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Circassians

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Adyghe

Flag of the Republic of Adygea

Adyghe people from the mountains of the Caucasus in traditional costumes
Regions with significant populations
Russia (Adygea, Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Krasnodar Krai), Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, USA, Israel
Languages
Adyghe, Russian, Turkish, Arabic
Religion
Predominantly Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Abkhazians (Abaza, Abazin) and Ubykh

The Adyghe or Adygs (Adyghe: Адыгэ), also often known as Circassians, are a North Caucasian nation and an ethnic group who belong to one of the oldest indigenous peoples of the Caucasus and are among the original inhabitants of the Caucasus.[1][2][3]

Adyghe people mostly speak Adyghe and most practice Sunni Islam. Turkey is home to the largest Adyghe community in the world, containing about half the world's Adygs.

Etymology

The Adyghe people call and distinguish themselves from other peoples of the Caucasus by the name Attéghéi or Adyghe, which is the really native name of the Circassians. “Atté” in the Circassian language means "height" of a place to signify a mountaineer, or a highlander and “ghéi” means the sea, signifying a people dwelling and inhabiting a mountainous country, or region near the sea coast, or between two seas.[4][5][6]

While Adyghe is the name this people apply to themselves, in the West they are often known as Circassians, a term which occasionally applied to a broader group of peoples in the North Caucasus. The name Circassian is purely of Italian origin and came from the medieval Genoese merchants and travelers who first gave currency to the name.[7][8][9] The name Cherkess is not a native name, but one applied to by the Turkic peoples (principally Kyrgyz,[7] Tatar[10][11][12][13] and Turkish[14]) and the Russians. The name Cherkess was usually explained to mean Warrior Cutter due to how fast they were able to cut down Russian and Turkish forces,[15] but is derived from the circumstance of the Circassians never permitting the march of a foreign invader, or foreign soldier through their lands and is considered by some and is applied indirectly to the strenuous defense against invaders.[16] By others, the name is supposed to refer to the predatory habits among Adyghe tribes and Abazin, the Russians gave the collective name of Cherkess to all the mountaineers of Circassia who are divided into many tribes.[17]

Genetics

In the recent study: "Worldwide Human Relationships Inferred from Genome-Wide Patterns of Variation (2008)", geneticists using more than 650,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) samples from the Human Genome Diversity Panel, found that the Adygei (Adyghe) population is not European, Asian, or Russian (Slavic, Cossack) but, a different race from the Indo European speaking races.[18] "

History

Origins

The Adyghe first emerged as a coherent entity somewhere around the 10th century[citation needed], although references to them exist much earlier. They were never politically united, a fact which reduced their influence in the area and their ability to withstand periodic invasions from groups like the Mongols, Avars, Pechenegs, Huns, and Khazars.

Russian conquest of the Caucasus and the exile of the Adygs

An Adyghe strike on a Russian Military Fort built over a Shapsugian village that aimed to free the Circassian Coast from the occupiers during the Russian-Circassian War, 22 March 1840
Adygs in Caucasus, 1847

The Adyghe people converted to Christianity prior to the 5th century. In the 15th century, under the influence of the Tatars of Crimea and Ottoman clerics, the Adygs converted to Islam.

Between the late 18th and early to mid-19th centuries the Adyghe people lost their independence as they were slowly conquered by Russia in a series of wars and campaigns. During this period, the Adyghe plight achieved a certain celebrity status in the West, but pledges of assistance were never fulfilled. After the Crimean War, Russia turned her attention to the Caucasus in earnest, starting with the peoples of Chechnya and Dagestan. In 1859, the Russians had finished defeating Imam Shamil in the eastern Caucasus, and turned their attention westward. Eventually, the long lasting Russian–Circassian War ended with the defeat of the Adyghe forces, which was finalized with the signing of loyalty oaths by Adyghe leaders on 2 June 1864 (21 May, O.S.).

