History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Caucasus
type: channel
description: History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Caucasus | Peer-review research journal
publisher: Daghestan Federal Research Centre
language: ru-RU
publication name: History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Caucasus
issn: 2618-849X
copyright: All the Copyright statements for authors are present in the standart Publishing Agreement (Public Offer) to Publish an Article in an Academic Periodical 'History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Caucasus'. Standart Publishing Agreement (Public Offer) to Publish an Article in an Academic Periodical ''History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Caucasus' The Institute of History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Dagestan Scientific Centre of Russian Academy of Sciences, hereinafter referred to as the Publisher, on the one hand, hereby offers to the public at large, hereinafter referred to as the Author, on the other hand, hereinafter collectively referred to as the Parties, to enter into this agreement, hereinafter referred to as the Agreement, regarding publication of scholarly materials, hereinafter referred to as the Article, in the Journal named 'History, Archeology and Ethnography of the Caucasus’, hereinafter referred to as the Journal, under the following terms. General Terms and Conditions 1.1. Pursuant to Clause 2 of the Article 437 of the Russian Federation Civil Code, this Agreement shall be recognized as the public offer, hereinafter referred to as the Offer. Subject to Article 438 of the Russian Federation Civil Code, this Offer shall be deemed to have been completely and irrevocably accepted after the Author had submitted his/her materials by uploading those onto the network electronic system of the article acquisition for review available at the respective section of the Journal's site at URL: http://www.caucasushistory.ru on the Information and Communication Network known as the Internet, hereinafter referred to as the Internet. 1.2. Pursuant to the Russian Federation effective law as applicable to compliance with the copyright to electronic information resources, no materials from any site, electronic journal or project may be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form, either in a hard or soft copy, without a prior consent from the Journal's auth…
items: A MUSCOVITE PRINCE IN KHAN UZBEK’S CAMPAIGN: RECONSTRUCTING YURI DANILOVICH’S SOJOURN IN THE HORDE
items: ENGELBERT KAEMPFER’S MAP AS A NEW SOURCE ON EARLY RUSSIAN FISHING SETTLEMENTS (UCHUGS) IN THE VOLGA DELTA IN THE LATE 17TH CENTURY: INTERPRETATION OF TERMS
items: YUSUF AFANDI AL-YAHSAWI: BIOGRAPHICAL INSIGHTS FROM THE KLYCHEV FAMILY MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION
items: THE TRANSFER OF THE KARANOGAI PRISTAVSTVO FROM THE STAVROPOL GOVERNORATE TO THE TEREK OBLAST: REFORMING ADMINISTRATION IN THE TEREK AND KUBAN OBLASTS, 1883–1888
items: SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SITUATION OF THE NORTHEAST CAUCASUS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
items: CONTRACTUAL RELATIONS IN A DAGESTANI AUL: THE JOURNAL OF THE UNCHUKATL RURAL COURT (1898–1900)
items: THE SCHOLARLY PERSONA IN DAGESTANI ARABIC BIOGRAPHICAL LITERATURE
items: CHARITABLE SOCIETIES OF MUSLIM TATARS AS INSTRUMENTS OF SOCIAL MOBILITY: ORENBURG MOHAMMEDAN SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY DISTRICT AND THE NORTH CAUCASUS, EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY
items: APPLICATION OF 3D TECHNOLOGIES IN REVEALING ANTROPOMORPHIC BAS-RELIEFS ON CHUMAKI GROUP OF DOLMENS, GREATER SOCHI
items: JAR VESSELS FROM THE KURA-ARAXES SITES IN DAGESTAN: A TYPOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL STUDY
items: DIACHRONIC CHANGES IN LONG-BONE DIMENSIONS AND RECONSTRUCTED STATURE FROM THE EARLY IRON AGE TO THE EARLY MEDIEVAL PERIOD: EVIDENCE FROM THE ZAYUKOVO-3 CEMETERY (KABARDINO-BALKARIA)
items: THE SEARCH FOR NATIONAL IDENTITY IN AZERBAIJAN DURING THE LATE 19th CENTURY
items: THE PROCESS OF SHAPING NEW URBAN CULTURE IN LENINAKAN DURING THE EARLY SOVIET PERIOD
items: MODERN LIFE-CYCLE RITUALS OF THE RUSSIANS OF THE KIZLYAR REGION: TRADITION AND INNOVATION
items: https://caucasushistory.ru/2618-6772/article/view/17317

