View source for North Caucasus

{{Short description|Subregion in Eastern Europe}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox
| bodyclass = geography
| above     = North Caucasus
| image     = [[File:Map_of_North_Caucasus.png|350px]]
| caption   = Map of North Caucasus
| location  = [[Eastern Europe]]
| label1    = Coordinates
| data1     = {{Coord|45|N|42|E|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| label2    = Country
| data2     = {{ublist|class=nowrap
 |{{flag|Russia}}
 }}
| label3    = [[Federal subjects]] 
| data3     =
* {{flagicon|Adygea}} [[Republic of Adygea]]
* {{flagicon|Chechnya}} [[Republic of Chechnya]]
* {{flagicon|Dagestan}} [[Republic of Dagestan]]
* {{flagicon|Ingushetia}} [[Republic of Ingushetia]]
* {{flagicon|Kabardino-Balkaria}} [[Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria]]
* {{flagicon|Kalmykia}} [[Republic of Kalmykia]] (partially)
* [[File:Flag of Karachay-Cherkessia.svg|border|22px|link=]] [[Karachay-Cherkessia|Republic of Karachay-Cherkessia]]
* {{flag|Krasnodar Krai}}
* [[File:Flag of North Ossetia.svg|border|22px|link=]] [[Republic of North Ossetia-Alania]]
* [[File:Flag of Rostov Oblast.svg|border|22px|link=]] [[Rostov Oblast]] (partially)
* {{Flag|Stavropol Krai}}

| label5    = Demonym
| data5     = North Caucasian
| label6    = Time Zones
| data6     = [[UTC+03:00]]
| label7    = Highest mountain
| data7     = [[Mount Elbrus|Elbrus]] ({{convert|5642|m|ft}}){{efn|name="Elbrus"}}
}}
The '''North Caucasus''',{{efn|({{langx|ady|Темыр Къафкъас|Temır Qafqas}}; {{langx|av|Хьундасеб Кавказ}}; {{langx|krc|Шимал Кавказ|Şimal Kavkaz}}; {{langx|ce|Къилбаседа Кавказ|Q̇ilbaseda Kavkaz}}; {{langx|inh|Даькъасте|Däq̇aste}}; {{langx|kbd|Ишхъэрэ Къаукъаз|İṩxhərə Qauqaz}}; {{langx|os|Цӕгат Кавказ|Cægat Kavkaz}}; {{langx|ru|Северный Кавказ|Severnyy Kavkaz}}, {{IPA|ru|ˈsʲevʲɪrnɨj kɐfˈkas|IPA}})}} or '''Ciscaucasia''',{{efn|{{langx|ru|Предкавказье|Predkavkazye}}; Also translated as '''Ciscaucasus''' or '''Forecaucasus'''}} is a [[subregion]] in [[Eastern Europe]] governed by [[Russia]].{{efn|name="Europe"|The northern part of the Caucasus is widely considered to be a part of the European continent, as it sits north the [[Greater Caucasus]] watershed.<ref>18th-century definitions drew the boundary north of the Caucasus, across the [[Kuma–Manych Depression]]. This definition remained in use in the Soviet Union during the 20th century.
In western literature, the continental boundary has been drawn along the Caucasus watershed since at least the mid-19th century.
See e.g. Baron von Haxthausen, "Transcaucasia" (1854); review [https://books.google.com/books?id=SN0EAAAAQAAJ&dq=%22watershed+of+the+Caucasus%22&pg=PA140 Dublin university magazine]
Douglas W. Freshfield, "[https://books.google.com/books?id=ips8AAAAIAAJ&dq=%22watershed+of+the+Caucasus%22&pg=PA71 Journey in the Caucasus]", Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, Volumes 13–14, 1869.</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Europe|title=Europe|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopedia Britannica]]|access-date=6 June 2024|quote= Among the alternative boundaries proposed by geographers that have gained wide acceptance is a scheme that sees the crest of the Greater Caucasus range as the dividing line between Europe and Asia, placing Ciscaucasia, the northern part of the Caucasus region, in Europe and Transcaucasia, the southern part, in Asia.}}</ref>}} It constitutes the northern part of the wider [[Caucasus]] region, which separates [[Europe]] and [[Asia]]. The North Caucasus is bordered by the [[Sea of Azov]] and the [[Black Sea]] to the west, the [[Caspian Sea]] to the east, and the [[Caucasus Mountains]] to the south. The region shares land borders with the countries of [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Azerbaijan]] in the [[South Caucasus]].{{efn|The North Caucasus also shares borders with the two [[List of states with limited recognition|partially recognized]] breakaway states of [[South Ossetia]] and [[Abkhazia]] to its south, both of which are internationally recognised as part of Georgia.}} Located in the southern part of the region, [[Mount Elbrus]] is the [[List of European ultra-prominent peaks|tallest peak]] in Europe.{{efn|name="Elbrus"|Mount Elbrus is widely considered to be the tallest European peak.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/elbrus/|title=El'brus|publisher=[[National Geographic]]|access-date=6 June 2024|quote=Mount El’brus is located in southwest Russia and is part of the Caucasus Mountains. It is the highest point in Russia as well as the highest point in all of Europe. It makes up part of the [[Prielbrusye National Park]].}}</ref>}} [[Krasnodar]] is the [[List of cities and towns in Russia by population|most populous]] among the [[urban area|urban centre]]s in the region.

