Chechens. How to correctly Chechen or Chechen. How the Chechens really appeared The spiritual appearance of Alexandra Romanova

It is known that the Ingush and Chechens are one people, divided due to historical and socio-political reasons. Nevertheless, during the short period of their demarcation, the Chechens and Ingush managed to accumulate many differences.

Origins

In modern ethnology, it is customary to unite the Chechens and Ingush under the common term “Vainakh peoples” (Chech. “Vainakh”, Ingush. “Vainakh” - “our people”). This is exactly how representatives of the two Caucasian ethnic groups identify themselves.
The Chechens and Ingush did not create their own written language, and therefore their history was studied from the chronicles of neighboring peoples. Often this information was fragmentary and not always objective. However, today scientists can say with full confidence that the Chechens and Ingush are among the oldest inhabitants of the Caucasus, belonging to the Vainakh language group of the Nakh-Dagestan family.

Historians find the ancestors of the Ingush (self-name Galgai) among the tribal union of Alans, which took part in the Great Migration of Peoples.

Anthropologist Viktor Bunak is confident that among the Ingush the ancient Caucasian (or Caucasian) type has been preserved “more than among any of the other North Caucasian peoples.”

This is how he describes the Ingush Encyclopedic Dictionary Brockhaus and Efron: “In appearance, the Ingush is lean, slender, of average height, with sharp features and quick eyes on a pale, dark face; the hair color is predominantly black, the nose is aquiline, the movements are hasty and impetuous.”

The Chechens (self-name Nokhchi), according to one hypothesis, appeared on the historical stage before the Ingush. Some researchers, including anthropologist Valery Alekseev, consider the Chechens to be descendants of the Hurrians, who lived in northern Mesopotamia in the 2nd millennium BC.

In Armenian sources of the 7th century, the Chechens are referred to as “nakhcha matyan” (“speaking the Nokhchi language”). In documents of the 16th-17th centuries one can find the tribal names of the Chechens - Ichkerins, Okoks, Shubuts. In the Russian language, the word “Chechen” became a transliteration of terms that existed among neighboring peoples - “Tsatsans”, “Shashens”, “Chachans”.
Appearance Chechens, according to the Brockhaus and Efron dictionary, are: “tall and well built. Women are beautiful. Anthropologically, Chechens are a mixed type. Eye color varies from black to more or less dark brown and from blue to more or less light green. In hair color, transitions from black to more or less dark brown are noticeable. The nose is often turned up and concave."

Genetic studies have shown that modern Chechens and Ingush, although they belong to the same haplogroup, are ethnically heterogeneous. Geneticist Khusein Chokaev, based on the latest research data, writes that the common ancestor of a significant part of the Chechen-Ingush ethnic group is a representative of the J2a4b (M67) subgroup, which originated in the territory of modern Turkey approximately 11.8 thousand years ago. The carriers of this haplotype were, among others, the Carians, Minoans and Pelasgians. But if the Ingush correspond to the J2a4b (M67) group by 87%, then the Chechens correspond to only 58%.

Disengagement

Over time, the Chechens mostly settled along the right tributaries of the Sunzha and Terek. Equally, their places of residence were mountains, foothills and plains. The Ingush concentrated to the west of the Chechen settlements, mainly in the upper reaches of the Sunzha.

The first signs of the division of the single Vainakh ethnic group, according to researchers, emerged after 1770, when the Ingush accepted Russian citizenship. Joining the empire brought its own characteristics to way of life of this people. The division between the Ingush and Chechens intensified even more during Caucasian War, which lasted intermittently from 1817 to 1864.

During the war years, it was Chechnya that became the main stronghold of resistance and the center of the military-religious movement of muridism. According to this teaching, the moral and political revival of Islam was possible only after the overthrow of the heterodox Russian yoke. The Muridist propaganda of Kazi-Mulla, Gamzat and Shamil bore fruit on Chechen soil, while the Ingush remained aloof from the “war for faith.”

