgia, was also carried out in the same language for all Avars. Later, in the 12th century, the Arab-Muslim intelligence officer al-Gardizi noted that in southern Dagestan and in the traditionally Dargin zone, contemporary culture developed in several closely related languages, and in the Avaro-Ando-Tsez mountains, where local dialects were and are - in one only Avar. In this circumstance, we see a direct result of the purposeful language policy of the Avar rulers.

Nor does the linguist Harald Haarmann, who also links the Dagestani ethnonym "Avar" with the heritage of the Eurasian Avars ~ Varhonites, see any serious reasons for doubting the correctness of the supporters of the infiltration point of view. The Hungarian archaeologist and historian Istvan Erdelyi (the erroneous transcription - “Erdeli” is common in Russian literature), although he approaches this topic with extreme caution, still does not deny the possibility of a connection between the Eurasian Avars and the Caucasian Avars: “... According to the ancient According to the authors, among the rulers of the Avars of Serir (the ancient name of Dagestan) there was one named Avar. Perhaps the nomads of the Avars, moving west, temporarily stopped in the steppes of Northern Dagestan and politically subjugated or made Serir their ally, the capital of which until the 9th century. was in the village Tanusi (near the modern village of Khunzakh). A similar position is taken by the Dagestan historian Mamaikhan Aglarov. The prominent German researcher Carl Menges considered the Avars to be the most ancient Kollontai proto-Mongols, “whose traces”, supposedly, “are found in Dagestan”.

Perhaps the situation with the existence of different "Avars" is somewhat clarified by the statement of Haussig G.V., who believed that the tribes "Uar" and "Huni" should be considered real Avars, but as for the name "Avar" among other peoples, then in in this case, we are apparently dealing with something like a formidable nickname: "The word" Avars "was, first of all, not the name of a certain people, but was the designation of mythical creatures with superhuman abilities. The Slavic designation of the giants" obra "- Avars for so long terrified both Western and Eastern Europe.

Avars have not been sufficiently studied by geneticists (the data presented on the paternal line - Y-DNA vary significantly from one study to another) to judge how they can be genetically related to the Eurasian Avars. No special archaeological research aimed at searching for the Avar (Varkhun) heritage in Dagestan has yet been carried out by anyone, although archaeologists still found rich military burials of representatives of the Iranian-speaking nomadic world in the high-mountainous Avar village. Bezhta, dated VIII-X centuries. and conditionally classified as "Sarmatians". However, the situation is complicated by the fact that all the artifacts of the excavations of the burial grounds left by the Iranian-speaking nomads on the territory of Avaria receive only a vague definition of "Scythian-Sarmatian". Such sliding characteristics are devoid of specifics and do not contribute in any way to highlighting the actual Avar (Varkhun) contribution to the ethnogenesis and culture of the Avars, if there was, of course, any. The data of genetic and molecular analysis of the maternal line of origin (mtDNA) prove that the genetic distance between the Avars and the Iranians of Tehran, the Iranians of Isfahan is much less significant than between the first and almost all currently studied both Dagestan and Caucasian populations (the only exception - Rutulians). The results of mtDNA analyzes of the Avars confirm that the Poles are genetically closer to the Avars than the Karachays, Balkars, Azeris, Ingush, Adyghe, Kabardians, Circassians, Abkhazians, Georgians, Armenians, Lezgins of Dagestan (I. Nasidze, E. Y. S Ling et al. Mithochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome Variation in the Caucasus 2004). At the same time, the indicators of Ossetians, Chechens, Kurds, Dargins, Abazins demonstrate a relatively close relationship. The Poles in terms of kinship are second only to the Rutulians, the Iranians of Tehran, the Iranians of Isfahan. Following the Russians (with a slight difference in distance) are again not Caucasian-speaking populations, but Poles and Ossetians-Ardonians.

State formations

Sarir reached its peak in the 10th-11th centuries, being a major political entity in the North-Eastern Caucasus. During the reign of Surakat I, Sarir was subject to all peoples from Shemakha to Kabarda, including Tusheti and Chechens. So, according to the notes of the Imperial Geographical Society,

The Avar Nutsal Surakat ruled over the peoples from Shemakha to Kabarda, and the Chechens and Tushes were in absolute dependence on him.

Its rulers and the bulk of the population during this period professed Christianity. The Arab geographer and traveler Ibn Ruste (X century) reports that the king of Sarir is called "Avar" (Auhar). From the 10th century there are close contacts between Sarir and Alania, which probably developed on anti-Khazar soil. An agreement was concluded between the rulers of the two countries, and they mutually gave sisters for each other. From the point of view of Muslim geography, Sarir, as a Christian state, was in the orbit of the Byzantine Empire. Al-Istakhri reports: "... The state of Rum includes the limits ... Rus, Sarir, Alan, Arman and all others who profess Christianity." Sarir's relations with the neighboring Islamic emirates of Derbent and Shirvan were tense and were full of frequent conflicts on both sides. However, in the end, Sarir managed to neutralize the danger emanating from there and even interfere in the internal affairs of Derbent, providing support, at his own discretion, to one or another opposition. By the beginning of the 12th century, Sarir, as a result of internal strife, as well as the formation of a broad anti-Christian front in Dagestan, which entailed an economic blockade, fell apart, and Christianity was gradually replaced by Islam. The names of the kings of Sarir that have come down to us, as a rule, are of Syrian-Iranian origin.

