Where are the Chechens from? Ancient history of the Chechens

However, the origin of the Chechens continues to cause debate, although we point out that they are the indigenous inhabitants of the Caucasus for two thousand years. But this question arises by itself even according to the Batsbi, who say that they are fyappi from Vabua, and where is Vabua ... The oral traditions of all the Vainakhs say that their ancestors came from somewhere beyond the mountains and then settled from Galanchozh district. Such is the story Chechen people in the oral tradition of the Chechens.

It is necessary to pay attention to how quite different stories are in different Chechen communities, and this is despite the fact that legends in Chechnya are usually transmitted without the slightest change. Apparently, individual communities really had different ancestral paths, i.e. they went from different places, but all to gather in the Galanchozh region. Being the descendants of the Aryans, the Chechens are really the descendants of the aliens, like the Aryans themselves, whose branches came to the region Armenian highlands and brought the natives a higher culture of their civilization. In dialects Armenian language the word arii means to come, and hajr means father and Hajrarat means country of fathers.

Much water has flowed under the bridge after the Great Flood, and Roman (inverted) law and rulers have established themselves in this world, who all with a chok destroyed any mention of Aryan civilization and their special people's government, instead of which the domination of newcomers with an aggressive mentality, with a lower culture and an ugly form of minority power with a whole arsenal of suppression and submission was established.

Only the Vainakhs, apparently due to the military way of life and strict adherence to the laws of their ancestors, were able to preserve until the 19th century moral norms and beliefs of the Aryans and the form of social structure inherited from their ancestors with popular rule .

In his previous works, the author was the first to point out that the essence of the Chechen conflict lies in the clash of two different ideologies of public administration and in the special flintiness of the Chechens, who do not completely submit to any losses.

In this unequal and cruel battle that the Chechen people got, the Chechens themselves have changed and have lost a lot over the past three centuries from what their ancestors had been protecting for thousands of years.

The sasens have left their mark not only in the North Caucasus. The Sasinid dynasty in Iran, removing the "new aliens" from power, restored the Aryan norms of morality and the religion of Zoroastrianism (Zero - zero, the starting point, aster - a star, i.e. the stellar beginning). In Greater Armenia, the descendants of David of Sasun bravely fought against the troops of the Caliphate in the 8th-9th centuries, and regular Turkish army and gangs of Kurds in the 19th and 20th centuries. As part of the Russian corps, the Chechen detachments of Taimiev (1829) and Chermoevs (1877 and 1914) stormed the Armenian city of Erzrum three times, freeing it from the Turks.

One of the modified names of the Chechens is Shashen, in the Karabakh dialect of the Armenian language sounds like "special to the point of madness and brave to the point of madness". And the name Tsatsane already clearly indicates the peculiarity of the Chechens.

Nokhchi Chechens consider (apparently, at the call of blood) Nakhchevan named by their ancestors as the settlement of Nokhchi, although the Armenians understand this name as a beautiful village. Slender, white, blue-eyed warriors on horseback among swarthy and undersized peasants were really beautiful.

There are traces of Nokhchi in southeastern Armenia in the region of Khoy (in Iran) and Akka in western Armenia in the interfluve of the Greater and Lesser Zab south of Erzrum. It should be noted that the Chechen people and the Vainakh communities that make it up are heterogeneous and include a dozen separate branches, with different dialects.

When studying Chechen society it seems that you are dealing with the descendants of the last defenders of the fortress, gathered in the citadel from different places. Moving for various reasons, the great-ancestors of the Chechens did not go further than a thousand kilometers from Mount Ararat, i.e. they practically remained within the region.

And the great-ancestors of the Vainakhs came from different places - some quickly and with heavy losses, while others gradually and more safely, for example, like Nokhchi from Mitanni. Let those times (more than three thousand years ago) be long and stretch for tens and hundreds of years. Along the way, they left the settlements they founded, and some of them went further, moving north for a reason that is now inexplicable to us, and the rest merged with the local population.

Finding traces of the ancestors of the Chechens is difficult because they really did not come from one place. There were no searches in the past, the Chechens themselves were content with an oral retelling of the path of their ancestors, but with Islamization, there were no Vainakh storytellers left either.

Today, the search for traces of the great-ancestors of the Vainakhs and archaeological excavations must be carried out on the territory of as many as 8 states during the period of the end of the second millennium BC.

The arrival of the former Aryan guards in separate detachments with families and households in the Galanchozh region marked the beginning Chechen tukhums and taipam(tai - share). The main taipas still distinguish their plots (share) on the land of Galanchozh, since it was then first divided by the great-ancestors thousands of years ago.

Gala among many peoples means to come, i.e. Galanchozh can mean the place of arrival or settlement from it, which is true either way.

Both the name of the great-ancestors of the Chechens (Sasen) and the current name of their descendants (Chechens), and their whole history are special. The development of Chechen society differed in many features and in many respects has no analogues.

The Chechens turned out to be very refractory and difficult to change from their ancestors, and for many centuries retained their language and way of life, and social structure their free communities, council-run, without the assumption of hereditary power. Legendary Turpal Nokhcho, who coped with the bull, harnessed it and taught the Nokhchi how to plow, overcame evil and bequeathed to keep the lake, from which the Nokhchi settled, clean, i.e. keep clean the foundations, language, laws and beliefs received from the ancestors (without polluting them with alien customs). As long as Turpal's commandments were respected, the Chechens were lucky in history.

The first Chechen states appeared in the Middle Ages. In the 19th century, after a long Caucasian war, the country became part of the Russian Empire. But also in further history Chechnya was full of contradictory and tragic pages.

Ethnogenesis

The Chechen people were formed over a long period of time. The Caucasus has always been ethnically diverse, so even in scientific environment Until now, there has not been a unified theory about the origin of this nation. The Chechen language belongs to the Nakh branch of the Nakh-Dagestan language family. It is also called East Caucasian, according to the settlement of the ancient tribes that became the first carriers of these dialects.