The North Caucasus came under Russian control in the 19th century, following the [[Caucasian War]] between the [[Russian Empire]] and the various regional powers. The territory is the [[Southern Russia|southernmost portion]] of Russia and is divided between a number of [[Republics of Russia|republics]] and [[krai]]s. It is administered as part of the  [[North Caucasian Federal District|North Caucasian]] and [[Southern Federal District]]s and consists of [[Krasnodar Krai]], [[Stavropol Krai]], and the constituent republics, approximately from west to east: the [[Adygea|Republic of Adygea]], [[Karachay-Cherkessia]], [[Kabardino-Balkaria]], [[North Ossetia–Alania]], [[Ingushetia]], [[Chechnya]], and [[Dagestan|Republic of Dagestan]] and to the north: [[Kalmykia]].<ref name="sunbelt">{{Cite book |last1=Hill |first1=Fiona |title=The Siberian Curse: How Communist Planners Left Russia Out in the Cold |last2=Gaddy |first2=Clifford |publisher=Brookings Institution Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-8157-9618-3 |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=121 |language=en |quote="The North Caucasus region extends across Rostov oblast and Stavropol and Krasnodar krays. It also encompasses the seven autonomous republics of Dagestan, Chechnya, Ingushetiya, North Ossetiya, Kabardino-Balkariya, Karachayevo-Cherkessiya, and Adygeya. The region accounts for about 2 percent of the territory of the Russian Federation and in 1989 had a population of 13,183,860, or about 8 percent of the Russian population. The North Caucasus could qualify as Russia's 'sunbelt.'"}}</ref>

Geographically, the term North Caucasus also refers to the northern slope and western extremity of the [[Greater Caucasus]] mountain range, as well as a part of its southern slope to the West. The [[Pontic–Caspian steppe]] area is often also encompassed under the notion of a Ciscaucasus region, thus the northern boundary of the Forecaucasus steppe or Nogai steppe is generally considered to be the [[Manych|Manych River]]. Owing to its mild climate compared to much of Russia, the region has been described as Russia's "[[Sun Belt|sunbelt]]".<ref name="sunbelt"/>

==History==
[[File:Northern Caucasus, Early Bronze Age artifacts, 3rd millennium BCE.jpg|thumb|Northern Caucasus, Early Bronze Age artifacts, 3rd millennium BCE.]]
Ancient cultures of the Northern Caucasus are known as [[Klin-Yar]] community, with one of the most notable cultures being the ancient [[Koban culture]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Sharko |first1=Fedor S. |last2=Boulygina |first2=Eugenia S. |last3=Tsygankova |first3=Svetlana V. |last4=Slobodova |first4=Natalia V. |last5=Rastorguev |first5=Sergey M. |last6=Krasivskaya |first6=Anna A. |last7=Belinsky |first7=Andrej B. |last8=Härke |first8=Heinrich |last9=Kadieva |first9=Anna A. |last10=Demidenko |first10=Sergej V. |last11=Malashev |first11=Vladimir Yu |last12=Shvedchikova |first12=Tatiana Yu |last13=Dobrovolskaya |first13=Maria V. |last14=Reshetova |first14=Irina K. |last15=Korobov |first15=Dmitry S. |date=2024-01-04 |title=Koban culture genome-wide and archeological data open the bridge between Bronze and Iron Ages in the North Caucasus |journal=European Journal of Human Genetics |volume=32 |issue=11 |language=en |pages=1483–1491 |doi=10.1038/s41431-023-01524-4 |pmid=38177408 |pmc=11576754 |s2cid=266745350 |issn=1476-5438}}</ref>