From the Mongols to the wars with the Persians

The territory of Avaria and the western Dargin territories, unlike the rest of Dagestan, were not affected by the Mongol invasion of the 13th century. During the period of the first campaign of the Mongol detachments led by Jebe and Subudai to Dagestan (1222), the Sarirs took an active part in the struggle against the enemy of the Mongols Khorezmshah Jelal ad-Din and his allies - the Kypchaks. The events associated with the second campaign took place as follows: in the spring of 1239, a strong detachment under the command of Bukdai separated from a huge army that was besieging the Alanian capital Magas in the foothills of the Central Caucasus. Having passed Northern and Primorsky Dagestan, he turned into the mountains in the Derbent region and by autumn reached the Agul village of Richa. It was taken and destroyed, as evidenced by the epigraphic monuments of this village. Then the Mongols went into the lands of the Laks and in the spring of 1240 captured their main stronghold - the village of Kumukh. Mohammed Rafi notes that “the inhabitants of Kumukh fought with great courage, and the last defenders of the fortress - 70 young men - died in the Kikuli quarter. Saratan and Kautar devastated Kumukh ... and all the princes of Kumukh, descended from Khamza, scattered to different parts of the world. Further, according to Rashid-ad-Din, it is known that the Mongols reached the "region of Avir" - this is the Avar land. However, there is no information about the hostile actions of the Bukdai Mongols towards the Avars.

In the autumn of 1242, the Mongols undertook a new campaign in Mountainous Dagestan. Apparently, they got there through Georgia. However, the path to the conquerors was blocked by the Avars, led by the Avar Khan. All attempts by the Mongols to conquer Avaria were unsuccessful. Mohammed Rafi writes about the alliance between the Mongols and the Avars - "such an alliance was based on friendship, harmony and brotherhood" - reinforced, moreover, by the bonds of dynastic marriages. According to the modern researcher Murad Magomedov, the rulers of the Golden Horde contributed to the expansion of the borders of Avaria, entrusting it with the role of a tribute collector from numerous peoples conquered in the Caucasus: “Initially established peaceful relations between the Mongols and Avaria can also be associated with the historical memory of the Mongols. They obviously had information about the warlike Avar Khaganate, which took shape in the 4th century. on the ancient territory of Mongolia ... Perhaps the consciousness of the unity of the ancestral home of the two peoples determined the loyal attitude of the Mongols towards the Avars, whom they could perceive as ancient tribesmen who found themselves in the Caucasus long before them ... Obviously, the sharp expansion of borders noted in the sources should also be associated with the patronage of the Mongols of the state and the development of economic activity in Avaria ... This can be judged from the messages of Hamdulla Kazvini, who notes the rather extensive size of Avaria at the beginning of the 14th century. (allegedly one month's journey), uniting the plains and mountainous regions.

By 1404, the first reliable mention of the population of Highland Dagestan under the name "Avars" belongs to John de Galonifontibus, who wrote that "Circassians, Leks, Yasses, Alans, Avars, Kazikumukhs" live in the Caucasus. testament of the nutsalkhan (that is, the "ruler") of the Avar - Andunik, dated 1485, the latter also uses this term, calling himself "the emir of the Avar vilayat."

In the subsequent period, the ancestors of modern Avars were recorded as part of the Avar and Mekhtuli khanates; some united rural communities (the so-called "free societies") retained a democratic system of government (similar to ancient Greek policies) and independence. In the South Caucasus, the so-called Dzhar Republic, a state formation of the Transcaucasian Avars in alliance with the Tsakhurs, had such a status. In Dagestan, the most famous republics were Andalal (Avar. - "Ẅandalal), Ankratl (Avar. - Ankrak) and Gidatl (Avar. - Gyid). At the same time, the Avars had a single legal system. Morale and military training of representatives of the republics -" free societies "Accidents were traditionally very high. For example, in September 1741, on the territory of Andalal, they, with the support of the Dargin and Lak detachments, despite the significant numerical and technical superiority of the enemy, managed to inflict a crushing defeat on the Iranian conqueror Nadirshah Afshar, who did not know before clashes with the Avar "jamaats" (that is, "societies") not a single military failure and was at the zenith of its power.

