The Bagvalal (also called Bagulal, Kwantl Hekwa, Bagolal, Kwanadi, Bagulaltsy, Kvanadin, and Kvanadintsy) are an Avar–Andi–Dido people of

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...

, speaking the Bagvalal language. Since the 1930s they have been largely classed as and assimilated by the Avars. However there were still some people reported separately in the 2002 census. The tradition and culture of the Bagvalal people is very similar to that of the Avar people, due to their common history within the

Avar Khanate The Avar Khanate, the Avar Nutsaldom (; ), also known as Khundzia or Avaria, was a long-lived Avar state, which controlled mountainous parts of Dagestan (in the North Caucasus) from the early 13th century to the 19th century. History of Avar ...

Geography

The Bagvalal live in mountain villages in the Tsumadinsky District of

. The names of the Bagvalal villages are: Kvanada, Gimerso, Tlisi, Tlibisho, Khushtada, and Tlondada.

Demographics

In 1926 there were 3,054 Bagvalals.

Religion

The Bagvalals are Sunni Muslims. They adopted the religion by the 16th century due to the influence of

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

missionaries.

References

Sources

*Wixman, Ronald. ''The Peoples of the USSR: An Ethnographic Handbook''. (Armonk, New York: M. E. Sharpe, Inc., 1984) p. 19. {{Ethnic groups of Russia Peoples of the Caucasus Ethnic groups in Dagestan Muslim communities of Russia Muslim communities of the Caucasus