The North Caucasus is a majestic region. Southern and North Caucasian federal districts

The Central Committee of the Union of United Mountain People of the North Caucasus and Dagestan proclaimed the state of the Mountain Republic. By the same decision, the Central Committee of the Union of United Highlanders was transformed into the Mountain Government. In the spring of 1919, Dagestan was occupied by the troops of General Denikin, after which the Mountain government declared self-dissolution and evacuated to Tiflis.

Anthropology. Races

The North Caucasian ethnic population belongs mainly to North Caucasian race Caucasoid type. The racial composition of the population of the Caucasus was determined at the beginning of the 20th century, for example, the Brockhaus-Efron Encyclopedia states the following:

Indo-Iranian group

Slavs

Russians
Poles
Bulgarians.

Iranians

Ossetians
Persians
Talysh
Kurds.

Armenians.

Semites

Jews
Assyrians and Chaldeans.

Caucasian peoples

Kartvelian group

Georgians
Adjarians
Khevsurs
carcass
Imeretians
Mingrelians
Svaneti

West Mountain group

Abkhazians
Circassians (Adyghe)

Kabardians
Abadzehi
bzheduhi
Shapsugi, etc.

East Highland group

Chechens
Ingush
Lezgins

Avars
Andes
Dargins
Tabasarans, etc.

Turkic group

Balkars
Azerbaijanis
Meskhetian Turks
Trukhmen (Turkmens of the Stavropol Territory)
Karapapakhi
Nogais
Kumyks
Karachais

Mongol peoples

Kalmyks.

Fino-Ugric peoples

ests.

It should be noted that in ancient times, towards the end of the Bronze Age and at the beginning of the early Iron Age, there was a rather significant difference in the type of population of Transcaucasia and the North Caucasus. In the oldest burials of the Samtavr and Mingachevir burial grounds, pronounced long-headed, narrow-faced Caucasian skulls are found, most similar in type to representatives of modern long-headed variants of the Caspian type

Historical and cultural aspect of determining the territory of the North Caucasus

It should be noted that the term North Caucasus has equally both geographical and historical-cultural-political meanings, in which the religious composition of the population also plays a significant role. The North Caucasus is a territory of Sunni Islam and Russian Orthodoxy, characterized by a large number of titular nationalities in a relatively small territory. Transcaucasia is the territory of Georgian Orthodoxy, the Armenian Gregorian Church and the significant influence of Shiism, the territory of officially mononational states, an increase in the number of nationalities of the Middle East - Kurds, Aisors and others.

A rough assessment of music, clothing, and weapons also gives a very clear division: North Caucasus - traditional Caucasian musical foundations, the spread of the so-called Circassian coat with gazyrs, the predominance of weapons of weak curvature and open weapon handles. Transcaucasia - the influence of Iranian and Semitic musical traditions, less regular use of clothing with gazyrs, a craving for greater curvature of the blade and protection of the weapon's guard, a clear cross on sabers. Moreover, Transcaucasian features intensify from West to East, already taking place in the Central Caucasus region, and reaching their greatest expression in Lezgistan, which is a fusion of the entire Caucasus, all its traditions. The gradualness of the transition is confirmed by the fact that there are no exclusively North Caucasian or Transcaucasian characteristics, and much depends more on the characteristics of a given area than on formal affiliation with the North or South Caucasus, which largely coincides with political conditions rather than with physical geography . (Compare: the formal attribution of all of Dagestan to the North Caucasus and the equally formal attribution of all of Sudan to North Africa, based on the historical and cultural characteristics of the region).

Natural resources

The North Caucasus is the largest agricultural base in Russia (besides Siberia and Altai), in which agricultural land occupies more than 70% of the territory.

The region is the location of the best sea and mountain resorts in Russia, among them the resorts of the Krasnodar Territory, the Caucasian Mineralnye Vody, Dolinsk, Elbrus, Dombay, and the promising Caspian coast.

The region's natural resources are significant: there are oil and gas reserves, high hydropower and geothermal potential, reserves of industrial metal ores, uranium ores, construction raw materials, valuable wood species, and reserves of aquatic biological resources (fish and seafood).

Transport

The coasts of the North Caucasus have a special trade significance for the country; important ports are located here: the largest Russian seaport of Novorossiysk, the ports of Tuapse, Sochi, Krasnodar (pier on the Kuban River), the ports of Yeisk, Makhachkala, Derbent; There are major transportation routes for continental oil and gas: CPC, the Baku - Novorossiysk oil pipeline, the Blue Stream gas pipeline, the Saratov Refinery - Volgograd Refinery - Novorossiysk product pipeline under construction.
Large railways and highways (the largest “Don”) also lead to the port of Novorossiysk, and to Anapa - M25 , from the village Dzhubga on Tuapse, Sochi, Adler - M27 . From Rostov, from the station. Pavlovskaya highway goes Caucasus to Mineralnye Vody, Makhachkala, Baku.

Visa regime with Azerbaijan

According to the agreement between the Government of the Azerbaijan Republic and the Government of the Russian Federation on visa-free travel for citizens of the Russian Federation and the Azerbaijan Republic, citizens of the Russian Federation have the right to enter, exit and move through the territory of the Azerbaijan Republic without visas, if they have a foreign passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation.

Visa regime with Georgia

According to the Caucasian Knot agency, residents of the North Caucasus republics - Chechnya and Adygea, welcomed the abolition of the visa regime with Georgia, as it would remove many problems when crossing the border with this country. At the same time, people are expressing fears that the Russian authorities may now tighten the rules for crossing the state border for their citizens.

Human rights violations

Irene Kahn, Secretary General of Amnesty International, the largest international independent human rights organization, said that in the year since the inauguration of Dmitry Medvedev, practically no measures have been taken to improve the human rights situation in the Russian Federation, and in some areas the situation has even worsened. The organization emphasizes that “the situation in the North Caucasus continues to be characterized by instability and armed clashes. The legitimate goal of stopping violence in the region by armed groups is being achieved through methods that run counter to international human rights law. People continue to be forcibly disappeared or kidnapped, arbitrarily detained, tortured and even killed in custody."

Terrorism in the North Caucasus

According to Maxim Shevchenko, a member of the Public Chamber, head of the working group for the development of public dialogue and civil society institutions in the Caucasus, “despite almost daily special operations to destroy militants, the social base of terror in the North Caucasus is steadily growing, and primarily because there is no any political and religious force that denies terror,” reports the Caucasian Knot. On September 27, 2010, Shevchenko noted: “in Russia there is a topic to which no one can give a clear answer for almost 20 years - this is the North Caucasus. In the North Caucasus there is nothing to oppose to the ideas that the ideologists of terror offer to young people.”

Ivan Sydoruk also stated that most of the weapons at the disposal of militants in the North Caucasus come from military units. “We are losing informational and especially ideological work, and here interaction with the clergy in the North Caucasus is extremely important,” said the deputy prosecutor general. Analyzing the situation, he noted that the main factor of extremism in the district is the high degree of unemployment and unresolved socio-economic problems.

“The entire North Caucasus is in a state of latent civil war,” states analyst Alexey Malashenko on the pages of the Swiss publication Le Temps. The newspaper writes that the increasing frequency of terrorist attacks in the region threatens plans for socio-economic development. “The attack on the Chechen parliament (October 19, 2010) is a rude slap in the face to President Kadyrov,” the publication believes. Correspondent Alexander Biyeta emphasizes: “the special sarcasm lies in the fact that the attack was carried out during a visit to Chechnya by Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliev, who came to see with his own eyes the efforts to stabilize the republic.” “Another attack, which took place in broad daylight in the very center of the city, confirms that Chechnya is no longer an island of stability - albeit very relative - compared to the neighboring Caucasian republics, where terrorist attacks occur regularly. The presence of several thousand employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Kadyrov’s men is not able to put an end to the operations of certain detachments of “rebels” hiding in the forests and consisting of veterans of two Chechen wars,” concludes the Swiss publication Le Temps.