Ciscaucasus was historically covered by the [[Pontic–Caspian steppe]], mostly on fertile calcareous [[chernozem|chernozyom]] soils, which has been almost completely tilled and grazed. It is bounded by the [[Sea of Azov]] on the west, and the Caspian Sea on the east. According to the ''Concise Atlas of the World, Second Edition'' (2008), the Ciscaucasus region lies on the European side of the "commonly-accepted division" that separates Europe from Asia.{{efn |name="Europe"}}

The [[Russian Empire]] completed the conquest of the North Caucasus by 1864. Between the 1850s and World War I, about a million North Caucasian Muslims, including [[Circassian genocide|Circassians]], [[Chechen genocide|Chechens]], Ingush, Ossetians, and others, became refugees in the [[Ottoman Empire]].{{sfn|Hamed-Troyansky|2024|p=49}} The Ottoman government settled North Caucasian refugees in territories of modern-day Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, Iraq, Georgia, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Kosovo, Greece, Cyprus, and North Macedonia, creating a large North Caucasian diaspora.{{sfn|Hamed-Troyansky|2024|p=2}}

Much of the Northern Caucasus seceded from Russia in March 1917 as the [[Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus]], taking advantage of the instability caused by the [[February Revolution]] and becoming a minor participant in the [[Russian Civil War]]. Mountainous Republic troops engaged in fierce clashes against the invading [[White movement|White]] General [[Anton Denikin]]'s [[Volunteer Army]], before the latter's defeat at the hands of the [[Red Army]]. The region was informally occupied by the [[Soviet Union]] shortly afterwards, and the republic was forced into accepting a nonviolent annexation in January 1921. It was reformed into the [[Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic|Mountainous ASSR]], which was later dissolved in October 1924, replaced by a series of autonomous Okrugs and Oblasts.

The outer border of the Soviet Union's North Caucasus Krai was the same as that of present-day North Caucasus Economic Region (Raion) which includes an oblast ([[Rostov Oblast]]), two krais ([[Krasnodar Krai]] and [[Stavropol Krai]]), and seven republics. The former North Caucasus Military District (Okrug) also included [[Astrakhan Oblast]], [[Volgograd Oblast]], and the [[Kalmykia|Republic of Kalmykia]]. Its administrative center was Rostov-on-Don until 10 January 1934, Pyatigorsk until January 1936, then Ordzhonikidze (today Vladikavkaz) and, from 15 December 1936, Voroshilovsk (today Stavropol).

===Unrest===
{{main|Insurgency in the North Caucasus}}
The North Caucasus region experienced widespread unrest and insurgency after the fall of the Soviet Union, including a low-level armed conflict between [[Russia]] and militants associated with the [[Caucasus Emirate]] and, from June 2015, the [[Islamic State]].<ref>{{cite news|date=2017-03-24|title=Six Russian soldiers killed in Chechnya|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-39377409|url-status=live|access-date=2017-10-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180616042221/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-39377409|archive-date=16 June 2018|quote=Russian troops in Chechnya have faced a low level insurgency for years ... They still face a low-level insurgency in the mainly Muslim region in Russia's volatile North Caucasus area.|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web|title=Russia's North Caucasus Insurgency Widens as ISIS' Foothold Grows|url=https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/18466/russia-s-north-caucasus-insurgency-widens-as-isis-foothold-grows|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171003225036/https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/18466/russia-s-north-caucasus-insurgency-widens-as-isis-foothold-grows|archive-date=3 October 2017|access-date=2017-10-03|website=www.worldpoliticsreview.com|date=12 April 2016 |language=en|quote=Russia's North Caucasus insurgency has gone relatively quiet, but reduced casualty numbers belie a still-worrying situation where long-standing grievances remain.|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite news|last=Walker|first=Shaun|date=2017-04-04|title=Why suspicion over St Petersburg metro attack is likely to fall on Islamist groups|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/03/why-suspicion-over-st-petersburg-metro-attack-islamist-groups-russia-chechnya-syria-isis|url-status=dead|access-date=2017-10-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170403191024/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/03/why-suspicion-over-st-petersburg-metro-attack-islamist-groups-russia-chechnya-syria-isis|archive-date=2017-04-03|issn=0261-3077|quote=A renewed crackdown on any suspected militant activity in the run-up to the Sochi winter Olympics in 2014 and the departure of many militants to fight in Syria led to a weakening of the North Caucasus insurgency.}}</ref>