A MUSCOVITE PRINCE IN KHAN UZBEK’S CAMPAIGN: RECONSTRUCTING YURI DANILOVICH’S SOJOURN IN THE HORDE
type: item
description: The presence of Russian princes and their retinues at Khan Uzbek’s headquarters during the winter of 1318–1319 remains unresolved. However, an examination of contemporaneous events indicates that, at that time, the Horde’s forces were engaged in a campaign in Transcaucasia. Indirect evidence suggests that the retinues from the appanage principalities of the Grand Principality of Vladimir had assembled at the Horde ruler’s headquarters, including the warriors of the executed Prince Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tver, commanded by his twelve-year-old son, Konstantin. This concentration of military units can be attributed to strategic military necessities. Consequently, it is plausible that the forces of the Grand Principality of Vladimir, under the leadership of the grand prince, Yuri Danilovich of Moscow, participated in Uzbek’s Transcaucasian campaign, engaged in combat operations, and incurred losses. Horde troops, potentially incorporating Russian retinues, clashed at the crossings of the Kura River and sustained casualties during the retreat through Derbent. It is highly probable that Prince Yuri’s ally and patron, the noyon/emir Kavgadyi, perished in these engagements. Moreover, Arabic sources from the East document the presence of Russian units at Khan Uzbek’s headquarters in 1318–1319. The alignment of the timeline for the Vladimir forces’ stay at the khan’s headquarters with these source accounts enables us to equate Yuri Danilovich’s troops with the “host of Circassians, Russians, and Jasz.” A thorough synthesis of the available direct and indirect evidence allows for a tentative reconstruction of the chronology of Russian troops’ involvement in Khan Uzbek’s Transcaucasian campaign.
creator: Yuri Vasilievich Seleznev
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Seleznev Y.V. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 416
ending page: 422
doi: 10.32653/CH214416-422

ENGELBERT KAEMPFER’S MAP AS A NEW SOURCE ON EARLY RUSSIAN FISHING SETTLEMENTS (UCHUGS) IN THE VOLGA DELTA IN THE LATE 17TH CENTURY: INTERPRETATION OF TERMS
type: item
description: This study aims to identify toponyms denoting uchugs – the earliest Russian fishing settlements established in the Volga Delta during the 17th century – on Engelbert Kaempfer’s map of 1697 and to conduct a comparative-historical analysis using other cartographic sources. Specific objectives include translating and identifying the toponyms on Kaempfer’s map; comparing them with those appearing on Adam Olearius’s maps (1647), seventeenth- and nineteenth-century drawings of Russian uchugs, and modern place names; and determining the precise locations and ownership of these uchugs. Detailed analysis of Engelbert Kaempfer’s map demonstrates that it is a unique seventeenth-century cartographic source. It complements existing knowledge of the socio-economic development of the Volga Delta, accurately reflects the geographical configuration of the Caspian lowland in that period, and illustrates European interest in the region’s resources. Toponyms designating fisheries in the delta portion of the map have been identified, and their correspondence to the names of the rivers or channels on which the uchugs were located has been established. The primary reason for the abandonment of uchugs was the rise in Caspian Sea level during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, which flooded settlements and altered hydrological conditions. The results broaden our understanding of historical cartography, the economic history of fishing in the region, and its cultural geography.
creator: Sergey A. Kotenkov
creator: Daria M. Lobacheva
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Kotenkov S.A., Lobacheva D.M. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 423
ending page: 434
doi: 10.32653/CH214423-434

