Ingush societies

Ingush societies (Ingush: ГIалгIай шахьараш, romanized: Ġalġay şaẋaraş, IPA: [ˈʁəɫʁəɪ ˈʃɑħəɾəʃ]) were autonomous ethno-territorial communities that formed the principal political and administrative units of traditional Ingush society. The formation and functioning of most of them dates back to the late Middle Ages. During this period, their boundaries, number and names changed.

The names of the societies were mainly derived from the names of the areas in which they were located, following a geographical principle, although some names may also have been associated with clan or ancestral origins. During this period, the Ingush lived in relatively isolated mountain gorges, which encouraged territorial fragmentation rather than consolidation around a single centre. Nevertheless, they retained a sense of shared ethnic identity based on a common culture and language.

Ingush societies in the literature are sometimes called shahars (Ingush: шахьар, romanized: şaẋar, lit. 'society, district' – from Persian شهر šahr 'city, town'). In ancient West Asian usage, the term shahar denoted a city or town and, in some contexts, an administrative territorial unit. Societies (shahars) of medieval Ingushetia were also territorial units.

Etymology

The Ingush name for societies is shahar (шахьар) which is derived from Persian word shahr (شهر).

History

Map from the book "The assertion of Russian rule in the Caucasus" showing Ingush societies - Karabulaks, Galashians, Galgai etc.

The collapse of the Alanian state in the 13th century and the migration of its population into the mountains, where they settled to the east and west of the Darial Gorge and constructed fortifications, served as the basis for the formation of new ethno-territorial communities. Villages located in the mountainous zone were grouped mainly along local gorges, which contributed to their ethno-political consolidation into separate territorial societies/regions (Ingush: ГIалгIай Шахьараш). By the end of the 16th century, the main territorial societies of the Ingush had already formed. Based on the data of Russian sources of the 16th-17th centuries, which mention several Ingush territorial communities, it is suggested that in the 15th century there was a similar number of such societies, each uniting several villages.

Over time, the number and boundaries of these societies changed due to migration processes among the Ingush population, including movements back to the plains. These began relatively early, soon after Timur’s withdrawal from the North Caucasus. In their initial stages, they took the form of localized military-political actions undertaken by the Ingush in the lowlands in response to the settlement of nomadic groups in these areas.

Changes in the names and number of societies also occurred due to the transfer of rural administrative centres from one village to another. For example, the Kist (Feappii) society came to be known as the Metskhal society, while the Ghalghaï society later split into the Tsorin and Khamkhin societies.

Political organization

According to the ethnographer Chakh Akhriev, the Ingush societies differed in their systems of governance. He describes the Dzherakh and Feappii as preserving traditions of hereditary ruling families tracing their origins to legendary founders. Their descendants were regarded as the rulers of their respective societies, although Akhriev notes that their political authority had diminished over time. In contrast, the Ghalghaï, Nazran and Karabulak societies are described as being governed by elected elders and judges. Akhriev concludes that hereditary aristocratic institutions among the Ingush were generally weaker than among many neighbouring Caucasian peoples.

List of societies

Notes

  1. ↑ For example, in Province of Sassanid Empire, Asoristan, the provinces were known as šahr.
  2. ↑ «Overview of the political state of the Caucasus in 1840», Caucasian Territory // "Military Statistical Review of the Russian Empire, 1851", Volkonsky, Pantyukhov, Kovalevsky, Martirosian, Krupnov, Volkova,
  3. ↑ "Overview of the political state of the Caucasus in 1840", "Caucasian Territory // Military Statistical Review of the Russian Empire, 1851", Volkonsky, Pantyukhov, Kovalevsky, Martirosian, Krupnov.
  4. ↑ Bulletin of the Caucasian Department of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society, Volkonsky, Terskiy Sbornik, Martirosian, Kusheva, Hakluyt Society, Krupnov.
  5. ↑ Malkhins as an Ingush society is indicated in the "Military Statistical Review of the Russian Empire, published by the highest order at the 1st branch of the Department of the General Staff". Malkhins in the literature of the 19th-20th centuries also were known under name "Distant Kists". Under this name, they are also indicated as an Ingush society: "Overview of the political state of the Caucasus in 1840", I. I. Pantyukhov, G. K. Martirosian, Kusheva, E. I. Krupnov.

