<i>Hijra</i> from the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union: Middle East Routes of Muslim Displacement
Journal: International Journal Middle East Studies
Year: 2024

In 1901, Cemaleddin Dağıstani, a newly enrolled student at a madrasa in Bursa, sent a letter to his family in the district of Quba (now in Azerbaijan) in the Russian Empire. He excitedly shared what he had witnessed during his journey to the Ottoman Empire. Upon crossing the Russo–Ottoman border from Batum (now Batumi, Georgia) to Rize, he was met by Ottoman officials who registered him as a muhajir (refugee or immigrant). Alongside other muhajir s from Russia, including Circassians, Dagestanis,