Karachay-Balkars

The Karachay-Balkars or Alans () are a Turkic-speaking people of the North Caucasus, mostly situated in the Russian in North Caucasus. Karachays and Balkars constitute together the one nation the Karachay-Balkars and they are direct descendants of the Turkic-speaking Alans.
History
The Karachay-Balkars are a Turkic people descended from the Turkic-speaking Alans,<ref name="Sciences 2014, pages 815"/> and share their language with the other Turkic tribes. In Turkic, "Karachay" means "Black River".
The state of Alania was established in the Middle Ages and had its capital in Maas, which some authors locate in Arkhyz, the mountains currently inhabited by the Karachay. In the 14th century, Alania was destroyed by Timur and the decimated population dispersed into the mountains. Timur's incursion into the North Caucasus introduced the local nations to Islam.
In 1828 the Russian army invaded the Caucasus region, including Karachay-Balkaria. On October 20, 1828 the Battle of Hasaukinskoe took place, a battle in which the Russian emperor's troops, under the command of General Emanuel killed or injured 163 people. The day after the battle, as Russian troops were approaching Dzhurtu, the Alan (Karachay-Balkar) elders met with the Russian leaders. In order to prevent the massacre of Alan villages, an agreement was reached for the inclusion of the Alans into the Russian Empire.
After this annexation, the internal self-government of Karachay was left intact, including its officials and courts. Interactions with neighboring Muslim peoples continued to take place based on both folk customs and Sharia law. Soldiers were taken from Alans Amanat, pledged and oath of loyalty, and were assigned arms.
From 1831 to 1860, the Alans (Karachay-Balkar) joined the bloody anti-Russian struggles carried out by the Caucasian peoples. Between 1861 and 1880, to escape reprisals by the Russian army, large numbers of Karachays migrated to Turkey.
Geography
The Karachay-Balkarian nation, along with the Nogays occupy the valleys and foothills of the Central Caucasus in the river valleys of the Kuban, Big Zelenchuk River, Malka, Baksan, Cherek and others.
The Alans (Karachay-Balkars) have the symbol of their nation, Mount Elbrus, the highest twin-peaked mountain in Europe with an altitude 5,642 meters.
Language and religion
The Karachay-Balkar language comes from the northwestern branch of Turkic languages. The Kumyks, who live in northeast Dagestan, speak the same language, the Kumyk language.
Diaspora
Many Karachay-Balkars migrated to Turkey after the Russian annexation of the Karachay-Balkar nation in the early 19th century. They were also forcibly displaced to the Central Asian states of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan during Joseph Stalin's relocation campaign in 1944. Since the Nikita Khrushchev era in the Soviet Union, many Alans (Karachay-Balkars) have been repatriated to their homeland from Central Asia. Today, there are sizable Karachay-Balkar communities in Turkey (centered around Afyonkarahisar), Uzbekistan, the United States, and Germany.
Culture
The Karachay's isolation among the Caucasus Mountains was one of the reasons for the establishment of the Karachay-Balkar's unique character.
Alan (Karachay-Balkar) people live in communities that are divided into Families and clans (Tukum). A tukum is based on a family's lineage. Prominent tukums include: Aci, Batcha (Batca), Baychora, Bayrimuk (Bayramuk), Bostan, Catto, Cosar (Çese), Duda, Hubey (Hubi), Karabash, Laypan, Lepshoq, Ozden, Silpagar, Teke, Toturkul and many others.

Karachay people are very independent, and have strong traditions and customs which dominate many aspects of their lives: e.g. weddings, funerals, and family pronouncements. They are fiercely loyal to both their immediate family and their "tukum". They will never offend a guest. Cowardice is the most serious shame for a male.

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