The Conquest of the Caucasus by the Russian Empire in the 19th century led to the destruction and killing of many Adygs - Towards the end of the conflict, the Russian General Yevdokimov was tasked with driving the remaining Circassian inhabitants out of the region, primarily into the Ottoman Empire. This policy was enforced by mobile columns of Russian riflemen and Cossack cavalry.[19][20][21] "In a series of sweeping military campaigns lasting from 1860 to 1864 . . . the northwest Caucasus and the Black Sea coast were virtually emptied of Muslim villagers. Columns of the displaced were marched either to the Kuban [River] plains or toward the coast for transport to the Ottoman Empire . . . . One after another, entire Circassian tribal groups were dispersed, resettled, or killed en masse"[21] This expulsion, along with the actions of the Russian military in acquiring Circassian land,[22] has given rise to a movement among descendants of the expelled ethnicities for international recognition that genocide was perpetrated.[23] In 1840, Karl Friedrich Neumann estimated the Circassian casualties to be around one and a half million.[24] Some sources state that hundreds of thousands of others died during the exodus.[25] Several historians use the term 'Circassian massacres'[26] for the consequences of Russian actions in the region.[27]

Like other ethnic minorities under Russian rule, the Adygs whom remained in the Russian Empire borders were subjected to policies of mass resettlement. Collectivization under the communists also took its toll.

The Ottoman Empire, which ruled most of the area south of Russia considered the Adyghe warriors to be courageous and well-experienced, and as a result encouraged them to settle in various near-border settlements of the Ottoman empire in order to strengthen the empire's borders.

The Adygs in the Middle East in modern times

The Adygs whom were settled by the Ottomans in various near-border settlements across the empire, ended up living across many different territories in the Middle East whom belonged at the time to the Ottoman Empire and which are located nowadays in the following countries:

  • Turkey - the country which contains today the largest adyghe population in the world. The Adygs settled in three main regions in Turkey – the region of Trabzon, located along the shores of the Black Sea, the region near the city of Ankara, the region near the city of Kayseri, and in the western part of the country near the region of Istanbul, this specific region experienced a severe earthquake in 1999. Many Adygs played key roles in the Ottoman army and also participated in the Turkish War of Independence.
  • Syria - most of the Adygs whom immigrated to Syria settled in the Golan Heights. Prior to the Six Day War, the Adygs people were the majority group in the Golan Heights region - their number at that time is estimated at 30,000. The most prominent settlement in the Golan was the town of Quneitra.
  • Jordan – the Adygs had a major role in the history of the Kingdom of Jordan. The Adygs initially settled in villages established near the region were the city of Amman was later on established. Over the years various Adygs have served in distinguished roles in the kingdom of Jordan. An Adyghe has served before as a prime minister (Sa`id al-Mufti), and the King of Jordan also has an Adyghe guard.
  • Israel - The Adygs initially settled in three places – in Kfar Kama , in Rehaniya and in the region of Hadera. Due to a Malaria epidemic, the Adyghe settlement near Hadera was eventually abandoned.

Culture

Adyghe traditional dance group from the Caucasus region
Circassians from the Adyghe village of Kfar Kama in Israel

Adyghe society prior to the Russian invasion was highly stratified. While a few tribes in the mountainous regions of Adygeya were fairly egalitarian, most were broken into strict castes. The highest was the caste of the "princes", followed by a caste of lesser nobility, and then commoners, serfs, and slaves. In the decades before Russian rule, two tribes overthrew their traditional rulers and set up democratic processes, but this social experiment was cut short by the end of Adyghe independence.

The main Adyghe tribes are: Abzekh, Adamey, Bzhedugh, Hakuch, Hatukuay, Kabardey, Kemirgoy, Makhosh, Natekuay, Shapsigh (Shapsugh), Yegerikuay, Besleney. Most Adyghe living in Caucasia are Bzhedugh, Kabarday and Kemirgoy, while the majority in diaspora are Abzekh and Shapsigh (Shapsugh). Standard Adyghe language is based on Kemirgoy dialect.