Codes of conduct for youth of the North Caucasus

The proposal of the Deputy Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of Russia in the North Caucasus Federal District Vladimir Shvetsov on the need to develop a code of conduct for youth in the North Caucasus regions was criticized by the President of Chechnya Ramzan Akhmatovich Kadyrov. According to Kadyrov’s press service, the leadership of the Chechen Republic “perceives with great bewilderment the initiatives of individuals in power who sometimes offer not very well-thought-out options for solving national problems.” In particular, the statement of the President of Chechnya said: “I consider it necessary to remind Vladimir Shvetsov that the Chechens, like any people, have their own code of conduct. It has been developed over centuries. He is holy and indestructible. Our people have their own culture, their own traditions. They are based on respect for elders, care for younger ones, respect for the culture, traditions and customs of other peoples."

Notes

Literally “on the other side (of the mountains).” See dictionary for explanation.
Literally “Fatherland”
A small schematic map of the regions can be seen at
Georgia and most countries in the world do not recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, considering the Russian border with these countries to be parts of the Russian-Georgian border.
TSB South part.
Encyclopedia Brockhaus-Efron. Art. Caucasian region
From the 3rd to the 1st millennium BC. e. The racial type of the population is stable, approaching the Indo-Mediterranean (skeletons from mounds on the Manych River), however, brachycephalization of the population and a gradual decrease in body length are observed. The skulls of the later time, the Scythian-Sarmatian culture from the lowland regions are more brachycranial and very narrow-faced.
Institute of Ethnography named after N. N. Miklouho-Maclay.

Mounds are burial mounds made of earth or stone; in Maykop they date back to the 3rd millennium BC. e.
Dolmen (from Breton tol - “table” and men - “stone”) is a funeral structure of the 3rd-2nd millennium BC. e. (stone box with a flat slab lid).
Balneology (from Latin balneum - “bath”, “bathing* and Greek “logos” - “word, teaching”) is a branch of balneology that studies mineral waters and their medicinal uses.
A sanctuary is a place where religious rituals are performed and where, according to believers, the deity resides.
Modern Ingush profess Islam, but back in the 1920s. XX century Mass sacrifices took place in Ingushetia.
Tsekaloi. Chechnya. Ш The name Ichkeria comes from the Kumyk words “ichk” - “inner” and “er” - “place”. Previously, this was the name given to the mountainous regions of Chechnya.
Chechens and Ingush form a group of Vainakh peoples.
Shamil (1799-1871) - leader of the liberation struggle of the Caucasian highlanders against Russian colonialists and local feudal lords. Under Shamil, part of the Tats (indigenous people of Southern Dagestan) were converted to Islam, but most of them remained committed to Judaism.
Basilica (literally translated from Greek as “royal house”) is a rectangular building divided inside by rows of columns; one of the types of Christian temple.

The ancient Greek geographer Strabo spoke in his writings about the Scythians - tribes that lived in the Northern Black Sea region. This is one of the many peoples associated with the North Caucasus. Turbulent historical events forced people to move from the plains to the depths of the mountainous country, be it the indigenous inhabitants of the region or people from other places. As a result, a unique mosaic of nationalities and dialects has developed here.

The hospitality of the hosts is sometimes combined with customs and morals that are incomprehensible to Europeans, and adherence to traditions is combined with the desire to keep up with the times.

Agriculture, industrial production, mining and services for vacationers are the main areas of activity of the population of the North Caucasus. It is difficult to find a person in our country who has never vacationed in the Caucasus. Metals mined there are used in the production of many objects around us - this is a tungsten filament in an electric light bulb, and stainless steel utensils, and galvanized iron roofs, and much more. Jewelry and hard alloys, wool clothing and carpets made by residents of the North Caucasus can be found in all corners of Russia and beyond.

The population of the North Caucasus is more than 16 million people, or 11.3% of the population of all of Russia, while the area of the region is less than 1% of the country's territory. According to demographers, this is the only region in Russia today where the population is increasing. There are about a hundred nationalities and nationalities in Russia, and more than half of them are in the densely populated North Caucasus! Residents of one valley, and sometimes even one aul (mountain village), often do not understand the language of their neighbors from nearby villages.

Some Caucasian peoples number only a few hundred people, some hundreds of thousands.

The borders of the North Caucasus region were formed at the end of the 19th century, when the region was also called the Cis-Caucasian belt. Nowadays there are seven national republics on this territory: Adygea, Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia-Alania, Ingushetia, the Chechen Republic, Dagestan.

ADYGEA

The Adygea Autonomous Region (area - 7.6 thousand km 2) was formed in 1922 and was part of the Krasnodar Territory. Since 1992, Adygea has become an independent subject of the Russian Federation. Over 450 thousand people live in the republic. Approximately half of the territory of Adygea is on the plain, and half is on the mountains in the basins of the Belaya and Fars rivers.

The climate of the plain is mild and, in combination with black soil, allows for rich harvests of many agricultural crops - from wheat and rice to sugar beets and grapes. Mountains reaching 2 thousand meters are covered with forests. At an altitude of up to 1.2 thousand m, broad-leaved trees predominate - beech, oak, hornbeam; above - Nordmann fir; then there is small forest of birch, rowan and maple. Closer to the top there are subalpine and alpine meadows. The fauna of mountain forests is very rich: they are inhabited by bison, roe deer, chamois, mountain goats, wild boars, wolves, lynxes, bears, and many birds.

The Caucasian State Reserve is located in the high mountainous regions of the republic. Once upon a time this was a place for royal hunting, as many names remind us of: the Panther and Solontsovy ridges, the Princely Bridge tract, the Bison Glade, the Kholodnaya, Grustnaya, and Turovaya rivers. In the reserve you can find fir trees that are more than 500 years old. They reach a height of 60 m with a trunk thickness of two to three girths. The combination of snow-white peaks, blue sky and huge green trees creates that unique landscape that attracts tourists here.

In the early 60s. XX century An attempt was made to build the Stavropol-Sochi highway through the central city of Adygea - Maykop. On this wide asphalt road there are still signs with the inscription: “To Sochi... km.” But in Sochi you cannot drive along the highway: it reaches almost to the border of the reserve and suddenly ends. Common sense triumphed in time: a unique section of the territory was protected from a powerful flow of cars.

In addition to the beauty of nature, tourists are attracted to Adygea by ancient historical monuments - dolmens and burial mounds. An obelisk was erected in memory of the excavations of mounds in Maykop. Many works of art found by archaeologists are exhibited in the Hermitage.

Adygeis are one of the peoples united by a common name - Ady-gi. These also include Circassians and Kabardians. The ancestors of modern Adyghe people at different times bore the names Meots, Sinds, and Kerkets. Over the course of a long history, they mixed with the Sarmatians and Scythians, and were under the rule of Byzantium, the Golden Horde, Crimean Tatars, etc. In the 18th century. The Turks spread Islam in the North Caucasus, which is now professed by the majority of Adyghe believers.

Adygea has a varied national composition, but the majority are Russians (67%) and Adygeis (22%). The influence of Russian and European culture in general on the Circassians is great: almost everyone knows Russian. At the same time, the Circassians preserved the language of their ancestors, religion, the nature of relationships within the family and community, and national crafts, including jewelry. They observe rituals associated with birth, death, coming of age, and weddings; They reverence natural and historical monuments, be it ancient dolmens or Christian churches and chapels. The settlements of the Adyghe people, both in the mountains and on the plain - surrounded by gardens, picturesque and neat - are usually large in size. Residents of Adygea are not only excellent farmers and shepherds, but also tourism and mountaineering instructors, scientists, and engineers.