YUSUF AFANDI AL-YAHSAWI: BIOGRAPHICAL INSIGHTS FROM THE KLYCHEV FAMILY MANUSCRIPT COLLECTION
type: item
description: This article explores certain aspects of the life and work of Yusuf Afandi Klychev (al-Yahsawi), a distinguished Dagestan scholar, political figure, theologian and poet from the mid-nineteenth century. These details have come to light through the examination of his manuscripts, now preserved by his descendants in Khasavyurt, Republic of Dagestan. Famous as one of Imam Shamil’s ideological opponents, Yusuf Afandi al-Yahsawi held significant respect among Dagestani scholars. At the same time, he was also marked by his broad outlook, cultivated by his time in the Life Guards Caucasian-Mountain Half-Squadron and his contacts with religious leaders from the Volga region and the Middle East during his Hajj pilgrimages. By studying the marginalia of Yusuf Afandi’s copy of al-Hariri’s Maqāmāt – which he made while stationed in Tsarskoye Selo and brought home to his village of Aksay after returning – it has been possible to determine the exact dates of his service in the imperial convoy and other key events in his life. In addition, this work has greatly expanded what is known about Yusuf al-Yahsawi’s family: the precise number of Yusuf Afandi’s children, their full names, and birth dates have been identified, and a family tree for the well-known Klychev kin in Zasulak Kumykia has been created.
creator: Ismail I. Khanmurzaev
creator: Milena N. Osmanova
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Khanmurzaev I.I., Osmanova M.N. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 435
ending page: 446
doi: 10.32653/CH214435-446

THE TRANSFER OF THE KARANOGAI PRISTAVSTVO FROM THE STAVROPOL GOVERNORATE TO THE TEREK OBLAST: REFORMING ADMINISTRATION IN THE TEREK AND KUBAN OBLASTS, 1883–1888
type: item
description: This study examines the causes, objectives, and consequences of the administrative reform implemented by the Caucasian administration in March 1888, which entailed the transfer of the Karanogai Pristavstvo (district) from the Stavropol Governorate to the Terek Oblast. Analysis of newly identified archival sources from the Russian State Historical Archive and the State Archive of the Stavropol Krai reveals that this specific administrative change was a component of a broader initiative to reorganize the administrations of the Kuban and Terek Oblasts. The primary objective of this larger reform was to preserve the Kuban and Terek Cossacks as a distinct military estate. Consequently, the reform planned to subject all social and ethnic groups within both regions to the control of the Cossack military administration. The integration of the Karanogai Pristavstvo into the Terek Oblast under this framework was necessitated by the close economic and land-use relationship between the Karanogais and the Terek Cossacks. The reform, devised by the Caucasian administration under Prince A. M. Dondukov-Korsakov, entirely disregarded the interests of the Karanogai people. Its implementation in March 1888 compelled the administrations of the Stavropol Governorate and Terek Oblast to address the division of “the total Mohammedan capital of nomads in Stavropol Governorate” into two parts. In 1889, the issue of apportioning pasturelands and delineating a precise administrative boundary between the Terek Oblast and Stavropol Governorate arose. The latter question remained unresolved until 1917. Overall, the reform proved unsuccessful. First, it exacerbated conflicts over pastures and watering places among the nomads of the Nogai Steppe – namely, the Karanogais, Edishkul and Yedisan Nogais, and Turkmens – who were divided between the two administrative units by the reform. Second, it exerted a profoundly negative influence on the socio-economic development of the Karanogai people.
creator: Mikhail A. Volkhonsky
creator: Akhmet A. Yarlykapov
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Volkhonsky M.A., Yarlykapov A.A. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 447
ending page: 456
doi: 10.32653/CH214447-456