Religion

The mosque in the Adyghe village of Kfar Kama in Israel

Before monotheistic religion, the Circassians were polytheistic and adhered to their ancient indigenous beliefs, worshiping multiple deities, or gods and goddesses.[28][29][30][31] Between the 2nd century[32] and the 4th century,[33] Christianity reached and spread throughout the Caucasus and was first introduced between the 4th century[34][35] and the 6th century[36] under Greek Byzantine influence and later through the Georgians between the 10th century and the 13th century. During that period, Circassians began to accept Christianity as their national religion, but did not fully adopt Christianity as elements of their ancient indigenous pagan beliefs still survived.

Islam penetrated the northeastern region of the Caucasus, principally Dagestan, as early as the 7th century, but was first introduced to the Circassians between the 16th century and in the middle of the 19th century under the influence of the Crimean Tatars and the Ottoman Turks. It was only after the Russian conquest of the Caucasus when Circassians as well as other peoples of the Caucasus were forced out of their ancestral homeland and settled in different regions of the Ottoman Empire did they begin to fully accept and adopt Islam as their national religion.

The Naqshbandi tariqa of Sufi Islam was also introduced to the Circassians in the late 18th century under the influence of Sheikh Mansur who was the first to preach the Naqshbandi tariqa in the northeastern region of the Caucasus and later through Imam Shamil in the middle of the 19th century.

Today, the majority of Circassians are predominately Sunni Muslim and adhere to the Hanafi school of thought, or law, the largest and oldest school of Islamic law in jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. Only major Islamic ritual practices and the usual Muslim holidays are observed today. There is, however, a small minority of Circassians living in North Ossetia-Alania who remained Christian and there are also those who do not follow any organized faith.

Language

Main article: Adyghe language
File:CircassianAlphabet.jpg
Adyghe alphabet

Today most Adyghe speak Russian, English, Turkish, Arabic, French, German, and/or the original Adyghe language.

The majority of the Circassian people speak the Adyghe language, when the Kabarday tribe speaks the Adyghe language in the Kabardino dialect. This language has a number of dialects spoken by the different Circassian tribes and the pronunciation of words is slightly different in each place in the world. The Adyghe language belongs to the family of Northwest Caucasian languages. The Adyghe language is spoken among all the Circassian communities around the world, with circa 125,000 speakers whom live in the Russian Federation (part of them live in the Republic of Adygea where the Adyghe language is defined as the official language.) the world's largest Adyghe speaking community is the Circassian community in Turkey - this community has circa 150,000 Adyghe speakers.

Adyghe Xabze

Adyghe Xabze is the epitomy of Circassian culture and tradition. It is their code of honour and is based on mutual respect and above all requires responsibility, discipline and self-control. Adyghe Xabze functions as the Circassian unwritten law yet was highly regulated and adhered to in the past. The Code requires that all Circassians are taught courage, reliability and generosity. Greed, desire for possessions, wealth and ostentation are considered disgraceful ("Yemiku") by the Xabze code. In accordance with Xabze, hospitality was and is particularly pronounced among the Circassians. A guest is not only a guest of the host family, but equally a guest of the whole village and clan. Even enemies are regarded as guests if they enter the home and being hospitable to them as one would with any other guest is a sacred duty.

Circassians consider the host to be like a slave to the guest in that the host is expected to tend to the guest's every need and want. A guest must never be permitted to labour in any way, this is considered a major disgrace on the host.

Every Circassian arises when someone enters the room, providing a place for the person entering and allowing the newcomer to speak before everyone else during the conversation. In the presence of elders and women respectful conversation and conduct is essential. Disputes are stopped in the presence of women and domestic disputes are never continued in the presence of guests. A woman can request disputing families to reconcile and they must comply with her request. A key figure in Circassian culture is the person known as the "Thamade", who is often an elder but also the person who carries the responsibility for functions like weddings or circumcision parties. This person must always comply with all the rules of Xabze in all areas of his life.

Circassian Xabze is well known amongst their neighboring communities.

Traditional clothing

File:Цей зэпылъ.jpg
File:Circassian female ceremonial dress.jpg
Traditional Adyghe clothing

Traditional cuisine

One of the Adyghe Snacks (Haliva)

The Adyghe Cuisine is rich with different type dishes[37], in the summer, the traditional dishes consumed by the Adyghe people were mainly dairy products and vegetable dishes. In the winter and spring it was mainly flour and meat dishes.