After the end of the Caucasian War, the places inhabited by the Ingush for border peace were inhabited by Cossacks, who remained there until the arrival of Soviet power in the Caucasus. In 1921, on the territory of the former Terek and part of the former Kuban regions Russian Empire The Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic arose, and in 1936 the Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic appeared on the map.

After the breakup Soviet Union Chechens and Ingush again took different paths: radical movements calling for independence intensified in Chechnya, and Ingushetia decided to remain part of Russia. In the new situation, the border between Chechnya and Ingushetia ceased to be conditional and over time divided two subjects of the federation - the Republic of Ingushetia and the Chechen Republic.

Religion

The dominant religion of the Ingush and Chechens is Sunni Islam. However, the degree of its influence on both peoples is different. Despite the fact that Islam began to penetrate into the North Caucasus since the invasion of Genghis Khan, the majority of residents of Chechnya accepted it only in the 18th century. During the period of the Caucasian Wars, through the Muridist movement, Islam became so strong in Chechnya that it gave rise to real religious fanaticism there.

In Ingushetia, Islam adapted only to mid-19th centuries, but did not let him in deep roots. Until recently, many Ingush were still in the grip of ancient pre-Muslim beliefs, an integral part of which was the cult of family and ancestors. This cult obliged people to honor their shrines, such as the hearth and the hearth chain.

Near the hearth they prepared food, discussed important issues, and performed rituals. The suprachain chain has also retained its connection with traditions. When I entered the Ingush house stranger and grabbed the chain - he fell under the protection of the owner, and if a bloodline touched it, then he would get rid of revenge.

Modern Ingushetia largely lives in line with political and religious freedom, which also affects religion. If in Chechnya only Sufi Islam is officially recognized, then in Ingushetia large number supporters of Salafism, which is perceived by many as a radical movement of Islam.

Unlike the Ingush, the religious consciousness of the Chechens was influenced by the tense socio-political situation last decades, which is why Salafism has not taken root in the public space of the Republic. In turn, especially among young people, there is a growing interest and desire for true Islam, in strict observance of all the prescriptions of the Koran and religious rituals.

Traditions

According to ethnographers, Chechen culture in to a greater extent than the Ingush lost contact with traditional rituals characteristic of the Vainakhs. Thus, the Ingush are outraged by the Chechen custom of giving a guest soup, rather than a special meat dish of lamb, chicken or turkey, which has been practiced for centuries.

The same can be said about family relationships. An Ingush man usually does not meet his mother-in-law, they do not see each other at matchmaking, and do not meet at family celebrations and other events. The Ingush are very proud of this fact and believe that their families are much stronger than the Chechen ones.

There are also differences in wedding ceremonies. For example, if the Chechens, after showing the guests, the bride stays in a separate room all day, then the Ingush people have a custom for the bride to stand in the corner of the main hall until the evening and accept gifts. Ingush women often prefer national dresses to wedding dresses; Chechens are more modern in this regard.

The way of life of the Chechens and Ingush is largely determined by the teip (clan) structure. Ingush teips are also usually called “surnames”. If Chechen tape may number hundreds of surnames, then Ingush is most often limited to a few dozen, while Ingush surnames most often have pre-Islamic roots, while Chechen ones are predominantly Muslim.

The Ingush teip is usually exogamous. Marriages within the teip certainly occur, but are not encouraged. Chechens, on the contrary, prefer to create marriages within their teip in order to more firmly maintain family ties.
In Chechnya, teips are subordinate to large military-political associations - tukhums. There are nine of them in total. The Ingush have no such division. In the Vainakh environment, the Ingush are traditionally called the “tenth Tukkhum,” thereby emphasizing the closeness of the two neighboring peoples.

On at the moment There are about 1 million 700 thousand Chechens in the world. In addition to Chechnya, they live in Ingushetia, Dagestan, Stavropol Territory, Volgograd region, Kalmykia, Astrakhan, Saratov, Tyumen region, North Ossetia, abroad there are most of them in Turkey, Kazakhstan, France, Austria, Belgium.
The total number of Ingush people is about 700 thousand people. In addition to Russia, they also live in Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, Turkey, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon.