Military clashes between the Avars and the Persians began in the 30s. XVIII century. The Persians repeatedly made attempts to subdue the highlanders of Dagestan, but none of them were successful. one of these expeditions, undertaken in the autumn of 1738, near the Avar village of Jar, the 32,000th detachment of Nadir Shah's brother Ibrahim Khan was defeated, he himself was killed. In this battle, the Persians lost about 24 thousand people killed. Thirsty for revenge for his brother, the Shah moved an army of 100,000 to Dagestan. Dagestan, Khasbulat Tarkovsky and Mehti Khan joined him. Encountering the resistance of local peoples here, Nadir Shah responded with atrocities: he burned entire villages, exterminated the population, etc. Having conquered all the peoples on his way, the shah entered into an accident. As the English historian L. Lockhart rightly noted:

As long as Avaria remained unconquered, the key to Dagestan was out of Nadir Shah's reach.

After the fighting in the Aimakinsky Gorge, as well as near the villages of Sogratl, Chokh and Oboh, more than 100,000-strong army of Nadir - Russia's ally in the anti-Turkish coalition - thinned to 25-27 thousand, with which the Persian autocrat first retreated to Derbent, and in February 1743 city and generally left the borders of Dagestan. According to a contemporary - a Russian resident at the Persian court I. Kalushkin: "But even ten Persians are unable to stand against one Lezghian (that is, a Dagestanian)."

The remnants of the Persian army scattered across Dagestan and Chechnya. The 19th-century Chechen ethnographer Umalat Laudaev reports this:

The Persians, defeated by the Avars under Nadir Shah, scattered throughout Dagestan, some of them settled among the Chechens.

Coat of arms of the Avar Khanate

Coat of arms of the Avar khans (according to the Georgian historian and traveler Vakhushti Bagrationi, XVIII century)

The Institute of Ancient Manuscripts of the Academy of Sciences of Georgia named after K. Kekelidze has a map of Georgia (1735), known as the "Map of the Iberian Kingdom or All Georgia", which depicts 16 "coats of arms" and "signs" of the lands that make up Georgia, individual Georgian principalities and historical regions (Georgia, Kartli, Kakheti, Imereti, Odishi, Guria, Samtskhe, Svaneti, Abkhazeti, Osseti, Somkhiti, Shirvan, etc.), including Dagestan.

The author of the map is Prince Vakhushti Bagrationi (1696, Tbilisi - 1757, Moscow), the son of Vakhtang VI Bagrationi, King of Kartli, a well-known Georgian historian, geographer and cartographer. He received a traditional spiritual and secular education at his father's court, studied Latin and European languages, mathematics, astronomy, history, geography and other sciences from Catholic missionaries, and traveled a lot. In 1724, due to the difficult political situation that had developed in the country, Vakhushti Bagrationi was forced to emigrate to Russia together with the large retinue of Tsar Vakhtang VI, where he continued his scientific activities in Moscow. Along with Mikhail Lomonosov, Vakhushti Bagrationi was considered one of the founders of Moscow University (until the beginning of the 20th century, his name was indicated on a memorial plaque on the wall of the university building).

The main fundamental work of Vakhushti, written in Moscow in 1742-1745 on the basis of previously collected materials, is the "History of Ancient Georgia" and the "Description of the Kingdom of Georgia" attached to it, including historical events "from the creation of the world" to 1745 and a detailed description of geography countries. As an appendix to his work, Vakhushti compiled a geographical atlas with 22 maps. These maps were copied and translated into Russian and French back in the 1730s. The Vakhushti map was published in French translation in 1766 in Paris, and Russian copies were kept in the Handwritten Book Department of the Library of the Academy of Sciences.

Vakhushti compiled two atlases: "Kazan" in 1735 and "Petersburg" with clarifications and additions in 1742-1743. For the first time, both atlases were published in 1997, on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the birth of the scientist, by the Georgian Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Geography. Vakhushti Bagrationi in the publication “Vakhushti Bagrationi. Atlas of Georgia, 18th century” (Tbilisi). Unfortunately, this event went unnoticed in Dagestan, although the Atlas of Vakhushti contains unique material on the historical geography of the Northeast Caucasus.

We are interested in the first atlas of Vakhushti, which contains the so-called "General Map of Georgia". Academician M. Brosse wrote about this map back in 1852: “... five sheets of the eight-sheet Russian atlas of Transcaucasia, also compiled by Tsarevich Vakhusht, have been preserved in the library of Kazan University. These maps entered the aforementioned library in 1807, among other books that once belonged to Prince G. A. Potemkin-Tauride... cards. This calculation ends with the words: “by me (described) with hasty hunting. Your servant is the royal Vakhushti. The coats of arms or badges of all those parts are displayed separately above. Jan 1735 22". Indeed, 16 emblems of all parts of the former Georgian kingdom are depicted on the same map.

Vakhushti calls the images on his map “coats of arms” or “signs”, among these traditional symbolic designations the Dagestan coat of arms is also known: a wolf running out from behind the mountain ranges is depicted on a light green cloth (part of its body is hidden between the mountains), between the front paws which has a flagpole with a pommel. Above the coat of arms there is an inscription in Georgian: “lekIisa dagistanis”, that is, “(coat of arms) of the leks of Dagestan”.

