Caucasus

TheCaucasus(/ˈkɔːkəsəs/) orCaucasia(/kɔːˈkeɪʒə/), is a region spanningEastern EuropeandWestern Asia. It is situated between theBlack Seaand theCaspian Sea, mainly comprisingArmenia,Azerbaijan,Georgia, and parts ofSouthern Russia. TheCaucasus Mountains, including theGreater Caucasusrange, have conventionally been considered as anatural barrierbetweenEuropeandAsia, bisecting theEurasianlandmass.
Mount Elbrus,Europe's highest mountain, is situated in theWestern Caucasusarea ofRussia.On the southern side, theLesser Caucasusincludes theJavakheti Plateauand theArmenian highlands, part of which is in Turkey.
The Caucasus is divided into theNorth CaucasusandSouth Caucasus, although the Western Caucasus also exists as a distinct geographic space within the North Caucasus. The Greater Caucasus mountain range in the north is mostly shared byRussiaandGeorgiaas well as the northernmost parts ofAzerbaijan. The Lesser Caucasus mountain range in the south is occupied by several independent states, mostly by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, but also extends to parts of northeasternTurkey, and northernIran.
The region is known for itslinguistic diversity:aside fromIndo-EuropeanandTurkiclanguages, theKartvelian,Northwest Caucasian, andNortheast Caucasianlanguage familiesareindigenousto the area.
Pliny the Elder'sNatural History(77–79 AD) derives the name of the Caucasus from aScythianname,Croucasis, which supposedly means 'shimmering with snow'.German linguistPaul Kretschmernotes that theLatvianwordkruvesisalso means 'frozen mud'.
Isidore of Seville'sEtymologies(c.625 AD) also says the name means shining white like snow:
In theTale of Past Years(1113 AD), it is stated thatOld East SlavicКавкасийскыѣ горы (Kavkasijskyě gory) came fromAncient GreekΚαύκασος (Kaúkasos),which, according to M. A. Yuyukin, is a compound word that can be interpreted as the 'mountain of the seagull(s)' (καύ-: καύαξ, καύηξ, -ηκος, κήξ, κηϋξ 'a kind of seagull' + the reconstructed *κάσος 'mountain' or 'rock' richly attested both in place and personal names).
In Georgian tradition, the term Caucasus is derived fromCaucas(Georgian:კავკასოსიḲavḳasosi), the son of the BiblicalTogarmahand legendary forefather of theNakh peoples.
According toGermanphilologistsOtto Schraderand Alfons A. Nehring, the Ancient Greek word Καύκασος (Kaukasos) is connected toGothichauhs'high' as well asLithuaniankaũkas'hillock' andkaukarà'hill, top',Russianкуча'heap'.British linguist Adrian Room claims that *kau-also means 'mountain' inPelasgian,though this is speculative given that Pelasgian is so poorly known.
The termCaucasusis not only used for the mountains themselves but also includesCiscaucasia(which is part of theRussian Federation) andTranscaucasia.According toAlexander Mikaberidze, Transcaucasia is a "Russo-centric" term.
TheTranscaucasusregion andDagestanwere the furthest points ofParthianand laterSasanianexpansions, with areas to the north of theGreater Caucasusrange practically impregnable. The mythologicalMount Qaf, the world's highest mountain that ancient Iranian lore shrouded in mystery, was said to be situated in this region. The region is also one of the candidates for the location ofAiryanem Vaejah, the apparent homeland of the Iranians ofZoroaster. InMiddle Persiansources of the Sasanian era, the Caucasus range was referred to asKaf Kof.The term resurfaced in Iranian tradition later on in a variant form whenFerdowsi, in hisShahnameh, referred to the Caucasus mountains asKōh-i Kāf."Most of the modern names of the Caucasus originate from the GreekKaukasos(Lat.,Caucasus) and the Middle PersianKaf Kof".
"The earliest etymon" of the name Caucasus comes fromKaz-kaz, theHittitedesignation of the "inhabitants of the southern coast of theBlack Sea".
It was also noted that inNakhКов гас (Kov gas) means "gateway to steppe".
The modern endonym for the region is usually similar in many languages, and is generally betweenKavkazandKaukaz.
TheNorth Caucasusregion is also known as theCiscaucasus, whereas theSouth Caucasusregion is alternatively known as theTranscaucasus.