KARACHAY-CHERKESSIA

Karachay-Cherkessia received the status of a republic within Russia in 1991. In area it is almost twice as large as Adygea (14.1 thousand km 2), but in terms of population it is inferior (434 thousand people). Mainly Russians (42.4%), Karachais (31.2%) and Circassians (9.7%) live here. The Karachays settled in the high mountain areas, where they have long been engaged in cattle breeding. These people speak the Karachay language, which is related to the languages of the Turkic group. Some researchers consider the Karachais to be descendants of the Cumans, who once roamed the southern steppes and mixed with the indigenous Caucasian population. Modern Karachais prefer to live in the mountains, and high-mountain meadows serve them as pastures. Circassians are mainly engaged in agriculture and settle in the valleys.

The republic's subsoil is rich in minerals. The Urup deposit of copper pyrite has long been known. Since pre-revolutionary times, lead-zinc ore has been mined in the upper reaches of the Kuban at the Elbrus mine. But the mining industry is not the basis of the economy for Karach-evo-Cherkessia.

The multinational composition of the population is manifested in the diversified development of the republic's economy. If the Circassians are skilled gardeners and farmers, then the Karachais are famous as excellent livestock breeders. The Karachay sheep breed with its remarkable black fleece is well known. The Karachay horse breed is valued far beyond the Caucasus. Kefir, ayran - a drink made from sour milk, cheese and other dairy products are of high quality. Wherever tourists visit, there is a trade in handmade woolen products.

Although the area of arable land in the republic is small, a lot of potatoes, sugar beets and corn are grown here. In the north of Karacha-evo-Cherkessia, in Erken-Shahar, in the 60s. XX century The largest sugar factory in Russia was built. The republic's economy is focused on agriculture: its main sectors include livestock breeding and agriculture, production and repair of agricultural machinery, and food storage equipment. This direction of the economy is very favorable for the development of tourism and resort services.

Mountain lakes and waterfalls of Karachay-Cherkessia are accessible to the average pedestrian, glaciers and difficult routes are intended for climbers. There are many sources of mineral water on the territory of the republic. The mild, healing climate of mountain resorts also attracts people. Teberda, located at an altitude of 1.3 thousand m, is not much inferior to Kislovodsk, famous for its springs and air. In the upper reaches of the Teberda River, in a mountain basin, lies the world famous Dombay Glade - a favorite place for climbers, tourists and skiers. From here, even not very experienced tourists can easily climb to the Alibek glacier, follow the route to the Klukhorsky pass (2782 m) and to the blue Klukhorsky lake - small but deep, with floating ice floes in the hottest time of summer. At the pass during the Great Patriotic War there were stubborn battles with German troops.

KABARDINO-BALKARIA

The northern slope of the Greater Caucasus and part of the foothill plain are occupied by Kabardino-Balkaria. In area (12.5 thousand km 2) it is slightly inferior to its western neighbor - Karachay-in-Cherkessia, and in population it is almost twice as large (790 thousand people). About half of the residents are Kabardians, about a third are Russians, and a tenth are Balkars. Kabardians belong to the group of Circassians. At certain periods of history they were very numerous and influential and even subjugated other peoples of the Caucasus. The Balkars are a Turkic-speaking people related to the Karachais; Previously they were called Mountain Tatars. Relations between Kabardians and Balkars with Russia have deep historical roots. In 1561, Ivan the Terrible married the daughter of the Kabardian prince Temryuk Aidarovich, who counted on Moscow’s support in defense against Crimea and Turkey. Then, during the period of weakening of Russia, Kabarda fell under Turkish rule. In the 19th century Kabardians and Balkars resisted the Russian Empire, but the bloodshed soon ended, giving way to alliance. The religious ideas of the Kabardians also changed repeatedly over the centuries. From ancient beliefs, the population first switched to Christianity under the influence of Byzantium and Georgia, but starting from the 15th century. Islam spread here. Some Kabardians (Mozdok) later converted to Orthodoxy again.

It is in Kabardino-Balkaria that the Greater Caucasus reaches its maximum height and is called Central here. In the Main and Side ranges, the peaks rise to more than 5 thousand m; there are many glaciers, including those more than 12 km long. All major valleys have roads that sometimes lead directly to the glaciers. However, none of them rises to the Main Ridge, all of the passes through which are very difficult to access. To the north of the Main Range there are the Rocky Range (3646 m - Mount Karakaya), the Pastishchny Range and the Black Mountains, behind which the Kabardian Plain begins with heights of about 150 m.

In the upper reaches of the Baksan River, from the Azau clearing at an altitude of 2.8 thousand m, you can take a cable car (cable car) up to a height of 3.5 thousand m to the slopes of the Elbrus volcanic cone, from where a magnificent panorama opens up - peaks covered with snow and glaciers, green valleys. From here the ascent to the top of the highest mountain in Russia (5642 m) begins.

The subsoil of Kabardino-Balkaria contains a variety of minerals. They have long been mined by local residents, using them to make household items, jewelry and weapons. Modern industry is also based on underground wealth. The most famous is the Tyrnyauz deposit of tungsten-ram-molybdenum ores; There are significant reserves of lead-zinc, lead-antimony ores, and iron. Coal mining is underway. Mineral springs, of which there are many in the republic, also serve various economic purposes, and hot mineral waters are used to heat greenhouses.

Forests occupy more than 15% of the republic's area, mainly in mountainous areas. The foothill plain within Kabardino-Balkaria is almost completely plowed. An irrigation system has been created here for centuries.

There are many interesting sites in the republic, and tourists willingly visit it all year round. In the mountains there are preserved ruins of ancient villages, cascading up the steep slopes. Defensive towers rise above them. Kabardino-Balkaria is home to one of the deepest lakes in Russia - Blue Lake (Tserikel). Its depth is 268 m, and this is despite its small dimensions (width about 200 m).

The Narzan Valley is the traditional name of the section of the Khasaut River valley, where there are more than 20 large and many small springs along one kilometer of the path. On the Maly Larkhan River you can admire a 20-meter waterfall. The resort conditions of the Narzanov Valley are not inferior to the famous Kislovodsk. This mineral water is probably the most popular in the European part of Russia.

NORTH OSSETIA ALANIA

The Republic of North Ossetia-Alania covers an area of 8 thousand km 2. Its population is about 650 thousand people, of which 53% are Ossetians, 30% are Russians. In terms of population density (more than 80 people per 1 km2) and degree of urbanization (70% live in cities), North Ossetia ranks first in the North Caucasus.

Ossetians are an ancient people. Among their ancestors there are indigenous Caucasians and representatives of Iranian-speaking tribes - the Scythians and Sarmatians (Alans). Ossetians once occupied vast spaces in the region. Tatar invasion of the 13th century. pushed them deep into the mountains beyond the Main Range, to the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus. Most Ossetians profess Orthodoxy, which they accepted back in the 6th-7th centuries. under the influence of Byzantium and Georgia. There are also Muslims among the population; penetration of Islam in the 17th-18th centuries. Kabardians contributed. In 1774, Ossetia became part of Russia, after which its inhabitants began to move to the foothill plain.

The North Ossetian Autonomous Region was formed as part of the RSFSR in 1924; since 1936 it became an autonomous republic.

North Ossetia is located on the Ossetian Plain and occupies part of the northern slope of the Greater Caucasus. The mountainous territory of the republic includes the Side and Main ridges, and in the north the low (926 m) Sun-Zhensky ridge. The highest mountain - Kazbek (on the border with Georgia) - reaches a height of 5033 m. Other peaks are also high, from the slopes of which many glaciers descend, including the longest in the North Caucasus - Karaug: its length reaches 14 km.