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SITUATION OF THE NORTHEAST CAUCASUS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
type: item
description: This article examines the socioeconomic development of the peoples of the Northeast Caucasus during the first half of the nineteenth century. Employing a comparative historical method, the study highlights both commonalities and regional specificities in economic organization and social stratification. The analysis demonstrates that while the regional economy was fundamentally agrarian, distinct zonal specializations emerged: livestock farming dominated the mountainous regions, whereas arable agriculture prevailed in the plains. Artisanal production reached varying degrees of sophistication, particularly in wool processing—yielding cloth, carpets, rugs, felt, and saddlebags—and metallurgy, with highlanders renowned for manufacturing bladed weapons and firearms. Commercial activity evolved primarily through barter, characterized by the exchange of agricultural surplus for handcrafted goods. Key trading centers included Terek for Dagestani populations and Vladikavkaz for the Ingush. In Dagestan, commercial expansion was further supported by road construction and the establishment of exchange houses, with Derbent playing a pivotal role as a maritime trade link to Astrakhan. The analysis further delineates the heterogeneous social structures of the region. In Dagestan, established feudal relations created a hierarchy comprising rulers (shamkhals, khans), free uzdens, dependent peasantry, and slaves. In contrast, Chechen and Ingush societies were characterized by the disintegration of traditional clan systems, consisting primarily of free community members with a limited slave population. The study also addresses the consequences of Tsarist military expansion, which subjected the local population to intensified oppression through land confiscation, the destruction of settlements and agriculture, and economic blockades. These punitive measures severely disrupted regional economic development and precipitated armed resistance. The article concludes that while the peoples o…
creator: Elmira M. Dalgat
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Dalgat E.M. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 457
ending page: 464
doi: 10.32653/CH214457-464

CONTRACTUAL RELATIONS IN A DAGESTANI AUL: THE JOURNAL OF THE UNCHUKATL RURAL COURT (1898–1900)
type: item
description: This study focuses on the source and textual analysis of a unique historical document—the journal (daftar) of the village court of Unchukatl, Kazikumukh District, Dagestan, for the period from November 1898 to May 1900. This manuscript, covering fifteen months of life in a Dagestani village at the turn of the 20th century, is an invaluable source for studying legal, economic, and social relations in a rural community under the influence of the Russian Empire while simultaneously preserving elements of traditional ways of life. Given the lack of direct written sources reflecting the daily life of a Dagestani village during this period, this journal provides exceptional evidence for reconstructing the mechanisms of local legal proceedings, identifying the main types of business transactions, analyzing the involvement of various segments of the population, including women, in economic activity, and determining the specifics of debt obligations, purchase and sale, rental, and family relations. The purpose of this work is a comprehensive analysis of the structure and content of the Unchukatl village court journal, including a source study of the manuscript, a textual examination of key documents, a statistical analysis of the thematic distribution of transactions, and a critical assessment of the socioeconomic processes reflected in these records. Particular attention is paid to identifying the specifics of legal practice, the interaction of traditional norms and external influences, and the role of women in legal relations. The presented data, along with detailed tables and their interpretation, are intended to expand our understanding of the history of Dagestan and the specific functioning of rural communities on the periphery of the Russian Empire in the late 19th century.
creator: Khizri G. Alibekov
creator: Ramazan S. Abdulmazhidov
creator: Tatiana A. Anikeeva
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Alibekov K.G., Abdulmazhidov R.S., Anikeeva T.A. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 465
ending page: 480
doi: 10.32653/CH214465-480

