The North Caucasus, ( ady, Темыр Къафкъас, Temır Qafqas; kbd, Ишхъэрэ Къаукъаз, İṩxhərə Qauqaz; ce, Къилбаседа Кавказ, Q̇ilbaseda Kavkaz; , os, Цӕгат Кавказ, Cægat Kavkaz, inh, Даькъасте, Däq̇aste, krc, Шимал Кавказ, Şimal Kavkaz, russian: Северный Кавказ, r=Severnyy Kavkaz, p=ˈsʲevʲɪrnɨj kɐfˈkas) or Ciscaucasia (russian: Предкавказье, Predkavkazye), is a
subregion
A subregion is a part of a larger region or continent and is usually based on location. Cardinal directions, such as south are commonly used to define a subregion.
United Nations subregions
The Statistics Division of the United Nations (UN) ...
of
Eastern Europe in the
Eurasian continent. It is the northern part of the wider
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...
region, and is entirely a part of
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, sandwiched between the
Sea of Azov and
Black Sea to the west, and the
Caspian Sea to the east. The region shares land borders with
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
and
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
to the south.
Krasnodar is the largest city within the North Caucasus.
Politically, the North Caucasus is made up of Russian
republics
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 ...
and
krai
A krai or kray (; russian: край, , ''kraya'') is one of the types of federal subjects of modern Russia, and was a type of geographical administrative division in the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR.
Etymologically, the word is relat ...
s. It lies north of the
Main Caucasian Range
The Main Caucasian Range (russian: Главный Кавказский хребет; ka, კავკასიონის მთავარი წყალგამყოფი ქედი; az, Baş Qafqaz silsiləsi) is a mountain range in th ...
, which separates it from the
South Caucasus. As part of Russia, the territory falls within the
North Caucasian and
Southern Federal District
The Southern Federal District ( rus, Ю́жный федера́льный о́круг, Yuzhny federalny okrug, ˈjuʐnɨj fʲɪdʲɪˈralʲnɨj ˈokrʊk) is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. Its territory lies mostly on the Pontic� ...
s and consists of
Krasnodar Krai,
Stavropol Krai, and the constituent republics, approximately from west to east: the
Republic of Adygea
The Republic of Adygea (; russian: Республика Адыгея, Respublika Adygeya, p=ɐdɨˈɡʲejə; ady, Адыгэ Республик, ''Adıgə Respublik''), also known as the Adyghe Republic, is a republic of Russia. It is situated ...
,
Karachay-Cherkessia
The Karachay-Cherkess Republic (russian: Карача́ево-Черке́сская Респу́блика, ''Karachayevo-Cherkesskaya Respublika''; krc, Къарачай-Черкес Республика, ''Qaraçay-Çerkes Respublika''; Cir ...
,
Kabardino-Balkaria
The Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (russian: Кабарди́но-Балка́рская Респу́блика, ''Kabardino-Balkarskaya Respublika''; kbd, Къэбэрдей-Балъкъэр Республикэ, ''Ķêbêrdej-Baĺķêr Respublik� ...
,
North Ossetia–Alania,
Ingushetia,
Chechnya, and
Republic of Dagestan
Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...
and to the north:
Kalmykia.
Geographically, the term North Caucasus also refers to the northern slope and western extremity of the
Greater Caucasus
The Greater Caucasus ( az, Böyük Qafqaz, Бөјүк Гафгаз, بيوک قافقاز; ka, დიდი კავკასიონი, ''Didi K’avk’asioni''; russian: Большой Кавказ, ''Bolshoy Kavkaz'', sometimes translat ...
mountain range, as well as a part of its southern slope to the West. The
Pontic–Caspian steppe area is often also encompassed under the notion of "Ciscaucasus", thus the northern boundary of the Forecaucasus steppe is generally considered to be the
Manych River. Owing to its mild climate compared to much of Russia, the region has been described as Russia's "
sunbelt".
History
Ancient cultures of the Northern Caucasus are known as
Klin-Yar community, with the most notable culture being the ancient
Koban culture
The Koban culture (c. 1100 to 400 BC) is a late Bronze Age and Iron Age culture of the northern and central Caucasus. It is preceded by the Colchian culture of the western Caucasus and the Kharachoi culture further east.
It is named after the ...
. Other haplogroups were
Haplogroup J1 and
Haplogroup G-M285.
Ciscaucasus was historically covered by the
Pontic–Caspian steppe, mostly on fertile calcareous
chernozyom soils, which has been almost completely tilled and grazed. It is bounded by the
Sea of Azov on the west, and the Caspian Sea on the east. According to the ''Concise Atlas of the World, Second Edition'' (2008), the Ciscaucasus region lies on the European side of the "commonly-accepted division" that separates Europe from Asia.