The climate of the Ossetian Plain is favorable for growing corn, wheat, and sunflowers; Sugar beets also grow here, but they require additional watering. The average monthly temperature in January is -4°C, and in July +20-22°C; Precipitation per year is 500-800 mm. As you ascend into the mountains, it becomes cooler and the humidity increases. The mountain slopes up to a height of 2 thousand m are covered with forests, occupying a quarter of the republic’s area. Bear, lynx, marten, and fox can be found in these thickets. Above the forests is a belt of tall-grass subalpine meadows. At an altitude of more than 4 thousand m, the temperature does not rise above zero all year round. In winter, snow with a layer of 50-75 cm covers all mountain slopes, except rocky cliffs.

North Ossetia is the only republic in the North Caucasus through which highways to Transcaucasia pass. One of them - the Military-Ossetian - rises along the Ardon River valley to the Mamison Pass (2819 m), the other - the Military-Georgian - passes through the Cross Pass (2379 m).

North Ossetia is famous for its fertile arable lands, lush gardens, high mountain pastures, virgin forests, mineral waters, and minerals. Already at the beginning of the 20th century. Several dozen deposits of copper, silver-zinc and iron ores were known. The land of North Ossetia is also rich in manganese, molybdenum, arsenic, sulfur pyrites, and jet (a valuable black ornamental stone that is used for jewelry). In the vicinity of Vladikavkaz, layers of sand saturated with oil were found.

In the largest Sadonsky silver-lead-zinc deposit, located 60 km west of Vladikavkaz, ore has been mined since ancient times. In the 19th century The Russian military department attracted Ural peasants to develop it. In 1896, the Belgians bought the deposit and organized the Alagir joint-stock company, which equipped the mines, built a processing plant next to them, a small hydroelectric power station on the Sadon River, and an ore smelter in Vladikavkaz. Before the First World War, thousands of tons of zinc and lead and hundreds of kilograms of silver were smelted here every year.

In the modern economy of North Ossetia, non-ferrous metallurgy is the leading industry. The richest deposits (Sadonskoye, Fiagdonskoye, Zgidskoye, etc.) supply ore to processing plants located nearby. Concentrates are processed in Vladikavkaz.

In agriculture, grain production and horticulture are developed; small areas are occupied by vineyards. About half of the farmland is devoted to corn crops, a traditional crop in Ossetia. The republic has a large number of cattle and developed pig farming.

Industry and agriculture in North Ossetia are so developed that tourism is less important here than in other republics of the North Caucasus. Sightseers visit the Tseysky glacier, not far from which there is the ancient Ossetian sanctuary of Rekom.

Near the village of Darvas, several dozen burial grounds (family crypts) with burials of the 14th-19th centuries, known under the general name “City of the Dead,” have been preserved. In the mountainous regions of Ossetia there are ancient houses and tower-fortresses - witnesses of ancient customs and events.

INGUSHETIA

In 1924, the Ingush Autonomous Region was formed. In 1934, it merged with the Chechen Autonomous Region into the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Region, which in 1936 was transformed into the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic within the RSFSR. In 1992, after the separation of Chechnya, the Ingush Republic was proclaimed as part of the Russian Federation. This is the smallest Russian republic in terms of area (19.3 thousand km 2) and population (about 300 thousand people). Its people are one of the most ancient in the North Caucasus.

Ingushetia is located east of Ossetia and occupies mainly the basin of the Assa River, a tributary of the Terek. The natural conditions in the republic are the same as in Ossetia. To the east of Vladikavkaz, the dry heat of the deserts is already slightly felt. The forests here slightly change their shade (hornbeam and oak predominate in the foothills and basins) and retreat slightly into the mountains.

The capital of Ingushetia, Nazran, with a population of 23 thousand people (1994), became a city in 1967. It is located on the Rostov-on-Don - Baku railway line. There are few industrial enterprises in Nazran: a power tools plant, a knitting factory, a flour mill.

The landmark of Ingushetia is its old architectural ensembles. First of all, these are the ruins of villages with battle towers from the 14th to 18th centuries. made of gray untreated stone. Some of them can be approached from the Georgian Military Road. On the southern slope of the Rocky Ridge, above the buildings destroyed by time, the slender silhouettes of surviving towers of five to six floors, with narrow loopholes, rise. Each tower gradually tapers and ends with a pyramid-shaped stone roof. At the second floor level there is a door from which a staircase was once lowered. Near the village of Khairakh in the valley of the Assa River, the Thiba Erdy temple of the 11th-13th centuries has been preserved. - evidence of the spread of Christian teaching among the Ingush.

CHECHEN REPUBLIC

In recent years, the Chechen Republic has become known throughout the world. The fighting on its territory, including in the capital Grozny, the bombing of this largest and richest city in the North Caucasus and its significant destruction, the death of thousands of people, refugees, hostages, kidnappings of residents - all these phenomena, wild even for the Middle Ages, attracted everyone's attention (see . article "War in Chechnya" in the volume "History of Russia", part three, "Encyclopedia for Children").

The Chechen Autonomous Region was formed in 1922 and then merged with the Ingush Autonomous Region into the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1991, Chechen leaders announced the creation of a sovereign and independent Chechen Republic - Ichkeria, separated from Ingushetia and generally from Russia.

However, according to the current Russian Constitution, Chechnya is a subject of the Russian Federation. By agreement of the parties, the final decision on the status of the republic was postponed until the beginning of the 21st century.

In terms of population and area, the Chechen Republic is approximately 2.5-3 times smaller than Dagestan, located east of it, and significantly larger than Ingushetia. The total number of Chechens within Russia is almost 900 thousand people (according to 1989 data); Of these, approximately 400 thousand live in Chechnya itself.

Chechens and Ingush are close in language, origin, customs and way of life. The Chechens adopted Islam quite late (although much earlier than the Ingush): in the 18th-19th centuries. The nature of the two republics is very similar. However, only in the depths of Chechnya are there oil reserves, which largely determined its development in the 20th century.

The Chechen Republic is located on the northern slope of the Greater Caucasus and on the adjacent Terek-Sunzha Plain. The highest point on the territory of Chechnya is Mount Tebulosmta (4493 m). The plain is covered with fertile black soils; the mountains are covered with forests, 80% of which are tall beech trees. Mineral resources have been discovered in the southern part of Chechnya: copper ores near the village of Evdokimova, silver-lead ores near the village of Kei, and sulfur near the village of Shatoy. There are also antimony, gypsum and other minerals. At the beginning of the 20th century. the population was mainly engaged in agriculture. Wheat, corn, and millet were sown on the plains; sheep and racing horses were bred in the mountains. Beekeeping was quite widespread. In the northern regions they made cloth, and in the southern regions - burkas. Blacksmithing and jewelry making were developed.

The modern economy includes traditional occupations, to which were added irrigated agriculture on the plain and a powerful industry associated with the exploration, production and refining of oil. In the landscape of Chechnya, interweaving pipes, oil rigs and tanks occupy a prominent place. The republic's oil fields are not gigantic, like those in Siberia or the Middle East, but they are convenient for development.

On the southern slope of the Sunzhensky ridge, 40 kilometers west of Grozny, there is a large resort of Sernovodsk with healing mineral springs. In general, in terms of the wealth and diversity of natural resources, Chechnya is not much inferior to the other North Caucasian republics, and in terms of oil reserves it surpasses them all.