References

  1. ↑ Кодзоев 2002.
  2. ↑ Горепекин 2006, p. 23.
  3. ↑ Долгиева et al. 2013, p. 147.
  4. ↑ Долгиева et al. 2013, p. 151.
  5. ↑ Робакидзе 1968, p. 88.
  6. ↑ Далгат 1972, p. 442.
  7. 1 2 Бекова et al. 2009, p. 861.
  8. ↑ Кодзоев 2021, p. 467.
  9. ↑ К ингушской терминологии 1999.
  10. ↑ Widengren 1987.
  11. ↑ Genko 1930, p. 758.
  12. 1 2 Пиотровский & Нарочницкий 1988.
  13. ↑ Долгиева et al. 2013, p. 146.
  14. ↑ Долгиева et al. 2013, p. 142.
  15. ↑ Вертепов 1892, p. 75.
  16. ↑ Akhriev, Ch. E. (1875). "Ингуши. Их предания, верования и поверья" [Ingush. Their legends, beliefs and beliefs]. Сборник сведений о кавказских горцах [Collection of information about the Caucasian highlanders] (in Russian) (8th ed.). Tiflis. pp. 1–40.
  17. 1 2 3 Обзор политического состояния Кавказа 1840 года ЦГВИА Ф. ВУА, Д.6164, Ч.93, лл. 1-23.
    "V. Племя ингуш: 1) Назрановцы, 2) Галаши, 3) Карабулаки, 4) Галгаи, 5) Кистины или Кисты Ближние, 6) Джерахи, 7) Цори, 8) Дальние Кисты"
  18. 1 2 3 Кавказский край // Военно-статистическое обозрение Российской империи 1851, p. 137:
    "Къ племени Ингушей, занимающих плоскость и котловины Кавказских горъ съ правой стороны Терека до верхних частей Аргуна и до теченія Фартанги, принадлежатъ: 1) Назрановцы с Комбулейскимъ обществомъ, 2) Джераховцы, 3) Карабулаки, 4) Цоринцы, 5) Ближніе Кистинцы с небольшимъ обществомъ Малхинцевъ вновь покорившимся, 6) Галгай, 7) Галашевцы, 8) Дальніе Кисты…"
  19. 1 2 3 Волконский 1886, p. 54:
    «Ингушевское племя состояло из следующих обществ: кистинского, джераховского, назрановского, карабулакского (впоследствии назвавшегося галашевским), галгаевского, цоринского, акинского и мереджинского; все эти общества вместе имели свыше тридцати тысяч душ.»
  20. 1 2 3 Пантюхов 1901, p. 2.
  21. 1 2 Ковалевский 1914, p. 150:
    "Ингуши длятся на пять обществъ: джираховцы, кистины, галгаевцы, назрановцы и галашевцы"
  22. 1 2 3 4 Мартиросиан 1928, p. 12.
  23. 1 2 3 4 Крупнов 1971, p. 37.
  24. ↑ Волкова 1974, p. 153.
  25. ↑ Извѣстія Кавказскаго отдѣла Императорскаго русскаго географическаго общества. Томъ IX. Часть I (in Russian). Отдѣл. 1885. p. 102.
  26. ↑ Терскій областный статистическій комитет (1893). Терскій сборник. Выпускъ Третій. Книга Вторая (in Russian). Владикавказъ: Типографія Терскаго Областнаго Правленія. p. 100.
  27. ↑ Кушева 1963, p. 69.
  28. ↑ Hakluyt Society 1970, p. 23.
  29. ↑ Кушева 1963, p. 65.
  30. ↑ Долгиева et al. 2013, pp. 192–193.

Bibliography

English sources

Russian sources