The Karachay-Cherkess Republic (russian: Карача́ево-Черке́сская Респу́блика, ''Karachayevo-Cherkesskaya Respublika''; krc, Къарачай-Черкес Республика, ''Qaraçay-Çerkes Respublika''; Circassian: Къэрэшей-Шэрджэс Республика, ''Ķêrêšei-Šêrdžês Respublikê'', nog, Карашай-Шеркеш Республика, ''Karaşay-Şerkeş Respublika'', abq, Къарча-Черкес Республика, ''Qarça-Çerkes Respublika'') or Karachay-Cherkessia (russian: Карача́ево-Черке́сия, ''Karachayevo-Cherkesiya'') is a federal subject (a

republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

) of

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. It is geographically located in the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, ( ady, Темыр Къафкъас, Temır Qafqas; kbd, Ишхъэрэ Къаукъаз, İṩxhərə Qauqaz; ce, Къилбаседа Кавказ, Q̇ilbaseda Kavkaz; , os, Цӕгат Кавказ, Cægat Kavkaz, inh, ...

region of

Southern Russia Southern Russia or the South of Russia (russian: Юг России, ''Yug Rossii'') is a colloquial term for the southernmost geographic portion of European Russia generally covering the Southern Federal District and the North Caucasian Federal ...

and is administratively part of the

North Caucasian Federal District North Caucasian Federal District (russian: Се́веро-Кавка́зский федера́льный о́круг, ''Severo-Kavkazsky federalny okrug'') is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. It is located in extreme southern Rus ...

. Karachay-Cherkessia has a population of 477,859 ( 2010 Census). Cherkessk is the largest

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and the

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic. Karachay-Cherkessia is one of Russia's

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, ...

republics, primarily representing the indigenous Turkic

Karachay people The Karachays ( krc, Къарачайлыла, Qaraçaylıla or таулула, , 'Mountaineers') are an indigenous Caucasian Turkic ethnic group in the North Caucasus. They speak Karachay-Balkar, a Turkic language. They are mostly situated ...

and the

Cherkess The Circassians (also referred to as Cherkess or Adyghe; Adyghe and Kabardian: Адыгэхэр, romanized: ''Adıgəxər'') are an indigenous Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation native to the historical country-region of Circassia in ...

or Circassian people. Karachays form the largest ethnic group at around 40% of the population, followed by ethnic

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

(30%) and Cherkess (12%). The Cherkess are mostly of the

Besleney The Besleney ( Circassian: Bеслъэней, ''Bestləney'', ; russian: Бесленеевцы ) (also known as Beslenei or Baslaney) are one of the twelve major Circassian tribes, representing one of the twelve stars on the green-and-gold Circa ...

and Kabardin tribes. The republic has five official languages: Russian, Abaza, Cherkess (Kabardian),

Karachay-Balkar Karachay-Balkar (, ), or Mountain Turkic (, ), is a Turkic language spoken by the Karachays and Balkars in Kabardino-Balkaria and Karachay–Cherkessia, European Russia, as well as by an immigrant population in Afyonkarahisar Province, Turkey. I ...

, and Nogai. The majority of the republic's territory is within the

Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains, : pronounced * hy, Կովկասյան լեռներ, : pronounced * az, Qafqaz dağları, pronounced * rus, Кавка́зские го́ры, Kavkázskiye góry, kɐfˈkasːkʲɪje ˈɡorɨ * tr, Kafkas Dağla ...

, except for a small strip at the northern edge of the

Don Steppe Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON * Don (river), a river in European Russia * Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name * Don, Benin, a town in Benin * Don, Dang, a ...

. Karachay-Cherkessia is bordered by

Krasnodar Krai Krasnodar Krai (russian: Краснода́рский край, r=Krasnodarsky kray, p=krəsnɐˈdarskʲɪj kraj) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), located in the North Caucasus region in Southern Russia and administratively a part of t ...

to the west,

Stavropol Krai Stavropol Krai (russian: Ставропо́льский край, r=Stavropolsky kray, p=stəvrɐˈpolʲskʲɪj kraj) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (a Krais of Russia, krai) of Russia. It is geographically located in the North ...

to the north-east, Kabardino-Balkaria to the south-east, and an international border with Georgia to the south-west.

Mount Elbrus Mount Elbrus ( rus, links=no, Эльбрус, r=Elbrus, p=ɪlʲˈbrus; kbd, Ӏуащхьэмахуэ, 'uaşhəmaxuə; krc, Минги тау, Mingi Taw) is the highest and most prominent peak in Russia and Europe. It is situated in the we ...

, the

highest mountain Currently, There are at least 108 mountains on Earth with elevations of or greater above sea level. The vast majority of these mountains are located on the edge of the Indian plate, Indian and Eurasian plate, Eurasian plates in China, India, ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, is located on the border with Kabardino-Balkaria.

