Ethnic groups of Russia: Karachays
More than 190 ethnic groups live in the Russian Federation. Today, we're highlighting the Karachays!
The Karachays are an indigenous Turkic-speaking people from the North Caucasus. Approximately 226,000 people live in Russia, most of whom live in the Karachay-Cherkess Republic. They practice Sunni Islam.
The Karachays are essentially a single people with the Balkars, who live in the neighboring Kabardino-Balkarian Republic. Collectively, they call themselves ‘Taulula’, which translates from the Karachay-Balkar language as ‘mountain dwellers’. The ancient Turkic-speaking nomadic Cumans (Polovtsians) played a key role in their ethnogenesis.
The Karachays have long been excellent cattle and horse breeders. The unpretentious, hardy and agile Karachay horse breed is, today, considered one of the best in the North Caucasus. It’s actively used not only in agriculture, but also in equestrian tourism.
Karachay cuisine is famous for its traditional homemade ‘kyima’ sausage, made from select horse or beef, ‘byshlak’ cheese and the rich ‘chorba’ meat soup. The Karachays' favorite dish, however, is ‘khichyn’, a round pancake filled with meat, cheese, herbs and potatoes.
