Valerik (russian: Валери́к, ce, Валарта
/Valargthe) is a little river in
Chechnya
Chechnya ( rus, Чечня́, Chechnyá, p=tɕɪtɕˈnʲa; ce, Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), officially the Chechen Republic,; ce, Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the ...
, a tributary of the
Sunzha
Sunzha (russian: Сунжа, Sunzha; inh, Шолжа-Пхье, Šolža-Pꜧe; is a town and the administrative center of the Sunzhensky District of the Republic of Ingushetia Russia. Before 2016 it was called Ordzhonikidzevskaya ( inh, Ордж ...
. The river's lower stream becomes dry in summer. It is long, and has a drainage basin of .
Etymology
The name of the river means "river of the dead" in
Chechen. Possibly this river was a border between the
Vainakhs and the
Iranian peoples who lived in the steppe, and a place of bloody battles. A neighbouring river is named Mardan, which means 'river of the dead' in Ossetic languages.
Battles
In 1840 two battles were fought at the banks of the river between
Caucasian Imamate
The Caucasian Imamate, also known as the Caucasus Imamate ( ar, إمامة القوقاز, translit=Imamat Al-Qawqaz), was a state established by the imams in Dagestan and Chechnya during the early-to-mid 19th century in the North Caucasus ...
murids and the
Russian Imperial Army advancing towards inner Chechnya.
The Russians under
Apollon Galafeyev Apollon Vasilyevich Galafeyev (russian: Аполлон Васильевич Галафеев) (1793–1853) was a decorated Russian general.
Apollon Galafeyev was born into a noble family in Tambov guberniya. After having received his education at ...
(
first battle) and
Pavel Grabbe (second battle) defeated the army of
Imam Shamil on 11 July and 30 October respectively. After this battle Shamil withdrew from Chechnya and retreated to
Caucasian Avaria.
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The first battle of the Valerik River is described in Mikhail Lermontov's poem "Valerik". Lermontov was a participant in both battles and gained recognition as a hero, but due to Nicolas I's personal negative attitude towards Lermontov, he was not awarded a medal.
/ref>
References
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Rivers of Chechnya