Introduction
The study of the history of the formation of tribes, nationalities and nations, the correct interpretation of the origin and stages of the formation of fraternal peoples in their connection and mutual influence are among the urgent tasks of historical science.
Meanwhile, studying this problem even among peoples who have had their own writing and other sources since ancient times presents serious difficulties. As for the emergence and stages of formation of the Balkar and Karachay peoples, despite the fact that this question has long occupied researchers and attracted the attention of many advanced Russian scientists, it still remains unresolved. Due to the scarcity of reliable sources, the early history of the Karachais and Balkars is surrounded by legends and has a number of versions and guesses.
Suffice it to say that more than ten hypotheses have been put forward about their origin. One part of the assumptions and legends was generated by conscientious attempts to comprehend the historical process on the basis of extremely meager sources, the other part of the versions was created by falsifiers with the biased goal of distorting the true history.
Some assumptions were generated by inquisitive and impartial historians, who, only due to the extreme paucity of material, could have gone astray and were unable, among numerous tribes and nationalities, to consider the origins of the formation of the Balkar and Karachai peoples. Other versions, on the contrary, were disseminated to pan-Islamists and nationalists with the aim of distorting the history of relations between peoples, contrasting some peoples with others, etc. All this is very important to take into account when analyzing materials that can serve as the basis for establishing historical truth.
In this essay, I will try to consider the whole essence of the origin and current existence of Kabardino-Balkaria as a whole, from its origins and language to religious affiliation and the most prominent representatives of this republic.
Origin
Most scientists believe that among the ancestors from whom the formation of the Balkars came, there were both local, actually “North Caucasian” tribes, and Alans, Kipchaks and Bulgarians.
Thus, the Balkars’ roots go back to ancient times. In the process of formation, the ancestors of the Balkars went through a complex path of development over many centuries, finding themselves as part of various associations and unions of clans and tribes, mutually influencing and encountering not only related, but also unrelated tribes and nationalities. As a result, on the long path of their formation, the Balkars acquired a number of features and characteristics that are, in some respects, “common with the Bulgarians, and with the Kipchaks, and with the Adyghe-Circassian-Kabardians, and with the Svans.”
Consequently, the origin of the Balkars is the result of a centuries-old historical process, which reflected both the general internal laws of the formation and development of each nationality, and various mutual influences; mixing, movement of various ethnic groups in the Caucasus.
The true direction taken in 1959 by the session of the Kabardino-Balkarian Research Institute in resolving the issue of the origin of the Balkars and Karachais made it possible to reject the version of the simple movement of tribal formations and the erroneous ideas about the transformation of one people into another.
The ancestors of modern Kabardians, known as the Circassians, by the middle of the 1st millennium BC. on the Taman Peninsula they had their own state association, which later became part of the Bosporan kingdom. Invasion of the Huns in the 4th century. forced the Circassians to move closer to the Caucasus Mountains. Around the same time, as a result of the mixing of North Caucasian tribes with Bulgarians from the Azov region, the Balkar nation was formed. In the 13th century In connection with the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars, the ancestors of the Balkars moved to the mountains. By the 14th century Some of the Circassians received the name Kabardians and occupied the modern territory of settlement.
In 1557, under the ruler of Temryuk-Kabarda, it voluntarily became part of the Russian state. Soon, Ivan IV the Terrible married the Kabardian princess Maria, which significantly strengthened relations between the two countries. In 1774, after the signing of the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Peace with Turkey, the annexation of Kabarda to Russia received international recognition. By 1827, the annexation of Balkaria to Russia was completed. In the 60s 19th century Kabarda and Balkaria were included in the Terek region. In 1867, serfdom was abolished here.
Consequently, the origin of the Balkars is the result of a centuries-old historical process, which reflected the development of each nationality and the mixing and movement of various ethnic groups in the Caucasus.
In appearance, the Balkars and Karachais are very close to the mountain Ossetians and northern Georgians. This circumstance should be taken into account, since the Turkic language of the Balkars and Karachais gave grounds for many researchers to consider them direct descendants of the Mongols who came to the Caucasus from the East. An analysis of the anthropological characteristics of the Balkars and Karachais, carried out by an expedition of the Institute of Experimental Morphology of the Academy of Sciences of the Georgian SSR, research by V.P. Alekseev and other authors showed that there are no Mongoloid elements among the representatives of the Karachay and Balkar peoples.
The mountain inhabitants of the Caucasus are connected not by simple similarities, but by deep kinship in origin.
Thus, the conclusion of the scientific session of the Kabardino-Balkarian Research Institute that local North Caucasian and Iranian-speaking tribes (Alans) took part in the formation of the Karachay and Balkar peoples is confirmed by data from language, archeology, anthropology and historical documents.
Along with the local North Caucasian and Alan tribes, Turkic-speaking tribes - Bulgarians and Kipchaks - also participated in the formation of the Karachay and Balkar peoples.
A study of the initial period of the history of the Balkars shows that their education, settlement and mixing with various tribes are not the cause, but the consequence of the socio-economic development of society.
An analysis of the sources suggests that, perhaps, the Ovs, whose name appears in some documents, should be included among the indigenous Caucasian tribes of the mountainous part of the Central Caucasus. Ossetians and Svans still call the Balkars wasps, oats. Moreover, Ossetians also call them “asson” - with a shade of respect, as if hinting at their common origin from the same ancestors, distant aces. The Balkars and Karachais themselves use the word “Alan” in the sense of “comrade.” The Balkars themselves call themselves “taulu,” which means “dweller of the mountains.” There are different opinions and versions on the origin of this term. The folk chronicle indicates that the Balkars, or Malkars, who lived in the Black Mountains along the river. Cherek in the village of Ullu-Malkar (Greater Balkaria), received their ethnic name from the Malki River, which is known among the Kabardians and Balkars as Balk. But this issue has not been studied enough.
Tradition derives the name “Malkar” from the name Malkar. One of the versions of this legend is as follows. One hunter named Malkar, a man of unknown origin, made his way from the plain into the Cherek Gorge, and found there in one clearing a village of several households, the inhabitants of which called themselves “taulu,” which means “highlander.” Malkar really liked this area, and he decided to stay there forever, moving his family there too. Local residents opposed this, so the Malkarovs settled in another clearing, and both families lived quietly for some time. But one day an unknown man named Misaka came to the mountains and stayed with the Malkarovs, who had nine brothers and their only beautiful sister. The guest fell in love with her, she reciprocated his feelings, but the proud brothers did not agree to their sister’s marriage to a rootless stranger. Then Misaka resorted to cunning and, with the help of his beloved, killed her brothers. Having married the Malkarovs' sister, Misaka took possession of their land and other property. He brought his people from the plane and began to oppress the local residents, eventually turning them into his tributaries. But it should be borne in mind that this is only one of thousands of legends about the origin of the name, and their linguistic affiliation also gives a more reliable version of the origin of the two peoples
Karachay-Balkar language, one of the Turkic languages belongs to the Kipchak group. The modern name has become generally accepted since the 50s of the 20th century; previously it was called Mountain Tatar, Mountain Turkic, Tatar-Jagatai. Used by two peoples – Karachais and Balkars. Distributed mainly in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic and the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, in which it is the official language along with Russian and Kabardino-Circassian, it is also found in Central Asia, Kazakhstan, and Turkey. The number of speakers on the territory of the USSR in 1989 exceeded 230 thousand people, of which there were about 130 thousand Karachais living in Karachay-Cherkessia, and about 70 thousand Balkars in Kabardino-Balkaria.
Main dialects: Karachay-Baksano-Chegem (“ch”-dialect) and Malkar (“ts”-dialect)
However, the Karachay-Balkar language also has peculiar features that distinguish it from other Kipchak languages.
The Karachay-Balkar language is characterized by the following features: the disappearance of the initial “i” in some words (akhshi “good” instead of yakhshi); 1st and 2nd person singular affixes and genitive case affixes without a final consonant (-ma/-me, not -man/-men, -sa/-se, not -san/-sen, -ny/ -ni, not -now/-nin); in numerals there are traces of the twenty-digit system; lexical borrowings from the Adyghe and Ossetian languages.
The Ossetian elements in the Balkar and Karachay languages cannot be explained by a simple spread from what is now Ossetia. In this case, the amount of these elements would sharply decrease from east to west and would not be significant in distant Baksan or Karavai. Meanwhile, in Baksan and Karachay there are no less similarities in the language than in the Chegem and Cherek gorges, and some of them are not found in Upper Balkaria, located next to Ossetia. From here we conclude that Ossetian elements in the Balkar and Karachai languages are not the result borrowings from modern Ossetians, but the legacy of the old mixing that took place in all gorges from Cherek to Upper Kuban and to Teberda
In some cases, even older Alan forms were deposited in the Balkar and Karachay languages than in modern Ossetian: Ossetian “amistol” (the name of the summer month) – Balkar “abustol” (from “apostle”); Ossetian “dazkan” – Balkar “sygan”, ancient Iranian “sakan” (dung), etc.
Furthermore. A number of words that are recognized as Alanian have disappeared in Ossetian, but are preserved in Balkar: “dorbun” (cave), “lukhdun” (club), etc.
Finally, one more significant fact: in Balkaria the ancient Iranian decimal count was preserved, which had already disappeared in Ossetia; It was only possible to record it in some Digor regions, among shepherds who call this account “Balkar”.
The striking closeness of the Kumyk and especially the Karachay-Balkar languages with the language of the Cumans, captured in the famous written monument “Codex Cumanicus”, serves as proof that the Karachais, Balkars and Kumyks are among the heirs of the Cumans, or Kipchaks. The presence in these languages of signs of the Bulgarian language is explained by the fact that the “black Bulgarians”, who were in the southern Russian steppes and the Caucasus even before the Polovtsians, took part in the formation of the Balkars and Karachais.
Relationship with neighbors
The Balkar people, who have lived since time immemorial in the inaccessible highlands of the Caucasus, for many centuries lived side by side with the Kabardians, Ossetians, Georgians and other peoples of the Caucasus and maintained diverse ties with their neighbors. These ties were of an economic, cultural and political nature.
