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{{Short description|Sub-ethnical division (social organization) of Chechen and Ingush people}}
{{For|the Norwegian motion picture production company|Teip Ltd.}}
{{Copy edit|for=grammar and cohesion|date=August 2025}}
{{italic title}}
[[File:Зумсой._1906_год_01.jpg|thumb|290x290px|Elders from the {{ill|Zumsoy|ru|Зумсой (тайп)}} teip, {{c.}} 1906.]]
A '''''teip''''' (also '''''taip''''', '''''tayp''''', '''''teyp'''''; [[Chechen language|Chechen]] and [[Ingush language|Ingush]]: тайпа, romanized: ''taypa'' {{IPA|cau|ˈtajpə|}}, {{lit.}} ''family'', ''kin'', ''clan'', ''tribe''<ref>Нохчийн-Оьрсийн словарь (Chechen-Russian Dictionary, A.G. Matsiyev, Moscow, 1961), ''also available online:'' [http://ingush.narod.ru/chech/dict/6/390.gif Чеченско-Русский словарь: "схьаIенадала-такхадала"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719062208/http://ingush.narod.ru/chech/dict/6/390.gif |date=2011-07-19 }}; ''and'' [http://ingush.narod.ru/lang/i-r.htm Ингушско-Русский словарь ''(online Ingush-Russian dictionary)''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121115071311/http://ingush.narod.ru/lang/i-r.htm |date=2012-11-15 }} {{in lang|ru}}</ref>) is a Chechen and Ingush [[tribe|tribal]] organization or [[clan]], self-identified through descent from a common [[ancestor]] or geographic location. It is a sub-unit of the [[tukkhum]] and [[Ingush societies|shahar]]. There are about 150 Chechen and 120 Ingush teips. Teips played an important role in the socioeconomic life of the Chechen and Ingush peoples before and during the [[Middle Ages]], and continue to be an important cultural part to this day.

==Traditional rules and features==
Common teip rules and some features include:<ref name=latautonomy>[http://www.latautonomy.org/TraditionalSocialOrganisationChechens.pdf Traditional Social Organisation of Chechen people] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719234640/http://www.latautonomy.org/TraditionalSocialOrganisationChechens.pdf |date=2011-07-19 }}</ref>
* The right of communal land tenure.
* Honor killing, if the honor of one of the members is violated, often applied in cases of murder, rape, denigrating remarks against a female member of the family, or in cases of homosexuality. This also concerns  women for non-marital relations, loss of virginity, adoption of deviant morals having dishonored the family. 
* Unconditional [[exogamy]]. (But marriages between members of the same clan are prohibited)
* Election of a teip representative.
* Election of a headman.
* Election of a military leader in case of war.
* Open sessions of the Council of Elders.
* The right of the teip to depose its representatives.
* Representation of women is done by male relatives.
* The right of adoption of outside people.
* The transfer of property of departed members to members of the teip.
* The teip has a defined territory.
* The teip constructed [[Vainakh medieval towers|a teip tower]] or another building or natural monument convenient as a shelter, e.g. a fortress.
* The teip had its own teip cemetery.
* The teip tradition of hospitality.

==Identity, land and descent==
Teips, as sub-units of [[tukkhum|tukkhums]], are traditionally thought to have members who descend from a common ancestor and are thus considered distant blood relatives. Teip names were often derived from an ancestral founder. As is true for many other North Caucasian peoples, [[Chechens|Chechen]] and [[Ingush people|Ingush]] men were traditionally expected to know the names and places of origin of their ancestors on their father's side, tracing back many generations, with seven generations being the most commonly recognized. Many women also memorized this information, and more dedicated individuals could often recite their maternal ancestral line as well. The memorization of this information serves as a way to instill clan loyalty in younger generations. Among the [[Ethnic groups in the Caucasus|peoples of the Caucasus]], large-scale land disputes were traditionally sometimes resolved through mutual knowledge of where and when ancestors had resided.<ref name="Jaimoukha90">{{cite book |author=Amjad Jaimoukha |title=The Chechens: A Handbook |editor=Nicholas Awde |page=90}}</ref>

A teip's ancestral land was held sacred because of its close connection to teip identity. It was typically marked by clan symbols, including the clan cemetery, tower, and sanctuary.<ref name=Jaimoukha90/> Due to the scarcity of land in mountainous Ingushetia and Chechnya, after the feudal system was overthrown, each teip claimed a specific area of land. Land boundaries were marked by stones with specific markings pointing to a local place of worship. Initially, land was owned collectively, but individual cultivation ultimately became the norm. In old Chechen and Ingush tradition, women were allowed to own land. The vehement Ingush and Chechen opposition to Soviet [[collectivization]] has been explained by the threat it posed to the traditional customs of land allotment.<ref name="Jaimoukha94">{{cite book |author=Amjad Jaimoukha |title=The Chechens: A Handbook |editor=Nicholas Awde |page=94}}</ref>

==Political function==
Each ''teip'' had an elected council of elders, a court of justice, and its own set of customs. The civilian chief, referred to as the ''thamda'' or ''kh'alkhancha'', chaired the council of elders. The ''baechcha'', meanwhile, was the military leader.<ref name=Jaimoukha90/>