DAGESTAN

The largest of the North Caucasian republics both in area (50.3 thousand km 2) and in population (almost 2 million people) is Dagestan. In addition, it is the most energy-rich, driest, warmest and most treeless republic in the region. Dagestan has also set several all-Russian records. Here the population continues to grow the fastest (against the background of its decline throughout the country). More than 30 nationalities inhabiting Dagestan speak 29 languages and 70 dialects; According to these indicators, the republic can even lay claim to the world championship.

Islam penetrated into Dagestan earlier than into other North Caucasian republics; Possibly for this reason, the inhabitants of the republic are most committed to Islam. 57% of the population of Dagestan lives in villages; At the same time, nowhere in the North Caucasus are there cities as ancient as in Dagestan: Derbent, for example, is more than 5 thousand years old - it is the oldest city in Russia. Even the nature of the republic is unique: here is the lowest point in Russia and Europe - 26 m below sea level.

Dagestan is located at the Caspian Gate - where the path from Transcaucasia to the northern plains begins. The peoples of the republic often suffered from the raids of conquerors. Residents took refuge in the mountains, behind narrow gorges, on inaccessible plateaus. Plains from the 8th to the end of the 10th century. occupied by the Khazar Khaganate, the Caspian Sea in those days was called the Khazar Sea. The capital of the Kaganate was then located on the site of the modern village of Tarki not far from Makhachkala.

The largest indigenous peoples of Dagestan are Avars (27%), Dargins (15%), Kumyks (13%), Lezgins (11%), Laks, as well as Tabasarans, Nogais, Tats, Aguls, Rutuls, Tsakhurs. There are nationalities that are very small in number. Thus, the village of Ginukh, with several dozen houses, has its own language and customs.

The diversity of natural conditions and the richness of national traditions determined the characteristics of numerous folk crafts. Almost everywhere there are masters. Goldsmiths and jewelers work in the famous village of Kubachi, ceramics are produced in Gotsatl, carpets are produced in Untsukul, etc.

Despite the mixture of peoples and languages, Dagestan has been perceived as an integral country for hundreds of years. In 1921, the Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was created, and in 1991, the Republic of Dagestan was proclaimed as part of Russia.

Translated from Turkic, Dagestan means “country of mountains.” However, it occupies not only the mountains of the eastern part of the North Caucasus, but also the adjacent Caspian plains. Steppe and semi-desert lowlands extend to the north of the ridges for almost 200 km, and mountains continue to the south, also for almost 200 km. The Caspian coast is the warmest corner of the North Caucasus. The average monthly temperature in January here is above zero, as on the Black Sea coast, and in July it is even hotter - up to +24 °C. However, in these places the mountains no longer protect from northern winds, so in winter there are severe frosts - in the north of the republic down to -40 ° C.

The mountains of Dagestan are high, with steep slopes. The height of the Bazar-Dyuzu peak on the border with Azerbaijan is 4466 m. The climate in the mountains is quite dry, so there are few glaciers. Vast spaces are occupied by high (2.3-2.7 thousand m) plateaus, the most famous of which are Khunzakh and Gunib.

The mountains of Dagestan are cut by the deepest canyons of rivers (Sulak, Sa-mur) and their tributaries. The Sulak gorge between the Gimry ridge and Sulak-tau was once the site of fierce battles between Shamil’s rebels and the troops of the Russian Tsar (1832).

Now the highest (231 m) mud dam has been built here on other rivers of Dagestan. They not only provide the republic with electricity, but also irrigate the lands in the mountains and plains. Valuable fish are found at the river mouths, including sturgeon, beluga, stellate sturgeon, Caspian salmon, and whitefish. Red deer, wild boar, and many birds live in the reed thickets covering the coastal floodplains (the banks flooded in the spring).

In the forests - they occupy only 7% of the mountain area - there are wolves, bears and lynxes. In the foothills you can see a large (25-30 cm) turtle, snakes - a huge brown viper sleeping on the stones, a bright green snake. On the plains, in the steppes and semi-deserts, the animal world is different in nature: birds, various rodents, in the very north - saigas, the steppe fox - corsac fox.

The mountains of Dagestan are a kind of fortress protecting the population of the interior regions. You can get here from the plains, usually by passing through narrow, insurmountable gorges. At the same time, in the mountains themselves there are many wide, convenient valleys where you can engage in agriculture and build housing. The sun-scorched mountain slopes are densely populated: tens of thousands of people live in some villages.

Mountain villages are connected by serpentine roads. The gray cubes of houses are molded one to the other and on top of each other, hanging over the slopes of the mountains like swallows’ nests. There is neither a green lawn nor a tree here. In the mountains, houses are not built on land suitable for cultivation, saving it for arable land. To expand the fields, artificial terraces were created on steep slopes and soil was brought here. Now these plots are amazingly well-groomed. However, with the advent of cheaper grain produced on the plains, the terraces began to be used mainly as meadows. Sheep and horse breeding is an important sector of the Dagestan economy. In summer, animals are grazed in alpine meadows, and in winter - in the steppe, on the plain. Sheep are sometimes transported by car, reducing losses from long hauls. There are many gardens and vineyards in the mountain valleys and foothills, the fruits of which are used in large quantities for the production of canned food and wine.

The flat part of Dagestan is located on the territory of the Caspian lowland. Within the republic it is called Tersko-Kumskaya (north of the Terek) and Tersko-Sulak or Kumykskaya (to the south). Flat near the coast, the Terek-Kuma Lowland gradually rises as it moves away from the Caspian Sea, and irregularities appear on it - sand dunes and ridges fixed by vegetation. This part is called the Nogai steppe. The landscapes here are mostly steppe and semi-desert, with some salt marshes. Wormwood, solyanka, cereals and herbs grow in sparse bushes. The main wealth of the Nogai steppe is pastures where fine-wool and coarse-wool sheep are bred. Farming is of an auxiliary nature. Most of the indigenous population are Nogais, descendants of a once numerous and formidable horde that roamed the plains of the North Caucasus. They are a Turkic-speaking people with a centuries-old history. The traditional occupation of the Nogais is cattle breeding, but among them, like hundreds of years ago, today there are representatives of a variety of professions. Modern Nogais lead a mostly sedentary lifestyle. Their settlements are located near irrigation canals and with many windmills (wind power plants) resemble Dutch villages. However, if in Holland they drain land with the help of windmills, then in Dagestan they are used to water gardens and vegetable gardens.

The Kumyk plain, like the Nogai steppe, was named after the people inhabiting it - the Kumyks. The lands located between the foot of the mountains and the Terek are convenient for cultivation: there are many vineyards and gardens, especially near Makhachkala. Kumyk settlements usually look like a large garden with whitewashed houses.

No large deposits of mineral raw materials have yet been discovered in the depths of Dagestan, but there are many small ones. Literally “from near Makhachkala”, oil was extracted for two decades, starting in 1942. In 1972, the development of the Shamkhal-Bulak gas field began, from which gas pipelines stretched to all ends of the republic. Deposits of iron ore, gypsum, alabaster, building stone, glass sand, mineral and thermal (warm) waters provide a variety of needs for the modern economy of Dagestan.

The Caspian Sea is rich in a variety of fish. The most valuable are sturgeon, the caviar of which is worth almost its weight in gold. The beaches of Dagestan are wonderful, vast and sandy, with sloping shores. This is an ideal place for a children's holiday. However, there are still no traditions of tourist services here and resort resources are very poorly developed.

The nature of Dagestan is not only generous, but also harsh in the manifestation of its elements. In 1970, the strongest earthquake in the North Caucasus occurred here, from which several cities and villages suffered. At this time, large landslides and landslides occurred in the mountains. The storms of the Caspian Sea are also very severe. Fishermen used to say: “Whoever has never been to the sea has never seen grief.” Since 1978, the level of the Caspian Sea began to rise rapidly. Farmland is flooded, homes and roads are destroyed, so dams have to be built or buildings have to be moved further from the sea.