Comparison with a wolf as a compliment

If we talk about the wolf as the central plot of the coat of arms, then it should be noted that this animal was traditionally used by the Avars and some other peoples of Dagestan (far from all) as a symbol of courage and courage. G. F. Chursin, in his work on the ethnography of the Avars, writes that the courage and courage with which the wolf makes its predatory raids “gave rise to respect for him among the Avars, a kind of cult. "The wolf is God's watchman," say the Avars. He has no herds, no bins, he earns his livelihood with his prowess. Respecting the wolf for its strength, courage and bravery, people naturally attribute magical properties to various parts of the wolf's body. For example, a wolf's heart is boiled and given to a boy to eat so that a strong, warlike man comes out of him. P.K. Uslar, in a brief dictionary to his work on the Avar language, gives the following explanation of the perception of the wolf among the Avars: “Any likening to a wolf among the highlanders is considered praise, just like we have likening to a lion.” In the same place, he gives five expressions-comparisons with a wolf, which have the character of a compliment in everyday Avar speech (wolf disposition, short-eared wolf, etc.). At the same time, the wolf, even among the Avars themselves, did not enjoy such reverence everywhere, part of the Western Avarian societies used an eagle in this role, and part - a bear. The cult of the wolf by the same Chursin was noted especially in the central Avar regions.

Expansion of the XVI-XVII centuries.

XVI-XVII centuries characterized by processes of strengthening feudal relations in the Avar nutsalstvo. territorially, it was quite extensive: the southern border ran along the Avar Koisu River, and the northern border reached the Argun River. During this period, intensive migration of Avars to Djaro-Belokany continued. Using the favorable moment of weakening, and then the collapse of Shamkhalism, the Avar khans subjugated the neighboring rural communities of the Bagvalians, Chamalins, Tindins and others, due to which they significantly expanded their territory. The greatest success in this was achieved by Umma Khan of Avar (nicknamed "The Great"), who ruled in 1774-1801. Under him, nutsalism expanded its borders both by subordinating the Avar "free societies" and by the neighboring Chechen territory (primarily the Cheberloy society). Umma Khan was paid tribute by the Georgian king Erekle II, the Derbent, Cuban, Sheki, Baku, Shirvan khans, the vassal of Turkey - Akhaltsikhe Pasha, as well as the Ichkerin and Aukh Chechens. During the hostilities, the societies allied with the Khunzakh Khan were obliged to supply the army and provide it with everything necessary. Speaking about Umma Khan, Kovalevsky S. S. notes that he is a man of big enterprises, courage and bravery. His own possession was small, but the influence on the surrounding peoples "is very strong, so that he represents himself, as it were, the ruler of Dagestan." Describing Umma Khan, Lieutenant Colonel of the General Staff of the Russian Army Neverovsky writes,

That not a single ruling person in Dagestan reached such a degree of power as Omar Khan of Avar. And if the Kazikumyks are proud of their Surkhay-Khan, then the Avars, always the strongest tribe in the mountains, have even more right to remember with pride about Omar-Khan, who was really a thunderstorm for the whole of Transcaucasia.

According to Ya. Kostenetsky,

The accident was once the strongest society in the mountains of Lezgistan - the khanate. She not only owned many societies, now independent of her, but she was almost the only sovereign in this part of the mountains, and all her neighbors trembled over her khans.

Relations with the Chechens

Until the beginning of the 19th century, the entire territory of greater Chechnya belonged to the Avar khans, “but about 80 years, as the Chechens who had previously lived in the mountains multiplied, due to lack of land and internecine strife, they left the mountains to the lower reaches of the Argun and Sunzha.” At the same time, the Chechens pledged to pay tribute to the Avar Nutsal. The Chechen ethnographer Umalat Laudaev tells in detail about this period:

Ichkeria was not yet inhabited by this tribe, it was owned by the Avar khans. With its green hills and rich meadows, it strongly attracted semi-nomadic Chechens. Tradition is silent about the reasons that prompted half of the names of the then Chechen tribe to move to Ichkeria. Many reasons could induce them to do this: 1) the lack of land from the multiplied families and population; 2) disagreements and strife over land plots; and 3) political reasons could have prompted them to do so. Georgia acquired power over these people and imposed harsh conditions on the country; those who did not want to fulfill them could not remain in the country and had to move. Undertaking to pay yasak (tribute) to the Avar Khan, they began their resettlement; but since it was a material interest for the khan to settle more people for a tax, he contributed to the strongest resettlement with various benefits. The more fertile land of Ichkeria and the power of the Avar khans attracted half of the then families of this tribe; the endless fights and strife that took place in the Argun land further intensified the resettlement. The weak, hoping for the power of the khan, ran under his protection, and the resettlement took place so quickly that territorial constraint and the consequences that followed were inevitable among the half-savage people: fights, murders.