The North Caucasus contains most of theGreater Caucasusmountain range. It consists ofSouthern Russia, mainly theNorth Caucasian Federal District's autonomous republics and the Krais in Southern Russia, and the northernmost parts ofGeorgiaandAzerbaijan. The North Caucasus lies between theBlack Seato its west, theCaspian Seato its east, and borders theSouthern Federal Districtto its north. The twoFederal Districtsare collectively referred to as "Southern Russia".
The South Caucasus borders the Greater Caucasus range andSouthern Russiato its north, the Black Sea andTurkeyto its west, the Caspian Sea to its east, andIranto its south. It contains theLesser Caucasusmountain range and surrounding lowlands. All ofArmenia, Azerbaijan (excluding the northernmost parts), and Georgia (excluding the northernmost parts) are in the South Caucasus.
The watershed along theGreater Caucasusrange is considered by some sources to be thedividing linebetweenEuropeandSouthwest Asia. According to that, the highest peak in the Caucasus,Mount Elbrus(5,642 meters) located in western Ciscaucasus, is considered the highest point in Europe. TheKuma-Manych Depression, the geologic depression that divides theRussian Plainfrom the North Caucasus foreland is often regarded by classical and non-British sources as the natural and historical boundary between Europe and Asia. Another opinion is that the riversKuraandRionimark this border, or even that of the riverAras.
The Caucasus is alinguistically, culturally and geographically diverse region.Thenation statesthat compose the Caucasus today are thepost-Soviet statesGeorgia (includingAdjaraandAbkhazia), Azerbaijan (includingNakhchivan),Armenia, and the Russian Federation. The Russian divisions includeDagestan,Chechnya,Ingushetia,North Ossetia–Alania,Kabardino–Balkaria,Karachay–Cherkessia,Adygea,Krasnodar Krai, andStavropol Krai, in clockwise order.
Two territories in the region claim independence but are recognized as such by only a handful of entities:Abkhazia, andSouth Ossetia. Abkhazia andSouth Ossetiaare largely recognized by the world community as part of Georgia.
The region has many different languages and language families. There are more than 50 ethnic groups living in the region.No fewer than three language families are unique to the area. In addition, Indo-European languages, such asEast Slavic,ArmenianandOssetian, andTurkic languages, such asAzerbaijani,Kumyk languageandKarachay–Balkar, are spoken in the area.Russianis used as alingua francamost notably in the North Caucasus.
The peoples of the northern and southern Caucasus mostly areShia Muslims,Sunni Muslims,Eastern Orthodox ChristiansorArmenian Christians.
Located on the peripheries ofTurkey,Iran, andRussia, the region has been an arena for political, military, religious, and cultural rivalries and expansionism for centuries. Throughout its history, the Caucasus was usually incorporated into theIranian world.At the beginning of the 19th century, theRussian Empireconqueredthe territory fromQajar Iran.
The territory of the Caucasus region was inhabited by Homo erectus since thePaleolithic Era. In 1991, earlyHomininifossils dating back 1.8 million years were found at theDmanisi archaeological siteinGeorgia. Scientists now classify the assemblage of fossil skeletons as the subspeciesHomo erectus georgicus.
The site yields the earliest unequivocal evidence for the presence of early humans outside the African continent;and the Dmanisi skulls are the five oldesthomininsever found outsideAfrica.
Kura–Araxes culturefrom about 4000 BC until about 2000 BC enveloped a vast area of approximately 1,000 km by 500 km, and mostly encompassed, on modern-day territories, the Southern Caucasus (except western Georgia), northwestern Iran, the northeastern Caucasus, eastern Turkey, and as far as Syria.
UnderAshurbanipal(669–627 BC), the boundaries of theAssyrian Empirereached as far as the Caucasus Mountains. Later ancient kingdoms of the region includedArmenia,Albania,ColchisandIberia, among others. These kingdoms were later incorporated into variousIranianempires, includingMedia, theAchaemenid Empire,Parthia, and theSassanid Empire, who would altogether rule the Caucasus for many hundreds of years. In 95–55 BC, under the reign of the Armenian kingTigranes the Great, theKingdom of Armeniaincluded Kingdom of Armenia, vassals Iberia, Albania, Parthia,Atropatene,Mesopotamia,Cappadocia,Cilicia,Syria,Nabataean kingdom, andJudea. By the time of the first century BC,Zoroastrianismhad become the dominant religion of the region; however, the region would go through two other religious transformations. Owing to the strong rivalry between Persia andRome, and laterByzantium. The Romans first arrived in the region in the 1st century BC with the annexation of the kingdom of Colchis, which was later turned into the province ofLazicum.The next 600 years was marked by aconflictbetween Rome andSassanid Empirefor the control of the region. In western Georgia the eastern Roman rule lasted until the Middle Ages.