Of all the neighboring peoples, the Balkars have always been especially closely connected with the fraternal Kabardian people; this circumstance was caused by both geographical conditions and the historical situation. But subsequently their relationship worsened. Interethnic contradictions in Kabardino-Balkaria do not have a long-standing, but rather regular and stable structure. The foundation of discontent between the two titular peoples was laid during Stalin's deportation. The Balkars were evicted en masse, the Kabardians remained in their homeland. This inequality and injustice subsequently affected relations after the return of the Balkars. The latter were not satisfied with the rehabilitation processes. In particular, the payment of federal compensation and the returned territories. It should be clarified that all compensation financial flows were publicly transferred by the then president of the Kabardian Republic, Valery Kokov, to the full responsibility of the Balkar national societies and prohibited any of the Kabardian leaders from having anything to do with this money. This was a wise step, which Kokov explained as follows: “This money can cause reproaches in any case, even if it is used for its intended purpose. And if Kabardians deal with them, this could start a conflict between our peoples.” The former president turned out to be far-sighted in his assumptions; most of the money was indeed wasted for other purposes; compensation reached the population in scanty amounts. But the absence of Kabardians among the robbers could not prevent the national claims of the Balkars. The main one was the territorial claim. Before the deportation, the Balkars owned 4 districts in the republic; after their return, only 3 remained Balkar. The fourth, the Khulamobezengi district, was abolished, its territory divided between two other districts. But at the moment, the conflict can be considered exhausted due to the predominant predominance of Kabardians in the territory of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic.
An important place in the historical destinies of the Balkars was occupied by their relations with the neighboring Ossetian people. As noted above, Ossetian ethnic elements played a certain role in the formation of the Balkar people. There is no doubt that some part of the Ossetians was assimilated by the Turkic-speaking ancestors of the Balkars. It is no coincidence that in some historical sources the following tribal names are found: “Urusniev Ossetians”, “Bezing Ossetians”, etc.
More than half of the population of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic professes Islam.
The fact is that until now the question of the origins of the penetration of Islam into Balkaria remains poorly researched. In Russian historiography, surprisingly, the versions developed back in the Soviet period, according to which Islam penetrates into the Balkar-Karachai environment very late (almost at the end of the 18th century) and this process itself is rather negative for the national culture, turn out to be tenacious and are not actually revised. , rather than positive. According to ethnographers, the Islamization of the social elite of the Balkars began even before the 17th century, from the second half of the 18th century. Islamic preachers appear in Balkaria, mainly from Dagestan. However, back in the 19th century. The beliefs of the Balkars were a complex synthesis of Christianity, Islam and pre-Christian traditions.
Pre-Islamic remnants can indeed be found in the folk culture of the Balkars, but they are unlikely to be more numerous than among the Tatars, Turks and even Arabs, whose early Islamization no one doubts. In the 18th century, the position of Islam actually strengthened in Karachay and Balkaria. The influx of murids and preachers from Dagestan was directly related to the formation of resistance of the mountain peoples to Russian expansion, primarily with the form of gazavat - the holy war in which this resistance was carried out. However, strengthening the position of Islam and changing its political role is not at all the initial penetration of Islam into the Karachay-Balkarian environment. But one cannot assume that an entire people will suddenly accept an incomprehensible, new faith for no reason at all. Between these starting points lie entire centuries of gradual introduction of the Karachay-Balkar people to the Muslim religion and Islamic civilization.
At the moment, the border of the historical beginning is moving further and further into the 15th, 13th, 10th, and finally even into the 8th and 9th centuries. As soon as the “History of the Khazars” recalled that in 737 a hundred and twenty thousand army of Arabs led by Mervan invaded the lands inhabited by the Bulgarians, Savirs, Alans and Khazars (Khazar Kaganate), discussions and reflections developed in the circles of the people’s intelligentsia about how this affected the religious orientation of the ancestors of the Karachay-Balkars. Weren't they one of the first Europeans to receive the message of Allah from the original source - the Arab Caliphate? Even more fertile ground for thinking about the advancement of Islam in the 8th century in the Caucasus was provided by the latest developments of Georgian and Abkhaz historians, who drew attention to the rivalry between Byzantium and the Arab Caliphate in the struggle for the Eastern Black Sea region, revealing the significance of the Battle of Anakopia (736). It was obvious that with the religious zeal that was inherent in the era of the early Middle Ages, any war was fought under the banner of the struggle for the triumph of one or another faith, from which it follows that if the Arabs visited the places where the ancestors of modern highlanders lived in the 8th century, then the covenants of the Prophet reached here at the same time.
One thing is certain - the only way for Islamic missionaries to penetrate into the territory of present-day Balkaria was the eastern one, from Dagestan, where Islam came back in the 7th century. Further, historical science is already dealing with the realities of the 14th century - with the mausoleum in the vicinity of Ust-Dzheguta, which, apparently, was part of a large ensemble of a Muslim cemetery.
There are also many legends about the adoption of Islam in Kabardino-Balkaria. One of them, according to which the Karachais, after the defeat of the Alanian kingdom by Tamerlane and the formation of the state of Karachay, did not adhere to a single religion. Just like in Alanya, they had widespread cults of different religions. And when Muslim preachers came to them and told them about Islam, the elders gathered at Teryo - the Supreme Council and decided: This religion is familiar to us, in no way contradicts our mountain ethics - adeb, mountain honor - namys and our national traditions. It calls for the worship of the One God, and we consider the arguments of this religion about monotheism to be the truth and declare that we publicly accept Islam voluntarily, without any coercion.
It should be noted that it was very difficult to maintain religious beliefs during the difficult period of deportations of the Karachay-Balkar people. His faith helped the people to go through hell and survive the forced eviction that lasted from 1943 to 1957. The Karachais and Balkars returned to their homeland with the Muslim faith, which was not only not destroyed, but revived and strengthened during the difficult years of exile.
About today's Islam in Karachay and Balkaria. Nowadays, in almost all cities and villages of Karachay, Muslim communities have been formed, headed by imams. In violation of constitutional rights and freedoms, all religious communities, under pain of cancellation of state registration, are subordinated to the Spiritual Administration of Muslims. In many localities, the teaching of the fundamentals of Islam is carried out either in homes or in madrassas opened at mosques, while training extends to children and for adults, men and women. The guarantee of spiritual strength, survival and revival of the Karachay and Balkar peoples is high morality, based on the norms of Islam. The religiosity of the Karachais and Balkars is manifested in their everyday life, in rituals, primarily those associated with the birth of a child, weddings and funerals. The funeral ceremony includes funeral meals (ash), alms distribution (sadaqa) and men's seating for condolences, generally strengthening the sense of connection between generations, respect for elders, memory of relatives, a sense of solidarity and national unity.
Outstanding historical figures of the KBR
And of course, from such an established, ancient people, with its centuries-old history, emerge outstanding people, political, religious and cultural figures who certainly influenced the development of Kabardino-Balkaria. And also the people of the mountains who have made mountaineering their vocation. Many Balkars have distinguished themselves by their persistence in conquering the highest points of the world; it is not surprising that the first conqueror of Elbrus was a Balkar. Elbrus was first conquered on July 22, 1829 by Kabardian Kilar Khashirov, the conductor of a Russian military expedition led by General Georgy Emanuel. The expedition included geologist Adolf Kupfer, physicist Emilius Lenz, zoologist Eduard Menetrier, botanist Karl Meyer, artist-architect Joseph Bernardazzi, traveler Janos Besse, guides and a group of Cossacks. Kupfer, Menetrier, Meyer, Bernardazzi turned back from 4270. Lenz, Cossack Lysenkov and Balkar guide Ahiya Sottaev reached an altitude of 5300 meters. Then Kilar Khashirov went alone. When he reached the top, a rifle salute was fired. After the descent, he was presented with one hundred rubles and a cut for his Circassian coat. Subsequently, two commemorative cast-iron slabs were installed in the Pyatigorsk Tsvetnik Park. It should also be noted that Ahiya Sottavev conducted this expedition at the age of 80, and died at the age of 125, which marked the beginning of the family of the famous Caucasian centenarians Sottavev.
Despite the fact that Killar Khashirov was a Karachay by origin, several amazing facts can be told about him. A former shepherd, aged 56, for whom climbing the eastern peak of Elbrus was like we are now commuting to work on public transport. Some articles mentioned that during the climb he was limping on both legs.
General Emmanuel (chief of the expedition's camp) watched the ascent through a telescope. As they climbed up, the group thinned out; people could not stand the lack of oxygen and returned down. Only four people reached the saddle between the peaks: academician E. Lenz, Cossack P. Lysenkov and both guides. Here, altitude sickness broke the will of Lenz and Lysenkov. Then Ahiya Sottaev, as the eldest of the guides (the eldest among the mountaineers is obeyed unquestioningly), told Kilar to go to the top, and he himself began to accompany the sick down.
Kilar reached the top alone, and waved his arms from the eastern peak. The camp responded with drumming and a rifle salute. This event was documented by the report of General Emmanuel, the report of Academician Kupfer and described in the book of the Hungarian traveler and scientist Yves Bese (who observed the progress of the expedition).
General Emmanuel awarded Kilar Khashirov a cash prize of 400 silver rubles for reaching the summit, and two commemorative cast-iron plaques were cast at the Lugansk plant to commemorate the ascent. One of them is installed in Pyatigorsk, and the second in Nalchik.
Kaisyn Kuliev is a famous Balkar poet, whose work can be considered one of those significant and striking phenomena in literature that influence the course of development of the entire world culture.
Interest in the work of Kaisyn Kuliev has always been high and over the years it has not diminished.
Kaisyn Shuvaevich Kuliev was born on November 1, 1917 in the ancient Balkar village of Verkhniy Chegem in the family of a cattle breeder and hunter. Grew up in the mountains. As a child, having lost his father, he lived through a difficult childhood and began working very early.
In 1926, he entered a newly opened school in Nizhny Chegem, where he saw books for the first time and began to learn Russian. At the age of 10 he wrote his first poems. After school, he studied at a technical school in Nalchik, filling thick notebooks with his poems. At the age of seventeen he began publishing in newspapers.
In 1935, Kuliev came to Moscow and, although he firmly decided to become a poet, he entered the Theater Institute (GITIS), where all areas of art and culture were studied in order to become a well-educated person. At the same time, he listened to lectures at the Literary Institute, continuing to write poetry. In 1939, after graduating from college, he returned to Nalchik and taught literature at the teachers' institute. In 1940, the first book of poems, “Hello, Morning!” was published.
In 1940, Kuliev was drafted into the Red Army and served in the parachute brigade. In the spring of 1941, the brigade was sent to Latvia, where Kuliev faced the war. After heavy fighting near Orel, he was wounded and ended up in hospital. He wrote many poems, which were published in the newspapers Pravda, Krasnaya Zvezda, and others. Later he fought on the Stalingrad Front as a war correspondent for the newspaper Son of the Fatherland. He took part in the battles for the liberation of southern cities, was again wounded, and was treated in hospitals for a long time. During the war years he wrote several cycles of poems - “In the hour of trouble”, “About those who did not return”, “Perekop”.