Today a friend called and said that they would soon publish an article on the topic I voiced "". And then I remembered that after that discussion () I wanted to write explanatory material. But I got wrapped up and forgot. Since there will be an article on this topic anyway, I won’t write out the whole material separately. But still, I will briefly outline some points.

There is no exact version of where the word “Chechen/Chechen” came from in Russian. There are two main ones. According to the first, the origin of the word is due to the settlement "Chechen-aul". According to the second, the word is a distorted Arabic “shishani” (“Chechen” in Arabic sounds like “shishani”).
How the Chechens were called in former (pre-Soviet) times is again unknown for sure. In the literature of those years, one can find both “Chechen” (in Lermontov’s “An angry Chechen crawls to the shore”) and “Chechen” (in the same Lermontov - “The old Chechen - a poor native of the Kazbek Ranges, When he accompanied me through the mountains, About the old days to me told the story..."; or in Zagoskin's "the son of Prince Mamstruk and a Chechen like him - he would have to cut everything") On what basis was it written "Chechen" or "Chechen" (based on the rhyme, or from the one prevailing at that time). word forms), unknown. modern dictionaries spelled "Chechen", outdated.

According to accepted times Soviet power spelling the word "Chechen" was used. This is what was written in books and newspapers, this is what was said in correct speech, this is what was studied in school. Based on what rules of the Russian language the word “Chechen” was derived is unclear. But apparently there were no special rules. Otherwise, it is difficult to combine in one rule such names as “Ossetian”, “Georgian” on the one hand, and “Kabardian”, “Dargin” on the other.

However, the word “Chechen” did not go away. It was used in everyday speech to emphasize the disdainful attitude towards the Chechens. It is not clear why “Chechen” was disparagingly. But apparently, distorting the name of a nationality in itself seemed offensive. An analogy is the use of the disparaging “Armenians” instead of the correct “Armenian”.

Why do today’s young people, not even always, know that the word “Chechen” was used? Perhaps for the reason that in the period before the beginning of the 90s in the USSR, little was known or heard about the Chechens.

The peak of recognition that there is such a nation as the Chechens occurred during the first war (94-96). And I think that it was precisely in those years that en masse Russian society It became customary to call Chechens Chechens. This came, presumably, to a greater extent from the federal military that fought in Chechnya. It is clear that they used the word “Chechen” among themselves. From there it went exponentially. The soldiers left and spread the word “Chechen” - in their stories, books, songs about the war.

Moreover, because of all famous events, the number of people who learned that there is such a nation as the Chechens has grown by several orders of magnitude compared to Soviet times. And one of the common expressions about the Chechens was precisely Lermontov’s “the evil Chechen is crawling to the shore.” So, in the end, “Chechen” became fixed in the minds of many.

Chechens(self-name nokhchi, in units number - nohcho(translated as "Noah's people", "people of Noah"; "Nokh"/"Noah" - Noah, "Che"/"Chii" - suffix of belonging. Possibly transferred from the form "tsIi" - blood, offspring) - the most numerous autochthonous people of the North Caucasus, numbering about 1.5 million worldwide, the main population of Chechnya.

Settlement

At the moment, the absolute majority of Chechens live on the territory of the Russian Federation, namely in the Chechen Republic. In history Chechen people there were several settlements.

Anthropology

They belong to the Caucasian version of the Balkan-Caucasian race of the large Caucasian race.

Story

History of the ethnonym

The ethnonym “Chechens” is of Turkic origin, most likely from the village of Chechen-aul. Kabardians call them Shashen, Ossetians - tsætsæn, Avars - burtiel, Georgians - cysts, dzurdzuki.

Theories of the origin of the Chechens

The problem of the origin and earliest stage of the history of the Chechens remains completely unclear and debatable, although their deep autochthony in the North-Eastern Caucasus and the wider territory of settlement in ancient times seem quite obvious. A massive movement of proto-Vainakh tribes from Transcaucasia to the north of the Caucasus is not excluded, but the time, reasons and circumstances of this migration, recognized by a number of scientists, remain at the level of assumptions and hypotheses.