The capital of Dagestan, Makhachkala, is located on the shores of the Caspian Sea, at the foot of Mount Tarkitau. It was founded as a military fortification in 1844 near the place where Peter I had his camp in 1722. The mountaineers called the fortification Angi-Kala - Flour Fortress. In 1857, the fortress received the status of a city and the name Petrovsk-Port. Soon the port itself was built, and in 1896 a railway was brought to it. The city was renamed Makhachkala - in honor of an active participant in the civil war, Makhach Dakhadayev. The population of the city is 395 thousand people. A beautiful center built at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century. surrounded by modern neighborhoods and factories. The city is home to the Dagestan Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, theaters and museums.

Machines, instruments, building materials are produced in Makhachkala, and the food industry is developed. The city itself is a balneological and seaside climatic resort: its mineral waters, therapeutic muds, extensive sandy beaches and warm sea are widely used.

The small (44 thousand people) city of Kizlyar is located on a plain in the Terek delta. It was first mentioned in 1652. In 1735, the first Russian fortress in the Caucasus was founded in this place. In the second half of the 18th century. Kizlyar was the administrative and commercial center of the North Caucasus; not only Persian but also Indian merchants traded in its bazaars. The city has traditionally been famous for its vineyards and winemaking. This is due to the fact that at the beginning of the 18th century. Many Armenians and Georgians moved here. Despite its small size, Kizlyar is the cultural center of Dagestan. The city has several museums and many historical monuments.

The Caucasus is one of 200 ecoregions of the planet designated by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) with the aim of drawing attention to the most unique ecosystems, developing and implementing projects for their conservation (Biodiversity of the Caucasus Ecoregion, 2001). In addition, the Caucasus ecoregion is included in the list of regions that are centers of biological diversity, compiled by the international environmental organization Conservation International. This list includes regions where at least 1,500 endemic plant species are protected, 70% of whose original range has been destroyed. This speaks quite eloquently in favor of the need for an immediate inventory of the Caucasian ecosystems (including aquatic ones) in order to develop plans for their conservation and sustainable use.

Approximately 65% of the area of the Caucasus ecoregion is mountainous. Active mountain building and a changing climate have formed a diverse topography, on the basis of which the Caucasus is divided into the Ciscaucasia, the Greater Caucasus, the Transcaucasian Plateau, the Colchis Lowland, the Kura Depression and the Talysh Mountains.

The Greater Caucasus, stretching 1,500 km from northwest to southeast, is the most important watershed and climatic barrier between Eastern Europe and Western Asia, that is, between two continents. The Greater Caucasus consists of several parallel ridges; its highest peak, Elbrus, is located at an altitude of 5,642 m above sea level. m.

The part of the Caucasian ecoregion located on the territory of the Russian Federation is usually called the Northern Caucasus (Geographical Encyclopedic Dictionary, 1989). The landscapes of the North Caucasus are diverse. Most of the lowland areas are occupied by steppes, which in the eastern part of the region give way to semi-deserts and then deserts. In some places, flat and mountain meadows are developed. In many reservoirs of the flat part of the North Caucasus, reed swamps (floods) are developed. In the mountainous part of the region all variants of vertical dissection of the relief are presented.

The climate of the North Caucasus is temperate continental, average temperatures: January −3.5°C, July 21.8°C, annual precipitation 400-800 mm.

According to natural conditions, the North Caucasus is divided into several zones: acute-arid, arid, zone of unstable moisture and humid zone. Annual precipitation in the acutely arid zone is below 300 mm, of which 60% falls in the summer as rain, which quickly evaporates at high temperatures. Poor chestnut soils predominate here.

The humid zone with precipitation over 550 mm occupies the forest-steppe, forest and mountain regions of the southern regions of the North Caucasus. Most of the lowland North Caucasus lies in the steppe zone. Only in the east do they give way to semi-deserts. The foothills of the Greater Caucasus are covered with deciduous and coniferous forests, dominated by oak, beech and hornbeam.

The Northern Caucasus is part of the Holarctic zoogeographical region and, according to the faunal zoning of the Caucasus, belongs to two large zoogeographical subregions: Circumboreal and Central Asian. In the Circumboreal subregion, the North Caucasus is represented by the forest district of the European Forest Province; its fauna includes widespread forest species, often located here at the border of their distribution or far from their main range. They often form separate subspecies. The Central Asian subregion is represented by the Caucasian mountain meadow district, which occupies the subalpine, alpine and subnival zones and is part of the Highland Asian province.

The North Caucasus is distinguished by an extremely complex interweaving of natural and anthropogenic conditions. A significant part of its territory has undergone profound transformations. The flat areas of the region, where the largest settlements, industrial and oil-producing facilities are concentrated, connected by a dense network of transport highways, have undergone the greatest economic development and, as a result, transformation of the primary appearance of landscapes. About 80% of the area of the flat part of the North Caucasus, once covered with feather grass steppe, is currently occupied by agricultural land. The transformation of steppes into fields entailed the creation of a system of protective forest plantations, and intensive agriculture (especially rice growing) led to the regulation of river flows and the creation of reservoirs. As natural fish stocks became depleted, pond fish farming began to develop.

The North Caucasus economic region is one of the largest and most densely populated regions of the Russian Federation. It occupies an area of 355.1 thousand km2, where over 18.4 million people live. The average population density is about 64 people/km2. The population of the North Caucasus differs from other regions of the country in its multinationality. More than 30 nationalities live in Dagestan alone. On the plains of the Ciscaucasia and Lower Don, Russians and Ukrainians predominate. The most numerous indigenous nationalities of the North Caucasus form independent republics: Adygea, Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkarian, Karachay-Cherkess, North Ossetia, Ingush and Chechen. In the North Caucasus, the urban population predominates (54%). The cities are mostly medium and small. There are 8 thousand rural settlements in the region. The villages are located in the steppe zone of the North Caucasus and are large in territory and population. Mountain regions are characterized by small and medium-sized settlements.

The North Caucasus region is distinguished by the richness and diversity of raw materials, fuel and energy resources. Natural gas reserves are significant. The total geological reserves of coal are about 44 billion tons. They are concentrated mainly in the Rostov region, in the eastern part of Donbass. Anthracite predominates, occurring mainly at a depth of about 600 m. The hydropower resources of the North Caucasus exceed 50 billion kW/h. The water problem in certain regions of the North Caucasus is worsening due to river pollution. The area is also rich in a variety of mineral waters - salt-alkaline, ferruginous, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, methane.

The North Caucasus is poorly endowed with forest resources (it accounts for only 0.5% of Russia's forest areas). Their peculiarity is that 65% of the forests are high-mountainous and have no operational value. In this regard, the forests of the North Caucasus should be considered primarily from the point of view of their recreational, recreational and environmental significance.

The North Caucasus occupies an important place in the Russian economy. Its share in industry is 8%, in agriculture - 16%. The leading industries of market specialization are gas, oil, coal, non-ferrous metallurgy, various mechanical engineering, cement and food industries.

The region has a significant share in Russia in the production of grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, vegetables, fruits, grapes and livestock products. In the structure of the region's sown areas, the leading place belongs to grains - they occupy 58%; 30% is occupied by forage crops, 9% by industrial crops and 3% by potatoes and vegetables and melons. The Caucasus is the main producer of corn in the Russian Federation. Rice cultivation is also an area of specialization. Rice systems have been created in the Krasnodar Territory, Rostov Region and Dagestan. The largest rice producer is Kuban. The region is of great importance in the production of important industrial crops: sunflower, sugar beets, tobacco. The North Caucasus is a large horticultural and viticulture region. Here there is about a third of all fruit and berry plantings and almost all the vineyards of the Russian Federation. The North Caucasus is the only region in Russia where subtropical crops are grown: tea, citrus fruits, persimmons, figs (Characteristics of the North Caucasus Economic Region, 2006).