THE SCHOLARLY PERSONA IN DAGESTANI ARABIC BIOGRAPHICAL LITERATURE
type: item
description: This article explores the construction of scholarly personae in 20th-century Arabic biographical and hagiographical literature from Daghestan. Drawing on the conceptual framework of persona as formulated by Mineke Bosch and further developed by Herman Paul, the study treats persona not as a fixed social role or stereotype, but as a culturally embedded repertoire of scholarly virtues, practices, and dispositions. Paul’s tripartite model – micro, meso, and macro levels of scholarly identity – serves as a useful heuristic, though this article privileges the meso-level: the articulation of time- and place-specific ideals of scholarly subjectivity. However, the Daghestani case reveals that such models are often shaped less by institutional norms than by ethical preferences, such as the valorisation of Sufi piety, legal expertise, or rational inquiry. Through close textual analysis of four key Arabic works – Nuzhat al-adhhān by Nadhīr al-Durgilī, Tarājim ‘ulamā’ Dāghistān by ‘Alī Kaiaev, Ṭabaqāt al-khwājagān by Shu’ayb al-Bāghinī, and Sirāj al-sa’ādāt by Ḥasan al-Qaḥī – the article demonstrates the plural and contested nature of scholarly ideals in Daghestani Islam. Al-Durgilī constructs a harmonised model of the ideal Muslim scholar, while Kaiaev adopts a critical stance, selectively praising or censuring figures based on rationalist or ethical criteria. Sufi authors such as al-Bāghinī and al-Qaḥī frame scholarly legitimacy around spiritual charisma, ecstatic experience, and miracles.
creator: Shamil Sh. Shikhaliev
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Shikhaliev S.S. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 481
ending page: 491
doi: 10.32653/CH214481-491

CHARITABLE SOCIETIES OF MUSLIM TATARS AS INSTRUMENTS OF SOCIAL MOBILITY: ORENBURG MOHAMMEDAN SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY DISTRICT AND THE NORTH CAUCASUS, EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY
type: item
description: This study examines the mechanisms by which Muslims in Russia were integrated into the all-Russian state, educational, and cultural elite, thereby contributing to the consolidation of Russian statehood. Its primary aim is to assess the role of Muslim Tatar charitable societies under the Orenburg Mohammedan Spiritual Assembly (OMSA) and similar organizations in the North Caucasus during the early twentieth century as social mobility that facilitated the emergence of a modern Russian elite drawn from Russia’s Muslim populations. The specific objectives are to examine the educational systems and scholarship programs operated by these charitable societies and to evaluate their impact through the subsequent careers of beneficiaries in politics, education, literature, the humanities, and healthcare. Geographically, the analysis focuses on Orenburg province within the OMSA jurisdiction and, for the North Caucasus, on societies active in the territories of present-day Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, and North Ossetia–Alania. Key institutions considered include those in Vladikavkaz, Temir-Khan-Shura (now Buinaksk), and Orenburg, which established schools to prepare Muslim children for entry into state secondary educational institutions. The article employs comparative-historical and problem-chronological methods, together with synchronous and diachronic analysis, periodization, and classification. The principal findings demonstrate that graduates and scholarship recipients of these societies included prominent public figures (among them at least three members of the All-Russian Constituent Assembly and one key minister of the Mountain Republic), as well as figures in education, literature, the humanities, and healthcare among the Muslim peoples of the North Caucasus, Tatars, and Bashkirs. Thus, early twentieth-century Muslim charitable societies in the Omsk region and the North Caucasus played a critical role in forming a modern Russian elite from among Russia’s Muslim communi…
creator: Aydar Yu. Khabutdinov
creator: Denis N. Denisov
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Khabutdinov A.Y., Denisov D.N. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 492
ending page: 501
doi: 10.32653/CH214492-501