The history of Chechnya began with the appearance of the Vainakhs (today this term refers to the ancestors of the Ingush and Chechens). A variety of nomadic peoples took part in its ethnogenesis: Scythians, Indo-Iranians, Sarmatians, etc. Archaeologists attribute the carriers of the Colchis and Koban cultures to the ancestors of the Chechens. Their traces are scattered throughout the Caucasus.

Ancient history

Due to the fact that the history of ancient Chechnya passed in the absence of centralized state, it is extremely difficult to judge events before the Middle Ages. It is only known for certain that in the 9th century the Vainakhs were subjugated by their neighbors, who created the Alanian kingdom, as well as by the mountain Avars. The latter in the 6th-11th centuries lived in the state of Sarire with its capital in Tanusi. It is noteworthy that both Islam and Christianity were widespread there. However, the history of Chechnya developed in such a way that the Chechens became Muslims (unlike, for example, their Georgian neighbors).

In the XIII century, the Mongol invasions began. Since then, the Chechens have not left the mountains, fearing numerous hordes. According to one of the hypotheses (it also has opponents), the first early feudal state of the Vainakhs was created at the same time. This formation did not last long and was destroyed during the invasion of Tamerlane in late XIV centuries.

Teips

For a long time, flat areas at the foot of Caucasus mountains controlled Turkic-speaking tribes. Therefore, the history of Chechnya has always been associated with mountains. The way of life of its inhabitants was also formed in accordance with the conditions of the landscape. In isolated villages, where sometimes only one pass led, teips arose. These were territorial entities created according to tribal affiliation.

Having emerged in the Middle Ages, teips still exist and remain an important phenomenon for the entire Chechen society. These alliances were created to protect against aggressive neighbors. The history of Chechnya is replete with wars and conflicts. In teips, the custom of blood feud was born. This tradition brought its own peculiarities to the relations between teips. If a conflict flared up between several people, it necessarily developed into a tribal war up to the complete destruction of the enemy. Such has been the history of Chechnya since ancient times. existed for a very long time, since the teip system largely replaced the state in the usual sense of the word.

Religion

There is practically no information about what the ancient history of Chechnya was like to this day. Some archaeological finds allow us to assert that the Vainakhs were pagans until the 11th century. They worshiped the local pantheon of deities. The Chechens had a cult of nature with all its characteristic features: sacred groves, mountains, trees, etc. Witchcraft, magic and other esoteric practices were widespread.

In the XI-XII centuries. in this region of the Caucasus began the spread of Christianity, which came from Georgia and Byzantium. However, the empire of Constantinople soon collapsed. Sunni Islam replaced Christianity. The Chechens adopted it from their Kumyk neighbors and the Golden Horde. The Ingush became Muslims in the 16th century, and the inhabitants of remote mountain villages- in the 17th century. But for a long time, Islam could not influence social customs, which were much more based on national traditions. And only at the end of the 18th century, Sunnism in Chechnya took approximately the same positions as in Arab countries. This was due to the fact that religion has become important tool struggle against Russian Orthodox intervention. Hatred of strangers was kindled not only on national, but also on confessional grounds.

XVI century

In the 16th century, the Chechens began to occupy the deserted plains in the valley of the Terek River. In the same time most of This people remained to live in the mountains, having adapted to their natural conditions. Those who went to the north were looking for a better life there. The population grew naturally, and scarce resources became scarce. Crowding and hunger forced many teips to settle in new lands. The colonists built small villages, which they called by the name of their kind. Part of this toponymy has survived to this day.

The history of Chechnya since ancient times has been associated with danger from nomads. But in the sixteenth century they became much less powerful. Golden Horde broke up. Numerous uluses were constantly at war with each other, which is why they could not establish control over their neighbors. In addition, it was then that the expansion of the Russian kingdom began. In 1560 Kazan and Astrakhan khanates were conquered. Ivan the Terrible began to control the entire course of the Volga, thus gaining access to the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus. Russia in the mountains had faithful allies in the person of the Kabardian princes (Ivan the Terrible even married the daughter of the Kabardian ruler Temryuk).

First contacts with Russia

In 1567, the Russians founded the Tersky prison. This Ivan the Terrible was asked by Temryuk, who hoped for the help of the king in the conflict with the Crimean Khan - vassal Ottoman Sultan. The place where the fortress was built was the mouth of the Sunzha River, a tributary of the Terek. It was the first Russian settlement that arose in the immediate vicinity of the Chechen lands. For a long time, it was the Terek prison that was the springboard for Moscow expansion in the Caucasus.

The Grebensky Cossacks acted as colonists, who were not afraid of life in a distant foreign land and defended the interests of the sovereign with their service. It was they who established direct contact with local natives. Grozny was interested in the history of the people of Chechnya, and he received the first Chechen embassy, ​​which was sent by the influential prince Shikh-Murza Okotsky. He asked for patronage from Moscow. Consent to this was already given by the son of Ivan the Terrible. However, this union did not last long. In 1610, Shikh-Murza was killed, his heir was overthrown, and the principality was captured by the neighboring Kumyk tribe.

Chechens and Terek Cossacks

Back in 1577, the basis of which was formed by the Cossacks who moved from the Don, Khopra and Volga, as well as Orthodox Circassians, Ossetians, Georgians and Armenians. The latter fled from Persian and Turkish expansion. Many of them became Russified. The growth of the Cossack mass was significant. Chechnya could not fail to notice this. The history of the origin of the first conflicts between the highlanders and the Cossacks is not recorded, but over time, skirmishes became more and more frequent and commonplace.

Chechens and other natives of the Caucasus staged raids to seize livestock and other useful production. Quite often, civilians were taken into captivity and later returned for ransom or made into slaves. In response to this, the Cossacks also raided the mountains and robbed villages. Nevertheless, such cases were the exception rather than the rule. Often there were long periods of peace, when neighbors traded among themselves and acquired family ties. Over time, the Chechens even adopted some features of housekeeping from the Cossacks, and the Cossacks, in turn, began to wear clothes very similar to the mountain ones.