Geography

The republic is located at the slopes of northwestern

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

and borders with

in the west and northwest, the

Kabardino-Balkar Republic The Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (russian: Кабарди́но-Балка́рская Респу́блика, ''Kabardino-Balkarskaya Respublika''; kbd, Къэбэрдей-Балъкъэр Республикэ, ''Ķêbêrdej-Baĺķêr Respublik� ...

in the southeast, Georgia (including

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 south and west, and with

in the northeast. It stretches for from north to south and for from east to west. Mountains cover 80% of the republic's territory;

, which at is the highest peak in the Caucasus, is located on the republic's border with Kabardino-Balkaria. The republic is rich in

water resources Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful for humans, for example as a source of drinking water supply or irrigation water. 97% of the water on the Earth is salt water and only three percent is fresh water; slight ...

. A total of 172 rivers flow through its territory, with the largest one being the

Kuban Kuban (Russian language, Russian and Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Кубань; ady, Пшызэ) is a historical and geographical region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Pontic–Caspian steppe, ...

Bolshoy Zelenchuk The Bolshoy Zelenchuk (russian: Большой Зеленчук) is a river in the North Caucasus, Russia. It is a left tributary of the Kuban into which it flows at Nevinnomyssk. It is long, and has a drainage basin of .Maly Zelenchuk, Urup, and Laba. There are about 130 mountain lakes of glacial origin and an abundance of mineral springs. Climate is moderate, with short winters and long, warm, humid summers. The average January temperature is , and the average July temperature is . Average annual

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...

varies from in the plains to in the mountains. Natural resources include gold, coal, clays, and more.

History

The

Karachay-Cherkess Autonomous Oblast Karachay-Cherkessia Autonomous Oblast (; krc, Къарачай-Черкес автоном область, translit=Qaraçay-Çerkes avtonom oblast; kbd, Къэрэшей-Черкес автономнэ область , translit=Qərəṩey-Cher ...

was founded on January 12, 1922, in the early years of the Soviet Union. It was split into

Karachay Autonomous Oblast Karachay Autonomous Oblast was an autonomous oblast in the Soviet Union created on 26 April 1926. It was formed by the split of the Karachay-Cherkess Autonomous Oblast in 1926, creating Karachay and Cherkess Autonomous Oblast. Karachay Autonomou ...

and

Cherkess National Okrug The Circassians (also referred to as Cherkess or Adyghe; Adyghe and Kabardian: Адыгэхэр, romanized: ''Adıgəxər'') are an indigenous Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation native to the historical country-region of Circassia in ...

on 26 April 1926. The Cherkess National District was elevated to an autonomous oblast status on 30 April 1928. In 1943, Karachay Autonomous Oblast was abolished, the Karachay people were accused of collaboration with the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

and subsequently deported to the Kazakh and Uzbek republics. Most of the Karachay territory was split between

and the Georgian SSR. The remaining territory populated by the Cherkessians was known as

Cherkess Autonomous Oblast The Cherkess Autonomous Oblast ( rus, Черкесская автономная область, Cherkesskaya avtonomnaya oblast; kbd, Черкес автономнэ область, ''Čérkés avtonomne oblast’'') or Cherkessia ( rus, Чер� ...

until 9 January 1957 when it was incorporated into Karachay-Cherkess Autonomous Oblast in its former borders due to the rehabilitation of the Karachay. On July 3, 1991, the autonomous oblast was elevated to the status of the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic of Karachay-Cherkessia (under the jurisdiction of the

Russian SFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

). With the

dissolution of the Soviet Union The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...

, congresses of deputies of various nationalities proclaimed: * Karachay Soviet Socialist Republic (russian: Карачаевская Советская Социалистическая Республика;

: Къарачай Совет Социалист Республика) on 18 November 1990 (renamed Karachay Republic (russian: Карачаевская Республика;

: Къарачай Республика) on October 17, 1991) *

Batalpashinsk Cherkessk (russian: Черке́сск) is the capital city of Karachay-Cherkessia, Russia, as well as its political, economic, and cultural center. Population: It was previously known as ''Batalpashinskaya'' (until 1931), ''Batalpashinsk'' (un ...

Cossack Republic (russian: Баталпашинская Казачья Республика) and Zelenchuk-Urup Cossack Soviet Socialist Republic (russian: Зеленчукско-Урупская Казачья Советская Социалистическая Республика) on August 19, 1991 (united as the Upper

Kuban Cossack Kuban Cossacks (russian: кубанские казаки, ''kubanskiye kаzaki''; uk, кубанські козаки, ''kubanski kozaky''), or Kubanians (russian: кубанцы, ; uk, кубанці, ), are Cossacks who live in the Kuban re ...

Republic (russian: Верхне-Кубанская Казачья Республика) on November 30, 1991) *

Republic (russian: Республика Черкесия) on October 27, 1991 *

Abazin Republic Abazinia, Abazashta or Abaza is a historical country at the northern mountainside of the Caucasus Major, now the northern part of Karachay–Cherkess Republic, Russia. Abazinia is a home of the Abazins, a people related to the Abkhaz people tha ...