APPLICATION OF 3D TECHNOLOGIES IN REVEALING ANTROPOMORPHIC BAS-RELIEFS ON CHUMAKI GROUP OF DOLMENS, GREATER SOCHI
type: item
description: This article presents the findings of a study on a bas-relief composition adorning the facade slab of a dolmen from the Chumaki dolmen group, situated in the Tsushvadzh River basin within the Lazarevsky district of Greater Sochi. The bas-relief depicts three anthropomorphic figures engaged in a dance. The two flanking figures are depicted in symmetrical, mirror-image poses, with one arm extended toward the central figure and the other bent at the elbow and lowered. The central figure has both arms hanging downward. This compositional motif bears resemblance to the bas-reliefs of the Kapibge-1 dolmen (Greater Sochi) and to the pecked images on the blocks of the dolmen courtyard in the village of Dzhubga. Analysis of the poses of these “twins” reveals parallels with petroglyphs and engravings on dolmens across the Caucasus, as well as with Bronze Age monuments spanning a broad region from Transcaucasia to Crimea – evidence suggesting the persistence of shared mythological narratives in antiquity. This discovery augments the inventory of dolmens in the Greater Sochi region featuring anthropomorphic and geometric motifs executed in bas-relief, potentially indicative of a distinctive stylistic “signature” associated with a local “school.” Identification of the composition was enabled by digital technologies, including photogrammetry and subsequent 3D modeling that leverages shadow and highlight patterns under simulated oblique illumination via gradient procedural textures. Such methods enhance the visibility of bas-relief imagery and uncover poorly preserved elements. In turn, these techniques afford novel opportunities for revealing previously undetected motifs on well-documented monuments.
creator: Konstantin A. Glazov
creator: Mikhail I. Kudin
creator: Andrei S. Kizilov
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Glazov K.A., Kudin M.I., Kizilov A.S. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 502
ending page: 514
doi: 10.32653/CH214502-514

JAR VESSELS FROM THE KURA-ARAXES SITES IN DAGESTAN: A TYPOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL STUDY
type: item
description: This article presents a typological and technological analysis of jar vessels from Early Bronze Age sites in Dagestan associated with the Kura-Araxes cultural-historical community. The jars are classified according to key morphological features: body shape, rim form, and the presence of handles. This classification yields six types, with Type II further divided into two subtypes (A and B). Analogies and parallels for these jars are drawn not only from regions of the Caucasus adjacent to Dagestan but also from more distant areas, including Eastern and Central Anatolia and Northwestern Iran, where Kura-Araxes sites have produced similar vessels. Applying the technical and technological analysis method developed by A.A. Bobrinsky, we obtained data on the recipes (compositions) of the molding pastes used for these jar vessels. Vessels from sites in Mountainous Dagestan were produced using a single primary recipe: clay + chamotte + organic solution. In contrast, vessels from Primorsky Dagestan employed two recipes: clay + chamotte + manure (77.8%) and clay + chamotte + organic solution (22.2%). These findings enabled the reconstruction of pottery traditions in jar production, which proved to be distinct between the two regions. This distinction suggests the persistence in Mountainous Dagestan of an older, possibly Eneolithic, technological tradition in pottery-making, alongside influences from the Kura-Araxes potters of Primorsky Dagestan. The results of this study can contribute to investigations of Kura-Araxes pottery across the Caucasus and the Middle East.
creator: Arsen L. Budaichiev
creator: Murad Sh. Saypudinov
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Budaichiev A.L., Saypudinov M.S. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 515
ending page: 537
doi: 10.32653/CH214515-537