18th century

Second half XVIII century in the North Caucasus was marked by the construction of a new Russian fortified line. It consisted of several fortresses, where all the new colonists came. In 1763 Mozdok was founded, then Ekaterinograd, Pavlovskaya, Maryinskaya, Georgievskaya.

These forts replaced the Terek prison, which the Chechens once even managed to plunder. Meanwhile, in the 1980s, the Sharia movement began to spread in Chechnya. Slogans about ghazawat - the war for the Islamic faith - became popular.

Caucasian war

In 1829, the North Caucasian Imamat was created - an Islamic theocratic state on the territory of Chechnya. At the same time, the country had its own national hero Shamil. In 1834 he became an imam. Dagestan and Chechnya obeyed him. The history of the emergence and spread of his power is connected with the struggle against Russian expansion in the North Caucasus.

The fight against the Chechens continued for several decades. At a certain stage Caucasian war intertwined with the war against Persia, as well as the Crimean War, when they opposed Russia Western countries Europe. Whose help could Chechnya count on? The history of the Nokhchi state in the 19th century would not have been so long if it were not for the support Ottoman Empire. And yet, despite the fact that the Sultan helped the highlanders, Chechnya was finally conquered in 1859. Shamil was first captured and then lived in honorary exile in Kaluga.

After February Revolution Chechen gangs began to attack the environs of Grozny and Vladikavkaz railway. In the autumn of 1917, the so-called "native division" returned home from the front of the First World War. It consisted of Chechens. The division staged a real battle with the Terek Cossacks.

Soon the Bolsheviks came to power in Petrograd. Their Red Guard entered Grozny already in January 1918. Some Chechens supported Soviet power, others went to the mountains, others helped the whites. From February 1919, Grozny was under the control of the troops of Pyotr Wrangel and his British allies. And only in March 1920 did the Red Army finally establish itself in

Deportation

In 1936, a new Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed. Meanwhile, partisans remained in the mountains, who opposed the Bolsheviks. The last such gangs were destroyed in 1938. However, separatist sentiments remained among some of the inhabitants of the republic.

Soon the Great Patriotic War, from which both Chechnya and Russia suffered. The history of the fight against the German offensive in the Caucasus, as well as on all other fronts, was notable for the complexity of the Soviet troops. Big loss aggravated by the appearance of Chechen formations that acted against the Red Army or even colluded with the Nazis.

This gave rise Soviet leadership start repressions against the whole people. On February 23, 1944, all Chechens and neighboring Ingush, regardless of their attitude towards the USSR, were deported to Central Asia.

Ichkeria

The Chechens were able to return to their homeland only in 1957. After the collapse Soviet Union separatist sentiments reawakened in the republic. In 1991, the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria was proclaimed in Grozny. For some time her conflict with federal center was in a frozen state. In 1994, Russian President Boris Yeltsin decided to send troops into Chechnya to restore Moscow's power there. Officially, the operation was called "measures to maintain constitutional order."

First Chechen War ended on August 31, 1996, when the Khasavyurt agreements were signed. In fact, this agreement meant the withdrawal of federal troops from Ichkeria. The parties agreed to determine the status of Chechnya by December 31, 2001. With the advent of peace, Ichkeria became independent, although this was not legally recognized by Moscow.

Modernity

Even after the signing of the Khasavyurt agreements, the situation on the border with Chechnya remained extremely turbulent. The republic has become a hiding place for extremists, Islamists, mercenaries and just criminals. On August 7, a brigade of militants Shamil Basayev and Khattab invaded neighboring Dagestan. The extremists wanted to create an independent Islamist state on its territory.

The history of Chechnya and Dagestan is very similar, and not only because of the geographical proximity, but also due to the similarity of the ethnic and confessional composition of the population. Federal troops launched a counter-terrorist operation. First, the militants were ejected from the territory of Dagestan. Then Russian army re-entered Chechnya. The active combat phase of the campaign ended in the summer of 2000, when Grozny was cleared. After that, the regime of the counter-terrorist operation was officially maintained for another 9 years. Today Chechnya is one of the full-fledged subjects Russian Federation.

Chechens are considered the most ancient people of the world, the inhabitants of the Caucasus. According to archaeologists, at the dawn of human civilization, the Caucasus was the center in which human culture was born.

Those whom we used to call Chechens appeared in the 18th century in the North Caucasus due to the separation of several ancient families. They passed through the Argun Gorge along the Main Range of the Caucasus and settled in the mountainous part of the modern republic.

The Chechen people have centuries-old traditions, National language, ancient and original culture. The history of this people can serve as an example of building relationships and cooperation with different nationalities and their neighbors.

Culture and life of the Chechen people

Since the III century, the Caucasus has been a place where the paths of civilizations of farmers and nomads crossed, the cultures of different ancient civilizations of Europe, Asia and the Mediterranean came into contact. This was reflected in mythology, oral folk art and culture.

Unfortunately, the recording of the Chechen folk epic began rather late. This is due to the armed conflicts that shook this country. As a result, huge layers of folk art - pagan mythology, the Nart epic - were irretrievably lost. The creative energy of the people was swallowed up by the war.

A sad contribution was made by the policy pursued by the leader of the Caucasian highlanders - Imam Shamil. He saw in the democratic folk culture a threat to his rule. For more than 25 years of his tenure in power in Chechnya, the following were banned: folk music and dances, art, mythology, observance of national rituals and traditions. Only religious chants were allowed. All this had a negative impact on the creativity and culture of the people. But Chechen identity cannot be killed.

Traditions and customs of the Chechen people

Part Everyday life Chechens is the observance of traditions that have been passed down by previous generations. They have been building up over the centuries. Some are written in the code, but there are also unwritten rules, which, nevertheless, remain important for everyone in whom Chechen blood flows.

hospitality rules

The roots of this good tradition originate in the mists of time. Most families lived in difficult, difficult places. They always provided the traveler with shelter and food. A person, familiar or not, needs it - he received it without unnecessary questions. This is done in all families. The theme of hospitality runs like a red line throughout the folk epic.

Custom associated with the guest. If he liked the thing in the host home, then this thing should be presented to him.