In 1945, Kuliev left for Kyrgyzstan, where he worked in the Writers' Union, wrote poetry, but could not publish them (the Balkar people were resettled by Stalin during the war). Was engaged in translations. In May 1956, Kuliev arrived in Moscow, where N. Tikhonov contributed to the publication of a book of poems “Mountains” (1957); in the same year, the publishing house “Young Guard” published a second book - “Bread and Rose”.
In the mid-1950s, Kuliev returned to Nalchik, where he was finally able to become a professional writer. One after another, poetry collections are published: “The Wounded Stone”, “The Book of the Earth”, “Evening”, “Evening Light”, “Earthly Beauty”, etc. K. Kuliev died in 1985.
A distinctive feature of Kaisyn Kuliev’s work is the truly strange quality of tenderness of the “highlander” in his works. This is good, in my opinion, expressed by A. Tarkovsky, sharing his impression of K. Kuliev’s poetry: “... I began to look in it more for what is called local color. I was looking for what we encounter all the time when we are dealing with the poetry of small peoples, that which is local, limited, that we... take for local flavor. I did not find this. Because the poems of Kaisyn Kuliev are real poetry. Kaisyn Kuliev is a poet of a small people who has reached out to the universal field of poetry. Kaisyn Kuliev speaks on behalf of his people. He is a poet of the whole world... The interests of all mankind, very wide layers of all mankind, found their lips in this poet."
Dudov Abdullah (AYSANDIR) Halal-Ulu.
He was an outstanding Karachay religious and public figure, poet, one of the first preachers of Islam in Karachay and Balkaria. Born in the village of Khurzuk of Greater Karachay in the family of the Karachay princes Dudov. He carried out active missionary work to spread Islam among the Karachays, in which he had some success (evidence of this is the established fact of the use of Arabic writing in Karachay. It is believed that he was the first qadi of Karachay and Balkaria . Aisandir Dudalany (Dudov) actively participated in the socio-political life of the peoples of the North Caucasus. Several times at the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th century, he contributed to the peaceful resolution of conflicts between Kabarda and Karachay. Aisandyr Dudalany is also known as the largest poet of Karachay and Balkaria of his time. Before His works have come down to us: the highly artistic ethical and philosophical poem “Kart Babany Sezyu” (“The Word of the Old Sage”), beautiful transcriptions into the Karachay-Balkarian language of the famous medieval eastern poems “Tahir and Zuhra”, “Nur-Muhammad”, “Laila and Majnun” " and etc.
His name is associated with the authorship of the first Karachai Muslim poem "Iman-Islam" ("Faith-Islam"), which sets out in accessible language the foundations of the Islamic faith, and the popular trilogy "Birth of the Prophet", "Ascension of the Prophet", "Death of the Prophet", written in the form of a religious poem. It should also be noted that he died at the age of 115.
List of used literature.
1. Peoples of the Caucasus / Yu.D. Anchabadze, N.G. Volkova
2. Miziev I.M. Ancient Turkic and Karachay-Balkar parallels in the light of ethnic history
3. Musukaev A.I. From the history of a Balkar family
4. Lukyaev V.B “And you will come back, believe me” Essay-memoir of the repressed Balkar people.
5. Peoples of the Caucasus / Yu.D. Anchabadze, N.G. Volkova
6. Repressed peoples: history and modernity: M.N. Kubanova
Khristianovich V.P. From the past of Kabarda and Balkaria.
7. Essays on the history of the Balkar people // Ch. ed. A.V. Fadeev
The complex remains the most important part of the socio-economic potential of the republic. “One of the strategic objectives of the economic policy of Kabardino-Balkaria today is the development of the tourist complex of the Elbrus region, which should become Russia’s leading center for extreme sports - mountain tourism, mountaineering and skiing,” he said in his speech to the press. For...
But also civil engineers and educational agronomists, who were urgently needed by the industry and agriculture of the republic. October 12, 1957 A ceremonial meeting was held dedicated to the opening of the Kabardino-Balkarian State University, which became a great event in the history of Kabarino-Balkaria, another striking manifestation of the party’s concern for the development of the culture and science of its peoples, a celebration...
Multi-chamber, two-story buildings, the roofs of houses are covered with planks, iron, and later slate. Monuments of tradition. architecture - log houses, battle towers, crypt structures. National K.'s clothing is similar to the clothing of other peoples of the North. Caucasus. Husband. clothing consisted of a shirt, trousers, beshmet, circassian coat, sheepskin or fur coat, burka and bashlyk. On a narrow belt there is a dagger or knife, a cross and...
On the territory of the Kabardino-Balkaria, human activity can be traced back to ancient times - from primitive times.
community system. In the Baksan Gorge, sites of primitive people of the late
Paleolithic The best preserved graves and settlements of the 2nd-1st millennium BC
near Nalchik - Agubekovskoye settlement, Dolinskoye settlement.
It has been established that the distant ancestors of the Adyghe tribes in the North-West Caucasus (Meotians, Sindians,
Kerkets) absorbed in the 8th-4th centuries BC the Cimmerian, Scythian,
Greek as well as Sarmatian-Alan ethnic elements. The basis of the economy of these tribes was
"yailage" cattle breeding and primitive agriculture, and along the seashores - trade and fishing
catching. At the beginning of the 3rd century. BC. Sarmatians appeared in the steppes (the Scythians concentrated in the Crimea).
The situation of the Bosporan kingdom became more complicated, its economic weakening began,
associated with a sharp reduction in foreign trade. The main export item is bread,
grown on the Sindian and Meotian lands, over time began to be gradually replaced by
Greek markets with cheap Egyptian bread. Sindo-Meotians as a result of military clashes with
The Huns retreated beyond the Kuban. Archaeologists have discovered their settlements dating back to the 4th-6th centuries. However,
despite the fact that many years of hostilities had a hard impact on the life of the Sindo-Meotians
(the loss of fertile lands and fishing grounds on the right bank of the Kuban led to a sharp
reduction in cultivated and pasture areas, to a significant reduction in fishing: there were
traditional urban centers were destroyed), they still survived as an ethnic group and later acted
under the common name of Circassians (Circassians).
In the 5th century BC, under the influence of the Greek colonies, a process took place among the Sinds
formation of the state - Syndics, where metallic money was in circulation. This
the state existed for about 100 years and was mainly borrowed from the Greeks
structure and way of life. As a result of the Hunnic invasion of the North Caucasus in the 4th century AD and
Invasion of the Avars in the 6th century, the Meoto-Sindo-Kerket tribes were driven back to the Kuban.
By the end of the 1st century. BC. in the steppe, on the lands of the inhabitants of the North-Western Caucasus, Alans penetrate,
who formed an extensive Alanian union, which included the Sarmatians and, apparently, part
descendants of the Sindo-Meotians. The Alans dominated the North Caucasus for more than 1000 years and left
behind numerous historical monuments. The center of the Alan state was
territory of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic and North Ossetia. This is where they are found in large numbers
grandiose earthen Alan fortifications - fortifications, each of which occupies an area
10-15 hectares, as on the hill between the Baksan and Chegem valleys. They meet
near the villages of Argudan, old Lesken, Upper Akbash, Zhemtala, Psygansu and Elkhotovo. From the 6th century
Christianity begins to penetrate into the North Caucasus. History of the ancestors of the Circassians during this period
closely intertwined with the history of the Eastern Slavs - the Antes. In the 10th century, the ancestors of the Kabardians
repeatedly acted together with the Russians against the Khazars and reached their capital Sarkel
on the Don.
In the 11th century they came into close contact with the Slavic principality of Taman
peninsula - Tmutorokanya. During the period of existence of the Tmutarakan principality (10-12 centuries),
Most of the settled population of which were Circassians, ancient Russian chronicles usually also
The Circassians are called "Kasogs". In the 10th-11th centuries. Tmutarakan (Tamtarakay, Matrika) for the Circassians
was a large craft and trade center. The Adygs also had to deal with Byzantium, in
whose possessions included Abkhazia, the Taman Peninsula, Crimea, and fought with
expansion of the Khazar Khaganate. Already in 1023, the Adygs helped Mstislav the Brave in his fight against
Yaroslav the Wise for the Grand Duke's throne in Kyiv. Ethnographers note similar features in
types of clothing, housing, as well as folklore of the Circassians and Ukrainians of that time.
In the first quarter of the 13th century, the devastating invasion of the North Caucasus by the Mongolians began.
Tatars The spearhead of the Mongol aggression in the central part of Ciscaucasia was directed against
Alans, who were defeated in the 13th-14th centuries and ceased their independent
existence, taking refuge in the mountains and mixing with the mountain tribes they formed the Ossetian,
Balkar and Karachay peoples. Back in the first half of the 13th century, invaders found
almost all gorges of the Central Caucasus were fortified. It dates back to this time
the emergence of rock fortifications, watchtowers in mountain villages and entire fortresses. TO
This time includes the Amirkhan Tower in the Cherek Gorge, the Ak-Kala Tower and others. At 14
century, entire fortified citadels appear, for example Uskhurskaya, which is associated with a new wave
invasions - Timur's campaigns. In 1395, in the face of a new formidable enemy - the conqueror
Tamerlane, the Circassians were forced to unite with Khan Tokhtamysh. Having ruined everything on your own
way, Timur passed from Transcaucasia to Dagestan. The powerful Derbent fortress fell without
resistance. Timur passed the river. Sunzhu and stood on the Terek. April 15, 1395 on the banks of the Terek
not far from Lower Julat a grandiose historical battle took place between troops
Timur and the united army of Tokhtamysh and the Circassians. Timur won. Chasing
defeated Tokhtamysh, Timur walked to the lower reaches of the Volga, then moved to Moscow, but, having reached
Yelets and having ravaged the Ryazan land, turned back and made campaigns in the Crimea and Azov. Timur wanted to punish the Circassians for their resistance. The Circassians burned the steppe between the Don and Kuban. This
the invasion caused enormous damage to the Circassians and significantly weakened their influence.
Moving from west to east, the ancestors of the Kabardians first occupied Pyatigorye, and then
territory of modern CBD. Folklore attributes this to a certain Kabard, named after
the area began to be called Kabardey, that is, the country belonging to Kabard, and the Circassians
began to be called Kabardians.
