Abkhaz neopaganism, or the Abkhaz native religion, is the
contemporary re-emergence of the
ethnic religion
In religious studies, an ethnic religion is a religion or belief associated with a particular ethnic group. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from universal religions, such as Christianity or Islam, in which gaining converts is a pri ...
of the
Abkhaz people
Abkhazians (russian: Абхазы), or Abkhazs ( ab, Аԥсуаа, Aṕswaа, ), are a Northwest Caucasian ethnic group, mainly living in Abkhazia, a disputed region on the northeastern coast of the Black Sea. A large Abkhaz diaspora population ...
in unrecognized
Abkhazia
Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...
, a revitalisation which started in the 1980s.
[Schnirelmann, p. 202.] The most important holy sites of the religion are the
Seven Shrines of Abkhazia, each one having its own priestly clan, where rituals and prayers began to be restored in the 1990s.
According to the 2003 census, 8% of the population of Abkhazia adheres to Abkhaz neopaganism. On 3 August 2012 the
Council of Priests of Abkhazia was formally constituted in
Sukhumi
Sukhumi (russian: Суху́м(и), ) or Sokhumi ( ka, სოხუმი, ), also known by its Abkhaz name Aqwa ( ab, Аҟәа, ''Aqwa''), is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the capital and largest city of ...
. The possibility of making the Abkhaz native religion one of the state religions was discussed in the following months.
History
The traditional Abkhaz religion was actually never completely wiped out; circles of priests, whose activity was kept secret, passed on
traditional knowledge
Traditional knowledge (TK), indigenous knowledge (IK) and local knowledge generally refer to knowledge systems embedded in the cultural traditions of regional, indigenous, or local communities. According to the World Intellectual Property Organ ...
and rites in the times when Christianity and
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
became dominant in the region, and later in Soviet times of anti-religion.
Such priests continued the worship of deities such as the
thunder god
Polytheistic peoples from many cultures have postulated a thunder god, the personification or source of the forces of thunder and lightning; a lightning god does not have a typical depiction, and will vary based on the culture. In Indo-European c ...
Afy and the supreme god Antsua.
Since the 1980s, and later in the 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Abkhaz native religion was resurrected by the joint efforts of priests who began to resurface, rural people reactivating local rituals, and urban intellectuals supporting Paganism as an integral part for a reawakening of the Abkhaz
ethnic
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
and cultural identity.
A turning point for the revival of the Abkhaz native religion came with the
Georgian–Abkhazian conflict.
[Schnirelmann, p. 205.] With tensions growing, more and more Abkhazians began associating
Orthodox Christianity
Orthodoxy (from Ancient Greek, Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Late antiquity, A ...
with the
Georgians
The Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and indigenous Caucasian ethnic group native to Georgia and the South Caucasus. Georgian diaspora communities are also present throughout Russia, Turkey, G ...
, and chose to reject it, turning to the native gods.
The eventual victory of
Abkhazia
Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...
in the
1992–93 war with Georgia catalyzed the Neopagan revival. Many Abkhaz believe that their
national god
A national god is a Tutelary deity, guardian divinity whose special concern is the safety and well-being of an ethnic group (''nation''), and of that group's leaders. This is contrasted with other guardian figures such as family gods responsible ...
Dydrypsh awarded them the victory.
[Schnirelmann, p. 206.]
Since then the Abkhaz native religion has been protected by Abkhaz authorities. Government officials took part in a bull sacrifice in October 1993 celebrated to thank the Lord Dydrypsh for the victory over the Georgians, and since then they regularly take part in worship rituals.
[Krylov, 1998a: 24–26; 1998b]
See also
*
Council of Priests of Abkhazia
*
Seven Shrines of Abkhazia
;
Caucasian religions
*
Adyghe Habzism
;Indo-European religions
*
Etseg Din
Assianism (, ''Watsdin'') is a modern Pagan religion derived from the traditional mythology of the Ossetians, modern descendants of the Scythians of the Alan tribes, believed to be a continuation of the ancient Scythian religion. The religion i ...
*
Rodnovery
The Slavic Native Faith, commonly known as Rodnovery
* bg, Родноверие, translit=Rоdnoverie
* bs, Rodnovjerje
* mk, Родноверие, translit=Rodnoverie
* cz, Rodnověří
* hr, Rodnovjerje
* pl, Rodzimowierstwo; Rodzima ...
;Turkic religions
*
Tengrism
Tengrism (also known as Tengriism, Tengerism, or Tengrianism) is an ethnic and old state Turkic peoples, Turko-Mongolic peoples, Mongolic religion originating in the Eurasian Steppe, Eurasian steppes, based on folk shamanism, animism and general ...
*
Vattisen Yaly
Vattisen Yaly ( cv, Ваттисен йӑли, ''Tradition of the Old'') is a contemporary revival of the ethnic religion of the Chuvash people, a Turkic ethnicity of Bulgar ancestry mostly settled in the republic of Chuvashia and surrounding ...
;
Uralic religions
*
Estonian neopaganism
Estonian Neopaganism, or the Estonian native faith ( Estonian: ''maausk'', literally "Land faith"), is the name, in English, for a grouping of contemporary revivals (often called "Neopagan", although adherents of Estonian native religion general ...
*
Finnish neopaganism
*
Mari Native Religion
The Mari religion ( Mari: Чимарий йӱла, ''Čimarii jüla''), also known as Mari paganism, is the ethnic religion of the Mari people, a Volga Finnic ethnic group based in the republic of Mari El, in Russia. The religion has undergone ch ...
*
Mordvin Native Religion
Mordvin Neopaganism, or the Mordvin native religion or Erzyan native religion, is the modern revival of the ethnic religion of the Mordvins ( Erzya), peoples of Volga Finnic ethnic stock dwelling in the republic of Mordovia within Russia, or in b ...
*
Udmurt Vos
Udmurt Vos ( Udmurt: Удмурт Вӧсь, literally "Udmurt Faith") is the ethnic religious revival of the Udmurts, a Finnic people inhabiting the republic of Udmurtia in Russia. Among the Udmurts, as in other Finnic republics in the Volga regio ...
References
Bibliography
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* & 7, 1998 b: 54–56.
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Further reading
* .
External links
* .
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{{Neopaganism
Caucasian Neopaganism
Modern paganism in Europe
Religion in Abkhazia
Religious nationalism