And more about hospitality. With guests, the host takes a position closer to the door, saying that the guest is important here.

The owner sits at the table until the last guest. It is indecent to interrupt the meal first.

If a neighbor or relative, albeit a distant one, comes in, then young men and younger family members will serve them. Women should not show themselves to guests.

Man and woman

Many may have the opinion that women's rights are violated in Chechnya. But this is not so - a mother who has raised a worthy son has an equal voice in decision-making.

When a woman enters the room, the men who are there stand up.

Special ceremonies and decorum must be performed for the guest who has arrived.

When a man and a woman walk side by side, the woman should be one step behind. A man must be the first to accept danger.

The wife of a young husband first feeds his parents, and only then her husband.

If there is a relationship between a guy and a girl, even if it is very distant, the relationship between them is not approved, but also gross violation it is not a tradition.

Family

If the son reached for a cigarette and the father finds out about it, he should make a suggestion through his mother about the harm and inadmissibility of this, and he himself should immediately give up this habit.

In a quarrel or fight between children, parents must first scold their child, and only then figure out who is right and who is wrong.

A grave insult for a man if someone touches his hat. This is tantamount to a publicly received slap in the face.

The younger must always let the elder pass, let him go first. At the same time, he must say hello politely and respectfully.

It is extremely tactless to interrupt the elder or start a conversation without his request or permission.

Since ancient times, Chechens have been living in the territory of the Central and North-Eastern Caucasus. Territory Chechen Republic is 17200 sq. km. The population of Chechnya is over a million people. According to the researchers, approximately one and a half million Chechens lives all over the world. Most of them live in the Russian Federation. Historians call the Chechen nation "the root part of the Caucasian race" This is the most numerous of.

Nakhchoy - Chechen people

The ancestors of modern Chechens appeared in the 18th century as a result of detachment from several ancient clans. The name of the people is found in the sources - nahchoy(i.e. people speaking the Nokhchi language). The ancestors of the Chechens passed through the Argun Gorge and settled on the territory of the present republic. Basic language - Chechen, there are dialect groups (Itumkala, Akka, Melkhinsky, Galanchozhsky and others). The Russian language is quite common on the territory of the republic. Chechens profess the Muslim faith.

The mythology of folk art was influenced by other ancient civilizations. In the Caucasus, the paths of many nomadic tribes and peoples and Asia, the Mediterranean and Europe crossed. Tragic pages in Chechen history have caused great damage to spiritual culture. During the period of the ban on folk dances and music, the holding of national rites, the creative impulses of the Chechens were fettered by fears of falling into political disgrace. However, no restrictions and prohibitions could break and stifle the Chechen identity.

Chechen traditions

Hospitality

Hospitality the Chechens elevated it to the rank of a sacred duty of every citizen. This tradition has historical roots. The passage through the mountainous terrain is not easy, at any moment an exhausted traveler could hope for help from outside. In a Chechen house, they will always feed, warm and provide accommodation for the night free of charge. The owner of the house could give the guest any of the home furnishings as a sign of respect. In gratitude, the travelers presented the host's children with gifts. Such a cordial attitude towards the guest has been preserved in our time.

In the Caucasus, mothers are treated with special respect: they respect her, try to help in everything and listen to her advice. Men usually stand up when a woman enters the room.

With special trembling men keep your papa. It contained the symbol male honor and dignity. It is considered extremely humiliating if an outsider touches the hat. Such behavior of a stranger can provoke a scandal.

mountain education

The younger members of the family behave modestly, do not interfere in the conversations and affairs of the elders. To enter into a conversation, you need to ask permission. Until now, when discussing any issue, you can hear how a Chechen utters the phrase: “Can I say ...”, as if asking for permission to enter into a conversation. Such automatic behavior is an indicator of persistent and harsh upbringing from time immemorial. Excessive caress, concern for small children and anxiety associated with the whims of a child in public were not approved. If for some reason the child burst into tears, then he was taken to another room, where he calmed down. Crying, pranks of children should not distract adults from important matters and conversations.

In the old days, it was not customary to leave other people's things found in your house. In the presence of witnesses, the thing was given to the village mullah so that he could find the owner. In today's Chechen society, it is also considered bad manners to take, even if found, someone else's thing.

In the Chechen house

Kitchen

One of the revered delicacies is zhizhig galnysh A simple but delicious dish. Wheat or corn dumplings are boiled in meat broth. Culinary chores are women's worries, with the exception of funeral dishes that are prepared for the funeral.

wedding traditions

When marrying, a woman received her husband's family with special respect and treated them with care and respect. The young wife is modest, quiet, incurious. Without special need, a woman should not start a conversation with older relatives. At a Chechen wedding, there is even a funny ritual of "untying the tongue of the bride." The future father-in-law tries to talk the young daughter-in-law with jokes and tricks, but she clearly adheres to the folk rules and is silent. Only after giving gifts to the guests could the girl talk.

Before the wedding, young Chechen women can communicate with grooms only in crowded in public places. On a date, the guy always comes first and only then the girl. A girl's honor is the pride of the groom and the subject of protection by a young Chechen, in whom hot Caucasian blood boils.

The origin of any people is a complex problem, which takes decades to solve. The problem is all the more difficult because the data of only one branch of the humanities, say, the data of linguistics, archeology or ethnography taken separately, are insufficient for its solution. To the greatest extent, what has been said applies to those peoples who did not have their own written language in the historical past, to which Chechen-Ingush people .
The Chechens and Ingush, like other peoples, have gone through a complex and long path of development. This path is measured in millennia, and the only companion of the people, a witness to its past history that has survived to this day, is the language in which the past of the Vainakhs is imprinted.