The Circassian cheese considered one of the famous type of Cheeses in the North Caucasus and world wide.

A popular traditional dish is chicken or turkey with sauce, seasoned with crushed garlic and red pepper. Mutton and beef are served boiled, usually with a seasoning of sour milk with crushed garlic and salt.

On holidays the Adyghe people traditionally make Haliva (fried triangular pasties with mainly cottage cheese or potato). (from toasted millet or wheat flour in syrup), baked cakes and pies.

The twelve Adyghe (Circassian) tribes

File:DemafofCaucasiabefore1787.jpg
Map depicts the tribal areas of the Adyghe (Circassians) tribes within Circassia before 1787

The main Adyghe tribes are:

Many Adyghe allocated in the Caucasus region are Bzhedug and Temirgoy, while the majority of those in the diaspora (see next section) are Abadzeh and Shapsug.

The diaspora

Main articles: Circassian diaspora, Circassians in Turkey, and Circassians in Israel

Adyghe have lived outside the Caucasus region since the Middle Ages. They were particularly well represented in the Mamluks of Turkey and Egypt. In fact, the Burji dynasty which ruled Egypt from 1382 to 1517 was founded by Adyghe Mamluks.

Much of Adyghe culture was disrupted after their conquest by Russia in 1864. This led to a diaspora of the peoples of the northwest Caucasus, known as Muhajirism, mostly to various parts of the Ottoman Empire.

The largest Adyghe diaspora community today is in Turkey, especially in Samsun, Kahramanmaraş, Kayseri, and Düzce.

Significant communities live in Jordan,[38] Iraq,[38][39] Syria (in Beer ajam and many other villages),[38] Lebanon, Egypt, Israel (in the villages of Kfar Kama and Rehaniya - for more information see Circassians in Israel),[38] Libya, and Macedonia.[40] A number of Adyghe were introduced to Bulgaria in 1864-1865 but most fled after it became separate from the Ottoman Empire in 1878.

A great number of Adyghe people have also immigrated to the United States and settled in (Upstate New York, California, and New Jersey).

The small community from Kosovo expatriated to Adygea in 1998.

The total number of Adyghe people worldwide is estimated at 6 million. The most significant population centers of Adyghe people today are:

Notable Adyghes (Circassians)

This is a list of notable Adyghe people, including both ethnically Adyghe people and people of Adyghe descent.

Royal Families

State Presidents

Ahmet Necdet Sezer
  • Fahri Korutürk – The 6th President of the Republic of Turkey
  • Ahmet Necdet Sezer – The 10th President of the Republic of Turkey
  • Aldamad Ahmet Namee Shapsug - The President of the Syrian State from 1926-1928[42]