DIACHRONIC CHANGES IN LONG-BONE DIMENSIONS AND RECONSTRUCTED STATURE FROM THE EARLY IRON AGE TO THE EARLY MEDIEVAL PERIOD: EVIDENCE FROM THE ZAYUKOVO-3 CEMETERY (KABARDINO-BALKARIA)
type: item
description: This study investigates changes in skeletal long-bone dimensions in North Caucasus populations over a span of approximately 1,500 years (from 8th century BC to 7th century AD), using materials from the Zayukovo-3 polycultural cemetery (Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, Russia) as a case study. The research aims to reconstruct stature and assess morphological variability among individuals from three key cultural-chronological phases of the site: the Western Koban culture of the pre-Scythian period (8th–5th centuries BC), the Podkumok-Khumara cultural group of the Late Sarmatian period (1st–3rd centuries AD), and the Early Alanian period (5th–7th centuries AD). Methods employed include paleoanthropological analysis, reconstruction of fragmented skeletal remains, osteometric measurement, stature estimation, and statistical processing of the resulting data. The analysis revealed statistically significant differences and similarities among the compared groups. Males from the Koban and Alanian stages displayed morphological similarity, while female stature showed no significant difference between the Koban and Sarmatian samples. The Koban population exhibited pronounced sexual dimorphism in skeletal proportions. Sarmatian males had the lowest mean stature (163 cm) and were morphologically distinct from the other groups. Reconstructed stature was 169 cm for Koban males and 168 cm for Alanian males. These results align with recent paleogenetic studies suggesting biological continuity between Koban and Alanian populations. The findings underscore the value of osteometric analysis in paleoanthropological research and highlight the complex biological dynamics of ancient North Caucasus populations. They indicate both long-term continuity across certain archaeological cultures and the potential impact of external components during the Sarmatian period. These patterns warrant further verification through interdisciplinary studies.
creator: Alla A. Perevozchikova
creator: Natalia N. Goncharova
creator: Natalia Ya. Berezina
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Perevozchikova A.A., Goncharova N.N., Berezina N.Y. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 538
ending page: 548
doi: 10.32653/CH214538-548

THE SEARCH FOR NATIONAL IDENTITY IN AZERBAIJAN DURING THE LATE 19th CENTURY
type: item
description: Contemporary scholarship distinguishes various forms of identity – ethnic, national, religious, and others. Among these, the issue of “national identity” has attracted the widest discussion, since both the nation and nationalism are products of modern era in which national states are born and formed. For this reason, the history of national identity search in Azerbaijan and the formation of the Azerbaijani nation are of great relevance. Historical-comparative analyses conducted based on archival, source and literary materials reveal that until the 1870s, Azerbaijanis did not have a clear idea about the nation they belonged, the language they spoke, and the religion they had been carriers for centuries. The founding in 1875 of Hasan Bey Zardabi’s newspaper Ekinchi – published under considerable hardship – together with later outlets such as Ziya, Kashkul, and Kaspi, introduced Enlightenment thought and stimulated the search for national identity. Led by a small group of Russian– and European-educated democratic intellectuals, this movement advocated the use of the native language and alphabet, the development of national education, and the establishment of a domestic press, thereby igniting an ethno-cultural revival in Azerbaijan. By the end of the nineteenth century, through the efforts of intellectuals such as M.Shahtakhtli, A.b. Huseynzadeh, A.b.Aghaoglu, M.A.Rasulzadeh, A.b.Topchubashi and others, this movement had evolved into a mature national ideology with clearly articulated political goals and objectives. Finally, first democratic republic established in the Turkic-Muslim East against the backdrop of political, ideological, and national upheavals that began in the Russian Empire at early twentieth century – the Azerbaijan People’s Republic – can be considered the logical conclusion of the national identity search that began in the second half of the nineteenth century.
creator: Tahir S. Shahbazov
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Shahbazov T.S. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 549
ending page: 560
doi: 10.32653/CH214549-560

THE PROCESS OF SHAPING NEW URBAN CULTURE IN LENINAKAN DURING THE EARLY SOVIET PERIOD
type: item
description: In the USSR, an entity largely isolated from the global sphere due to its distinctive formation and evolution as a multinational yet cohesive state, unique processes, unparalleled in their scope and vigor, unfolded, which outlined the novel paths for traditional cultural development. These dynamics manifested in different ways across rural and urban settlements, shaped by emergent political, ideological, socioeconomic, and cultural imperatives. Within the Armenian context, such transformations manifested most vividly and idiosyncratically in Leninakan, propelling the city by mid-century to become a major industrial hub not only in Soviet Armenia but across the broader USSR. This article aims to delineate the principal factors that profoundly shaped the city’s emergent cultural complex, while demonstrating the interplay between Alexandropol’s entrenched urban traditions and the evolving Soviet ethos of Leninakan, reflected in every facet of civic life. Although the traditional culture of Alexandropol has received considerable scholarly attention and documentation, the multifaceted cultural milieu of Soviet Leninakan demands deeper, more detailed approach, which constitutes the core ambition of this study. Employing historical, ethnographic, and ethnocultural methodologies, the research centers on comparative analysis framed within a systemic paradigm. The contemporary periodical press was widely used as a reliable source for studying the dynamics of historical and cultural processes and transformations. Particular attention was paid to the analysis of previously unpublished archival materials.
creator: Karine R. Bazeyan
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Bazeyan K.R. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 561
ending page: 570
doi: 10.32653/CH214561-570