"Language data," says Prof. V.I. Abaev - if they are correct interpreted, acquire , along with others evidence, of great importance in solving ethnogenetic questions." (V.I. Abaev “. The ethnogenesis of the Ossetians according to the language. Abstracts of the scientific session devoted to the problem of the origin of the Ossetian people. Ordzhonikidze, 1966, p. 3). Such branches of linguistics as toponymy and ethnonymy are called upon to render a special service in solving this problem. Great service in resolving issues of ethnogenesis are called upon to provide dialects in which mothballed dead forms of the language are preserved, which served as a designation of objects, concepts and ideas of the people in the historical past.
Historical science does not have any convincing information about the social differentiation of Chechens and Ingush in the early and late Middle Ages. But according to some historians, the Chechens and Ingush had a tribal system, almost in the 18-19 centuries. The data of language and ethnography convincingly refute these arguments as bankrupt.
In the Chechen and Ingush languages, the terms ela (alla) - prince, lai - slave, yalkho - hired worker, vatsarho - exploited and others who speak of the existence of princes and slaves among the Chechens and Ingush, even in the distant past.
About the existence of Christianity among the Chechens and Ingush (and Christianity as monotheistic religion cannot exist among a people with a tribal system), also testify terms denoting the attributes of this ideology, for example: kersta - Christian (cf. Russian. Cross), j1ar - cross, bibal - bible, kils - church (cargo, eklisi) and others.
At the same time, it should be remembered that in the vocabulary of the language there are no words that arose on their own, that "neither thought nor language form a special kingdom in themselves ... they are only manifestations of real life." (K. Marx, F. Engels).
Making an attempt in this article to express our views on the issue of the ethnogenesis of the Chechens and Ingush, we, of course, rely mainly on the data of the language, but at the same time, if possible, use the data of other related sciences.
Chechens, Ingush and Tsovo-Tushins (Batsbians), being related in language, material and spiritual culture, constitute one of the groups of the so-called Iberian-Caucasian ethnic family, which includes the autochthonous peoples of Dagestan, Georgia, Adygea, Circassia and Kabardino-Balkaria Georgians, Adyghes, Circassians, Kabardians, Avars, Dargins, Laks, Lezgins and others. In this ethnic family, scientists include the Basques of Spain and the south of France.
All these peoples are related to each other in origin and language. This means that the once united people broke up into several nationalities. Each with its own language and other ethnic characteristics, although close. The multilingualism of the Caucasus is a consequence of the differentiation of a single ethnic monolith, which, according to most scientists, developed in the Ciscaucasian steppes and in Ancient Western Asia, which was cultural and historical commonality with the Caucasian Isthmus.
Scientists came to the conclusion that the Caucasian ethnic community presumably formed about 5 thousand years BC. in Asia Minor, begins a gradual migration movement towards the Caucasian Isthmus, to the shores of the Black and Caspian Seas. This migration flow did not subside until 2 thousand years BC. and, seeping into the mountain gorges in the direction from south to north, covers the entire Caucasian region.
According to anthropologist Prof. V.V. Bunak, the settlement of “the North Caucasus took place in two streams, one moving along the western outskirts of the Caucasus, the other along the eastern one ... In the center of the Caucasus, they met and formed their own peculiar type, found in various modifications south of the Main Caucasian Range.” (E.I. Krupnov. “Medieval Ingushetia“. M., 1971, p. 42).
This ethnic stream, representing a conglomerate of related tribal formations, with insignificant differences in language, material and spiritual culture. With the weakening of the migration movement (the turn of 3-2 thousand), there is a further differentiation of ethnic units and a deepening of differences between the once kindred tribes. By this time, the beginning of the disintegration of a single Caucasian ethnic array into three ethnic regions should be attributed - Dagestan-Konakh, Kartvelian and Abkhaz-Adyghe. Such a conclusion is based not only on the data of the language, but also of archeology. By this time, the first states of the Middle East had already taken shape (Sumer, Elam, Urartu, Mitania, etc.), whose languages ​​we find analogies in the languages ​​of the modern peoples of the Caucasus, in particular the Chechens and Ingush, as evidence of the former ethnic unity of the latter with the peoples who created these ancient civilizations of mankind. The heritage of this unity can also be traced in some features of the spiritual and material culture of the Chechens and other peoples of the Caucasus. The Caucasian languages ​​and culture of the peoples of the Caucasus also find analogies in the culture and language of the Hurrians, Hittites, Urartu, Albania, Greece, the Etruscans and other ancient peoples and state formations. So, for example, according to the unanimous opinion of scientists, the Greeks carried the myth known to mankind " About chained Prometheus" from the Caucasus. And in the folklore of many peoples of the Caucasus there are legends about chained heroes with a content similar to the Greek myth. The Chechen version of the myth is especially striking, which almost completely coincides with the Greek myth of the Aeschylus version. (See our: "The image of Prometheus in the folklore of the Chechens and Ingush." ​​Izvestia CHIIIIYAL, v.6. Grozny 1971).
“In Greek ... - said acad. M.Ya. Marr, - such simple words as soul, brother, sea are Japhetic (i.e. Caucasian - K.Ch.). The names of the gods, heroes, villages, mountains, rivers of Greece are Japhetic" (N.Ya. Marr. Armenian culture, its roots and prehistoric connections according to linguistics. In the collection "Language and History". M., 1936, p. 80 ).
GA. Melishvili in his work "On the History of Ancient Georgia". (Tbilisi, 1954) locates the alleged distant ancestors of the Vainakhs in the middle reaches of the river. Euphrates called Tsupani (2 thousand BC). According to the academician, the name Tsupani comes from the name of the supreme pagan deity of the Vainakhs Ts1u (hence Chech. Ts1u stag, Ing. ts1u and ts1ey - holiday) (A) no - a suffix with the meaning of the place (cf. the names of the villages Ersan (Ersenoy), Guna (Gunoy ), Vedana (Vedeno)). As can be seen, this suffix still exists in the Vainakh languages ​​in the same meaning indicated above. The stem C1u has no meaning but are known as theonyms in modern Chechen and Ingush; in the distant past, the state was called by the name of this cult.
It is known that in 783 BC. King Argishti of Urartu resettled 6,600 thousand soldiers from Tsupani and from the neighboring region of Khat and settled them in the area of ​​Arin-Berd, founding the city of Irpuni (present-day Yerevan). The name Arin-Berd in full and the second part of the toponym Irpuni (-uni) are clearly etymologized by means of the Vainakh languages ​​(Arin) cf. check-ing. ariye - space, form of the genus. arena case (a) -spatial, -n- format genus. case, bird - coast, rock, -uni - format denoting the area (see above: Vedena and others). In the language of Urartu (according to the cuneiform script), arin is a steppe, plain, berd is a fortress. More about the connections of the Vainakhs with Urartu below.
According to prof. R.M. Magomed's differentiation Caucasian peoples happened already in the Caucasus (border 3-2 thousand) (see R.M. Magomedov. Dagestan. Historical studies. Makhachkala, 1975).
But if the question of the time and place of the separation of the Nakh ethnos from the general Caucasian array is debatable, then the kinship of the culture and languages ​​of the Caucasian peoples with the culture and language of the Urartu-Hurrits is generally recognized in science.