An important branch of agriculture in the North Caucasus is animal husbandry. Dairy and meat farming is developed in the foothills and Kuban. Pig farming is developed in the Lower Don and Kuban, where it is advantageously combined with grain farming and beet growing. Sheep farming is widespread mainly in the Stavropol Territory, Rostov Region and Dagestan. Fine-fleece sheep breeding is of great importance here. The North Caucasus occupies a leading place in Russia in wool shearing. Poultry farming is also developed in the North Caucasus. The Adler Poultry Farm, Labinsk Poultry Farming Joint-Stock Company and other enterprises are well known in the country (Characteristics of the North Caucasus Economic Region, 2006). It should be noted that over the past 20 years, the number of livestock, as well as in the country as a whole, has decreased significantly.

The resort recreational complex is of national importance. The North Caucasus also has all the prerequisites for the development of tourism and mountaineering, and the organization of ski resorts of international importance.

The North Caucasus is characterized by a high level of transport development of the territory. Main transport hubs: Rostov-on-Don, Krasnodar, Novorossiysk, Mineralnye Vody, Tuapse, Sochi (Adler), Vladikavkaz and Taganrog. The length of water transport routes is 1.5 thousand km. Over 12 large rivers flow in the area, of which the Don, Northern Donets, Western Manych, and Kuban are navigable. The navigation period ranges from 230 to 245 days a year. The share of paved roads in the total length of public roads is 96%. According to this indicator, the district ranks second in the Russian Federation. The most developed network of roads is in the Kuban region, on the Black Sea coast and in the foothills of the Caucasus. Rail transport plays a major role in interregional transport links. It accounts for up to 80% of cargo turnover. The length of the railway network is 6.3 thousand km, more than 50% of them are electrified. However, at present, the reserves of capacity and carrying capacity of the Center-Caucasus railway are completely exhausted, which complicates the development of inter-regional connections (North Caucasus Economic Region, 2006).

The North Caucasus region is one of the areas with high labor supply. Unlike other regions of the European part of Russia, natural population growth is high in the North Caucasus. Currently, due to the difficult financial and economic situation in the country, the labor force is being released here and the area is becoming labor surplus. In these conditions, the problem of employment becomes especially urgent. At the same time, due to national conflicts, there is a migration outflow of refugees, especially the Russian-speaking population, to other regions of Russia (Characteristics of the North Caucasus Economic Region, 2006).

Currently, the North Caucasus is in a difficult economic situation. According to many experts, the region is a zone of real social disaster. In conditions of poverty and misery, a significant part of the local population is forced to live on subsistence farming. Agricultural production is almost entirely focused on feed needs. More than half of public lands are leased, the size of private farms sometimes reaches impressive sizes, but the sale of farm products is problematic. Employment in the public sector is sporadic. The economic situation is somewhat better in North Ossetia, where a complete conversion of the military-industrial complex took place, and in Ingushetia, where registered enterprises are 80% exempt from federal taxes (Characteristics of the North Caucasus Economic Region, 2006).

The difficult economic and social situation is creating a number of problems for the region's wetlands. To the previously existing unfavorable factors (drainage of waterlogged lands, excessive water withdrawal for irrigation, industrial and agricultural pollution of water bodies), new ones have been added: spontaneous occupation and development of water protection zones, cutting down tree plantations along the banks, pollution from household waste, mass poaching. Significant areas of irrigation systems, rice fields and fish farms have ceased to be used. This has led to a deterioration in nesting and wintering conditions for a number of species of shorebirds and waterfowl. At the same time, due to the economic recession, pollution of water bodies from fertilizers, pesticides and industrial effluents has decreased.

There are different interpretations of the geographical and administrative boundaries of the North Caucasus (Geographical Encyclopedic Dictionary, 1989; Gvozdetsky, 1954; Isakov, 1982; Wetlands of Russia, 2000). Based on considerations of the integrity and logical sequence of the inventory of wetlands of the Russian Federation, we take as a basis the zoning proposed by N. A. Gvozdetsky and divide the North Caucasus into the following subregions: 1) Western and Middle Ciscaucasia; 2) Mountain Caucasus; 3) Terek-Kuma lowland.

There are 10 constituent entities of the Russian Federation located on the territory of the North Caucasus, which differ significantly in natural and economic characteristics.

The collection of information about the wetlands of the North Caucasus began in the 1980s. (Skokova, Vinogradov, 1986), due to their key importance in the functioning of the ecosystems of this region. Three wetlands of the North Caucasus region (“Veselovskoe Reservoir”, “Lake Manych-Gudilo” and “Kuban Delta”) were declared wetlands of international importance by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 1050 of September 13, 1994, their descriptions were included in the first volume of the series “Wetlands of Russia” (1998). In the process of further inventory in the region, 10 sites were identified and described, included in the Prospective (“shadow”) list of the Ramsar Convention. It is clear that 13 sites are completely insufficient for a region with such diverse aquatic ecosystems, the spectrum of which extends from sea bays to high-mountain lakes and glaciers.

In the course of the work done in the preparation of this (sixth) volume of the series “Wetlands of Russia” by a team of authors, 53 wetlands that meet the criteria of the Ramsar Convention were identified and included in the inventory list. The list is quite representative, as it reflects the entire main range of wetland ecosystems that are most significant for maintaining the biodiversity of the region, and includes sea bays, lagoons, estuaries and river deltas, floodplain complexes and swamps, various lowland and mountain lakes (fresh and salty) and reservoirs, as well as unique alpine swamps. The total area of the allocated land is about 11,245 km2.

In the current situation, according to current legislation, most decisions in the field of environmental management and nature conservation are made at the level of constituent entities of the Russian Federation. It is the administrations (governments) of territories, regions and republics that establish the environmental status of natural territories and water areas. We hope that the descriptions given below in a number of cases can serve as a justification for giving wetlands one or another status that would contribute to their actual protection. Therefore, we considered it appropriate to provide economic and geographical descriptions of eight subjects of the North Caucasus that are most important in terms of conserving valuable wetlands that meet the criteria of the Ramsar Convention.

Geographical and civilizational conditions of the North Caucasus

The North Caucasus region is located in the south of the Russian Federation and its natural geographical boundaries are:

in the north: Kuma-Manych depression
to the east: Caspian Sea
in the west: the Azov and Black Seas
in the south: the Greater Caucasus Range, separating the North Caucasus from Transcaucasia

In landscape terms, scientists divide the North Caucasus into two zones:

the steppe part, Ciscaucasia, and the steppes are both hilly and flat, in the east they turn into semi-deserts
Caucasus ridge and foothills

In the region there will be two lowlands: in the west – the Kuban-Azov lowland, in the east – the Terek-Kuma lowland. The main rivers are the Kuban in the west and the Terek, which forms its own basins.

The North Caucasus region has resource characteristics: in the steppe part the main wealth is black soil more than 1.5 meters thick. Even at the beginning of the development of the Caucasus by Russian settlers, the average grain yield was SAM-5, SAM-6. Natural steppe spaces created favorable conditions not only for agriculture, but also for cattle breeding. Access to three seas stimulated exchange and trade. The Caucasus Mountains conceal a fairly wide range of mineral resources. Deposits of iron, zinc, lead, polymetals.

In the flat part of the North Caucasus (Adygea, Chechnya, Nagai steppe) in the 19th century, oil fields. In the mid-20th century, gas reserves were discovered on the Stavropol Upland. Compared to European Russia climate North Caucasus more than soft with short winters with little snow and hot summers.

