The Main Caucasian Range; is a mountain range in the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

and

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. It is the dividing range of the

Greater Caucasus The Greater Caucasus, ''Didi K’avk’asioni''; is the major mountain range of the Caucasus Mountains. It stretches for about from west-northwest to east-southeast, from the Taman Peninsula of the Black Sea to the Absheron Peninsula of t ...

. The

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

s of the range are the

Teberda Nature Reserve Teberda Nature Reserve () (also Teberdinsky) is a Russian 'zapovednik' (strict ecological reserve) located on the northern slopes of the western section of the Caucasus Mountains. It is the most visited nature reserve in the Russian Federation, wi ...

, Kabardino-Balkaria Nature Reserve and the North Ossetia Nature Reserve.Заповедник.ru
/ref>

Geography

The Main Caucasian Range marks the divide between 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 ...

to the north and the

South Caucasus The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and West Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Armenia, ...

to the south. It stretches from Mount

Chugush The Chugush () is the highest mountain in Adygea, Russia, located in the Western Caucasus. Its height is . The mountain has 10 glaciers covering an area of 1.2 km2. One of the glaciers feeds the Kisha River flowing towards the Belaya River. See ...

near the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

, to the

Khizi District Khizi District () is one of the 66 Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan, districts of Azerbaijan. Located in the east of the country, it belongs to the Absheron-Khizi Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Siyazan District, Siya ...

of Azerbaijan near the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

. The main range runs parallel to the southern side of the

Lateral Range The Lateral Range; is a mountain range in the Russian Federation and Georgia, with a very small part in Azerbaijan. The range is part of the Greater Caucasus. Some swathes of the range are protected areas, under the Kabardino-Balkaria Nature R ...

, along

Abkhazia Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a List of states with limited recognition, partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia. It cover ...

Adygea Adygea ( ), officially the Republic of Adygea or the Adygean Republic, is a republics of Russia, republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe. The republic is a part of the Southern Federal District, and covers an a ...

, the

Krasnodar Territory Krasnodar Krai (, ) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), located in the North Caucasus region in Southern Russia and is administratively a part of the Southern Federal District. Its administrative center is the city of Krasnodar. The third ...

Karachay-Cherkessia Karachay-Cherkessia (), officially the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, is a republic of Russia located in the North Caucasus. It is administratively part of the North Caucasian Federal District. As of the 2021 census, Karachay-Cherkessia has a popul ...

Kabardino-Balkaria Kabardino-Balkaria (), officially the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, is a republic of Russia located in the North Caucasus. As of the 2021 Census, its population was 904,200. Its capital is Nalchik. The area contains the highest mountain in ...

North Ossetia North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

Ingushetia Ingushetia or Ingushetiya, officially the Republic of Ingushetia, is a republic of Russia located in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe. The republic is part of the North Caucasian Federal District, and shares land borders with the country o ...

Chechnya Chechnya, officially the Chechen Republic, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, between the Caspian Sea and Black Sea. The republic forms a part of the North Caucasian Federa ...

and

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 ...

federal subjects of Russia, as well as the countries of Georgia and Azerbaijan. The range is characterized by numerous alpine landforms and, unlike its parallel ranges to the north, it forms a continuous, uninterrupted, system of mountain ranges.

Google Earth Google Earth is a web mapping, web and computer program created by Google that renders a 3D computer graphics, 3D representation of Earth based primarily on satellite imagery. The program maps the Earth by superimposition, superimposing satelli ...

The Main Caucasian Range forms a watershed, separating the basins of rivers flowing on the northern slopes of the Greater

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

, such as the

Samur SAMUR (''Servicio de Asistencia Municipal de Urgencia y Rescate'') is a specialized emergency system of Madrid, Spain. It is composed of the central base, 17 operative bases and 190 vehicles. History The starting point and deployment of the or ...

Kuban Kuban ( Russian and Ukrainian: Кубань; ) is a historical and geographical region in the North Caucasus region of southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, the Volga Delta and separated fr ...

, Terek and Sulak, from those flowing on the southern slopes of the mountain system, such as the Kodori,

Enguri The Enguri ( ka, ენგური, tr , , , ''Egry'') is a river in western Georgia (country), Georgia. It is long, and has a drainage basin of .Rioni The Rioni ( ka, რიონი ; , ) is the main river of western Georgia. It originates in the Caucasus Mountains, in the region of Racha and flows west to the Black Sea, entering it north of the city of Poti (near ancient Phasis). The city ...

and

Kura Kura may refer to: Places * Kura, Iran (disambiguation) * Kura Island, Azerbaijan * Kura, Nigeria, a Local Government Area of Kano State * Kura (South Caucasus river), a river in Turkey, Georgia, and Azerbaijan * Kura (Russia), a river in Ru ...

. The highest and rockiest section of the range is located in its central part. Although not as high as the topmost summits of the Lateral Range to the north, the highest elevations of the Main Caucasian Range include the high

Shkhara Shkhara ( ka, შხარა; ) is a mountain peak and the highest point in the country of Georgia. It is located on the Georgia–Russia border, in Russia's Kabardino-Balkaria region on the northern side, and the Svaneti region of Georgia in ...

, the high

Mount Bazardüzü Mount Bazardüzü (, ; ; , ) is a mountain peak in the Greater Caucasus range on the border between Russia (Dagestan) and Azerbaijan. At above sea level, it is the highest peak in both Dagestan and Azerbaijan, and is located in the Qusar regio ...

—highest point of Dagestan— and the high

Mount Shani Mt. Shani (; ka, შანი; ) also known as Shan and Shanloam is a mountain in the Caucasus. It has an elevation of and is on the international border between Georgia and Ingushetia, Russia. The mountain rises approx. nine kilometres to ...

—highest point of Ingushetia. There are several

glaciated A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires d ...

areas in the range system, including Bezengi the largest glacier in the Caucasus. Parts of the lower and middle slopes of the mountains are covered by forests up to heights of about .

Notes

References

External links

*{{commonscat inline, Main Caucasus Range
Schematic maps of the Caucasus
(in Russian) Mountain ranges of Russia Mountain ranges of Azerbaijan Mountain ranges of Georgia (country) Mountain ranges of the Caucasus Mountain ranges of Europe

Geography

See also

Notes

References

External links