Some historians argue that the name "Kabardians" appeared similar to the name
"Cossacks". Having separated for various reasons from their tribes on the Taman Peninsula,
the ancestors of the Kabardians retired to the deep gorges of the Laba River and began to be called “kobar”, that is
"multi-gorges". The suffix "day", which means "belonging to him", apparently appeared later.
Consequently, “Kobar-day” - “Kabardey” is the country of polygorges, the country of Kabardians. First
their mention in sources in the form of “kevertey” dates back to the 15th century. and belongs to Italian
by Jehoshaphat Barbaro. This is the time when this part of the Circassians separated from the Circassian
ethnic massif and migrated east, to the Central Ciscaucasia. In Russian sources
the name of the Kabardians has been known since the 16th century, when political ties between Russia and Kabarda were established:
Kabardian Circassians, Kabardian land, Kabardian principality. So after 14
c., which ended with the destructive invasion of Timur, the Kabardians mastered
a vast and fertile foothill plain, extending in the east to the river. Sunzhi and
area of the present city of Grozny. Having settled the foothills and locked the entrances to the gorges, the Kabardians
thereby isolated the Karachais, Balkars,
Chechens and Ossetians who became dependent on the Kabardian princes. Ossetians paid
Kabardian feudal lords received tribute - yasak, the main part of which was cattle. By
18th century sources Balkars and Karachais also paid tribute to the Kabardian princes
livestock, one sheep per family per year. Dependence on the Kabardian feudal development
the top was reflected not only in the economic sphere, but also in the sphere of everyday culture:
lifestyle of Kabardian princes and workers (professional warriors,
comparable to European knights) for a long time was the standard and model for
imitation in the feudal environment not only of Ossetia and Balkaria, but also of Dagestan, Chechnya,
Kalmykia (“Adyghe khabze” - Adyghe customs, in the structure of which the code stands out
knightly behavior "work habze"). According to these customs, practice
productive labor or trade was considered shameful for the nobles. According to ethics
Works, it was considered indecent to live long, for a man still young should
knight to lay down his head in battle. Most of all, cowardice and greed were despised.
“Generosity and courage are the best means for the Circassians to gain fame,” wrote
Adyghe scientist of the 19th century. Khan Giray.
In the 17th century Kabarda was also divided into two parts - Greater and Lesser Kabarda.
Greater Kabarda occupied lands along the rivers Baksan, Chegem, Malka, Cherek, Nalchik, Shalushka and
part of the Terek River valley. Malaya Kabarda was located on both banks of the Terek from Mozdok to
the confluence of the Malka and the Terek. Relations between the Adyghe tribes and the Russians intensified in the 16th century, when the Adyghe
waged a stubborn struggle against the expansion of the Crimean and Turkish feudal lords. Bloody feud
the early feudal Kabardian state with the Crimean Khanate forced the supreme prince
Kabardy, Temryuk Idarov, seek an alliance with Moscow. Since 1557, his country has passed
patronage of Russia, and in 1561 Temryuk’s daughter became the wife of Ivan IV the Terrible. At first
1570 Temryuk Idarov died from a serious wound received in a battle with the Crimeans. Historian
Kabardian people Shora Nogmov noted on this occasion: “But most of all the people were
pleased with the alliance and patronage of Russia.” Considering that Nogmov wrote his work in
based on the oral traditions of the Kabardians, then one can see in these testimonies the opinion
Kabardian people. Friendship with Russia contributed to strengthening the influence of Kabarda on
Northern Caucasus. By the beginning of the 18th century, a significant part of
Central and Eastern Caucasus. In Greater Kabarda, the largest possessions were
"Alegukin taverns" beyond the river. Malkoy. Each possession had its own fighting force, well
armed. But firearms were not very common. State of feudal
fragmentation led to constant internecine clashes that tore Kabarda apart.
To protect Kabardians from the Crimean khans and spread Russian influence in the Caucasus in
In 1567, the Russian fortress Terki was founded on the Terek River. In 1707, the Crimean Tatars
a large army invaded Kabarda. The Khan's army was driven back to the Kuban. Total deaths
During the campaign, over 30 thousand Crimeans. This event and others of the same kind led to the fact that
The issue of Kabarda was considered at the Belgrade Peace Conference. According to Article 6
The Belgrade Peace Treaty, signed in 1739, declared Kabarda “free”. Both empires (Russia and Turkey) pledged not to interfere in the internal affairs of the Pyatigorsk
Circassians" - Kabardians. In 1714-1722 for the constant protection of Kabarda by Peter I on the Terek
regular troops were sent.
Religiously, Kabardians are Sunni Muslims, like other
Adyghe peoples. This religion was brought to Kabarda relatively late (in the 17-18 centuries) by the Turks and
Crimean Tatars. But a thousand years earlier, the ancestors of the Kabardians accepted the Orthodox
Christianity, which came from Byzantium. Traces of former Christianity have been preserved both in
archaeological monuments and in the folklore of the Kabardians, Sh. Nogmov wrote about them. At the same
time, Christianity and Islam were unable to displace the remnants of traditional pagan beliefs,
preserved until the 20th century. (Mazitha - god of forests, patron of hunters; Shible - god of lightning;
Tlepsh - patron of iron and blacksmiths; Thashho, “Tha one, Tha great” - the supreme god,
creator of life). Pagan religious and magical cults are combined with Muslim ones
performances and rituals.
According to available information, Russian-Balkar relations have been improving since the 50s 16
century. Thus, in documents of 1558, 1586, 1587, 1588, as part of Kabardian and Georgian
embassies to Moscow, the names of translators - interpreters (tilmanch -
translator into kar.-bal. language) - Kabardian Circassian, Georgian Circassian, mountain Circassian, in
whose sources allow us to recognize the participants of those embassies - residents of the Five Mountains
societies, i.e. people from Balkaria and Karachay. In 1590, the full title of the Russian Tsar was
inscribed: “Iveron lands of Kartalin and Georgian kings and Kabardian lands of Circassian and
mountain princes, sovereign." In 1558, as part of the embassy of the children of Temryuk Idarov - Saltan and
Mamstryuk - there is a certain Bulgari-Murza, who is not known either among the children of Temryuk, or among
genealogical lists of Kabardian princes. And in Moscow he was received in a special way. IN
unlike the fact that Saltan was baptized, awarded an estate and other honors, the Bulgarian
Murza was told that such honors would be given to him if he behaved as desired
to the king. This attitude towards this Murza allows us to think that it was a representative of not
Kabardian princes, and was one of the family of Balkar princes Balkarukovs. In the middle of the 17th century.
direct ties between Russians and Balkaria were established (in Russian sources - Balkars,
Balkhar taverns), through which one of the embassy routes to Western Georgia ran.
The self-name of the Balkars is “taulu” - mountaineers, but there are more private names based on
the names of mountain gorges and, accordingly, societies: malkarlyla, byzyngylyla, holamlyla,
chegemlslula. The basis of the Balkar economy has traditionally been livestock farming, with a predominance
small cattle, primarily sheep of the coarse-wool Karachay breed.
A significant part of the livestock and the best pastures and hayfields were in the hands of local feudal lords -
Taubiev. In the 18th century Islam penetrated into Balkaria, and now the Balkars are Sunni Muslims. In 1787
The elders of Balkaria turn to Count Potemkin with a petition for citizenship. Date
The final annexation of Balkaria to Russia is considered to be January 11, 1827, when
A Balkar-Digor delegation arrived in Stavropol - one representative from each
princely family. This delegation asked to accept them as Russian citizens.
Commander-in-Chief of the tsarist troops in the North Caucasus, General Emanuel in January 1827
year took the oath of the Balkar and Digor Taubis, which he reported to Nicholas I.
Writing in the Balkar language was created in 1924, and the literary language is based on
Baksan-Chegem dialect. The largest and most famous Balkar poet is Kaisyn
Kuliev. During the years of Soviet power, industrial enterprises appeared in the mountains of Balkaria.
The largest was the tungsten-molybdenum plant in the city of Tyrny-Auz (Baksan
gorge).
The victory of Russia in the Russian-Turkish war of 1768-1774 finally decided the fate of Kabarda,
when Türkiye, according to the Kucukkaynardzhi Peace Treaty, recognized it as part of Russia. Since then
Russia's position in the North Caucasus was strengthening. On a fairly small
guard fortresses with regular military personnel began to be erected at a distance from each other
garrison, which by the first half of the 19th century made up the so-called Caucasian line.
In 1816, General A.P. Ermolov was appointed commander-in-chief of the Russian army in the Caucasus.
famous for his cruelty and ingenuity in punitive measures against
intimidation of rebellious mountaineers. Ermolov proposed a plan to conquer the mountainous Caucasus,
providing for the siege of mountainous areas by cutting wide clearings in forests, laying
roads and the creation of defensive lines of outposts and fortresses. Highlanders, according to Ermolov’s plan,
had to move to the plain under the supervision of Russian troops, and the villages did not want to submit
destroyed and burned to the ground. A 40,000-strong Cossack army was placed at Ermolov’s disposal.
which defended the Caucasian line from Kuban to Laba. In 1823 they were evicted
Kabardian villages between Malka and Kuban. Border guards began to be built at this site.
Cossack fortifications. In retaliation for the eviction of villages, the Kabardian princes ruined the Cossack
Kruglolesskaya village. In 1825, Kabardians ravaged the village of Soldatskaya. In 1825 Ermolov
gave instructions to the Kabardians to move from the mountains to the plain. The Kabardians did not comply with this demand. After destructive military operations, Ermolov founded new fortresses on
the rivers Malka, Baksan, Chegem, Nalchik, Urvan and in the upper reaches of the Malka. The main point at which
the entire military-administrative management of Kabarda was supposed to be concentrated, Ermolov
appointed the Nalchik fortress, which had a direct connection with Vladikavkaz along the shortest road
across the fortified bridge on the Lesken River. Ermolov’s measures provoked response actions
Kabardians, who were brutally suppressed by General Velyaminov. Thus,
It turns out that we can say with a fair degree of confidence that Nalchik was founded
most likely in 1825, and its founder can be considered the commander-in-chief of the Russian army in the Caucasus
General Alexei Petrovich Ermolov. Be that as it may, the then Nalchik was
a fortress surrounded by wooden walls, an earthen rampart and a deep moat. In it
housed the command of the Center of the Caucasian Line, the command of the fortress and the temporary
Kabardian court. Nearby were the garrison barracks, a wooden church and a dozen
tourist houses. Below the fortress, along the banks of the Nalchik River, there was a forstadt (suburb
fortresses). Behind the fortress walls stood a dense forest.
