| Dagestan | |
 | |
Location  | |
Coat of arms and flag   | |
| State | Russia |
|---|---|
| Region | Southern Russia |
| Capital | Machačkala |
| Surface | 50,300 km2 |
| Inhabitants | 2.910.249 (2010 census) |
| Institutional website | |
 | ATTENTION: We strongly advise against visiting Dagestan at this historic time. Event already past At the moment, the risks of violence, attacks and kidnappings by Islamic fundamentalists are still very high, especially on the border with Chechnya. |
Dagestan or Republic of Dagestan (in Russian Республика Дагестан) is a region of Russia, located in the Ciscaucasia.
To know
Geographical notes
The republic is located in the North Caucasus. It is the southernmost part of Russia, and is bordered on the eastern side of the Caspian Sea. It borders to the southwest with the Georgia, west with the Chechnya, northwest with the Stavropol Territory ', North Republic of Kalmykia towards the south side fromAzerbaijan; while to the east the country is bathed by the Caspian Sea.
Background
Its long history begins to be known with the scarce information provided by the Greek geographer Strabo who spoke of populations he called Degai or Ghelai. Certainly influenced by the Sasanian Persian culture, Dagestan and some of its prominent exponents were called Tabarsaran-shah (lords of Tabarsaran), referring to the area lying west of the city of Derbent. Partially Christianized around the 5th-6th century AD. (the Alans were famously Christians), Dagestan fell into the Arab-Muslim orbit in the Umayyad age but Judaism was also of considerable importance, expressed through the culture of the Khazars, builders of an empire that will be overwhelmed by the Russians only in the 10th century AD Between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the territories of Dagestan were part of the so-called Mongolian Golden Horde. It was under Tamerlane that the country experienced a more pronounced Islamization but it was under the Ottomans that the entire Caspian area was permanently part of the so-called dār al-Islām, articulated in the three feudal entities of the Shāmkhālat Qāzī Qūmūq, the smiyat of Qaytāk and the Ma 'suūmat del Tabarsarān. The Caspian area was disputed by the Russians to the Ottomans for a long time, starting with the Russian conquest of Astrakhan' but it was only in the 19th century that the Russians managed to win the game. Peter the Great had already sent an armed expedition in 1722 that had taken possession of Derbend and two years later, in a treaty, the Ottomans recognized the possessions they had earned to Russia.A part of Dagestan (the southern) was ceded in 1732 ( and then with a new Treaty of 1735) from the Russians to Nadir Shah, creator of a reconstituted Persian empire. Between the 1970s and 1980s of that same century, however, Russia acted forcefully to bring the areas of Dagestan back under its control. In 1796 Derbend was again occupied under the reign of Catherine II but a definitive conquest was possible only in 1806 and the situation was sanctioned by the Persians with the peace of Golestan (1813). of the popular-religious movement led by the Muslim Ghazi Muhammad (called by the Russians "Qāzī Mulla"), defeated only in 1832. His son Hamza Beg and, after him, Shāmil continued the revolt and for a quarter of a century the mountains of Dagestan, unified in the Imamate of the Caucasus, they were almost closed to the Russian forces. After the surrender of Shāmil to Prince Baryatinski (1859), Dagestan participated in the Russo-Ottoman hostilities of 1877, a date after which there were no further changes until 1917. One Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was established in 1920 and Dagestan, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, maintained its ties with the newly formed Russian Federation, becoming involved in the Islamic fundamentalist entities that have found their main base in neighboring Chechnya.
Spoken languages
Multiculturalism is the strong point of Dagestan, a region inhabited since the dawn of time by the most diverse ethnic groups. More than thirty different languages are spoken here. Most of these belong to the North Caucasian stock and are semi-intelligible to each other.Russian, today the official language, has spread only since the twentieth century while until then it was Arabic to be used as an official language and lingua franca with neighboring peoples. The stingy dialect of the city of Chunzach it is widespread throughout central Dagestan, even among non-native speakers.
Territories and tourist destinations
Urban centers
- Machačkala (МахIачхъала or Махачкала) - Capital of the Republic of Dagestan, it was founded in its present form in the 1700s by Peter the Great who spent some of his time here while traveling in the Caucasus. More ancient, on the same place stood the city of Tarki. Heavily damaged by the earthquake, Machačkala is the vital center of Dagestan.
- Bujnaksk (Буйнакск) - Between the mountains of the Greater Caucasus and bathed by the river Šuraozen ', it is the capital of the Bujnakskij district.
- Chasavjurt (Хасавюрт) - A very important city of Dagesta, in 1996, it was the scene of negotiations between Russia and Chechnya for the cessation of the First Chechen war.
- Dagestanskie Each (Дагестанские Огни) - It rises along the western Caspian coast, in the northern foothills of the Greater Caucasus, about 120 kilometers south of the capital Machačkala. The city was founded in 1914 as a settlement attached to a glass factory then under construction. The name of the city, which in Russian means fires of Dagestan, refers to the use of the local natural gas as a source of energy for the construction and operation of the glass factory.
- Derbent (Дербейнт) - The oldest city in Russia, a UNESCO site and home to countless cultural treasures. Derbent is the second most important city of the Republic.
- Izberbash (Избербаш)
- Južno-Suchokumsk (Южно-Сухокумск) - It rises on the Suchaja Kuma river from which it takes its name.
- Kaspijsk (Каспийск)
- Kizljar (Кизляр) - It rises in the central part of the Republic, in the Terek delta area, about 170 kilometers northwest of the capital Machačkala.
- Tindi (Тинди) - Picturesque village in the mountains with a beautiful mosque.
Other destinations
- Dagestan Nature Reserve (Дагестанский заповедник) - The reserve was created in the 1980s and contains some cultural beauties of the mainland as well as the shores of the Caspian Sea with its marine ecosystem.
How to get
By plane
The only airport frequented by tourists and visitors is that of the capital, Machačkala, with flights from Moscow. Please note that security at the airport is very tight.
On the train
The best train ride is the one starting from Rostov-on-Don passing through Mineral'nye Vody.
How to get around
Almost the only way to get around Dagestan are the maršrutki, or a kind of private minibus that people make available for an unofficial "ticket" to take you around. You will find them everywhere and they are the best way to get around.
It is absolutely not recommended to rent a vehicle on your own, since you would almost certainly be the target of thieves or robbers, without contacting the unpleasant possible encounters with corrupt law enforcement.
What see
What to do
At the table
Safety
Before embarking on the journey consult:
- Safe travel - Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Farnesina) (Country safety information).