MODERN LIFE-CYCLE RITUALS OF THE RUSSIANS OF THE KIZLYAR REGION: TRADITION AND INNOVATION
type: item
description: The article explores the traditional and contemporary life-cycle rites of ethnic Russians in the Kizlyar region of Dagestan. It employs general scientific and specialized historical and ethnological methods, supplemented by ethnographic fieldwork conducted in villages across the Kizlyar and Tarumovsky districts. These rites were significantly reshaped by globalization and the sociocultural shifts that occurred between the second half of the 1980s and the first quarter of the 21st century. Initially, some of these processes detrimentally affected the economic activities and family life of ethnic Russians in Dagestan, resulting in a decline in their overall standard of living. However, the subsequent economic stabilization of the 2000s positively impacted both their economic and family spheres. This stabilization particularly fostered the widespread expansion of the wedding industry, which, in turn, led to a shortening of the duration and stages of the wedding ceremony and the loss of some traditional elements. Furthermore, Christianity has exerted a profound influence on these life-cycle rites, an influence evident across all their constituent elements. The influence of globalization is evident in several contemporary practices, such as the use of digital devices and social media for young men and women to meet, the increasingly common organization of professional photo sessions during the wedding procession, and the growing popularity of the “Tooth Fairy” ritual associated with the loss of a child’s first tooth. Despite these global influences, traditional Slavic rituals remain integral to the family and everyday life-cycle rites of Russians in the Kizlyar region. These traditions are evident in the structured stages and specific content of the wedding ceremony, the composition of its participants, and in measures dedicated to preserving the life and health of both mother and child. Furthermore, a significant layer of beliefs and customs, including remnants of oneir…
creator: Ruslan I. Seferbekov
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Seferbekov R.I. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 571
ending page: 584
doi: 10.32653/CH214571-584

https://caucasushistory.ru/2618-6772/article/view/17317
type: item
title: BOOK REVIEW: Vinogradov A.Yu. Essays on the architecture of Byzantium and the Caucasus. Moscow: Publishing House of the Higher School of Economics, 2023. – 488 р., ill. + 32 p. with colour photos. ISBN 978-5-7598-2372-8, ISBN 978-5-7598-2408-4 (e-book).
description: The new book, dedicated to the Christian architecture of Byzantium and the Caucasus, will undoubtedly attract the attention of a wide range of specialists and everyone interested in the culture and architecture of Byzantium and the Caucasus, and the entire Christian East. Despite the fact that a lot of monographic studies on the Christian architecture of the Caucasus and Byzantium have been published in recent years, this book is an original, large-scale and scientifically significant work on the Christian architecture of the Caucasus and Byzantium, which highlights little-researched and debatable problems and issues. The book, against a wide background (more than a thousand monuments of church architecture of the 5th-12th centuries were involved), considers a wide range of topical and problematic issues of Christian architecture of Byzantium and the Caucasus.
creator: Murtazali S. Gadjiev
rights: Copyright (c) 2025 Gadjiev M.S. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
date: 2025-12-29
publication date: 2025-12-29
volume: 21
number: 4
starting page: 585
ending page: 589
doi: 10.32653/CH214585-589