On behalf of the Avar khans, the Andean Avars were supposed to "collect a tax in favor of the khans", the source also indicates "that this tax was not a yasak, but a rayat (serf tax), since the Ichkerians were slaves of the Avar khans." By the end of the reign of Umma Khan of Avar, power over the Chechens begins to fade. The Chechen society has multiplied so much that it has managed to lay down the duty to the Avar Khan. According to Laudaev at the end of the 18th century

“The state of the societies of the Chechen tribe at that time, that is, at the end of the 18th century, was as follows. The Aukhovites, who were under the rule of the Avars, freed themselves from them ... The Ichkerinians, who were under the rule of the Avar khans, reject their power and take possession of the land ... The Ichkerians retained the principles of social life instilled in them by the Avars, and they were less rude and dangerous.

Caucasian War and Shamil's Imamate

In 1803, part of the Avar Khanate became part of the Russian Empire. However, initially, the tsarist administration made a number of serious mistakes and miscalculations. Heavy extortions and taxes, land expropriation, deforestation, construction of fortresses, widespread oppression caused dissatisfaction among the people, first of all, its most freedom-loving and militant part, the “bridles” (that is, “free community members”), who had never before lived under such kind of government. All supporters of Russia were declared by them to be "godless" and "traitors", and the tsarist administration were "leaders of a slave system, humiliating and insulting for true Muslims." On this socio-religious basis in the early 20s of the XIX century. the anti-tsarist movement of the highlanders began under the slogans of Sharia and Muridism. At the end of 1829, with the support of the generally recognized spiritual leader of the Caucasus, the Lezgin Magomed Yaragsky (Muhammed al Yaragi), the first imam of Dagestan, an Avar, Mullah Gazi-Muhammed from the village of Gimry, was elected. Gazi-Mohammed with a small detachment of his adherents introduced Sharia in the Avar villages, often by force of arms. Having organized the Chumgesgen fortified camp at the beginning of 1831, Gazi-Mohammed made a number of campaigns against the Russians. In 1832, he made a successful raid towards Chechnya, as a result of which most of the region went over to his side. Soon, during the battle in his native village, Gazi-Mohammed died.

After the death of Gazi-Muhammed, the Murid movement was localized within the societies of mountainous Dagestan and experienced far from the best of times. At the initiative of Sheikh Magomed Yaragsky (Muhammed al Yaragi), the "supreme council of scientists" - ulama was convened, Gamzat-bek from the village of Gotsatl was elected the second imam, who continued the work of Ghazi-Muhammed - "gazavat" ("holy war" for two years). ). In 1834, he exterminated the Khan's dynasty, which caused anger among the Khunzakh people. After they killed Gamzat-bek, Shamil was elected imam - a student of Magomed Yaragsky (Mohammed al Yaragi) and an associate of Gazi-Mohammed, who led the national liberation movement of the mountaineers for 25 years. All these years, Shamil remained the sole political, military and spiritual leader not only of Dagestan, but also of Chechnya. He bore the official title - Imam. 1842-1845 on the territory of the entire Avaria and Chechnya, Shamil created a military-theocratic state - the imamate, with its own hierarchy, domestic and foreign policy. The entire territory of the imamate was divided into 50 naibs - military-administrative units, headed by naibs appointed by Shamil. Based on the experience of the war, Shamil carried out a military reform. Mobilization was carried out among the male population aged 15 to 50 years, the army was divided into "thousands", "hundreds", "tens". The core of the armed forces was the cavalry, which included the guards of "Murtazeks". The manufacture of artillery pieces, bullets, gunpowder was established. He had the rank of marshal of the Ottoman Empire, and in July 1854 he officially received the title of generalissimo. The long war destroyed the economy, brought huge human and material losses, many villages were destroyed and burned. He, in view of the relative small number of the Avar and Chechen peoples, tried to find as many allies as possible among fellow Muslims, but was not at all eager to join Turkey. Avars, Chechens, Dargins, Lezgins, Kumyks, Laks and other peoples of Dagestan participated in hostilities.

The total number of Shamil's troops reached 15 thousand people. More than 10 thousand of them were provided by the Avar districts. Thus, the number of Avars in the army of the Imamat exceeded 70%.

As for the military training of the Avars, the general of the tsarist army, Vasily Potto, wrote:

The mountain army, which enriched Russian military affairs in many ways, was a phenomenon of unusual strength. It was, by far, the strongest people's army that tsarism met. The purely military training of the Caucasian highlander seemed amazing. Neither the highlanders of Switzerland, nor the Moroccans of Abd el-Kader, nor the Sikhs of India, have ever reached such amazing heights in military art as the Avars and Chechens.

