page_title: Circassians
section_title: Circassian diaspora
hierarchical_section_title: Circassians / Circassian diaspora
caption_attribution_description: Türkçe: İstanbul'un Taksim semtinde Çerkezler Çerkez sürgününü anıyor English: Circassians commemorate the banishment of the Circassians from their homeland (today in Russian territory) in Taksim, İstanbul
context_page_description: The Circassians, also known by their endonym Adyghe, are a Northwest Caucasian ethnic group native to Circassia, many of whom were exiled in the course of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century, especially after the Russo-Circassian War in 1864. The Circassians mainly speak the Circassian languages, a Northwest Caucasian dialect continuum with three main dialects and numerous sub-dialects. Many Circassians also speak Turkish, Russian, English, Arabic and Hebrew, having been exiled by Russia to lands of the Ottoman Empire, where the majority of them live today. Most Circassians are Sunni Muslim.
  In its narrowest sense, the term "Circassian" includes the twelve historic Adyghe princedoms of Circassia; Abdzakh, Besleney, Bzhedug, Hatuqwai, Kabardian, Mamkhegh, Natukhai, Shapsug, Temirgoy, Ubykh, Yegeruqwai and Zhaney, each star on the Circassian flag representing one princedom.
  Historical Circassia has been divided by Soviet and Russian administrations into the modern-day titular Circassian republics of Adygea, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia and Krasnodar Krai, as well as southwestern parts of Stavropol Krai and Rostov Oblast.
context_section_description: Much of Adyghe culture was disrupted after the conquest of their homeland by Russia in 1864. The Circassian people were subjected to ethnic cleansing and mass exile mainly to the Ottoman Empire, and to a lesser extent Qajar Iran and the Balkans. This increased the number of Circassians in the region and even created several entirely new Circassian communities in the states that got created after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. However, Adyghe have also lived outside the Caucasus region since the Middle Ages. They were particularly well represented in Turkey and Egypt.
  The total number of Circassians worldwide is estimated at 8 million.
caption: Circassians commemorate the banishment of the Circassians from Russia in Taksim, İstanbul
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