At the moment, the entire North Caucasus is represented 8 subjects Russian Federation: Krasnodar Territory, Stavropol Territory, Karachay-Cherkess Republic, Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Republic of Ingushetia, Chechen Republic, Republic of Dagestan. Because of its ethnic diversity, Dagestan in ancient times received the name “Country of Mountains” or “Country of Languages.”

Stages of research into the history of the region

Thanks to its proximity to the seas, natural resources, and mild climate, the North Caucasus has long attracted the attention of neighbors and conquerors. Already in the 6th century BC. in the west of the Caucasus began to form, and therefore the region repeatedly began to appear in the news of various ancient Greek authors (Herodotus, Plutarch, Strabo). It is very characteristic that the ancient Greeks not only reflected the contacts of Greek colonists with the aborigines, but also recorded the emergence and activities of large tribal communities in the Caucasus that left their mark on world history (Cimmerians, Scythians, Sarmatians).

By the 1st century BC. The region reveals the influence of another powerful ancient civilization -. The Romans not only subjugate the Greek colonies of the Caucasus, the Caucasus becomes an arena of struggle between Rome and Parthian State (Iran).

Evidence about the Caucasus and its peoples is found in such authors as Seneca (younger), Pompey, Tacitus, Ammianus Marcelli. After new state formations take shape in Transcaucasia, the North Caucasus becomes an object of interest from outside , Georgian and Armenian authors (Ananiy Shirokatsi, Movses Khorenatsi).

The heir to ancient civilization was the Byzantines, with the goal of spreading political influence and Christianity, they also appeared in the North Caucasus lands. Evidence about nature, various tribes of the Caucasus and their customs is found in famous Byzantine writers - Strokopius of Caesarea, Constantine Porphyrogenitus.

They left a certain mark on the study of the Caucasus Italians, representatives of the oldest trading city-state. In the 13-15 centuries, Genoese fortresses and trading posts existed in the Azov region and on the Black Sea coast, and their inhabitants were in contact with the local population. Famous Italian authors (Plano Carpini, Rubruk, Giorgi Interiano) contain various descriptions of the nature and tribes of the Caucasus.

By the 16th century, the North Caucasus became the object of increased military, political and religious expansion from outside and its vassal Crimean Khanate. The Turks are actively trying to subjugate the local rulers and impose their citizenship on them. Naturally, this is reflected in Turkish chronicles. Various characteristics of the North Caucasus are found in the famous 16th century traveler Evliya Celebi.

The most culturally developed already in the 1st century BC. becomes Dagestan. Therefore, this part of the Caucasus appears in reports by Iranian, Albanian, Azerbaijani authors.

Domestic Caucasian Studies

The North Caucasus came to the attention of Russian authors back in the 10th century, in connection with an organization that existed for almost 2 centuries. In Russian chronicles of the 10th-12th centuries there are references to Tmutarakan, its princes, trade, wars, treaties concluded with the Kosogov and Yas (Alans) tribes.

Scattered episodic information about the North Caucasus is found in the papers of the embassy order of the 16th-17th centuries. It was during this period that some Caucasian tribes sought the patronage of Moscow, the arrival of various delegations to Ivan the Terrible, and the Moscow Rus' tried to gain a foothold in the lower reaches of the Terek.

Systematic and more scientific study of the region It was started in the 18th century. Academicians of the St. Petersburg Imperial Academy of Sciences P.S. Pallas, I.A. Gyldenstedt, P.G. Butkov, I.F. Blaramberg. With the beginning of the annexation of the North Caucasus to Russia, the number of authors writing about the North Caucasus has increased, represented by Russian officers F.F. Tornau, V.A. Potto, N.F. Dubrovin, R.A. Fadeev. Scientist academician A.P. Berger “Caspian region”, 1857, “Chechnya and Chechens”, 1859.

Representatives mountain nobility The North Caucasus of the 18th century also became, and the most talented of them created a number of works in Russian dedicated to the peoples of the North Caucasus (Shora Nogmov “The Tradition of the Circassian People”, “Elementary Rules of Kabardian Grammar”, Umalat Laudaev “The Chechen Tribe”).

In the second half of the 19th – early 20th centuries All Caucasian peoples had their own educators. In Ossetia - K. Khetagurov (Ossetian), Sultan Kazy-Girey (Nogai). The Russian pre-revolutionary academic school had a number of authors who were Caucasian scholars: E.N. Kusheva, L.I. Lavrov, A.V. Fadeev, V.P. Nevskaya, V.N. Ratuniak and others. During the years of Soviet power own cadres of the mountain intelligentsia were published, researchers of the North Caucasus emerged from its midst: V.G. Gadzhiev, R.M. Magomedov, M.M. Bliev, V.V. Degoev.

Anthropology. Races

Indo-Iranian group

Slavs

Russians
Poles
Bulgarians.

Iranians

Ossetians
Persians
Talysh
Kurds.

Armenians.

Semites

Jews
Assyrians and Chaldeans.

Caucasian peoples

Kartvelian group

Georgians
Adjarians
Khevsurs
carcass
Imeretians
Mingrelians
Svaneti

West Mountain group

Abkhazians
Circassians (Adyghe)

Kabardians
Abadzehi
bzheduhi
Shapsugi, etc.

East Highland group

Chechens
Ingush
Lezgins

Avars
Andes
Dargins
Tabasarans, etc.

Turkic group

Balkars
Azerbaijanis
Meskhetian Turks
Trukhmen (Turkmens of the Stavropol Territory)
Karapapakhi
Nogais
Kumyks
Karachais

Mongol peoples

Kalmyks.

Fino-Ugric peoples

ests.

Historical and cultural aspect of determining the territory of the North Caucasus

Natural resources

The North Caucasus is the largest agricultural base in Russia (besides Siberia and Altai), in which agricultural land occupies more than 70% of the territory.

Transport

Visa regime with Azerbaijan

Visa regime with Georgia

Human rights violations

Terrorism in the North Caucasus

Codes of conduct for youth of the North Caucasus

Notes

Literally “on the other side (of the mountains).” See dictionary for explanation.
Literally “Fatherland”
A small schematic map of the regions can be seen at
Northern Caucasus // Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Georgia and most countries in the world do not recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, considering the Russian border with these countries to be parts of the Russian-Georgian border.
TSB South part.
Encyclopedia Brockhaus-Efron. Art. Caucasian region
From the 3rd to the 1st millennium BC. e. The racial type of the population is stable, approaching the Indo-Mediterranean (skeletons from mounds on the Manych River), however, brachycephalization of the population and a gradual decrease in body length are observed. The skulls of the later time, the Scythian-Sarmatian culture from the lowland regions are more brachycranial and very narrow-faced.
Institute of Ethnography named after N. N. Miklouho-Maclay.

The North Caucasus is a majestic region. Southern and North Caucasian federal districts

Anthropology. Races

Historical and cultural aspect of determining the territory of the North Caucasus

Natural resources

Transport

Visa regime with Azerbaijan

Visa regime with Georgia

Human rights violations

Terrorism in the North Caucasus

Codes of conduct for youth of the North Caucasus

see also

Notes

ADYGEA

KARACHAY-CHERKESSIA

KABARDINO-BALKARIA

NORTH OSSETIA ALANIA

INGUSHETIA

CHECHEN REPUBLIC

DAGESTAN

Stages of research into the history of the region

Domestic Caucasian Studies

Anthropology. Races

Historical and cultural aspect of determining the territory of the North Caucasus

Natural resources

Transport

Visa regime with Azerbaijan

Visa regime with Georgia

Human rights violations

Terrorism in the North Caucasus

Codes of conduct for youth of the North Caucasus

see also

Notes