''Jigit'' (also spelled as ''Dzhigit'', ''yigit'', ''zhigit'' or ''igid'') is a word used in the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...

and

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

to describe a skillful and brave equestrian, or a brave person in general. The word is of Turkic origin.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; , ''BSE'') is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Great Russian Enc ...

Джигитовка
/ref> The derived term 'jigitovka' (or ''jigiting'') means the special style of trick riding that originated in the Turkic cultures of North Caucasus and Central Asia, and is also popular with

Cossacks The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic languages, East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borde ...

, who adopted it from the

Circassians The Circassians or Circassian people, also called Cherkess or Adyghe (Adyghe language, Adyghe and ), are a Northwest Caucasian languages, Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation who originated in Circassia, a region and former country in t ...

. When performing dzhigitovka, the riders at full gallop stand up, jump to the ground and back to the

saddle A saddle is a supportive structure for a rider of an animal, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is equestrian. However, specialized saddles have been created for oxen, camels and other animals. It is not know ...

, pick up objects from the ground (such as coins, hats, etc.), shoot targets with various weapons, ride hanging on the side or under the belly of the horse and do other acrobatic feats. Since the early 19th century jigitovka has been demonstrated in the

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicy ...

es and horse sport competitions, and made its way to the popular

Western culture Western culture, also known as Western civilization, European civilization, Occidental culture, Western society, or simply the West, refers to the Cultural heritage, internally diverse culture of the Western world. The term "Western" encompas ...

, for instance Cossacks (actually Georgian horsemen from western part of Georgia, Guria) demonstrated jigitovka as part of ''Buffalo Bill's Wild West'' Show. Jigitovka was also used in training of cavalry forces in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

and

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Modern jigitovka as a circus performance includes complex stunts usually performed by a group of riders.

Equestrian Jigitovka

In 2016 jigitovka was officially recognised as a sporting discipline in the Russian Federation.

References

External links

Russia dzhigitovka

Horse Training. History, training dzhigitovka Russia
* Georgian Trick Riders in American Wild West Shows, 1890s-1920s by Irakli Makharadze, Publisher: McFarland
Official 2017 Equestrian Dzhigitovka Rules in Russian

Russian News Report on 2017 Equestrian Dzhigitovka World Championship
{{Turkic topics Mounted games Culture of Turkmenistan Turkic culture