During the Caucasian War - 1817-1864, Nalchik was a military garrison, around
which the Russian administration concentrated in this area. During the Caucasian War
Kabardians remained largely neutral, and Shamil’s troops, who entered Kabarda in 1846
g., soon returned to Chechnya and Dagestan, without achieving success. These events formed the basis
regimental song of the Kabardian Jaeger Regiment.
The Kabardian people, like other groups of Circassians, did not have their own written language (“letters de in
There are no Cherkasy people and they don’t know how to write,” says one of the Russian documents). In the first half
19th century the folk sage and public figure Zhabagi Kazanoko came forward, and then
the first researcher and educator of the Kabardians, Shora Nogmov, who was educated in
Muslim spiritual school Enderi (Dagestan), and then in St. Petersburg. Sh. Nogmov compiled
the first grammar of the Kabardian language on a Russian graphic basis, and also wrote the first
“History of the Adyghe people” with wide involvement of folklore and ethnographic
Circassian materials. These works of Sh. Nogmov have not lost their scientific significance to this day.
The way of life and way of life of the Kabardians were almost no different from the life of other Adyghe peoples
and were also regulated by customary law and Sharia courts. But speaking of pre-revolutionary
In Kabarda, one cannot fail to mention the traditional activity of horse breeding. It was bred here
a beautiful riding horse, called Kabardian and delivered to
cavalry units of the Russian army. It should also be noted that the presence of good pastures and their
rational use led to a high level of development of livestock farming: at the end of 19
V. in Kabarda there were more than half a million head of small cattle, primarily
sheep It seems that this economic achievement has not yet been surpassed in Kabarda.
In the 60s In the 19th century, Kabarda and Balkaria were included in the Terek region. Connections with the center
Russia has strengthened since the 70s. 19th century, when the construction of the railway was completed,
connecting Rostov with Vladikavkaz. In the second half of the 19th century, Kabarda was
an underdeveloped agricultural province, with emerging prospects in the field of mountain
travel. Back in 1829, the first Russian expedition set off to Elbrus. It included
geologist and geographer Kunfer, physicist academician Lenz, botanist Meyer, architect of Pyatigorsk
Bernardazzi. The expedition was accompanied by the head of the Caucasian line, General Emmanuel, with
a detachment of 1000 Cossacks. But only the expedition guide, Kabardian Killar, reached the summit
Kashirgov. The expedition left two inscriptions on the summit indicating priority
Russians in the conquest of Elbrus. Another famous conqueror should also be noted
the highest peak in Europe - Balkarian Akhiya Sottaev has repeatedly climbed it
tops. The famous Russian cartographer and
Caucasus researcher A.V. Pastukhov. In 1913, a railway was built through the territory of the republic,
branch to Nalchik, a railway station building and outbuildings were built,
preserved and functioning today. In the summer days of 1914 it became known that
On July 19 (August 1, new style), Germany declared war on Russia. August 23 was announced
The highest order of Nicholas II on the creation of the “Caucasian Native Cavalry Division”. In Nalchik
In the area, work began on the formation of the Kabardian Cavalry Regiment. August 3rd Commander
Colonel Count Illarion Vorontsov-Dashkov was appointed to the Kabardian regiment. It was the son
Caucasian governor, who served as aide-de-camp to the Tsar's younger brother, Grand Duke Mikhail
Alexandrovich. He was the great-grandnephew of Ekaterina Romanovna Dashkova,
nee Vorontsova, a famous associate of Empress Catherine II, who became
President of the St. Petersburg (Russian) Academy of Sciences. In mid-August, Colonel Vorontsov
Dashkov arrived from Petrograd to Nalchik. On August 23, by the highest order of Nicholas II,
his approval by the regimental commander. After the revolution of 1917, the process of so-called autonomization began in the North Caucasus.
In January 1921, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee issued a Decree on the formation of the Mountain Autonomous Soviet Republic, in
which included Kabarda, Balkaria, Ossetia, Ingushetia and Chechnya. The mountain republic was
destined to have a short life: in June of the same 1921, Kabarda left the Mountain Republic, declaring
itself an autonomous region within the RSFSR. Was elected leader of the new Kabarda
Bolshevik Betal Kalmykov, Nalchik became the administrative center.
In 1937, the autonomous region was transformed into the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.
In July 1932, by resolution of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR, the Kabardino-Balkarian
pedagogical institute, which after two and a half decades became the base of Kabardino-
Balkar State University. The Soviet government highly appreciated
achievements of Kabardino-Balkaria. In 1934 she was awarded the Order of Lenin.
During the Great Patriotic War, the republic was subjected to occupation by the Nazis
troops. But even before the occupation, work began in the republic to prepare fighter jets.
battalions and people's militias in the system of universal education, mobilization of horse-drawn transport and
horses for the Red Army, nurses and
sanitary squads, signalmen and climbers.
According to the decree of the State Defense Committee of the USSR, in mid-November 1941, the formation of the 115th began
Kabardino-Balkarian cavalry division with 3,500 sabers. The division was
fully staffed by collective farms, state farms, enterprises and state
institutions of the republic. In the spring of 1942, the national cavalry division was sent to
front. She heroically defended the Don and Rostov region, participated in the Stalingrad
battle.
In total, during the war years, about 70 thousand sons and daughters of Kabardino-Balkaria went to the front,
who fought courageously and heroically on various fronts of the Great Patriotic War
war.
The republic turned into a battle camp, embraced by a single goal - to help the Red Army in
defeat of the enemy, all enterprises and collective and state farms began to work for the needs of the front under
motto: “Everything for the front! Everything for victory! Quickly rebuilt to meet needs
industry provided significant military products: confectionery factory - food
concentrates; Tyrnyauz plant - tungsten and molybdenum, hand grenades, mines, backpacks
flamethrowers; meat processing plant and Chinar plant - Molotov cocktails; hydro turbine
the plant also produced mines, grenades, backpack flamethrowers, repaired military equipment, and
together with workers of the Odessa plant named after. October Revolution launched the production of jets
shells for guards mortars "Katyusha". Tanks and other military equipment were repaired
and at the Prokhladnensky Motor Repair Plant. Industry and fishing cooperatives
supplied defense factories with semi-finished products for the manufacture of wooden parts for small arms
weapons, military engineering equipment, high-quality aircraft plywood. Was
production of leather shoes, short fur coats, Caucasian burkas and bashlyks, underwear for
warriors, items of mountaineering equipment, as well as military vans, harnesses, saddles for
cavalry units. The Dokshukinsky distillery was reconstructed and provided products for
military-technical purposes. Agricultural workers who worked selflessly
increased the supply of agricultural and livestock products to the front. In general, during the war years
agricultural workers of the republic handed over to the state 278,130 tons of bread, 47,399 tons
sunflower, 55,275 tons of potatoes, 96,967 centners of meat, 1,641,650 centners of milk, 9025
centners of wool and many other products, 27 thousand horses were sent to the cavalry
Kabardian breed.
Throughout the war, combat reserves of the Soviet army were trained in the republic. On
industrial enterprises, collective and state farms, government institutions were
Military training of workers, collective farmers and employees was organized. In all localities
militia units were created. There was active training of soldiers: riflemen,
machine gunners, mortar men, snipers, nurses, signalmen. Only for the first four months
1942 more than 7.5 thousand soldiers were sent to the active army, a large number of natives
Kabardino-Balkaria was sent to the 175th and 337th rifle divisions. Mounted units
militias were created in the Baksan, Kubinsky, Elbrus regions, in the Urvan region -
rifle division. Osoaviakhim clubs have trained hundreds of Morse telegraph operators,
telephone operators, radio operators, operators. Nalchik and Prokhladnensky flying clubs graduated 700
pilots and parachutists. According to the decree of the State Defense Committee, almost everyone was covered by universal training
male population of the republic from 16 to 50 years old (about 180 thousand people), trained in military affairs
and women. Fighter squads were created to combat enemy landings.
The patriotic movement to raise funds for
construction of military equipment for the Red Army. At the beginning of September 1941, on the initiative
youth of the Nalchik meat processing plant began raising funds for the construction of the Komsomolets Kabardino-Balkaria fighter aircraft, road workers - the Combat tank column
road worker", teachers of secondary school No. 6 in Nalchik - tank column "People's Teacher",
students of secondary school No. 1 - tank column "Soviet Schoolboy". In September 1943, on the initiative
collective farmers villages. Shalushka began raising funds for the construction of the “Collective Farmer” tank column
Order-bearing Kabardino-Balkaria" and in a short period of time 12,880 thousand rubles were contributed, and
construction of the “Death to the German invaders” column, the workers of the republic gathered in
first half of 1944 21 million rubles. The tank column was transferred to the troops of the 2nd
Ukrainian Front.
At the call of workers and employees of the confectionery factory in October 1941. collection of warm food has begun
things for front-line soldiers. During the war years, the republic sent thousands of sheepskin coats to front-line soldiers,
fur vests, felt boots, hats with ear flaps, burkas, etc. - a total of 71,673 different items.
At the end of April 1942, a delegation of the republic with a train of gifts went to the soldiers and
commanders of the Southern Front and stayed there for 20 days, meeting with the soldiers.
The workers of Kabardino-Balkaria did a great job of caring for wounded front-line soldiers and families
military personnel. In health resorts of Dolinsk, in the best buildings of Nalchik, regional centers by the beginning of 1942
There were 14 evacuation hospitals with 13 thousand beds. They were equipped with forces and
funds from industrial enterprises, institutions and citizens. Special Komsomol
Girls' sanitary squads served to receive and care for the wounded. Significant
Donors provided assistance to wounded soldiers. From July 1941 to October 1942 in evacuation hospitals
The republics treated and returned to the front up to 60 thousand wounded and sick soldiers of the Red Army.
In the first difficult months of the war, Kabardino-Balkaria received more than 16.5 thousand people,
evacuees from Moscow, Leningrad, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Baltic
republics They were allocated apartments, houses, jobs, the children were placed in nurseries
homes and schools, provided financial assistance.
Residents of Kabardino-Balkaria showed courage and bravery when the need arose
evacuation of people, industrial equipment, bread and livestock from Kabardino-Balkaria to the rear
regions of the country. From Tyrnyauz, with the help of climbers, 1500 were evacuated to Transcaucasia
a person through the snow-ice Becho Pass, 3375 meters above sea level. Out of 66
15 of the largest enterprises were evacuated by August 25, 1942. Through the Donguz pass
Orun-Bashi in Transcaucasia, 70 thousand heads of cattle were driven. Huge, complex and difficult
The evacuation work was carried out by railway workers. Many of them, risking their lives, saved wagons from
valuable industrial equipment, damage was repaired.