Bestuzhev-Marlinsky, who served in the Caucasus, writes about the Avars:

Avars are a free people. They do not know and do not tolerate any power over them. Each Avar calls himself a bridle, and if he has a esyr (prisoner), he considers himself an important gentleman. Poor, consequently, and brave to the extreme; well-aimed shooters from rifles - gloriously act on foot; on horseback they go only on raids, and then very few. The fidelity of the Avar word in the mountains turned into a proverb. The houses are quiet, hospitable, hospitable, they do not hide either wives or daughters - they are ready to die for the guest and take revenge until the end of generations. Revenge is sacred to them; robbery - glory. However, they are often forced to do so by necessity ...
Avars are the most warlike tribe, the hearts of the Caucasus.

End of holy war

Tsarism, however, did not fail to learn from its mistakes and failures and radically changed its tactics, temporarily abandoning the policy of harsh colonial oppression. Under such conditions, the Muridist slogans about the need to wage a “holy war” with Russia until the last teenager capable of holding a weapon in his hands, regardless of any casualties or losses, began to be perceived by the highlanders as extravagant and disastrous. The authority of Shamil and his naibs began to melt. Shamil often had to fight not only with the Russians, but also with his "frondeurs". So, part of the Avars (primarily the Khunzakhs and Chokhs) fought on the side of Russia in the units of the mountain police and the Dagestan cavalry regiment. After the capitulation of Shamil, all the Avar lands were included in the Dagestan region. 1864 The Avar Khanate was liquidated, the Avar District was formed on its territory. In relation to the Avars in Dagestan, there are numerous facts that testify to the endowment of them with such benefits and privileges that even the vast majority of the Russians themselves were deprived of. in particular, this concerns the rapid provision of high military awards, noble ranks, and officer ranks. The captive Shamil was given maximum honors by the king. The tsarist administration and Russian military leaders spoke highly of Shamil as a courageous and decent person, emphasizing his outstanding talent as a commander and politician. Under Emperor Alexander II, the Avars were part of the Life Guards units of the royal escort, including guard duty in the palace chambers of the royal family.

By the beginning of the Caucasian War, about 200 thousand Avars lived in Dagestan, and more than 150 thousand Chechens lived in Chechnya. The wars with the Russian Empire led to the fact that less than half of the Avars and Chechens remained by the end of the Caucasian War. 1897 - 18 years after the end of the war - the number of Avars reached only 158.6 thousand people. In 1926, there were 184.7 thousand Avars in Dagestan. One of the consequences of the Caucasian War was also the emigration of Dagestanis to the Ottoman Empire. At first, the tsarist administration even encouraged this phenomenon, but after the emigration began to take on the character of a mass exodus of the Avar people to Turkey from year to year, they began to hinder it. Tsarism, on the one hand, could not populate the Avar mountains with Cossacks, and on the other hand, it turned out to be a witness to the use of the North Caucasian ethnic element by the Ottoman Empire as shock military formations against its internal and external enemies.

As part of the USSR

In 1921, the Dagestan ASSR was formed. At the end of the 1920s, collectivization and industrialization began on the lands inhabited by Avars.

In the 1940s-1960s, many Avars moved from the highlands to the plains.

Culture and customs

Swastika and crosses of the Maltese type from Avaria. stone carving

traditional way of life

The traditional settlement of the Avars is a fortress, consisting of houses tightly adjacent to each other (stone, with a flat roof, usually two or three stories) and combat towers. All settlements are oriented to the south. the center of the settlements usually arranged a square, which was a place of public gathering; here, as a rule, a mosque was located. The life of an Avar family almost always took place in one room, which was much larger in comparison with other rooms. The most important element of the room was the hearth, located in its center. The decoration of the room was also a pillar with an ornament. At present, the interior of the dwellings of the Avars is close to city apartments.

The most popular and typically mountainous symbols in Dagestan are swastikas, primarily spiral-shaped and with rounded edges, as well as Maltese crosses, labyrinths found in large numbers on carved stones, antique carpets and women's jewelry. It is also worth mentioning that the Khunzakh khans often used the image of a “wolf with a standard” as a state emblem (including on banners), and the Andians used an “eagle with a saber”.

Avarka from the village Chokh in national dress. Drawing by Khalil-Bek Musayasul, Germany, 1939

The Avars had a developed folklore (tales, proverbs, various songs - lyrical and heroic). Traditional Avar musical instruments - chagana (bowed); (Tlamur, pandur), (Zurma-kyili, zurna-kali); chagur (stringed), lalu (a type of flute), tambourine.