==Subdivisions==
The teip has its own subdivisions, in order of their progressive nesting, the ''{{lang|ce|vaer}}'', the ''{{lang|ce|gar}}'', and the ''{{lang|ce|neqe}}''. The ''{{lang|ce|neqe}}'' consists of households sharing the same family name, while the ''{{lang|ce|gar}}'' is a number of ''{{lang|ce|neqe}}'' units that together form a common lineage, however that is not always the case. The basic social unit, meanwhile, was the household, consisting of the extended family spanning three or four generations, referred to as the ts'''a'' or the ''{{lang|ce|dözal}}'', with married daughters usually living with in the household of their spouse. Brothers would share the same land and livestock.<ref name="Jaimoukha91">{{cite book |author=Amjad Jaimoukha |title=The Chechens: A Handbook |editor=Nicholas Awde |page=91}}</ref>

==Formation of new teips==
The number of teips has been unstable in recent history. While there were 59 Chechen and Ingush teips in the early 19th century, this swelled to a hundred by the mid-19th century, and today there are about 170.<ref name=Jaimoukha90/> New teips could be founded when a large ''{{lang|ce|gar}}'' broke off and claimed the title of a full-fledged teip.<ref name=Jaimoukha91/>

== List of teips ==
Below is a list of teips with the Chechen ''[[tukkhum]]'' to which it may belong.

*'''Cheberloy''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru| Чебарлой }});
**Achaloy ({{langx|ru|Ачалой}});
**Nizhaloy ({{langx|ru|Нижалой}});
**Makazhoy ({{langx|ru|Макажой}});
**Rigakhoy ({{langx|ru|Ригахой}});
**Buni ({{langx|ru|Буни}});
*'''Sharoy''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru| Шарой }});
*'''[[Shatoy people|Shatoy]]''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru| Шотой }}); 
**Varandoy ({{langx|ru|Варандой}});
**Keloy ({{langx|ru|Келой}})
**Tumsoy ({{langx|ru|Тумсой}});
*'''Ovkhoy''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru|Ауховцы, Овхой}});
**[[Veappii]] ({{langx|ru|Вяппий}});
*'''Melkhi''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru|Мeлхий}});
*'''Nokhchmakhkakhoy''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru|Нохчмахкахой}});
**[[Alleroy]] ({{langx|ru|Алларой}});
**Belgatoy ({{langx|ru|Белгатой}});
**[[Benoy (teip)|Benoy]] ({{langx|ru|Беной}});
**Biltoy ({{langx|ru|Билтой}});
**Chartoy ({{langx|ru|Чартой}});
**Chermoy ({{langx|ru|Чермой}});
**Tsontaroy ({{langx|ru|Цонтарой}});
**Elistanzhkhoy ({{langx|ru|Элистанжхой}});
**Engnoy ({{langx|ru|Энганой}});
**Ersenoy ({{langx|ru|Эрсеной}});
**[[Gendargenoy]] ({{langx|ru|Гендаргеной}});
**Gordaloy ({{langx|ru|Гордалой}});
**Gunoy ({{langx|ru|Гуной }});
**[[Kharachoy]] ({{langx|ru|Харачой}});
**[[Kurchaloy]] ({{langx|ru|Курчалой}});
**Shonoy ({{langx|ru|Шуоной}});
**Yalkhoy ({{langx|ru|Ялхой}});
**[[Zandkhoy]] ({{langx|ru|Зандкъой}});
*'''[[Orstkhoy]]''' tukkhum (Russian: Орстхой);
**Tsechoy ({{langx|ru|Цечой}});
**Anastoy ({{langx|ru|Анастой}});
**Galay ({{langx|ru|Галай}});
**Ghoandaloy ({{langx|ru|Гандалой}});	
**Merzhoy ({{langx|ru|Мержой}});
**Guloy ([[Russian language|Russian]]: Гулой);
**Yalkharoy ({{langx|ru|Ялхарой}});
**Khaikharoy ({{langx|ru|Хевхарой}});
*'''Chantiy''' tukkhum ({{langx|ru|Чантий}});
**Chanti ({{langx|ru|Чанти}});
* [[Tukkhum]] is not known / Without a [[Tukkhum]];
**[[Chinkhoy]] ({{langx|ru|Чинахой}});
**Dishni ({{langx|ru|Дишни}});
**Marshaloy ({{langx|ru|Маршалой}});
**Mulkoy ({{langx|ru|Мулкой}});
**Nashkhoy ({{langx|ru|Нашхой}});
**Peshkhoy ({{langx|ru|Пешхой}});
**Satoy ({{langx|ru|Сатой}});
**Turkoy ({{langx|ru|Туркой}});
**[[Terloy]] ({{langx|ru|Терлой}});
**Khindkhoy ({{langx|ru|Хиндхой}});
**Kalkhoy ({{langx|ru|Калхой}});
**Yalkhoroy ({{langx|ru|Ялхорой}});
**Zumsoy ({{langx|ru|Зумсой}});
**Zurzaqoy ({{langx|ru|Зурзакхой}}).

