The former Soviet republics that lie on the northern slopes of the Caucasus mountains and stretch from Adygea to Dagestan are known as the Northern Caucasus.
Most people live in the flat lands north of the mountains.
Mountain dwellers have, over the past 150 years, been persuaded to move to the lowlands. Under the Soviet system, records of the Caucasian peoples were distorted and falsified. This has given rise to myth and competing claims to land and rights being made by different ethnic groups, which have caused anger and confusion and led to violence. Also under Soviet rule, Russian was the dominant language. Many children did not learn to speak their native languages.