Here is what the AU writes about this. Chikobava: “Already now it can be tentatively asserted that certain provisions of the Urartian language are explained using the data of the Iberian-Caucasian languages, primarily Nakh (Chechen, Batsbi).” (A.S. Chikobava. “Problems of kinship of the Iberian-Caucasian languages”. Abstracts of reports. Makhachkala. 1965, p. 7). Similar thoughts were expressed by other venerable scientists (Academician G.A. Melikishvili, Prof. Yu.D. Desheriev, I.M. Dyakonov and others). Today, the Nakh languages ​​are less studied than other groups of the Iberian-Caucasian family, and their further study will bring them closer. final decision Problems. Already today it can be stated that the solution of the issue has moved forward significantly, since the time that has elapsed since the above statements of scientists. It is not difficult to understand how promising is the in-depth study of the Nakh languages, especially their dialects.
Let us dwell on some similar points, including the Nakh and Urartian languages.
Arin-Berd (see above).
Tushpa was the name of the capital of Urartu. It is known that in ancient times main city, the religious, cultural center of the state among many peoples, was named after the supreme deity. So it was in Urartu. And in Urartian, the given name meant “the city of the god Tush”, pa - a city, a settlement.
This name is similarly etymologized on the basis of the Nakh languages: Tush is one of the supreme deities of the Vainakhs during the period of paganism dominating them, later Christianity, the deity of childbearing and resurgent nature. Even in the last century, according to B. Dalgat, the Ingush performed rituals dedicated to this deity. The hoopoe is called by the Ingush tushol kotam or tusholig (chicken tushola) (l - determinant) and is considered sacred bird both the Chechens and the Ingush (you can't kill her, you can't throw stones at her).
The people living in Georgia, closely related to the Chechens and Ingush, - the Tushins - are named after this deity, since the clan, tribe and nationality in ancient times bore the name of their totem (cf. the name than taipa Ts1ontaroy on behalf of the deity of fire Ts1u, etc.). Another component of this toponym is also clearly etymologized from the Nakh languages. Pa (phya) in ancient Nakh meant a settlement, a village, locality. Until now, in the closely related Tushino, in the language of the Chechens living in Georgia (Kists) and in the mountain dialects of Chechnya, the settlement is called by this word. This word is also found in many toponyms of the mountainous Chechen-Ingushetia as a relic: Pkheda, Pkhamat, Pkhakoch, etc. "Pkha" was also the name of the pagan deity of the settlement, humanity among the Vainakhs. This basis is also present in the name of the god-fighting hero of the Vainakh Folklore Pkharmat, with whom we associate the famous Greek god-fighting Prometheus, (see our “The image of Prometheus in the folklore of the Chechens and Ingush.” Proceedings of the CHI NIIIIYAL vol. 4. Literary criticism Grozny, 1971).
One of the leading tribes of Urartu bore the name of Biaina. The Urartians also called their country with this word, which was natural, given the fact that the country of many peoples was called by the name of the leading people. Compare the name of the numerous Chechen tribe Beni and the village of Bena. The same root is present in the toponym Beni-Vedana and in the Ingush name of one of the Georgian mountain tribes of the Mokhevs-Benis, from whom the Ingush Malsagovs are believed to originate.
In the language of Urartu, the protected fortified area, or fortress, was called - khoy. In the same sense, this word is found in the Chechen-Ingush toponymy: Khoi is a village in Cheberloi, which really had strategic importance, because. blocked the way to the Cheberloev basin from the side of Dagestan and the plane of Chechnya. Hence the name of the river G1oy (х-г1), which flows through the village of Goity, the name of which (Chech. G1oyt1a) is also derived from Г1oy (khoy), -т1а-postposition with the meaning of place. The fact that the above parallels are not a coincidence is shown by the fact that the Chechen version is a plural form. numbers from ha - protection, -th- format plurality, and this root is found in many toponyms of Chechen-Ingushetia: Khan-Kala, Khan-Korta (Russian Khayan-Kort), etc. Urart. Durdukka (city near Lake Urmia). It is known that in the distant past the Nakh tribes were called Dzurdzuks. The case when the names of nationalities go back to the names of localities is a common phenomenon in science. In addition, the first part of this toponym-ethnonym is found in the Vainakh toponymy and anthroponymy: Dzurz-korta (locality in the Itum-kala region), korta - head, hill, mound; Dzuurza is a male name (the village of Ersenoy, Vedeno district), etc.
Urart. Tsudala (the name of the City, (Chech. Ts1udala) is a compound word consisting of two components - Ts1u - the god of fire, gave - the supreme god of the pagan pantheon).
Urart. Eritna is the name of the mountain, Chech. Ertina is the name of the mountain (Vedeno district), Urartu. Arzashka - the name of the area, Chech. Irzoshka (Vedeno district, near the village of Kharachoy). In Chechen-Ingush Irzuo - Forest Glade. Here, perhaps, there is an accidental coincidence in the basis of this word, but such an assumption is excluded in the ending - shka, because. this is a very common in Nakh toponymy, a living format of the directional case pl. numbers - w (plurality format), -ka - ha - the actual format (cf. s.s. Sema1ashka, Chovkhashka, Galashka, etc.).
Different scientists at different times noted the presence on the territory of modern Armenia and in the region of Lake Van, Urmi of numerous toponyms with repeating elements -li, -ni, -ta (see in particular GA. Khalatyan. “On some geographical names of Ancient Armenia in connection with data of Van inscriptions", VDI No 2, 1949). These toponyms are: Tali, Ardishtikh1inili, Naksuana, Kh1aldina, Mana, Kh1itina, Abaeni, Kh1ushani, Azani, Ardini, Missita, Mista and others.
The endings present in the given toponyms coincide with similar formats of toponymic names of the territory of modern Checheno-Ingushetia, especially its mountainous strip; see respectively:
Ch1ebil-la, nija-la, Sara-la, B1av-la, (names of villages and societies) Ersa-na, Gu-na, Veda-na, Belg1a-ni (ing.), Be-na, Sho-na and other names of villages; Gikh-t1a, ​​Poi-t1a Martan-t1a, ​​Ekhash-t1a (names of villages), and others.
Outside Checheno-Ingushetia, toponyms na – t1a (ta) are also noted in Tushetia (G.S.S.R.); see Etel-ta, Tsova-ta, Indur-ta and others, in which the format “ta” appears more clearly as a toponym-forming element of the Nakh languages.
In the science of language, it is customary to consider the most reliable, in the sense of the genetic relationship of languages, coincidences of the above type, when a number of toponyms with repeating formats of one region coincides with the same number of toponyms of another region.
There is a coincidence in the Nakh and Urartian cult names of the most ancient type.
Urart. Ma is the supreme god of the sun. In the same meaning, this name is also noted in the Nakh languages, although at present it appears only in the composition of derivatives and compound words with the meaning of the cult of the sun: malkh (lh - determinant) - the sun, see also the toponyms m1aysta (s, ta - determinants), malkhasta (generating stem "ma"); Mask - the name of the village (ma - the basis, ska - determinants), maskara (former village), Mesha-khi - a river, malsag - "man the sun", hence the surname Malsagov, Muosag - the name of a person in the same meaning, etc. .
Urart. Taishebi is one of the supreme deities; Chech., Ing. Tush ((Tushol - a deity of nature and childbirth; compare also Ing. Taishabaniye - a children's game). Cases when the names of deities turn into the names of children's games are known in science; see Chech. Galg1zhmekh lovzar - a game of towns from Gal - the name of one from ancient sun deities).