In the summer of 1942, fascist troops broke into the depths of the North Caucasus. August 10th enemy
captured Pyatigorsk and reached the borders of our republic. To break through defensive lines
along Malka, Baksan and Terek, the invaders abandoned two tank divisions, a large number
infantry, air force and other specialized units.
From August to January 1943, fierce battles for Kabardino-Balkaria continued.
They were especially cruel in the areas of Mount Khara-Kora, the villages of Zayukovo and Kyzburun-I,
Upper Kurp, Nalchik and passes.
However, it was not possible to defend Nalchik. For three days, October 26-28, fierce
fights. 70 enemy bombers dropped a deadly load on the city, the Nazis threw
battle up to 270 tanks, several thousand soldiers. After heavy fighting on October 28, 1942, units of the Red
The armies were forced to leave Nalchik.
In the construction of the Nalchik defensive structure, in the defense of the passes leading from
Kabardino-Balkaria in Transcaucasia, thousands of soldiers from Ukraine, Belarus,
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and other regions, territories and
republics of the country, and all of them heroically defended Kabardino-Balkaria as their native land.
As is known, the fascists declared themselves “friends” even before the attack on the North Caucasus,
"liberators" of its peoples. In fact, in relation to Kabardians, Balkars and
other peoples of the Caucasus pursued a policy of cruel terror, repression, executions,
outrages The Nazis established a difficult occupation regime in Kabardino-Balkaria. They
liquidated all Soviet bodies, sought to restore the rights of those who returned with the Nazis
Kabardians, Balkars, Russians who fled with Denikin’s troops from their native places. They became theirs
main social support. Of these, burgomasters, atamans, elders,
police forces were formed, with the help of which the German commandants controlled the
occupied areas.
The German invaders, having liquidated collective and state farms, declared all land and wealth
property of Nazi Germany. From Kabardino-Balkaria they exported grain, livestock,
state and cooperative property, property of the civilian population.
The Nazis tried to restore and exploit factories and factories. Many of them were
transferred to German entrepreneurs, various joint stock companies were founded and
companies. At the enterprises, the invaders established a cruel routine that humiliated the dignity of the forcibly driven workers, who had to work under the supervision of the police.
The fascists sought to incite ethnic hatred by all means. From the first days of occupation
territory of Kabardino-Balkaria, looting and severe repression began. With exceptional
The Nazis exterminated people with cruelty. Anti-tank ditches on the approaches to Nalchik and
Prokhladny were filled with the corpses of Kabardians, Balkars, Russians, Jews, etc. Among them
there were many women, old people and children. The punitive forces were especially rampant in Kabardino-Balkaria
from the mountain rifle battalion "Bergmann" ("Highlander"). The occupiers shot local residents
entire families, subjected Soviet prisoners of war to barbaric abuse. In the camp on
territory of the Primalkinsky flour mill on an area of 0.8 hectares, were kept in the most difficult conditions
conditions of 10 thousand prisoners of war. Of these, 1976 people were killed. Total for the period
During the occupation of Kabardino-Balkaria, the Nazis tortured 4,241 people, including 2,188
civilians and 2,053 prisoners of war. Thousands of citizens were maimed by them and became
disabled, thousands were taken to work in Germany, many of them died there.
But the terror of the fascists, their atrocities did not break the will of the peoples of Kabardino-Balkaria to victory, they did not
They lost heart and continued to fight under occupation. Workers were disabling equipment
spoiled raw materials and materials, village residents hid grain and livestock, evaded payment
occupiers of cash and in-kind taxes. The population sabotaged the orders of the German
command, many preferred death to working for the Nazis.
The leadership of the republic, together with the command of the 37th Army, trained and sent people with
missions behind enemy lines. Proven communists and Komsomol members were transferred to the underground
work, and specially trained patriots were transferred across the front line to
conducting sabotage, underground and intelligence work. Leaflets were issued
for distribution in Nazi-occupied territory. Many patriots of the republic,
risking their lives, organized sabotage, maintained contact with partisans and units of the Red Army
The armies hid wounded soldiers in their homes, treated them, and brought them out of encirclement.
Fulfilling their international duty, Kabardians, Balkars, Russians and representatives
Jews of other nationalities were sheltered and saved from execution, including evacuees,
buried those killed in battle.
At the beginning of August 1942, 11 partisan groups were organized on the territory of Kabardino-Balkaria
detachments: Prokhladnensky, Nagorno-Zolsky, Tersko-Kurpsky, Baksansky, Maysky, Leskensky,
Urvansky and others, who maintained close contact with the command of the 9th and 37th armies,
acted directly on the front line. The units took part in battles with the Nazis,
captured part of the regions of the republic, penetrated behind enemy lines and delivered to the command
our troops valuable information. They fought against saboteurs and spies sent
fascists to the rear of our troops.
On September 21, soldiers of the 2nd Guards Rifle Division, partisans of Kabardino-Balkaria and
Kislovodsk raided the enemy garrison in the village. Kamennomostsky, and the Nazis
suffered serious losses. “A detachment of Kabardino-Balkarian partisans operating behind German lines
fascist troops, - reported the Soviet Information Bureau, - made a bold attack on the headquarters
Romanian division. Soviet partisans exterminated up to 100 Romanian soldiers and officers,
two vehicles and two machine guns were destroyed.” For courage and heroism shown in battle during
defeat of the enemy garrison, were awarded the Order of the Red Banner S.P. Zhankazieva,
OH. Zhambeev, Order of the Red Star - Kh.G. Bgazhnokov, Kh.L. Buhurov, Ya.G. Kolesnikov and F.M.
Kaufov
In mid-October 1942, partisan detachments of Baksan, Prokhladnensky and Nagorno-
Zolsky districts were merged into one. Its commander was G.M. Tsaryapin, commissioner of the Cheka.
Kudaev. On November 1, 1942, this detachment carried out a raid on the enemy garrison in the village. Khabaz. V
In a three-hour battle, the Nazis lost 80 soldiers and officers, 3 heavy machine guns and a mortar.
This united partisan detachment guarded the Sugan Gorge, and Khulamo-Bezengievsky and
Elbrus detachments defended the Cherek and Khulamo-Bezengievsky gorges and passes leading
in Transcaucasia. Partisans of Kabardino-Balkaria at the end of November - beginning of December committed
bold raids on enemy garrisons in the villages of Verkhnyaya Zhemtala and Lesken-I and inflicted
serious blow. The garrison in the village of Lesken-I alone lost more than 200 soldiers and officers killed,
a lot of technology. The command of the 37th Army highly appreciated the military actions of the partisans and many
awarded orders and medals.
At the end of December 1942, all partisan detachments of the republic were united into one. He
carried out raids on garrisons in villages. Upper Zhemtala, in the Vagotsuko tract, and applied
significant damage to the occupiers.
For military merits in the fight against the Nazi invaders, 53 Kabardino partisans
Balkarians were awarded orders and medals, and 87 people received medals “Partisan
Patriotic War" I and II degrees.
On December 24, 1942, the troops of the Transcaucasian Front went on the offensive. They were helped by the partisans of North Ossetia and Kabardino-Balkaria, who began active operations against the fascists.
Hitler's units, suffering heavy losses in manpower and equipment, were forced to retreat.
On the night of January 4, 1943, Soviet troops broke into Nalchik and, together with the partisans, by the morning
liberated the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria.
Fascist troops destroyed the city. All the best buildings, plants and factories were blown up.
Retreating, they stubbornly resisted the Soviet troops and tried to detain them.
offensive using pre-built defensive structures, minefields and
wire fences.
On January 5, the city of Prokhladny was liberated, on January 6 - Baksan and other settlements. eleven
January 1943 units of the 37th Army completed the expulsion of fascist troops from the entire territory
Kabardino-Balkaria. Soviet troops liberated the Elbrus region, climbers climbed
the top of Elbrus and, throwing down fascist standards from there, hoisted the flag of the USSR.
In the spring of 1944, more than a year had passed since the liberation of Kabardino-Balkaria from fascist
invaders. The Republic healed its war wounds and continued to selflessly help
front to crush the enemy. The suffering people were waiting for the end of the war, a return to peaceful life.
No one imagined that eviction was being prepared.
The Balkar people consider March 8 a day of national mourning. More than half a century
back on this day, according to the resolution of the State Defense Committee, all Balkars
were forcibly evicted from their ancestral lands to remote areas of the country -
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
From the Nalchik railway station, resettlers were sent in 14 trains, and the total
the number of deported Balkars was 37,713 people, mostly children, women and
old men. No one had any property, and 40-50 people were pushed into the carriages. On the way, for 18
days of travel in unequipped carriages, 562 people died from hunger, cold and disease.
The eviction took place at a time when every fourth Balkar was in the ranks
the warring Red Army. Every second of them died defending the Fatherland from
German fascist invaders. Balkar warriors were among the first to meet the enemy in the western
border of the USSR, becoming participants in the heroic defense of the Brest Fortress. Sons of Balkaria
defended Moscow and Leningrad, took part in all major operations of the Great
Patriotic War, participated in the partisan movement in Ukraine and Belarus, in
anti-fascist resistance in Europe, in the eventual liberation of the peoples of Europe from
Hitler's yoke. Many of the Balkars reached Berlin, taking part in the storming of the lair
German fascism. The 115th Kabardino-Balkarian Army fought as part of the active army
cavalry division. Official documents note the courage and bravery of the Balkars,
conscripted into the Red Army. Brave pilot Alim Baysultanov became the first Hero
Soviet Union from the natives of Kabardino-Balkaria, thousands of Balkar warriors are noted
government awards. Shoulder to shoulder with representatives of other peoples of the USSR they
fought bravely on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War and contributed to the defeat of the enemy.
On March 28, 1957, a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was adopted on the restoration
Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, and the Balkar people, after 13 years of exile, received the right
The territory of Kabardino-Balkaria has been inhabited since ancient times by various peoples. In the 12th-13th centuries, Kabardians who came from the Azov and Kuban regions settled here.
Two neighboring peoples - Kabardians and Balkars - got along well on a common territory, conducting joint trade and fighting against common enemies.
In the 13th-14th centuries, they, like all the peoples of the North Caucasus, had to resist the Tatar-Mongols, and in the 90s of the 14th century they experienced the devastating invasion of the Central Asian emir Timur.