The Northern Caucasus was conquered by Russia after the
Russo-Circassian War. Much of the Northern Caucasus seceded from Russia in March 1917 as the
Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus
The Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus (MRNC; also known as the United Republics of the North Caucasus, Mountain Republic or the Republic of the Mountaineers) was a country in the North Caucasus formed by the unification of Circassians ...
, taking advantage of the instability caused by the
February Revolution and becoming a minor participant in the
Russian Civil War. Mountainous Republic troops engaged in fierce clashes against the invading
White General
Anton Denikin's
Volunteer Army, before the latter's defeat at the hands of the
Red Army. The region was informally occupied by the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
shortly afterwards, and the republic was forced into accepting a nonviolent annexation in January 1921. It was reformed into the
Mountainous ASSR, which was later dissolved in October 1924, replaced by a series of autonomous Okrugs and Oblasts.
The outer border of the Soviet Union's North Caucasus Krai was the same as that of present-day North Caucasus Economic Region (Raion) which includes an oblast (
Rostov Oblast), two krais (
Krasnodar Krai and
Stavropol Krai), and seven republics. The former North Caucasus Military District (Okrug) also included
Astrakhan Oblast,
Volgograd Oblast, and the
Republic of Kalmykia. Its administrative center was Rostov-on-Don until 10 January 1934, Pyatigorsk until January 1936, then Ordzhonikidze (today Vladikavkaz) and, from 15 December 1936, Voroshilovsk (today Stavropol).
In June 2022, the US State Department advised citizens not to travel to the North Caucasus, including
Chechnya and
Mount Elbrus, due to terrorism, kidnapping, and risk of civil unrest.
Life expectancy
The North Caucasus, especially in its mountainous territories, has the highest
life expectancy in Russia.
The region is known for a large number of
centenarian
A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100 years. Because life expectancies worldwide are below 100 years, the term is invariably associated with longevity. In 2012, the United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centen ...
s.
Gallery
File:Map of Russia - North Caucasian Federal District.svg, Location of the North Caucasian Federal District
File:Russian Ground Forces - North Caucasus Military District Map.svg, Map of former North Caucasus Military District (okrug)
File:Map of Russia - North Caucasus economic region.svg, Map of modern-day North Caucasus Economic Region (raion)
File:Карачаево-Черкесия, Западный Кавказ, Софийская долина, горный массив и перевал София, Karachay-Cherkessia, Caucasus Mountains.jpg, Sophia Valley, Karachay-Cherkessia
The Karachay-Cherkess Republic (russian: Карача́ево-Черке́сская Респу́блика, ''Karachayevo-Cherkesskaya Respublika''; krc, Къарачай-Черкес Республика, ''Qaraçay-Çerkes Respublika''; Cir ...
See also
*
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...
*
Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus
*
Dolmens of the North Caucasus
*
Insurgency in the North Caucasus
The insurgency in the North Caucasus (russian: Борьба с терроризмом на Северном Кавказе) was a low-level armed conflict between Russia and militants associated with the Caucasus Emirate and, from June 2015, ...
*
Kuban People's Republic
The Kuban People's Republic (KPR), or Kuban National Republic (KNR), (russian: Кубанская Народная Республика, Kubanskaya Narodnaya Respublika; uk, Кубанська Народна Республiка, Kubanska Narodn ...
*
Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic
The Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic or Mountain ASSR ( rus, Го́рская АССР, r=Gorskaya ASSR; ce, Лаьмнийн Автономин Советийн Социалистийн Республика) was a short-lived autono ...
*
Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus
The Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus (MRNC; also known as the United Republics of the North Caucasus, Mountain Republic or the Republic of the Mountaineers) was a country in the North Caucasus formed by the unification of Circassians ...
*
North Caucasian Federal District
*
North Caucasian Soviet Republic
*
North Caucasus economic region
*
North Caucasian Federal University
*
North Caucasian Krai
*
North Caucasian Military District
The North Caucasus Military District was a military district of the Russian Armed Forces, which became in 2010 the Southern Military District and lately also included the Black Sea Fleet and Caspian Flotilla.
It comprised the Republic of Adygeya, ...
*
North Caucasian Railway
*
Southern Federal District
The Southern Federal District ( rus, Ю́жный федера́льный о́круг, Yuzhny federalny okrug, ˈjuʐnɨj fʲɪdʲɪˈralʲnɨj ˈokrʊk) is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. Its territory lies mostly on the Pontic� ...
References
Notes
Further reading
* ''In Quest for God and Freedom: Sufi Responses to the Russian Advance in the North Caucasus'' by Anna Zelkina
* ''Russia in the Modern World: A New Geography'' by Denis J. B. Shaw, Institute of British Geographers
External links
History of the Caucasus *
*
* Relations between The North and South Caucasus. Articles in th
Caucasus Analytical Digest No. 27
{{Authority control
North Caucasus
Caucasus
Eastern Europe
Southern Russia
Regions of Russia
Regions of Eurasia