Ingiloy people
Ingiloys (; ) are an ethnographic subgroup of Georgians who speak the Ingiloy dialect of Georgian. Ingiloys are indigenous to Saingilo (formerly known as Hereti), a cultural and historical region in northwestern Azerbaijan. History. According to traditional accounts, the name of the Heretians (that is of Ingiloys) originates from the legendary patriarch "Heros", the son of Thargamos, who founded the city of Hereti (later known as Khoranta) at the Alazani River. With the decline of Caucasian Albania, the area was gradually incorporated into the Iberian kingdom, forming one of its duchies (saeristavo). Throughout the 5th century its peoples were eventually  assimilated into the Georgians proper. During the Arab occupation the region was a separate kingdom within Georgian cultural and political influence. Hereti eventually became part of the Kingdom of Kakheti and Hereti. The latter was annexed to the Georgian Kingdom in 1104. In the Middle Ages, seven Georgian schools operated in Hereti which included courses of theology, philosophy, orthography, church history, and the history of Georgia and for the students. In the 15th century the term "Hereti" gradually disappeared from the political nomenclature and was replaced by the word "Kakheti". In the early 17th century, Shah Abbas I of Safavid  of Persia took these lands from the king of Kakheti and granted them to the Dagestani feudal clans. As a result of raids (Lekianoba) conducted by bands of Avar and Tsakhur warriors in Saingilo, the Ingiloys became serfs of the Dagestanian rulers, who forced them to pay tribute. In this way, gradually, by peaceful or hostile means, these tribes settled in Saingilo and colonized it. Already after the foundation of the sultanate of Elisu the conquerors had, by a concerted effort, undertaken the Islamization of the region. After 1801, when the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti (eastern Georgia) became part of  the Russian Empire the region ended up in the Imperial Russian conquest in 1803, Saingilo was initially incorporated into Zakatal Okrug of Tiflis Governorate. From 1918 to 1920 both Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG) and Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) claimed its territory as theirs, but the dispute never led to an armed confrontation. After the fall of the ADR in 1920, Soviet Russia and Azerbaijan SSR recognized it as part of Georgia, whose government granted these lands a degree of internal autonomy. Following the Red army invasion of Georgia in 1921, the area was officially transferred to the jurisdiction and  control of the Azerbaijan SSR by the central communist government in Moscow in 1922. Population. Demographics. Census 2009. As of the census of 2009, the number of Georgians fell to a record low of 9,900 people. Most of them live in the Qax district (7,447 people) or in the city of Baku (2,226 people). Geographical distribution. The majority of the ingiloys today live in an area they call Saingilo, the name of the cultural region traditionally inhabited by the Ingiloys (Heretian) people in modern northwestern part of Azerbaijan. The Saingilo area — territory of 4,780 km — traditionally includes the Balakan, Zaqatala  and Qakh districts. Religion. By religion, Ingiloys are divided to Orthodox Christians and Sunni Muslims. As a result of missionary activities of the Orthodox Christianity Restoration Society, Ingiloys converted to Christianity in 1860, creating 12 laities, but in 1863, 9 of them converted back to Islam. In 1892, 62 converted to Christianity. Some Ingiloys are Muslims (Sunni). They converted in the 17th century via Lezghin and Ottoman influence. There are only three active Georgian Orthodox Churches in Qakh district (Saint George's Church in Qakh Ingiloy village, Patara Alaverdi in Qax, Saint Nino's Church in Alibeyli village). Georgian Churches  in Azerbaijan are under jurisdiction of Eparchy of Khornabuji and Hereti. Culture. In the village Alibeyli, there is Qakh State Georgian Drama Theatre. In 2009, documentary called "Ingiloys", dedicated to history, culture, traditions of this ethnic group was filmed in Azerbaijanfilm. There are seven Georgian schools in Saingilo, while four Azerbaijani schools have Georgian sectors. Georgian language teachers are hired by education authorities of Zaqatala and Qax districts. Discrimination. Since Ingiloys are not allowed to give their newborn children Georgian names, they must choose a name from the list submitted by local authorities.