As theArsacid dynasty of Armenia(an eponymous branch of theArsacid dynasty of Parthia) was the first nation to adopt Christianity asstate religion(in 301 AD), andCaucasian AlbaniaandGeorgiahad become Christian entities,Christianitybegan to overtakeZoroastrianismand pagan beliefs. With theMuslim conquest of Persia, large parts of the regioncame under the rule of the Arabs, andIslampenetrated the region.
In the 10th century, theAlans(proto-Ossetians)founded the Kingdom ofAlania, that flourished in theNorthern Caucasus, roughly in the location of latter-dayCircassiaand modernNorth Ossetia–Alania, until its destruction by theMongol invasionin 1238–39.
During the Middle Ages,Bagratid Armenia,Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget,Kingdom of SyunikandPrincipality of Khachenorganized local Armenian population facing multiple threats after the fall of antiqueKingdom of Armenia.Caucasian Albaniamaintained close ties withArmeniaand theChurch of Caucasian Albaniashared the same Christian dogmas with theArmenian Apostolic Churchand had a tradition of their Catholicos being ordained through the Patriarch of Armenia.
In the 12th century, the Georgian kingDavid the Builderdrove the Muslims out of the Caucasus and made theKingdom of Georgiaa strong regional power. In 1194–1204 GeorgianQueen Tamar's armies crushed new Seljuk Turkish invasions from the southeast and south and launched several successful campaigns into Seljuk Turkish-controlled Southern Armenia. The Georgian Kingdom continued military campaigns in the Caucasus region. As a result of her military campaigns and the temporary fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1204, Georgia became the strongest Christian state in the wholeNear Eastarea, encompassing most of the Caucasus stretching from Northern Iran and Northeastern Turkey to the North Caucasus.
The Caucasus region was conquered by theOttomans,Turco-Mongols, local kingdoms and khanates, as well as, once again,Iran.
Up to and including the early 19th century, most of theSouthern Caucasusand southernDagestanall formed part of thePersian Empire. In 1813 and 1828 by theTreaty of Gulistanand theTreaty of Turkmenchayrespectively, the Persians were forced to irrevocably cede the Southern Caucasus and Dagestan toImperial Russia.In the ensuing years after these gains, theRussians took the remaining part of the Southern Caucasus, comprising western Georgia, through several wars from theOttoman Empire.
In the second half of the 19th century, the Russian Empire also conquered the North Caucasus. In the aftermath of theCaucasian Wars, the Russian military perpetrated anethnic cleansing of Circassians, expelling this indigenous population from its homeland.Between the 1850s and World War I, about a million North Caucasian Muslims arrived in the Ottoman Empire as refugees.
Having killed and deported most of the Armenians of Western Armenia during theArmenian genocide, the Turks intended to eliminate the Armenian population ofEastern Armenia.During the 1920Turkish–Armenian War, 60,000 to 98,000 Armenian civilians were estimated to have been killed by the Turkish army.
In the 1940s, around 480,000ChechensandIngush, 120,000Karachay–BalkarsandMeskhetian Turks, thousands ofKalmyks, and 200,000Kurdsin Nakchivan andCaucasus Germansweredeported en masseto Central Asia and Siberia by the Soviet security apparatus. About a quarter of them died.
The Southern Caucasus region was unified as a single political entity twice – during theRussian Civil War(Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic) from 9 April 1918 to 26 May 1918, and under theSovietrule (Transcaucasian SFSR) from 12 March 1922 to 5 December 1936. Following thedissolution of the Soviet Unionin 1991,Georgia,AzerbaijanandArmeniabecame independent nations.
The region has been subject to various territorial disputes since the collapse of the Soviet Union, leading to theFirst Nagorno-Karabakh War(1988–1994), theEast Prigorodny Conflict(1989–1991), theWar in Abkhazia (1992–93), theFirst Chechen War(1994–1996), theSecond Chechen War(1999–2009),Russo-Georgian War(2008), and theSecond Nagorno-Karabakh War(2020).
InGreek mythology, the Caucasus was one of the pillars supporting the world.After presenting man with the gift of fire,Prometheus(orAmiraniin theGeorgian version) was chained there byZeus, to have his liver eaten daily by an eagle as punishment for defying Zeus's wish to keep the "secret of fire" from humans.
InPersian mythology, the Caucasus might be associated with the mythicMount Qafwhich is believed to surround the known world. It is the battlefield ofSaoshyantand the nest of theSimurgh.