The insurgency became relatively dormant in its later years.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> During its peak, the violence was mostly concentrated in the North Caucasus republics of [[Chechnya]], [[Dagestan]], [[Ingushetia]] and [[Kabardino-Balkaria]]. Occasional incidents happened in surrounding regions, such as [[North Ossetia–Alania]], [[Karachay-Cherkessia]], [[Stavropol Krai]], and [[Volgograd Oblast]].

While the insurgency was officially declared over on 19 December 2017 when [[Director of the Federal Security Service|FSB Director]] [[Alexander Bortnikov]] announced the final elimination of the insurgent underground in the North Caucasus,<ref name="vz.ru">Нечаев А., Зайнашев Ю. [https://vz.ru/politics/2017/12/19/900398.html Россия выиграла еще одну важнейшую битву] // [[Взгляд.ру]], 19.12.2017</ref> counter-terrorism operations in the North Caucasus have not ended.<ref name="veterans-law">Федеральный закон № 5-ФЗ от 12 января 1995, "О ветеранах" {{in lang|ru}}</ref>
</onlyinclude>
In June 2022, the [[United States Department of State|US State Department]] advised citizens not to travel to the North Caucasus, including [[Chechnya]] and [[Mount Elbrus]], due to terrorism, kidnapping and risk of civil unrest.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/russia-travel-advisory.html|title=Russia Travel Advisory|website=travel.state.gov}}</ref>

Other paramilitaries active in the region have included the [[Confederation of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus]], a [[pan-Caucasianism|pan-Caucasian]] organization that based its flag and political agenda directly on those of the Mountainous Republic.

==Economy==
The North Caucasus is considered part of [[metropolitan and peripheral Russia|peripheral Russia]], and suffers from very low levels of economic development.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Russia Country Report 2024 |url=https://bti-project.org/en/reports/country-report/RUS |access-date=6 January 2025 |website=[[Bertelsmann Stiftung|BTI Transformation Index]] |pages=18}}</ref> The United States' [[National Intelligence Council]] in 2004 described the region as being dominated by corruption, weapons smuggling, and lagging economies.{{sfn|Moroney|Karasik|2007|p=207}} The main source of employment in the North Caucasus is the black market,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mamedov |first=O. Yu. |date=2014 |title=Северному Кавказу современную экономику! |trans-title=The North Caucasus needs a modern economy! |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/severnomu-kavkazu-sovremennuyu-ekonomiku |journal=Terra Economicus |language=ru |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=8 |via=Cyberleninka}}</ref> and organized crime is powerful in local business and politics.{{sfn|Paul|Clarke|Serena|2014|p=120–121}}

The Russian government has primarily focused on increasing the tourism sector in encouraging development in the North Caucasus. This strategy has proven unsuccessful, with only two percent of the region's economy coming from tourism revenues. Primary reasons that people do not travel to the North Caucasus include poor infrastructure in the region, frequent instability and violence, and the poor image of the Caucasus in the Russian public consciousness.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Too Far, Too Fast: Sochi, Tourism and Conflict in the Caucasus |date=30 January 2014 |publisher=[[International Crisis Group]] |chapter=III. The North Caucasus Resorts Project |chapter-url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep32007.7}}</ref>