Based on the research of V. M. Illich-Svitych and A. Yu. Militarev, a number of other major linguists, when correlating their data with archaeological materials, in particular A. K. Vekua, the fundamental works of T. V. Gamkrelidze and V. Ivanov, A. Arordi, M. Gavukchyan and others, we can come to the following conclusions regarding the origin and settlement of representatives of the ancient ethnolanguage of the Vainakhs.

Sino-Caucasian - within the Armenian Highlands and Anatolia - Armenian Mesopotamia (not only the ancients and some are genetically associated with it modern languages Mediterranean and Caucasus, such as Hittite, Hurrian, “Urartian”, Abkhaz-Adyghe and Nakh-Dagestan, in particular Chechen, Lezgin, etc., but also, oddly enough, the languages ​​of the Sino-Tibetan group, including Chinese ).

The Pronostratic community in its modern understanding took shape in the Armenian Highlands. From its southeastern part, the descendants of representatives of the western area of ​​the Sino-Caucasian community during the 9th-6th millennium BC. e. spread throughout the Northern Mediterranean, the Balkan-Danube region, the Black Sea region and the Caucasus. Their relics are known as the Basques in the Pyrenees and the Adyghe or Chechens in the Caucasus Mountains. The northern neighbors of the ancient Semites were speakers of the ancient Anatolian-North Caucasian languages, represented mainly by two branches of the western, Hattian - in Asia Minor (with branches in the North Caucasus in the form of the linguistic ancestors of the Abkhaz-Adyghe peoples), and eastern, Hurrian - in the Armenian Highlands ( with branches in the North Caucasus in the form of the ancestors of the Nakh-Dagestan peoples).

Written source about ancient period the history of the Vainakhs is the work of a major Armenian encyclopedist of the 6th century. Anania Shirakatsi “Armenian Geography” in which for the first time the self-name of the Chechens “Nokhchamatyan” - people who speak Chechen:

The main trade routes connecting the peoples of Europe and the East passed through the territory of Chechnya, which occupies a very important strategic position. Archaeological excavations show that the ancestors of the Chechens had extensive trade and economic ties with the peoples of Asia and Europe.

Chechens in Russian history

The name “Chechens” itself was a Russian transliteration of the Kabardian name “Shashan” and came from the village of Bolshoi Chechen. From the beginning of the 18th century, Russian and Georgian sources began to call all inhabitants of modern Chechnya “Chechens”.

Even before the Caucasian War, in early XVIII century, after the Grebensky Cossacks left the Terek right bank, many Chechens who agreed to voluntarily accept Russian citizenship were given the opportunity to move there in and then in 1765.

During the Caucasian War, under the leadership of General Alexei Ermolov, the Sunzha line of fortifications was built in -1822 on the site of some Chechen and Ingush villages. After the capture of Shamil, the destruction of a number of rebel imams, as well as the transition under Field Marshal Ivan Paskevich to the “scorched earth” tactic, when the rebel villages were completely destroyed and the population was completely destroyed, the organized resistance of the mountaineers was suppressed in 1860.

But the end of the Caucasian War did not mean complete peace. Particularly controversial was the land issue, which was far from being in favor of the Chechens. Even by the end of the 19th century, when oil was discovered, almost no income went to the Chechens. The tsarist government managed to maintain relative calm in Chechnya through virtual non-interference in the internal life of the highlanders, bribery of the tribal nobility, free distribution of flour, fabrics, leather, and clothing to the poor highlanders; appointment of local authoritative elders, leaders of teips and tribes as officials.