Before the Kabardians, Balkars and Circassians had time to regain their strength, they had another formidable enemy - the Turks and Crimean Tatars. Kabarda was divided into small principalities and could not resist the enemy. Then they asked for citizenship of the Russian Empire, which could protect them. So in 1557, Kabarda voluntarily joined Russia. A little later, the Balkars also became part of the Russian state. To further strengthen ties, in 1561, Ivan the Terrible took Temryuk’s daughter, Kuchenya, who was named Maria after baptism, as his wife.
Throughout the 16th-18th centuries, Kabardians, Balkars and other peoples of the North Caucasus, together with the Russians, participated in the fight against common enemies - Turkey and Crimea, the Livonian Order, Poland and Sweden.
However, in the middle of the 18th century, the people grew tired of the tsarist oppression and uprisings began to break out.
In the second half of the 18th - first half of the 19th centuries, royal fortresses and fortifications were built in Kabarda - Ekaterinogradskaya, Prokhladnaya, Kamennomostskaya, Nalchikskaya, Baksanskaya. Migrants from Russia settled here, driven to the distant Caucasus by hunger and need. They lived peacefully with the Kabardians and Balkars. Local serfs who fled from their masters found shelter and protection in Russian settlements.
In 1905-1907 Revolutionary movements began in the Kabardino-Balkarian lands.
On March 4, 1918, at the Second Congress of the Peoples of the Terek, Soviet power was proclaimed and the Terek Soviet Republic was created. It included the lands of the Kabardins and Balkars, then called the Nalchik district.
In the North Caucasus, as throughout Russia, the Civil War was raging. At the beginning of 1919, Denikin’s troops managed to capture the North Caucasus. But already in the spring of 1920 he was released. On March 24, Soviet power was restored in Nalchik. In November 1920, Kabarda and Balkaria became part of the Mountain SSR.
In 1921, Kabarda was separated into the Kabardian Autonomous Region, and on January 16, 1922, the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Region was formed.
The economy and culture of the peoples of Kabardino-Balkaria began to flourish.
In 1924, Kabardians and Balkars received their own written language. Institutes, theaters and factories began to open in the region.
In December 1936, the Extraordinary VIII All-Union Congress of Soviets adopted the new Constitution of the USSR, according to which the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Region was transformed into the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.
The republic lived a measured life until the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
Tens of thousands of Kabardians and Balkars joined the ranks of the Soviet army. In August 1942, the battle began on the lands of Kabardino-Balkaria.
20 residents of Kabardino-Balkaria were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
In 1944, the autonomy of the Balkars was eliminated. The population was evicted. In this regard, the republic was renamed the Kabardian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1957, the Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was restored. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, in 1992 the republic became part of the Russian Federation under the name Kabardino-Balkarian Republic.
Review article prepared by specialists of the Expert Analytical Center for Agribusiness "AB-Center" www.site. The materials of the article include statistical data on the cost of products produced in agriculture in Kabardino-Balkaria, information on sown areas, gross yields of the main crops, statistics on the number of livestock, production of meat, milk and eggs in the republic. This review is supported by useful links that complement the material.
The situation in agriculture in other regions of the Russian Federation, Russia as a whole, as well as trends in key food markets, can be found by following the link -.
Agriculture of Kabardino-Balkaria in 2015, in actual prices, it provided production volumes worth 38.7 billion rubles. The Republic took 41st place among Russian regions, and its share in the total volume of agricultural products produced in Russia was 0.8%.
In 2015, agricultural production per capita in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, according to AB-Center calculations, amounted to 44.9 thousand rubles. (27th place in the ranking of regions of the Russian Federation). On average in Russia this figure was at around 34.4 thousand rubles.
Specialization of agriculture in Kabardino-Balkaria
In the structure of agriculture of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015, the crop production industry predominated, the share of which in the total volume of agricultural products in value terms produced in this region amounted to 54.3%. The share of livestock products accounted for 45.7%.
The agriculture of Kabardino-Balkaria is distinguished by developed grain growing. In 2015, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic entered the TOP 10 largest grain corn producing regions, taking 6th place. The following grain crops were also grown in the region: sorghum (15th place in the ranking), millet (29th place), buckwheat (41st place), winter and spring wheat (44th place), winter and spring barley ( 47th place), winter and spring triticale (48th place) and oats (59th place).
In terms of production of grain legumes, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic took 37th place among producing regions. In particular, it entered the top three in growing beans, taking 2nd place. In terms of pea production volumes - 35th place.
Among the oilseeds produced in the region, the most widespread are soybeans (24th place), sunflower seeds (25th place), mustard seeds (35th place), winter and spring rapeseed (42nd place).
Potato harvests in the industrial sector of potato growing (data on agricultural organizations and farms were taken into account) in 2015 brought the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic to 35th place in the ranking of Russian potato-producing regions.
The agriculture of Kabardino-Balkaria is also distinguished by developed vegetable growing. In terms of harvesting of open and protected ground vegetables in the industrial sector, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic entered the TOP 10 producing regions, taking 6th place. Including the collection of open ground vegetables - 6th place, greenhouse vegetables - 23rd place.
In terms of production volumes of melons and food crops, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic took 11th place.
In the agriculture of Kabardino-Balkaria, such industries as sheep and goat breeding, dairy and beef cattle breeding and poultry farming are well developed. In 2015, this region took 13th place among the regions of the Russian Federation in terms of the number of sheep and goat herds, 23rd place in terms of the size of the cattle herd, including 20th place in terms of the size of the cow herd. In terms of the number of pig herds, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic was in 59th place.
In terms of production volumes of lamb and goat meat, Kabardino-Balkaria entered the TOP 20 producing regions, taking 18th place, in beef production - 30th place, poultry meat - 33rd place, pork - 60th place. The production volumes of milk and eggs in this region show positive dynamics - 24th and 49th places, respectively.
Plant growing in Kabardino-Balkaria
In 2015, the volume of crop production in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in value terms amounted to 21.0 billion rubles. (0.8% of the total cost of crop production produced in the Russian Federation). In the ranking of Russian regions for this indicator, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic took 39th place.
Cultivated areas in Kabardino-Balkaria
The total size of sown areas in Kabardino-Balkaria at the end of 2015 amounted to 289.6 thousand hectares (0.4% of all sown areas in Russia, 50th place in the ranking of Russian regions).
In 2015, in the structure of sown areas of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, the largest share was occupied by corn for grain (47.6% of all sown areas in the region). Winter and spring wheat accounted for 16.0%, forage crops - 6.5%, sunflower - 6.3%, winter and spring barley - 5.2%, open ground vegetables in the industrial sector - 4.8 %, for leguminous crops - 1.7%, for soybeans - 1.6%, for industrially grown potatoes - 1.2%, for oats - 0.9%, for winter and spring rape - 0.5%, for winter and spring triticale - 0.2%, for melons and food crops in the industrial sector, buckwheat and millet - 0.1% each, for mustard and sorghum - less than 1.0%. Other areas occupied 6.9%.
Production of crop products in Kabardino-Balkaria
Wheat production in Kabardino-Balkaria. The gross harvest of winter and spring wheat in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 amounted to 131.0 thousand tons (0.2% of the all-Russian wheat harvest). Wheat production in the region, compared to 2014, decreased by 12.5%. The sown area for this grain crop also decreased by 6.4% to 46.5 thousand hectares (0.2% of the total wheat sown area in Russia, 49th place among the regions of the Russian Federation).
Triticale production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, the production of winter and spring triticale in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic decreased by 51.5% to 1.6 thousand tons (0.3% of the total triticale harvest in the Russian Federation). The size of triticale sown areas also decreased by 60.0% to 0.6 thousand hectares (0.2% of all triticale areas in the Russian Federation). According to this indicator, the region took 53rd place.
Barley production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, gross barley harvests in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic decreased by 26.6% to 38.8 thousand tons (0.2% of all barley harvests in the Russian Federation). The area sown for this crop also decreased by 28.8% to 15.1 thousand hectares (0.2% of all barley areas in the Russian Federation, 48th place in the regional ranking).
Oat production in Kabardino-Balkaria. The gross oat harvest in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 decreased by 13.1% to 5.5 thousand tons (0.1% of the total oat production in the Russian Federation). Cultivated areas also decreased by 17.1% to 2.6 thousand hectares (0.1% of all oat areas in the Russian Federation, 63rd place).
Corn production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, the gross harvest of corn for grain in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic increased by 5.9% and amounted to 759.4 thousand tons (5.8% of the all-Russian corn harvest). The size of the sown area for corn increased by 7.8% and amounted to 137.9 thousand hectares (5.0% of the total area of corn for grain in the Russian Federation). According to this indicator, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic took 7th place among the regions of the Russian Federation.
Sorghum production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, sorghum harvests in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic amounted to 0.1 thousand tons (0.04% of total Russian production). The size of the sown area for this crop was at the level of 0.1 thousand hectares (0.04% of all sorghum areas in the Russian Federation, 16th place in the ranking).
Millet production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, millet production volumes increased by 61.8% and amounted to 0.3 thousand tons (0.1% of all-Russian harvests). Millet was sown on an area of 0.2 thousand hectares (0.04% of all millet areas in the Russian Federation, 31st place). The area under millet cultivation in the region increased by 3.9 times compared to 2014.
Buckwheat production in Kabardino-Balkaria. Buckwheat harvests in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 fell by 60.7% to 0.4 thousand tons (0.04% of all buckwheat harvests in the Russian Federation). The area under buckwheat also decreased by 51.9%, its size amounted to 0.3 thousand hectares (0.03% of all buckwheat areas in the Russian Federation, 44th place among Russian regions).
Production of leguminous crops in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, the gross harvest of leguminous crops in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic increased by 41.2% and amounted to 10.5 thousand tons (0.4% of the total Russian production volume). Of this volume, 1.2 thousand tons were beans (16.4% of the total bean production in the Russian Federation) and 9.3 thousand tons were peas (0.5% of the total pea production in the Russian Federation). The Kabardino-Balkarian Republic took 41st place in terms of the size of the area sown with leguminous crops. Compared to 2014, their size increased by 43.9% and amounted to 5.1 thousand hectares (0.3% of all leguminous areas in the Russian Federation). Including 0.5 thousand hectares were sown with beans (12.1% of all bean areas in the Russian Federation, 2nd place among the regions of the Russian Federation), 4.5 thousand hectares with peas (0.5%, 36- e place). The area sown for peas, compared to 2014, increased by 63.8%, and for beans - by 21.1%.