Politicians

Cultural figures

Mehmet Öz

Athletes

Others

See also

References

  1. ^ Adams, Charles J., Wael B. Hallaq, and Donald P. Little. Islamic Studies Presented to Charles J. Adams. Leiden: Brill, 1991. Pp. 194
  2. ^ "One Europe, Many Nations: A Historical Dictionary of European National Groups." Questia Online Library. Web. 25 Aug. 2010. Pp. 12
  3. ^ Pendergast, Sara, and Tom Pendergast. Worldmark Encyclopedia of National Economies. Detroit: Gale Group, 2002. Pp. 241
  4. ^ Spencer, Edmund. Travels in the Western Caucasus, including a Tour through Imeritia, Mingrelia, Turkey, Moldavia, Galicia, Silesia, and Moravia in 1836. London: H. Colburn, 1838. Pp. 6
  5. ^ Loewe, Louis. A Dictionary of the Circassian Language: in Two Parts: English-Circassian-Turkish, and Circassian-English-Turkish. London: Bell, 1854. Pp. 5
  6. ^ The Home Friend: a Weekly Miscellany of Amusement and Instruction. London: Printed for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1854. Pp. 314
  7. ^ a b Latham, R. G. Descriptive Ethnology. London: J. Van Voorst, 1859. Pp. 50
  8. ^ Latham, R. G. Elements of Comparative Philology. London: Walton and Maberly, 1862. Pp. 279
  9. ^ Latham, R. G. The Nationalities of Europe: Vol. 1-2. London, 1863. Pp. 307
  10. ^ Klaproth, Julius Von, Frederic Shoberl, and Steven Runciman. Travels in the Caucasus and Georgia: Performed in the Years 1807 and 1808, by Command of the Russian Government. London: Printed for Henry Colburn, and Sold by G. Goldie, Edinburgh, and J. Cumming, Dublin, 1814. Pp. 310
  11. ^ The British Review, and London Critical Journal. Vol. 6. London: Thoemmes, 1815. Pp. 469
  12. ^ Taitbout, De Marigny. Three Voyages in the Black Sea to the Coast of Circassia. London, 1837. Pp. 5-6
  13. ^ Charnock, Richard Stephen. Local Etymology; a Derivative Dictionary of Geographical Names. London: Houlston and Wright, 1859. Pp 69
  14. ^ Guthrie, William, James Ferguson, and John Knox. A New Geographical, Historical and Commercial Grammar and Present State of the Several Kingdoms of the World ... Philadelphia: Johnson & Warner, 1815. Pp. 549
  15. ^ Reclus, Élisée, and A. H. Keane. The Earth and Its Inhabitants, Asia: Asiatic Russia. Ottawa: Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions, 1891. Pp. 55
  16. ^ Spencer, Edmund. Turkey, Russia, the Black Sea, and Circassia. London: G. Routledge &, 1855. Pp. 347-348
  17. ^ Golovin, Ivan. The Caucasus. London, 1854. Pp. 81
  18. ^ Li,, Jun (2008). "Worldwide Human Relationships Inferred from Genome-Wide Patterns of Variation". Science. 319 (5866): 1100–1104. doi:10.1126/science.1153717. PMID 18292342. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  19. ^ Levene 2005:297
  20. ^ Richmond, Chapter 4
  21. ^ a b King 2008:94-96
  22. ^ Shenfield, Stephen D. 1999. The Circassians: a forgotten genocide?. In Levene, Mark and Penny Roberts, eds., The massacre in history. Oxford and New York: Berghahn Books. Series: War and Genocide; 1. 149-162.
  23. ^ UNPO 2006.
  24. ^ Neumann 1840
  25. ^ Shenfield 1999
  26. ^ Levene 2005:299
  27. ^ Levene 2005:302
  28. ^ Meri, Josef W., and Jere L. Bacharach. Medieval Islamic Civilization: an Encyclopedia. New York: Routledge, 2006. Pp. 156
  29. ^ Loewe, Louis. A Dictionary of the Circassian Language. London: George Bell, 1854. Pp. 6
  30. ^ The Nautical Magazine :. Vol. 23. London: Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent, 1854. Pp. 154
  31. ^ Richmond, Walter. The Northwest Caucasus: Past, Present, Future. London: Routledge, 2008. Pp. 28
  32. ^ Scott, Walter, and David Hewitt. The Antiquary. Vol. 13. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 1995. Pp. 274
  33. ^ Smith, Sebastian. Allah's Mountains: the Battle for Chechnya. London: TPP, 2006. Pp. 32
  34. ^ Taitbout, De Marigny. Three Voyages in the Black Sea to the Coast of Circassia. London, 1837. Pp. 74
  35. ^ The Penny Magazine. London: Charles Knight, 1838. Pp. 138
  36. ^ Minahan, James. One Europe, Many Nations: a Historical Dictionary of European National Groups. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2000. Pp. 354
  37. ^ http://www.circassianworld.com/AdygheCuisine.pdf (English Language)
  38. ^ a b c d Significant numbers of Adyghe speakers reside in Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, and Israel.
  39. ^ Adyghe by country
  40. ^ Adyghe - ethnologue
  41. ^ http://www.kinghussein.gov.jo/rfamily_immediate.html The Official Website of King Hussein of Jordan
  42. ^ http://todayszaman.com/columnist-187447-we-found-a-part-of-ourselves-in-damascus.html

English

Adyghe

Turkish

Arabic

Hebrew

Russian

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