USSR

1990s and aftermath

Language

The Chechen language belongs to the Nakh branch of the Nakh-Dagestan languages, included in the hypothetical Sino-Caucasian macrofamily. Distributed mainly in the Chechen Republic and in the Khasavyurt, Novolaksky, Kazbekovsky, Babayurt and Kizilyurt regions of Dagestan, as well as in Ingushetia and other regions Russian Federation and in Georgia, partially in Syria, Jordan and Turkey. Number of speakers before the war 1994-2001 - approx. 1 million people (according to other sources, about 950 thousand). There are Planar, Shatoi, Akkinsky (Aukhovsky), Cheberloevsky, Sharoevsky, Melkhinsky, Itumkalinsky, Galanchozhsky and Kistinsky dialects. In phonetics, the Chechen language is characterized by complex vocalism (the contrast between simple and umlauted, long and short vowels, the presence of weak nasalized vowels, a large number of diphthongs and triphthongs), initial combinations of consonants, an abundance of morphonological alternations, primarily changes in stem vowels in various grammatical forms (ablaut ); in grammar - six nominal classes, multi-case declension; the composition of verbal categories and ways of expressing them are common for East Caucasian languages. The syntax is characterized by a wide use of participial and participial constructions.

The literary Chechen language developed in the 20th century. based on the plane dialect. Writing in the Chechen language until 1925 existed on an Arabic basis, in 1925-1938 - on Latin, from 1938 - on the basis of Russian graphics using one additional sign I (after different letters it has different meanings), as well as some digraphs (kh, аь, tI, etc.) and trigraphs (уй). The composition of digraphs in the Chechen alphabet is similar to the alphabets of the Dagestan languages, but their meanings are often different. Since 1991, attempts have been made to return to the Latin script. The first monographic description of Chechen was created in the 1860s by P.K. Uslar; Subsequently, significant contributions to the study of the Chechen language were made by N. F. Yakovlev, Z. K. Malsagov, A. G. Matsiev, T. I. Desherieva and other researchers.

Is state language Chechen Republic.

Religion

Chechen tape is a community of people related to each other by blood on the paternal side. Each of them had their own communal lands and a teip mountain (from which the name of the teip often came). Tapes are internally divided into “gars” (branches) and “nekyi” - surnames. Chechen teips are united into nine tukhums, a kind of territorial unions. Consanguinity among the Chechens served the purposes of economic and military unity.

In the middle of the 19th century, Chechen society consisted of 135 teips. Currently they are divided into mountain (about 100 teips) and plain (about 70 teips).

Currently, representatives of one teip live dispersedly. Large teips are distributed throughout Chechnya.

List of tukhums and teips included in them:

Akkintsy

1. Akkoy, 2. Barchakhoy, 3. Vyappiy, 4. Zhevoy, 5. Zogoy, 6. Nokkhoy, 7. Pharchakhoy, 8. Pharchoy, 9. Yalkhoroy

Melchi

1. Byastiy, 2. Binasthoy, 3. Zharkhoy, 4. Kamalkhoy, 5. Kegankhoy, 6. Korathoy (Khorathoy), 7. Meshiy, 8. Sahankhoy, 9. Terthoy

Nokhchmakhkahoy

1. Aleroy, 2. Aitkhaloy, 3. Belgatoy, 4. Benoy, 5. Bilttoy (Beltoy), 6. Gordaloy, 7. Gendargenoy, 8. Guna, 9. Dattyhoy, 10. Zandakoy, 11. Ikhirkhoy, 12. Ishkhoy . Enakhaloy, 25. Enganoy, 26. Ersenoy, 27. Yalhoy. 28. Sarbloy

Tierloy

1. Bavloy, 2. Beshni, 3. Zherakhoy, 4. Kenakhoy (Khenakhoy), 5. Matsarkhoy, 6. Nikaroy, 7. Oshny, 8. Sanakhoy, 9. Shuidiy, 10. Eltparhoy.

Chantiy (Chechen ChIaintii)

1.Chantiy (Chechen: CHIanty). 2.Dishny. 3.Zumsoy. 4.Khyacharoy. 5.Hildejaroy. 6. Khokhtoi 7. Kherakhoi.