There are also cases of transformation of the names of deities into the names of people. So, the name of the Urartian deity Ashura in Chechen is found as woman's name Ashura, as well as Urart. Azani, Chech. Aizan (laskat. Aizani), Urart. Ashtu is the name of a deity, Chech. Ashtu female name, Urartian. Lagash, Chech. Lagash, Lakash - a male name, etc. Urart, Cybele - the god of spring, Chech. Kebila is a female given name, Urartian. Dika - the name of a deity, Chech. dika - good, Dika - a male name. There is a transformation of toponyms into proper names: urart. Kindari-Sangara - the name of the area, Chech. Kindar-Sangara - male names. There is a coincidence of other vocabulary, for example:
urart. sure - army, Chech. sura - in the same meaning, hence the toponyms Suyr - Korta, Surat1a (for details about the word sura, see K.Z. Chokaev. " place names Checheno-Ingushetia. Manuscript. Archive CHIIIIYAL. His own "Where does the root of the Vainakhs lead." Almanac. "Orga", No. 2, 1968).
urart. tires - two, Chech., Ing. shi - two,
urart. quiet, Chech., Ing. silence - old
urart. 1u - shepherd, Chech., Ing. 1y - in the same sense,
urart. Khaza, Chech., Ing. haza - to hear
urart. hello, chech. ala, ing. ala, cheb. ala - to say; see more
urart. Manua-s ale "Manua said", Chech. Manua-s ale (cheb.) in the same meaning. Here, as you can see, the whole phrase coincides with grammatical indicators(format of the ergative case - c).
Lulabi - this is how the Urartians called their neighbors, which meant a stranger, an enemy. If we take into account the specific historical situation of the time when the Urartians were subjected to constant invasions and attacks by the neighboring state of Assyria, such semantics given word becomes understandable, since the meaning of the word changes depending on the living conditions of native speakers. In modern Chechen and Ingush, this word is clearly decomposed into its constituent parts and has the meaning of neighbors (lula - neighbor, bi - plural formant, preserved in the closely related Batsbi to this day; see bats - bi "those who are on the grass" from bats ( buts) - grass).
There is a convergence of grammatical forms, which is especially important when determining the genetic relationship of languages, because grammatical structure is the most stable section of the language. For example, cases of coincidence of the forms of the ergative (active), genitive, dative cases of modern Nakh, on the one hand, and the Urartian language, on the other, have been noted; see urar. h1aldini uli ram Sarduri-si ale. The mighty God Khald Sardur speaks. Wed Chech. Kh1aldina (taroyolchu) sarduras ale (cheb). The forms of the dative and active case in these sentences are the same (-na, -s); see also: urart. They drank kara Ildaruni nor agubi; cf. Chech. Alari Ildaruni-ani agnedu. Canada led from the river Ildaruniani. We have given the Chechen version here only with particular regard to historical changes, omitting certain forms that were not in the ancient Vainakh, in particular, the postposition t1era. If we take into account all the changes, then we can accurately reproduce the Urartian version; So apari could be obtained from a pili - a ditch, an agneda (having discarded the formant -not- and replacing the class indicator d with b) can be restored in its previous form - agubi, etc.
In the Urartu language, scientists have discovered the format plural- even; cf. Chech., Ing. -ash - already in the same meaning. Such transformations among the Nakhs are legitimate, for example, yours is vazha.
In the work of M. Kaghankatvatsi "History of the Aghvans", written 1300 years ago, it is said: "Uts, Sodas, Gargars are brothers and they come from a father named Ura." Ura is the basis of the word Urartu, Uts are the Udins (related to the Nakhs and other peoples of the Caucasus, but living in Azerbaijan), Sods are apparently Sodoytsy (once a strong Chechen taip, whose representatives still live in Vedensky and other regions of the CHIASSR; this tribe is noted in ancient Greek sources (II century AD), see about this: V. B. Vinogradov, K. Z. Chokaev, Ancient names and placements of the Vainakh tribes, Proceedings of the CHIIIIYAL, vol. II, Archaeological and ethnographic collection, Grozny, 1966); the ethnonym Gargara is clearly deciphered using Chechen language like close relatives. Most scholars tend to see the ancestors of the Nakhs in the gargars.
According to archaeological sites held on former territory In Urartu, Soviet and foreign scientists noted many common points in the material culture of Urartu, on the one hand, and the Nakhs, on the other.
As the archaeological study of the former territory of Urartu, as well as the folklore, language and ethnography of the Chechens and Ingush, such similar points will increase, since the relationship here is undoubted.
The state of Urartu was formed in the 9th century BC. and lasted 300 years. In the 6th century BC e. Under the blows of the states of Assyria and Media, Urartu ceased to exist as a state.
Urartu is the first state that arose on the territory of our country. The peoples of Urartu reached a high level of development of culture, technology and economy for that time.
After the collapse of Urartu as a state, the state of Albania appeared in Transcaucasia. According to sources, the Gargars were the leading people in Albania. The dominant religion in Albania at one time was Christianity. the language of religion and schooling was the language of the Gargars. (See A. Shanidze “The Newly Discovered Alphabet of the Caucasian Albanians and its Significance for Science,” Izvestiya IYaIMK, cargo of a branch of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, vol. 4, 1938, etc.).
As evidence of the stay of the distant ancestors of the Vainakhs in Transcaucasia, numerous toponyms are noted in the former territory of Albania, explained only from the Nakh and partially from the Dagestan languages ​​(see Ts1unda, Hereti, Artsakh, Artsian; cf. Chech. Ts1uoynta (ra), Ertan, Erga, Ersan, Ortsakh, etc.). Toponyms explained from Nakh and Dagestan are also noted in Eastern Georgia, Khevsureti, Pshkhavia, Mohevia, Tusheti.
For the first time, the modern ethnic name of the Nakhchi Chechens in the form of Nakhchamatian is noted in Armenian sources of the 4th century AD. The same ethnonym is found in the "Armenian geography" of Moses Khorensky (7th century AD) which (ethnonym) is localized mainly in the foothill zone modern territory planar Checheno-Ingushetia (see the map from the specified "Geography"). However, at different times, the Nakh tribes in the sources are found under different names: sodas, gargars, dzurzuks, dvals (from dal), nakhchamatians, tsanars, gligvas, kists, kalkans, michigi ((michigiz (Chechens of Ichkeria), shibuts (shatois), mereji (merzhoy), Chechen, Chechen, Ingush, etc. d.
It would be erroneous to think that the Chechens and Ingush are, so to speak, ethnically "pure" peoples, without admixture of representatives of other nationalities. In its development, the Chechen-Ingush people have come a long way, during which, like any other people, they interbred with many peoples, as a result, they absorbed many ethnic groups, but also lost some part of their ethnic group, covered by an objective process of assimilation with other peoples.
More N.Ya. Marr wrote: “I will not hide the fact that in the highlanders of Georgia, together with them in Khevsurs, Pshavs, I see Chechen tribes that have become Georgianized.” (N.Ya. Marr. "On the history of the movement of the Japhetic peoples from the south to the north of the Caucasus." Izvestiya AN, 1916, No. 15, pp. 1395-1396).
At a session devoted to the problem of the origin of the Ossetian people (Ordzhonikidze, 1966), it was stated through the mouths of the majority of Caucasian scholars that the Ossetian people are "true Caucasians in origin and culture and Iranians in language." The presence of a significant percentage of the Nakh ethnic group in the composition of modern Ossetians was noted. This is also evidenced by the toponymy of Ossetia (Ts1ush, Tsltq, Wleylam, Ts1eylon, etc.).
Among the Kumyks there are citizens who consider themselves to be from Chechens.
As part of the modern Chechens and Ingush, there is a significant percentage of representatives of the Turkic, Ossetian, Dagestan, Georgian, Mongolian, Russian peoples. Again, this is evidenced primarily by the Chechen and Ingush languages, in which a significant percentage of borrowed words and grammatical forms, and folklore.