Production of sunflower seeds in Kabardino-Balkaria. The gross harvest of sunflower seeds in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 decreased by 31.3% to 24.3 thousand tons (0.3% of the total harvest in the Russian Federation). The size of sunflower sown areas also decreased by 16.3% to 18.1 thousand hectares (0.3% of all sown areas in the Russian Federation, 25th place).
Soybean production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, the volume of soybean production in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic decreased by 22.3% to 6.5 thousand tons (0.2% of the all-Russian harvest). The area under soybeans in this region also decreased by 23.4% to 4.7 thousand hectares (0.2%, 25th place).
Production of rapeseed in Kabardino-Balkaria. The harvest of winter and spring rapeseed in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 fell by 64.2% to 1.9 thousand tons (0.2% of the total harvest of rapeseed in the Russian Federation). The size of sown areas decreased by 71.3% to 1.6 thousand hectares (0.2% of all sown areas in the Russian Federation, 47th place).
Production of mustard seeds in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, mustard seed harvests in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic amounted to 0.1 thousand tons (0.1% of total Russian production). The size of the sown area for this crop was at the level of 0.1 thousand hectares (0.1% of all mustard areas in the Russian Federation, 45th place in the ranking).
Potato production in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2015, the volume of industrial potato cultivation (data only for agricultural organizations and farms was taken into account) in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic increased by 12.7% and amounted to 70.4 thousand tons (0.9% of the total potato harvest in the Russian Federation). The area sown with potatoes increased by 28.4% and amounted to 3.4 thousand hectares (0.9% of all potato areas in the Russian Federation, 40th place in the ranking of Russian regions).
Vegetable production in Kabardino-Balkaria. Gross harvests of open and protected ground vegetables for industrial cultivation in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 increased by 27.8% and reached 268.8 thousand tons (5.1% of the total vegetable production in the Russian Federation). Of this volume, 259.0 thousand tons were from open ground vegetables (5.7%) and 9.8 thousand tons from protected ground vegetables (1.3%). Compared to 2014, production volumes of open-ground vegetables increased by 29.0%, harvests of greenhouse vegetables - by only 3.7%. The size of the area sown for open-ground vegetables over the past year increased by 40.5% and amounted to 13.9 thousand hectares (7.4%, 3rd place).
Production of melons in Kabardino-Balkaria. The harvest of industrially grown melons and food crops in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in 2015 decreased compared to 2014 by 21.1% and amounted to 5.7 thousand tons (0.8% of the total Russian production of melons). At the same time, the sown area of melons increased by 80.2%, their size amounted to 0.4 thousand hectares (0.4% of all melon areas in the Russian Federation, 14th place among the regions of the Russian Federation).
Livestock farming in Kabardino-Balkaria
Livestock farming in Kabardino-Balkaria in recent years has been characterized by:
Increasing production volumes of lamb and goat meat;
The growth of the cattle herd, including cows, and the volume of beef and milk production;
Increased production volumes of poultry meat and eggs.
In 2015, according to preliminary data from Rosstat, the value of livestock products in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic amounted to 17.7 billion rubles. The share of this region in the total value of all livestock products produced in the Russian Federation was at the level of 0.7% (47th place in the ranking of Russian regions).
Meat production by type in Kabardino-Balkaria in 2015 was as follows. The total production volume of meat of all types in slaughter weight amounted to 70.7 thousand tons. Of this volume, poultry meat accounted for 59.7%, beef - 28.1%, pork - 8.5%, lamb and goat meat - 3.4%, and other types of meat - 0.3%.
Poultry farming in Kabardino-Balkaria
Poultry farming in Kabardino-Balkaria is one of the dynamically developing branches of agriculture in the republic. Production of poultry meat of all types in this region in 2015 amounted to 56.6 thousand tons in live weight (42.2 thousand tons in terms of slaughter weight). Over 5 years (compared to 2010), production volumes of this type of meat increased by 88.1%, over 10 years - by 188.8%, by 2001 - 4.3 times. The share of Kabardino-Balkaria in the total volume of poultry meat produced in the country in 2015 was 0.9%.
Egg production in Kabardino-Balkaria in 2015 in farms of all categories amounted to 189.1 million pieces (0.4% of total Russian production). The region has seen an increase in poultry egg production. Over 5 years, egg production increased by 12.5%; over 10 years, it decreased by 5.5%; compared to 2001, it increased by 27.3%.
Cattle breeding in Kabardino-Balkaria
Cattle breeding in Kabardino-Balkaria shows steady growth in beef and milk production.
The number of cattle in Kabardino-Balkaria in farms of all categories as of the end of 2015 amounted to 275.2 thousand heads (1.5% of the total number of cattle herds in Russia). Including, the number of cows totaled 134.7 thousand heads (1.6%). Over 5 years, the size of the cattle herd increased by 12.8%, over 10 years - by 38.5%, by 2001 - by 17.8%. The number of cows increased by 19.7% over 5 years, by 46.7% over 10 years, and by 31.9% by 2001.
Beef production in Kabardino-Balkaria in 2015 was at the level of 34.9 thousand tons in live weight (19.8 thousand tons in terms of slaughter weight). Over 5 years, beef production volumes increased by 22.1%, over 10 years - by 25.6%, by 2001 - by 39.1%. The region's share in total beef production in Russia was 1.2%.
Milk production in Kabardino-Balkaria in farms of all categories in 2015 reached 469.6 thousand tons (this is 1.5% of the total milk production in Russia). The region is experiencing strong growth in milk production. Over 5 years, volumes increased by 27.0%, over 10 years - by 77.6%, by 2001 - by 80.9%.
Pig farming in Kabardino-Balkaria
Pig farming in Kabardino-Balkaria characterized by relatively stable pork production volumes in the period from 2009 to 2015. In relation to the indicators of 2001-2008. production volumes increased significantly.
The number of pigs in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic at the end of 2015 in all categories of farms amounted to 39.5 thousand heads (1.5% of the entire pig herd in Russia). Over 5 years, the size of the pig herd decreased by 30.6%, increased by 69.5% compared to 2005, and decreased by 5.5% by 2001.
In 2015, pork production in the region amounted to 7.7 thousand tons in live weight (6.0 thousand tons in terms of slaughter weight). The share of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in all-Russian pork production was at the level of 0.2%. Overall, the region has seen an increase in pork production. Over 5 years, pork production indicators decreased by 12.7%, but over 10 years they increased by 132.9%, compared to 2001 indicators - by 119.6%.
Sheep and goat farming in Kabardino-Balkaria
Sheep farming in Kabardino-Balkaria shows positive dynamics. The number of sheep and goats in Kabardino-Balkaria at the end of 2015 amounted to 380.5 thousand heads (1.6% of the total number of sheep and goats in Russia). The number of sheep and goats in the region is growing. Over 5 years, the size of the herd of sheep and goats increased by 11.6%, over 10 years - by 34.1%, compared to 2001 - by 31.1%.
The production of lamb and goat meat in Kabardino-Balkaria in 2015 amounted to 5.5 thousand tons in live weight (2.4 thousand tons in terms of slaughter weight). The region has seen an increase in the production of these types of meat. Over 5 years, volumes increased by 26.8%, over 10 years - by 65.2%, by 2001 - by 118.1%. In the all-Russian volume of lamb and goat meat production, the share of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic was at the level of 1.2%.
Administrative - territorial structure
Area - 12.5 thousand square meters. km. The permanent population as of January 1, 2005 was 896.9 thousand people.In 1557, Kabarda became part of Russia, and in 1827 Balkaria became part of Russia. In 1920, Kabarda and Balkaria became administrative districts of the Mountain Autonomous Republic. On September 1, 1921, the Kabardian Autonomous Region was formed as part of the RSFSR. In 1922, a unified Kabardino-Balkarian Autonomous Region was created, transformed in 1936 into the KBASSR. In 1991, the Declaration of Sovereignty was adopted: the former autonomy became a republic within Russia. Administrative division: 10 administrative districts, 8 cities, including 3 of republican subordination, 4 urban-type settlements, 136 municipalities.
The Constitution of the Republic was adopted on September 1, 1997 by Parliament. Presidential type republic. The President is the head of state and executive power, the highest official of Kabardino-Balkaria.
Parliament is the representative and legislative body of state power of the republic. Consists of two chambers: the Council of the Republic and the Council of Representatives.
The composition of the Council of the Republic is 36 deputies elected in single-mandate constituencies. Council of Representatives - 36 deputies representing administrative-territorial units of the republic, elected in three-mandate electoral districts. Parliament is elected for five years. A citizen of Kabardino-Balkaria who has reached the age of 21 can be a deputy of parliament. The Government (Cabinet of Ministers) is an executive body of state power reporting to the President of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic. The Chairman of the Government is appointed by the President of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic with the consent of the Parliament of the republic.
Kabardino-Balkaria borders in the north with the Stavropol Territory, in the east and southeast - with the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania and Ingushetia. The southern border of the republic is the border with Georgia, which is also the State border of Russia with Georgia with a length of 130.7 km. In the west, Kabardino-Balkaria borders on Karachay-Cherkessia. The total length of the republic's borders is 696 km. The border line is winding. Most of it passes through low foothills and plains, and a smaller part passes through the mountains. In the south and south-eastern part it runs along the crest of the Main Caucasus Range. In the southwest, the border crosses the Elbrus massif, in the west - the leveled surface of the Bechasyn plateau, passes along the Kabardian ridge, the valley of the Kichmalka river, and crosses the Dzhinalsky ridge. Then it goes along the Psynshoko River to Lake Tambukan, turns southeast to the Malki River, which becomes the border river to the Malka - Kura canal. Then, to the very northeast, the border runs along flat steppes.
The eastern border in a small area is water - along the Terek, then it crosses the Tersky and Kabardian ridges from north to south, turns southwest to the Lesisty ridge, along the valleys of the Argudan and Khaznidon rivers crosses the Rocky ridge and goes to the Side and Main Caucasian ridges.
The capital is Nalchik, founded in 1818 as a Russian military fortress. As of January 1, 2004, the population was 274 thousand people. Other cities: Prokhladny (62 thousand), Baksan (35 thousand), Nartkala (34 thousand), Maysky (27 thousand).
Population density as of January 1, 2004 - 71.9 people. per 1 km2.
Kabardino-Balkaria is a multinational republic, but the bulk are Kabardians - 55.3%, Balkars 11.6%, Russians - 25.1%, Ossetians - 1.1%, Turks - 1.0%, other nationalities - 5, 9 %.
Based on materials: Ignatov V.G., Butov V.I. “Southern Russia and its regions” - M.: ICC “Mart”; Rostov n/d: Publishing center "MarT", 2006.