In the past, the entire Avar people, with the exception of the dependent class, represented "bo" (< *bar < *ʔwar) - вооружённое ополчение, народ-войско. Это обстоятельство предъявляло высокие требования к духовно-физической подготовке каждого потенциального «бодулав» (то есть «военнообязанного», «ополченца»), и, естественно, сказалось на культивировании среди аварской молодёжи таких видов единоборств без оружия как «хатбай» - разновидность спортивной драки, практиковавшей удары ладонями, «мелигъдун» (поединки с применением шеста, вкупе с ударной техникой ног) и борьбы на поясах. Впоследствии все они были вытеснены, в основном, вольной борьбой и восточными единоборствами, ставшими для аварцев подлинно национальными и весьма престижными видами спорта.

traditional clothing

The traditional clothing of the Avars is similar to the clothing of other peoples of Dagestan: it consists of an undershirt with a stand-up collar and simple trousers, a beshmet was worn over the shirt. In winter, a cotton lining was fastened to the beshmet. A shaggy hat was put on the head. Women's clothing among the Avars was very diverse. Clothing was essentially an ethnic sign, a distinctive element. By the way the dress and scarf were worn, by the shape and color, by the type of fur coat, shoes and jewelry, especially by the headdress, it was possible to determine from which society or village this or that woman was. The girl wore a dress of colored fabric with a red belt, older women preferred to wear plain and dark colors.

Avar cuisine

Main article: Avar cuisine

Khinkal(from Avar. khinkIal, where khinkI ‘dumpling, boiled piece of dough’ + -al plural suffix) is a traditional dish of Dagestan cuisine, one of the most popular today. It is pieces of dough cooked in meat broth (actually “khinkalins”), served with broth, boiled meat and sauce.

Khinkali should not be confused with Georgian khinkali, which is a significantly different type of dish.

Miracle- a traditional dish, which is round thin cakes made of dough with various fillings. Flat cakes are filled with cottage cheese with herbs or mashed potatoes with herbs and fried in a flat frying pan. Served greased with butter or sour cream and cut into 6-8 pieces in diameter. Used by hand.

Notes

Information materials on the final results of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census. The national composition of the population of the Russian Federation
Including the Ando-Tsez peoples related to the Avars: 14 peoples with a total number of 3,548,646 people
1 2 3 4 Information materials on the final results of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census. http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/new_site/population/demo/per-itog/tab7.xls
Including the Ando-Tsez peoples related to the Avars: 13 peoples with a total number of 48,184 people
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Results of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census for the Republic of Dagestan, Volume 3 Ethnic composition
1 2 3 4 Including the Ando-Tsez peoples related to the Avars
Annexes to the results of the 2010 VPN in Moscow. Annex 5. Ethnic composition of the population by administrative districts of the city of Moscow
Including the Ando-Tsez peoples related to the Avars: 7 peoples with a total number of 41 people
All-Russian population census 2002. Volume 4 - "National composition and language skills, citizenship." Population by nationality and proficiency in Russian by subjects of the Russian Federation
Ethnic composition of Azerbaijan
1 2 Ethnic composition of Azerbaijan 2009
Ethnic Groups of Georgia: Censuses 1926-2002
1 2 Population census of Georgia 2002. Population of rural settlements (Census_of_village_population_of_Georgia) (Georgian) - pp. 110-111
1 2 Ataev B. M. Avars: language, history, writing. - Makhachkala, 2005. - S. 21. - ISBN 5-94434-055-X
All-Ukrainian population census 2001 Nationality and mother tongue
Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan on statistics. Census 2009. (National composition of the population.rar)
In 1989, there were 2,777 Avars in the Kazakh SSR: Demoscope. Ethnic composition of the Kazakh SSR in 1989
http://www.irs-az.com/pdf/090621161354.pdf
Samizdat materials. - Ohio State University, Center for Slavic and East European Studies, 2010. - P. 114.
V. A. Tishkov, E. F. Kisriev MULTIPLE IDENTITIES BETWEEN THEORY AND POLITICS (EXAMPLE OF DAGESTAN)
Beilis V. M. From the history of Dagestan VI-XI centuries. (Sarir) // Historical notes. - 1963. - T. 73.
Magomedov Murad. History of the Avars. Makhachkala: DGU, 2005.
studies in Caucasian history. - Cambridge University Press, 1957.
S. E. Tsvetkov. Historical Moment: Twelve Centuries of Our History in Twelve Months.
Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron. Archived from the original on May 16, 2015.
Collection "Caucasian Highlanders". Tiflis, 1869.
E. I. Kozubsky. History of the Dagestan Cavalry Regiment. 1909 p.-9
Kisriev E. Republic of Dagestan. Model of ethnological monitoring / Ed. series Tishkov V.A., ed. books by Stepanov V.V. - M.: IEA RAN, 1999. - S. 132.
Ataev BM, 1996, Researchers consider "Avar" a territory that corresponded to the Khunzakh plateau. "The name Avar was given by strangers and can refer exclusively to Khunzakh," wrote P.K. Uslar.
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The author's position "Emniyet Bakanı" is erroneously translated as "Minister of Defense", while it means "Minister of State Security". We corrected this error, and informed the author of the monograph about it.
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On April 3, 2002, Radio Liberty began regular broadcasting to the North Caucasus
Radio Liberty speaks Chechen
How Radio Liberty broadcasts to the North Caucasus
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AVPR, f. "Relations between Russia and Persia", 1741
Lokhart L., 1938. P. 202.
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Avar miracle or botishala.

