Kumyks
Encyclopedia
Kumyks are a Turkic people occupying the Kumyk plateau in north Dagestan
and south Terek
, and the lands bordering the Caspian Sea
. They comprise 14% of the population of the Russia
n republic of Dagestan. They speak the Kumyk language
. Kumyks practice folk Islam, with some religious rituals that trace back to pre-Islamic times.
Various explorers see in them descendants of the Khazars
. Armin Vambery
supposes that they settled in their present quarters during the flourishing period of the Khazar kingdom in the 8th century.
During the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries CE the Kumyks had an independent kingdom, based at Tarki
, and ruled by a leader called Shamkhal.
The Russians
built forts in their territory in 1559 and under Peter I
. The upper terraces of the Kumyk plateau, which the Kumyks occupy, leaving its lower parts to the Nogais
, are very fertile.
In recent years Kumyk nationalists such as Salau Aliev have agitated for Kumyk dominance within Daghestan, citing Khazar history as their inspiration. This is part of a wider trend in Dagestan of the non-dominant but still major groups (such as Kumyks, Lezgins
, Laks, etc.) producing ideological backlashes to the near-institutionalized dominance of Avars
, Dargins and Russians
in Dagestan (together, Avars, Dargins and Russians form a weak majority of the population, but their dominance is widely resented by others).
and the patrons of the sun, moon, earth, water, and so on. There are surviving heroic poems, narratives, and ritual songs concerning, among others, the demon Albaslï (a woman with huge breasts thrown over her shoulders, who might injure women giving birth); Suv-anasï, the "mother of water"; the three demons Temirtösh, Baltatösh, and Qïlïchtösh (with ax blades protruding from their chests with which they kill people); Sütqatïn, a goddess or spirit of the rain; Basdïrïq, who could suffocate people in their sleep; and a gluttonous figure. The subsequent spread of Islamic mythology often transformed or provided an overlay to the pagan beliefs. Today Muslim and, in particular, pagan beliefs are becoming things of the past.
The Kumyk people have created highly artistic forms of folklore. Their heroic epics include the ancient "Song of Minküllü," similar to the Gilgamesh epic; the "Song of Kartkozhak and Maksuman," a segment of the Kumyk Nart epic; and the "Song of Javatbi," in which, as in the Oghuz epic of Dede Korkut, the tale is told of the struggle of the hero with Azrail, the angel of death. Poetry of the yearly cycle includes songs for bringing rain ("Zemire," "Sütqatïn"), for meeting autumn ("Güdürbay," "Hüssemey") and spring ("Navruz"), and family-ritual songs: wedding songs and laments. Children's literature is also significantly developed, as are myths, legends, and tales. The epics include songs of legendary heroes such as Aigazi, Abdulla, and Eldarush and the heroes of the anti-colonial and anticzarist struggles of the nineteenth century. To the relatively late genres of Kumyk folklore belong the songs about the freedom-loving Cossack warriors, the takmaks and sarïns (quatrains used in verbal dueling), amatory verse, and humorous and other songs. The telling of proverbs and maxims also flowered.
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
and south Terek
Terek
The Terek River is a major river in the Northern Caucasus, flowing through Georgia and Russia into the Caspian Sea. It rises in Georgia near the juncture of the The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and the Khokh Range, to the southwest of Mount Kazbek, then flows north through North Ossetia and...
, and the lands bordering the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
. They comprise 14% of the population of the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n republic of Dagestan. They speak the Kumyk language
Kumyk language
Kumyk is a Turkic language, spoken by about 365,000 speakers in the Dagestan republic of Russian Federation....
. Kumyks practice folk Islam, with some religious rituals that trace back to pre-Islamic times.
Various explorers see in them descendants of the Khazars
Khazars
The Khazars were semi-nomadic Turkic people who established one of the largest polities of medieval Eurasia, with the capital of Atil and territory comprising much of modern-day European Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, large portions of the northern Caucasus , parts of...
. Armin Vambery
Ármin Vámbéry
Ármin Vámbéry, Arminius Vámbéry born Hermann Bamberger, or Bamberger Ármin , was a Hungarian orientalist and traveler...
supposes that they settled in their present quarters during the flourishing period of the Khazar kingdom in the 8th century.
During the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries CE the Kumyks had an independent kingdom, based at Tarki
Tarki
Tarki is an urban locality under the administrative jurisdiction of Sovetsky City District of the city of Makhachkala in the Republic of Dagestan, Russia, situated on the Tarkitau Mountain. Population:...
, and ruled by a leader called Shamkhal.
The Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
built forts in their territory in 1559 and under Peter I
Peter I of Russia
Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
. The upper terraces of the Kumyk plateau, which the Kumyks occupy, leaving its lower parts to the Nogais
Nogais
The Nogai people are a Turkic ethnic group in Southern Russia: northern Dagestan and Stavropol Krai, as well as in Karachay-Cherkessia and the Astrakhan Oblast; undefined number live in Chechnya...
, are very fertile.
In recent years Kumyk nationalists such as Salau Aliev have agitated for Kumyk dominance within Daghestan, citing Khazar history as their inspiration. This is part of a wider trend in Dagestan of the non-dominant but still major groups (such as Kumyks, Lezgins
Lezgins
The Lezgians are an ethnic group living predominantly in southern Dagestan and northeastern Azerbaijan and who speak the Lezgian language.- Historical concept :While ancient Greek historians, including Herodotus, Strabo, and Pliny the Elder, referred...
, Laks, etc.) producing ideological backlashes to the near-institutionalized dominance of Avars
Caucasian Avars
Avars or Caucasian Avars are a modern people of Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan, in which they are the predominant group. The Caucasian Avar language belongs to the Northeast Caucasian language family ....
, Dargins and Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
in Dagestan (together, Avars, Dargins and Russians form a weak majority of the population, but their dominance is widely resented by others).
Religion
Sunni Islam spread among the Kumyks between the eight and twelfth centuries. Christianity had been widespread prior to this and, among the upper class of Khazaria, Judaism. Not many old beliefs have been preserved, and the institution of shamanism as such is virtually nonexistant among the Kumyks. Folklore and ethnographic material, however, indicate that Kumyk tribes worshiped the high god TengiriTengri
Tengri or Tengger Tengri or Tengger Tengri or Tengger (Old Turkic: ; Mongolian: Тэнгэр, Tenger; Chinese: 腾格里, Mandarin: Ténggélǐ, Hungarian: Tengri, Turkish: Tanrı, Bulgarian: Tangra (Тангра) is a sky god, formerly the chief deity of the early Turkic peoples, including the Xiongnu, Huns, Bulgars,...
and the patrons of the sun, moon, earth, water, and so on. There are surviving heroic poems, narratives, and ritual songs concerning, among others, the demon Albaslï (a woman with huge breasts thrown over her shoulders, who might injure women giving birth); Suv-anasï, the "mother of water"; the three demons Temirtösh, Baltatösh, and Qïlïchtösh (with ax blades protruding from their chests with which they kill people); Sütqatïn, a goddess or spirit of the rain; Basdïrïq, who could suffocate people in their sleep; and a gluttonous figure. The subsequent spread of Islamic mythology often transformed or provided an overlay to the pagan beliefs. Today Muslim and, in particular, pagan beliefs are becoming things of the past.
Arts
In houses of the older type great significance was attached to the carving of the wooden parts of houses: beams, pillars, clothes closets, shutters, the frames of windows and gates, and the like. Stone slabs with traditional carvings and inscriptions were inserted in the walls of porches or gates. Clay decorations were placed on niches, apertures, cornices, and fireplaces. The spacing of decorations was based on the native sense of decorative rhythms. Daggers, pistols, sabers, and rifles were covered with various decorations with gold or silver mounting. Female attire, particularly that of girls, was decorated with gold and silver galloons or lace, or artfully realized gilded pectorals.Literature and Folklore
Kumyk literature began to develop in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries but reached a more significant development at the turn of the nineteenth century when poets such as A. Qaqashurinsky, Y Qazaq, and M. Osmanov appeared. Major contributions to Daghestan Soviet literature were made by A. Salavadov, A. Magomedov, A. Adzhiev, and many others.The Kumyk people have created highly artistic forms of folklore. Their heroic epics include the ancient "Song of Minküllü," similar to the Gilgamesh epic; the "Song of Kartkozhak and Maksuman," a segment of the Kumyk Nart epic; and the "Song of Javatbi," in which, as in the Oghuz epic of Dede Korkut, the tale is told of the struggle of the hero with Azrail, the angel of death. Poetry of the yearly cycle includes songs for bringing rain ("Zemire," "Sütqatïn"), for meeting autumn ("Güdürbay," "Hüssemey") and spring ("Navruz"), and family-ritual songs: wedding songs and laments. Children's literature is also significantly developed, as are myths, legends, and tales. The epics include songs of legendary heroes such as Aigazi, Abdulla, and Eldarush and the heroes of the anti-colonial and anticzarist struggles of the nineteenth century. To the relatively late genres of Kumyk folklore belong the songs about the freedom-loving Cossack warriors, the takmaks and sarïns (quatrains used in verbal dueling), amatory verse, and humorous and other songs. The telling of proverbs and maxims also flowered.