Cheberloy

Some of the oldest settlers in the Chechen earth, according to stories historians and linguists Krupnov.Karts. 1. Arstkhoy, 2. Acheloy, 3. Baskhoy, 4. Begacherkhoy, 5. Barefoot, 6. Bunikhoy, 7. Gulatkhoy, 8. Dai, 9. Zhelashkhoy, 10. Zu'rkhoy, 11. Ikharoy, 12. Kezenoy, 13. Kiri, 14. Kuloy, 15. Lashkaroy, 16. Makazhoy, 17. Nokhchi-keloy, 18. Nuykhoy, 19. Oskharoy, 20. Rigakhoy, 21. Sadoy, 22. Salbyuroy, 23. Sandahoy, 24. Sikkhoy, 25. Sirkhoy, 26. Tundukhoy, 27. Kharkaloy, 28. Hindoy, 29. Khoy, 30. Tsikaroy, 31. Chebyakhkinhoy, 32. Cheremakhkhoy 33. Nizhaloy, 34. Orsoy,

Sharoy

1. Buti, 2. Dunarkhoy, 3. Zhogaldoy, 4. Ikaroy, 5. Kachehoy, 6. Kevaskhoy, 7. Kinkhoy, 8. Kiri, 9. Mazuhoy, 10. Serchihoy, 11. Khashalhoy, 12. Khimoy, 13. Hinduhoy, 14. Khikhoy, 15. Khulandoy, 16. Khyakmadoy, 17. Cheiroy, 18. Shikaroy, 19. Tsesi.

Shatoy

1. Varanda, 2. Vashindar, 3. Gatta, 4. Gorgachkha, 5. Dehesta, 6. Keloy, 7. Muskulhoy, 8. Myarshoy, 9. Nihala, 10. Memory, 11. Ryadukha, 12. Sanoy, 13. Sattoy (Sadoy), 14. Tumsoy (Dumsoy), 15. Urdyukhoy, 16. Hakkoy, 17. Khalkeloy, 18. Khyalg1i, 19. Kharsenoy.

How to speak correctly? Chechens or Chechens? and got the best answer

Reply from
It will be more pleasant for them if you call them Nokhchi (Chechen in the Chechen language) or Vainakh (this is what they call themselves proudly since ancient times!
Source: I lived in Chechnya for 15 years!

Reply from User deleted[guru]
Chechens

Reply from Mikhail Sch...[guru]
Generally accepted as Chechens, although in the 19th century Chechens were more commonly spoken.

Reply from User deleted[guru]
Ichkerians

Reply from Victoria Volchkova[guru]
Chechens

Reply from Girl_actually[guru]
Chechen is the same as the Nigers. That's right, Chechens.

Reply from User deleted[newbie]
Not Russians or foreigners

Reply from Hot_kiss[guru]
Chechens

Reply from NAF[guru]
Citizens of the Free Republic of Ichkeria.

Reply from User deleted[guru]
Chechens, although this is a general name, in fact there are so many nationalities in Chechnya that it is impossible to count them.

Reply from Garde[guru]
Ichkerians

Reply from Av[guru]
CHECHEN - obsolete,
Same as: Chechen.

Reply from User deleted[master]
I think Chechens, they are from Chechnya, not from Chechnya.

Reply from Victor Yaroshevsky[newbie]
A Chechen is a resident of Chechnya, regardless of nationality. Chechen is an ethnonym, the name of a people. There are several versions of its origin. The most plausible is the following: - CHECHEN - a wit, an orator, translated from Turkic as a nickname from neighboring peoples. Similar facts are all too common, for example, Khokhol, Katsap, etc.
Collective, generalized names of peoples end with “EC”. Example: - CAUCASIAN (resident of the Caucasus), DAGESTANIAN (resident of Dagestan, where there are over 40 nationalities), Azerbaijani (similar picture, resident of the country of Azerbaijan), UKRAINEIAN (resident of Ukraine, ethnically diverse (descendants of Slavs, Rus, Turks, Caucasians, Celts (Galicians) )).