==Population==
[[File:Life expectancy in Russia -North Caucasus.png|thumb|left|500px|[[Life expectancy]] at birth in the North Caucasus, 1990–2021<ref name="rosstat" /><ref name="uiiss" />]]
{{See also|List of federal subjects of Russia by life expectancy}}
The North Caucasus, especially in its mountainous territories, has the highest [[life expectancy]] in Russia.<ref name="rosstat">{{cite web|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/folder/210/document/13207 |title=Демографический ежегодник России |publisher=[[Federal State Statistics Service (Russia)|Federal State Statistics Service of Russia]] (Rosstat) |access-date=17 July 2022 |language=ru |trans-title=The Demographic Yearbook of Russia}}</ref><ref name="uiiss">{{cite web|url=https://www.fedstat.ru/indicator/31293 |title=Ожидаемая продолжительность жизни при рождении |website=Unified Interdepartmental Information and Statistical System of Russia |access-date=17 July 2022 |language=ru |trans-title=Life expectancy at birth}}</ref> The region is known for a large number of [[centenarian]]s.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/1076863.html |title=Russia: Mountain Air Leads To Long Life In North Caucasus |newspaper=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |date=1 June 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Sam Bedford |url=https://theculturetrip.com/europe/azerbaijan/articles/why-the-caucasus-has-so-many-100-year-olds/ |title=Why the Caucasus Has So Many 100-Year-Olds |website=TheCultureTrip.com |date=13 February 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Science |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADXJPJkzjtQ |title=The Caucasus. The Oldest People In The World (Episode 3). Full Documentary |format=video |publisher=YouTube |date=29 January 2021}}</ref>

The North Caucasus is extremely ethnically and linguistically diverse, which has been a historic driver of conflict in the region. Luxembourgish politician [[Anne Brasseur]] wrote in 2004 that "There is no other region in Russia or Eurasia in general in which so many peoples and ethnic groups with their various languages and cultures live together in such a small area."<ref name="Brasseur">{{Cite web |last=Brasseur |first=Anne |author-link=Anne Brasseur |date=7 April 2006 |title=Cultural diversity of the North Caucasus |url=https://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/X2H-Xref-ViewHTML.asp?FileID=11180&lang=EN |access-date=6 January 2025 |website=[[Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe]]}}</ref> The local population predominantly follows [[Sunni Islam]],{{sfn|Melvin|2007|p=19}} with the exception of the [[Ossetians]] and [[Abkhazians]].<ref name="Brasseur"/> The western half of the North Caucasus (comprising the republics of Adygea, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia, and North Ossetia) also has extant traditions of paganism, which have become closely connected to Islam. In contrast, the eastern portion of the North Caucasus (including Chechnya, Dagestan, and Ingushetia) is dominated by [[Sufism]].{{sfn|Akayev|2010|p=64}}

Conflicts between Islamic ethnic groups are also frequent, with battles for control over religious and political institutions often overlapping. As an example, the takeover of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Dagestan (now the {{ill|Muftiate of the Republic of Dagestan|ru|Муфтият Республики Дагестан}}) by Sufi [[tariqa]] sheikhs, who were predominantly ethnic [[Avars (Caucasus)|Avars]], led to a conflict over the board's leadership, involving religious, ethnic, and political differences.{{sfn|Melvin|2007|p=19}}

==Administrative divisions==
{{Location map+ | Russia Southern Federal District
|AlternativeMap = SouthernRussia.svg
|caption = The North Caucasus region within Russia
{{Plainlist|
* {{font color|red|Red}}: NC economic region, former NC krai, former NC military okrug
* {{font color|green|Green}}: former NC military okrug
* {{font color|blue|Blue}}: NC economic region, NC federal okrug, former NC military okrug
 }}
|width = 250
|places = 
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=45.03|long=38.97|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=top|label={{font color|red|Krasnodar Krai}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=44.90|long=40.50|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=left|label={{font color|red|Adygea}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=44.00|long=41.70|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=bottom|label={{font color|blue|[[Karachay-Cherkessia|KC]]}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=43.80|long=43.10|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=bottom|label={{font color|blue|[[Kabardino-Balkaria|KB]]}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=45.20|long=41.50|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=right|label={{font color|blue|Stavropol Krai}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=43.30|long=44.30|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=bottom|label={{font color|blue|[[North Ossetia–Alania|Oss]]}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=43.00|long=45.00|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=top|label={{font color|blue|[[Ingushetia|Ing]]}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=43.60|long=45.90|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=bottom|label={{font color|blue|[[Chechnya|Cya]]}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=43.75|long=46.20|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=right|label={{font color|blue|[[Dagestan|Dag-<br/>est-<br/>an]]}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=46.50|long=41.00|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=top|label={{font color|red|Rostov Oblast}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=48.50|long=44.20|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=top|label={{font color|green|Volgograd Oblast}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=46.20|long=43.80|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=right|label={{font color|green|Kalmykia}}}}
{{Location map~|Russia Southern Federal District|lat=47.30|long=46.80|mark=Clear pog.svg|position=right|label={{font color|green|Ast-<br/>rakh-<br/>an<br/>Oblast}}}}
}}
Russian political subdivisions associated with the region include:
* [[Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic]] (Under [[RSFSR]])
* [[North Caucasian Federal District]]
* [[North Caucasian Soviet Republic]]
* [[North Caucasus economic region]]
* [[North Caucasus Krai|North Caucasian Krai]]
* [[North Caucasus Military District|North Caucasian Military District]]
* [[Southern Federal District]]