Literature

Avars // Peoples of Russia. Atlas of cultures and religions. - M.: Design. Information. Cartography, 2010. - 320 p. - ISBN 978-5-287-00718-8.
Avars // Ethnoatlas of the Krasnoyarsk Territory / Council of Administration of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Public Relations Department; ch. ed. R. G. Rafikov; editorial board: V. P. Krivonogov, R. D. Tsokaev. - 2nd ed., revised. and additional - Krasnoyarsk: Platinum (PLATINA), 2008. - 224 p. - ISBN 978-5-98624-092-3.

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Chetinbash Mehdi Nyuzhet. Footprint of the Caucasian eagle: the last Shamil // Our Dagestan magazine. - 1995. - No. 178-179-180. - S. 36.
Nikolajev S. L., Starostin S. A. A North Caucasian Ethymological Dictionary. - Moscow, 1994.

Links

AvarBo (Avars and Avars M. Shakhmanov)
http://www.osi.hu/ipf/fellows/Filtchenko/professor_andrei_petrovitch_duls.htm
Starostin S. A. Sino-Caucasian macrofamily
http://www.philology.ru/linguistics1/starostin-03a.htm
http://www.CBOOK.ru/peoples/obzor/div4.shtml
Article by Harald Haarmann "Avar language" (in German, 2002)
Kuzmin A. G. From the prehistory of the peoples of Europe
Theorien und Hypothesen. Urheimat und Grundsprache der Germanen und Indogermanen oder Basken und Germanen können linguistisch keine Indogermanen gewesen sein
Avars and the Caucasian anthropological type
Mitochondrial DNA and Y-Chromosome Variation in the Caucasus (2004)
Istvan Erdeyi. Disappeared peoples. Avars
About the phenotype of ancient Iranians - Aryans - and modern Persians - Persian Aryans - see.
Iranian Huns
History of Kashmir. The Aryan Huns invade the IVC
For the Avars as the last wave of Iranian nomads, see Scytho-Sarmatians
Photo catalog of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography. Peter the Great (Kunstkamera) RAS
John M. Clifton, Janfer Mak, Gabriela Deckinga, Laura Lucht, and Calvin Tiessen. The Sociolinguistic Situation of the Avar in Azerbaijan. SIL International, 2005


culture	Literature Music Cuisine Architecture Names Mythology Folk rituals Writing Folklore Folk songs Folk tales
diasporas	Azerbaijan Turkey Georgia
Sub-ethnic groups	Andians · Archins · Akhvakhs · Bagulals · Bezhtins · Botlikhs · Ginukhs · Godoberis · Gunzibs · Didoys · Karatas · Tindins · Khvarshins · Chamalals
Language and dialects	Salatav · Khunzakh · Oriental · Guidsky · Antsukh · Zakatal · Karah · Keser · Andalal · Kakhib · Kusur · Batlukh
Story	Caucasian Albania Sarir Mongol invasion Avar Khanate Andalal Gidatl Tlenserukh Caucasian War North Caucasian Imamat Revolt of 1877

Nakh-Dagestan peoples
Avaro-Ando-Tsez peoples	Avars Andians Akhvakhs Bagulals Bezhtins Botlikhs Ginukhs Godoberians Gunzibs Karatas Tindins Khvarshins Chamalals Tsez / Didoi
Lezgin peoples	Aguls Archinians Budukhs Kryzy Lezghins Rutuls Tabasarans Udins Khinalug Tsakhurs
Dargin peoples	Dargins Kaitags Kubachins
Laks	laks
Nakh peoples	Batsbi Vainakhs (Ingush, Chechens) Orstkhoys / Karabulaks (historical)

The peoples of Russia with more than 100 thousand people

Avars in IG, Avars wikipedia, Avars gays, Avars light up, Avars and Chechens, Avars and Chechens aukh, Avars who are, Avars rest, Avars funny pictures, Avars photo

The main activities and functions of the Kazan order. Administrative activities of the order of the Kazan Palace

Areas of historical residence of the Avars

Anthropology

Language

Religion

Origin and history

State formations

Expansion of the XVI-XVII centuries.

Joining Russia

End of holy war

As part of the USSR

Culture and customs

traditional way of life

Ethnonym

Number and settlement

Anthropology

Language

Religion

Origin and history

Hunz - Caucasian Huns of the "Land of the Throne"

State formations

From the Mongols to the wars with the Persians

Coat of arms of the Avar Khanate

Comparison with a wolf as a compliment

Expansion of the XVI-XVII centuries.

Relations with the Chechens

Caucasian War and Shamil's Imamate

End of holy war

As part of the USSR

Culture and customs

traditional way of life

traditional clothing

Avar cuisine

Notes

Literature

References

Links

Avars Information About