TheRomanpoetOvidplaced the Caucasus inScythiaand depicted it as a cold and stony mountain which was the abode of personified hunger. The Greek heroJasonsailed to the west coast of the Caucasus in pursuit of theGolden Fleece, and there metMedea, a daughter ofKing AeëtesofColchis.
The Caucasus has a rich folklore tradition.This tradition has been preserved orally—necessitated by the fact that for most of the languages involved, there was no alphabet until the early twentieth century—and only began to be written down in the late nineteenth century.One important tradition is that of theNart sagas, which tell stories of a race of ancient heroes called the Narts. These sagas include such figures asSatanaya, the mother of the Narts,Sosruquoa shape changer and trickster,Tlepsha blacksmith god, andBatradz, a mighty hero.The folklore of the Caucasus shows ancientIranianZoroastrianinfluence, involve battles with ancientGoths,HunsandKhazars, and contain many connections with ancientIndian,Norse Scandinavian, and Greek cultures.
Caucasian folklore contains many links with the myths of the ancient Greeks. There are resemblances between the mother goddess Satanaya and the Greek goddess of loveAphrodite.The story of how the trickster Nart Sosruquo, became invulnerable parallels that of the Greek heroAchilles.The ancient GreekAmazonsmay be connected to a Caucasian "warrior Forest-Mother, Amaz-an".
Caucasian legends include stories involving giants similar toHomer'sPolyphemusstory.In these stories, the giant is almost always ashepherd,and he is variously a one-eyed rock-throwing cannibal, who lives in a cave (the exit of which is often blocked by a stone), kills the hero's companions, is blinded by a hot stake, and whose flock of animals is stolen by the hero and his men, all motifs which (along with still others) are also found in the Polyphemus story.In one example fromGeorgia, two brothers, who are being held prisoner by a giant one-eyed shepherd called "One-eye", take a spit, heat it up, stab it into the giant's eye, and escape.
There are also links with the ancient Greek myth ofPrometheus.Many legends, widespread in the Caucasus, contain motifs shared with the Prometheus story.These motifs include a giant hero, his conflict with God or gods, the stealing of fire and giving it to men, being chained, and being tormented by a bird who pecks at his liver (or heart).TheAdyge/CircassianNart Nasran,theGeorgianAmirani,theChechenPkharmat,and theAbkhazianAbrskil,are examples of such Prometheus-like figures.
The Caucasus is an area of great ecological importance. The region is included in the list of 34 worldbiodiversity hotspots.It harbors some 6400 species of higher plants, 1600 of which areendemicto the region.Its wildlife includesPersian leopards,brown bears,wolves,bison,marals,golden eaglesandhooded crows. Amonginvertebrates, some 1000spiderspecies are recorded in the Caucasus.Most of arthropod biodiversity is concentrated on Great and Lesser Caucasus ranges.
The region has a high level ofendemismand severalrelictanimals and plants, the fact reflecting the presence of refugial forests, which survived theIce Agein the Caucasus Mountains. The Caucasus forest refugium is the largest throughout the Western Asian (near Eastern) region.The area has multiple representatives ofdisjunctrelict groups of plants with the closest relatives in Eastern Asia, southern Europe, and even North America.Over 70 species of forest snails of the region are endemic.Some relict species of vertebrates areCaucasian parsley frog,Caucasian salamander,Robert's snow vole, andCaucasian grouse, and there are almost entirely endemic groups of animals such as lizards of genusDarevskia. In general, the species composition of this refugium is quite distinct and differs from that of the other Western Eurasian refugia.
The natural landscape is one ofmixed forest, with substantial areas of rocky ground above the treeline. The Caucasus Mountains are also noted for adog breed, theCaucasian Shepherd Dog(Rus. Kavkazskaya Ovcharka, Geo. Nagazi).Vincent Evansnoted thatminke whaleshave been recorded from the Black Sea.
The Caucasus has many economically importantmineralsandenergyresources, such asgold,silver,copper,iron ore,manganese,tungsten,zinc,oil,natural gas, andcoal(bothanthracite coalandbrown).
Krasnaya Polyanais a popular center of mountain skiing and a snowboard venue.The2015 European Gamesis the first in the history of the European Games to be held inAzerbaijan.
Mountain-skiing complexes include:
The 2017Azerbaijan Grand Prix(motor racing) was the first in the history of Formula One to be held inAzerbaijan. The2017 World Rugby Under 20 Championshipwas held inGeorgia. In 2017 the U-19 Europe Championship (Football) was held in Georgia. In 2019 the UEFA European Under-19 Championship was held in Armenia.