As well as a list of teips included in the ethno-territorial Ingush societies ''[[Ingush societies|Shahar]]'':

*'''[[Dzherakh|Zhayrakhoy]]''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Джераховцы}});
**Ahrievs ({{langx|ru|Ахриевы}});
**Borovs ({{langx|ru|Боровы}});
**Lyanovs ({{langx|ru|Льяновы}});
**Tsurovs ({{langx|ru|Цуроевы}});
**Khamatkhanovs ({{langx|ru|Хаматхановы}});
*'''[[Fyappiy]]''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Фяппий}});
**Gelatkhoy ({{langx|ru|Гелатхой}});
**Kharpkhoy ({{langx|ru|Харпхой}});
**Salgkhoy ({{langx|ru|Салгхой}});
**[[Torshkhoy]] ({{langx|ru|Торшхой}});
**Korakhoy ({{langx|ru|Корахой}});
**Väppiy ({{langx|ru|Вяппий}});
*'''[[Khamkhins|Khamkhoy]]''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Хамхинцы}});
**Egikhoy ({{langx|ru|Эгихой}});
**Khamkhoy ({{langx|ru|Хамхой}});
**Targimkhoy ({{langx|ru|Таргимхой}});
**Barakhoy ({{langx|ru|Барахой}});
**Barkinkhoy ({{langx|ru|Баркинхой}});
**Tumkhoy ({{langx|ru|Тумхой}});
**Barkkhanoy ({{langx|ru|Баркханой}});
**Leimoy ({{langx|ru|Леймой}});
**Khulkhoy ({{langx|ru|Хулхой}});
*'''[[Tsorins|Tshoroy]]''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Цоринцы}});
**Tshoroy ({{langx|ru|Цхьорой}});
**Ozdoy ({{langx|ru|Оздой}})
**Mokhloy ({{langx|ru|Мохлой}})
*'''[[Galashians|Galashkakhoy]]''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Галашевцы}});
*'''[[Orstkhoy]]''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Орстхой}});
**Ghoandaloy ({{langx|ru|Гандалой}});
**Tsechoy ({{langx|ru|Цечой}});
**Anastoy ([[Russian language|Russian]]: Анастой);
**Galay ({{langx|ru|Галай}});
**Belharoy ({{langx|ru|Белхарой}});
**Merzhoy ({{langx|ru|Мержой}});
**Guloy ({{langx|ru|Гулой}});
**Muzhakhoy ({{langx|ru|Мужахой}});
**Khaikharoy ({{langx|ru|Хайхарой}});
**Yalkharoy ({{langx|ru|Ялхарой}});
*'''Chulkhoy''' Shahar ({{langx|ru|Чулхой}});

==See also==
*[[Tukkhum]]
*[[History of Chechnya]]
*[[History of Chechnya#Religion|Medieval history of Christianity in Chechnya]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
=== Russian sources ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book|editor-last1=Ибрагимов|editor-first1=Х. И.|editor-last2=Тишков|editor-first2=В. А.|editor-last3=Осмаев|editor-first3=А. Д.|editor-last4=Устинова |editor-first4=М. Я.|year=2006 |url=https://na5ballov.pro/lib/kray/9853-ibragimov-hi-tishkov-va-otv-red-chechenskaya-respublika-i-chechency-istoriya-i-sovremennost.html|title=Чеченская Республика и чеченцы: история и современность|trans-title=Chechen Republic and Chechens: history and modernity|language=ru |location=М.|publisher=Наука|pages=1–575 |isbn=5-02-034016-2|ref={{harvid|Чеченская Республика и Чеченцы: история и современность|2006}}}}
* {{Cite book|last=Ибрагимов|first=М.-Р. А.|year=2002 |chapter=Чеченцы|trans-chapter=Chechens|editor-last1=Арутюнов|editor-first1=С.А.|editor-last2=Османов|editor-first2=А.И.|editor-last3=Сергеева|editor-first3=Г.А. |url=https://instituteofhistory.ru/media/library/publication/files/%D0%9D%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B4%D1%8B_%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%B3%D0%B5%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B0._%D0%AD%D0%BD%D1%86%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%BF%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%B8%D1%8F_2002.pdf|title=Народы Дагестана|trans-title=Peoples of Dagestan |series=Народы и Культуры|language=ru|location=М. |publisher=Наука|pages=460–472|isbn=5-02-008808-0}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
*[http://www.chechen.org/content.php?catID=123 Teips on chechen.org] (In Russian )
*[http://www.siue.edu/~rware/After_the_Referendum.pdf Russia and Eurasia Review] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130516205709/http://www.siue.edu/~rware/After_the_Referendum.pdf |date=2013-05-16 }} (pdf)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110719234640/http://www.latautonomy.org/TraditionalSocialOrganisationChechens.pdf Traditional social organisation of the Chechens] (pdf)
*[http://www.waynakh.com/eng/chechens/tribal-unions-and-clans A complete list of all Chechen Teips]

[[Category:Chechnya]]
[[Category:Kinship and descent]]
[[Category:Nakh peoples]]
[[Category:Nakh culture]]
[[Category:Tribes of the Caucasus]]