==Gallery==
<gallery class="center" widths="180px">
File:Map of Russia - North Caucasian Federal District.svg|Location of the North Caucasian Federal District
File:Russian Ground Forces - North Caucasus Military District Map.svg|Map of former North Caucasus Military District (''[[okrug]]'')
File:Map of Russia - North Caucasus economic region.svg|Map of modern-day North Caucasus Economic Region (''[[raion]]'')
File:Карачаево-Черкесия, Западный Кавказ, Софийская долина, горный массив и перевал София, Karachay-Cherkessia, Caucasus Mountains.jpg|Sophia Valley, [[Karachay-Cherkessia]]
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Portal|Europe|Russia|Geography}}
* [[Dolmens of the North Caucasus]]
* [[North-Caucasus Federal University]]
* [[North Caucasus Railway]]
* [[Saray-Gora]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Hamed-Troyansky |first=Vladimir |title=Empire of Refugees: North Caucasian Muslims and the Late Ottoman State |publisher=Stanford University Press |year=2024 |location=Stanford, CA |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c0vpEAAAQBAJ |isbn=978-1-5036-3696-5}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Moroney |first1=Jennifer |title=Ungoverned Territories: Understanding and Reducing Terrorism Risks |last2=Karasik |first2=Theodore |publisher=[[RAND Corporation]] |year=2007 |chapter=Case Study: The North Caucasus |pages=207–242 |jstor=10.7249/mg561af.19 |isbn=978-0-8330-4152-4 |chapter-url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/mg561af.19}}
* {{Cite book |last=Melvin |first=Neil J. |author-link=Neil Melvin |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep19207 |title=Building Stability in the North Caucasus: Ways Forward for Russia and the European Union |chapter=Ways Forward for Russia and the European Union |date=1 May 2007 |publisher=[[Stockholm International Peace Research Institute]] |pages=68}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Paul |first1=Christopher |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/j.ctt7zvzdn.12 |title=Mexico Is Not Colombia: Alternative Historical Analogies for Responding to the Challenge of Violent Drug-Trafficking Organizations, Supporting Case Studies |last2=Clarke |first2=Colin P. |last3=Serena |first3=Chad C. |publisher=RAND Corporation |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-8330-8447-7 |chapter=The Caucasus (1990–2012) |jstor=10.7249/j.ctt7zvzdn.12 |chapter-url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7249/j.ctt7zvzdn.12}}
* {{Cite book |last=Akayev |first=Vakhit Kh. |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep08066 |title=Chechen Scholars on Chechnya |date=1 January 2010 |publisher=[[Norwegian Institute of International Affairs]] |pages=88 |chapter=The Conflict between Traditional Islam and Wahhabism in the North Caucasus: Origins, Dynamics and the Means for its Resolution |chapter-url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep08066.6}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book| author = Zelkina, Anna | year =  | title = In Quest for God and Freedom: Sufi Responses to the Russian Advance in the North Caucasus | location =  | publisher =  | isbn =  | url =  | access-date =  }}{{full|date=April 2025}}
* {{cite book| author = Shaw, Denis J.B. | year =  | title = Russia in the Modern World: A New Geography | location =  | publisher = Institute of British Geographers | isbn =  | url =  | access-date =  }}{{full|date=April 2025}}

==External links==
* [http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/63/index-dk.html History of the Caucasus ]
* {{Commons category-inline|North Caucasus}}
* {{Wikivoyage-inline|North Caucasus}}
* Relations between The North and South Caucasus. Articles in the [http://www.laender-analysen.de/cad/pdf/CaucasusAnalyticalDigest27.pdf Caucasus Analytical Digest No. 27]

{{Regions of the world}}
{{Regions of Europe|state=collapsed}}
{{Russia topics}}
{{Soviet Union topics}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Eurasia]]
[[Category:North Caucasus|*]]
[[Category:Caucasus]]
[[Category:Southern Russia]]
[[Category:Regions of Russia]]
[[Category:Eastern Europe]]