(russian: Абазинская Республика) in November 1991 After demonstrations in December 1991, the Supreme Soviet of Karachay-Cherkessia adopted an appeal for the recognition of the individual republics. Also in December 1991, the words "Autonomous Soviet Socialist" were dropped from the official name of Karachay-Cherkessia. In January 1992, Russian President

Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...

was prepared to accept the division of Karachay-Cherkessia and introduced draft laws to the Supreme Soviet of Russia for the reconstitution of the Karachai Autonomous Oblast and Cherkess Autonomous Oblast within the Russian Federation. A commission on formation of three autonomous regions – Karachai, Cherkess, and Batalpashinsk – was established in the Supreme Soviet. On March 28, 1992, a referendum was held in which, according to official results, the majority of the population of Karachay-Cherkessia voted against splitting the republic and, on December 9, 1992, the republic was recognized as the Karachay-Cherkess Republic.

Politics

Vladimir Putin and Rashid Temrezov, May 2011

The head of the government in Karachay-Cherkessia is the Head (until June 28, 2012, the official title was "President"). Until February 2011, the President was

Boris Ebzeyev Boris Safarovich Ebzeyev (russian: Борис Сафарович Эбзеев; krc, Эбзеланы Сафарны джашы Борис, ) is a Russian politician and judge. He served as a judge on the Constitutional Court of Russia from 1991 ...

, a former judge of the Constitutional Court of Russian Federation.

Rashid Temrezov Rashid Borispiyevich Temrezov (russian: Рашид Бориспиевич Темрезов; krc, Темирезланы Борисбийни джашы Рашид) is a Russian politician who is the head of Karachay–Cherkessia since 2011. I ...

is currently the Head of the republic. Ethnic tension is a considerable problem in the republic. In May 1999, Karachay-Cherkessia conducted its first-ever free regional presidential election. When Vladimir Semyonov, a Karachay, won the election over

Stanislav Derev Stanislav and variants may refer to: People *Stanislav (given name), a Slavic given name with many spelling variations (Stanislaus, Stanislas, Stanisław, etc.) Places * Stanislav, a coastal village in Kherson, Ukraine * Stanislaus County, Cali ...

, a Circassian, there were protests by supporters of Derev, with widespread allegations of fraud. A court ruling later upheld the election result, prompting thousands of Derev's supporters to march in protest, many advocating the partitioning of the republic. Although activity by separatists in the region pales compared to Chechnya and Dagestan, militant groups exist in Karachay-Cherkessia. A car bomb that killed two people in March 2001 was blamed on Chechen separatists. Muslim separatist groups have formed, and dozens of their members have been killed by the Russian authorities. In September 2007, the FSB killed ethnic Abazin Rustam Ionov ("Abu-Bakar"), head of the Karachaevo '' Jamaat'' (assembly), along with his wife.

Administrative divisions

Demographics

Life expectancy in Russian subject -Karachay-Cherkessia

Population: Life expectancy:

Vital statistics

Sources: 1970 to 2008; 2009–2013; 2014–...

Ethnic groups

According to the 2010 Census, Karachays make up 41% of the republic's population, followed by

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

(32%), and

and

Abazins The Abazin, Abazinians or Abaza (Abaza language, Abaza and Abkhaz language, Abkhaz: Абаза; Circassian language, Circassian: Абазэхэр; russian: Абазины; tr, Abazalar; ar, أباظة), are an ethnic group of the Caucasus, Nort ...

together make up 20%.

Religion

According to a 2012 survey which interviewed 56,900 people, 64% of the population of Karachay-Cherkessia adheres to

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 ...

, 13% to the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

, 2% to the Karachay and Circassian native faith, 2% are unaffiliated

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, unchurched Orthodox Christian believers or members of non-Russian Orthodox churches. In addition, 10% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious", 3% are

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

, and 6% are other/undeclared.

Notable people

Zuhra Bayramkulova Zuhra Abdurakhmanovna Bayramkulova (russian: Зухра Абдурахмановна Байрамкулова; 30 August 1940 – 10 April 2013) was a farmer and politician from Karachay-Cherkessia. Biography Bayramkulova was born on 30 August ...

- Dairy farmer and Hero of Socialist Labour.

Science

The republic is the home of what was the largest telescope in the world from 1975 until 1993 (the BTA-6), a very large radio telescope (576 meters in diameter, RATAN-600), and the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Science dedicated to the study of astronomy. These facilities are located on the bank of the Zelenchuk River, between the villages of Zelenchukskaya and Arkhyz.

Gallery

File:Поселок Архыз.jpg, Mountainous landscape of Arkhyz File:Пляски (1356881968).jpg, Wedding in Karachay-Cherkessia File:Karachayevsk.jpg, Karachayevsk File:Могучая даль.jpg, Small settlement in Karachay-Cherkessia File:Эльбрус с перевала Гумбаши.JPG, View to

from pass Gumbashi (with zoom)

References

Notes

Sources

* * *

External links

Collection of images of Karachay-Cherkessia
trombicula.narod.ru

travel-images.com
An account of the disputed 1999 election
nupi.no

tls-msu.narod.ru
Karachay-Cherkess Republic News Portal''Medical Institute of North Caucasian State Humanitarian Technological Academy''
{{Use mdy dates, date=March 2014 North Caucasus North Caucasian Federal District States and territories established in 1991 Russian-speaking countries and territories Regions of Europe with multiple official languages