Chokaev K.Z.
dr. phil. sciences, professor

Review

On the works of Doctor of Philology, Professor K.Z. Chokaev; "On the origin of the Chechens and Ingush". Manuscript, Grozny, 1990, p. 1-17.
The article was written in hot topic which, without exaggeration, all conscious people are interested in. Chokaev is not new to historical science. His works on word formation among the Chechens provided significant assistance to ethnographers. Some of his articles are directly related to the history of the Nakhs. This article is also written on a completely scientific level and using rich and versatile information. The scientific base and field material, first introduced into scientific circulation by the author, meet the requirements of the time. In no case can this article be compared with the lightweight "scientific" works of V. Vinogradov. But the presented article, as we believe, was written a very long time ago and is somewhat outdated. For example, K.Z. Chokaev writes: “This process (Strengthening friendship between peoples - I.S.) acquires special significance in the conditions of our country, when the friendly ties of the peoples of the USSR in the process of building a communist society are growing stronger and developing every day.”
The reviewer has edited these and other obsolete expressions. I believe that the author will not object to us for such liberties on our part. We also took the risk of shortening small repetitions (p.6,14,15,16, etc.); pointed out the desirability of moving links down, corrected typos (p.7, 8), made stylistic corrections (p.7); made a small reduction (p. 2) and changed the title to: “On the origin of the Chechens and Ingush”, as they believed that modesty in such matters does not fit us all. Being far from Grozny, we could not coordinate our actions with the respected author and, we hope, the author will understand us. We touched upon the author's thoughts very little. Our intervention does not detract from the dignity of this article, and the reviewer recommends that it be published in the scientific section of the journal Justice.

Ethnographer, Ph.D. Saidov I. M.