Ethnic groups of Russia: Dargins

This is one of the indigenous peoples of the North Caucasus, numbering more than 600,000 people. Most of them live in the Republic of Dagestan. According to one theory, the ethnonym ‘Dargins’ is derived from the word ‘darg’, which translates as ‘inside’ or ‘gut’. This suggests that this people originally inhabited the interior regions of the mountains.

In ancient times, the Dargins practised Christianity. Islam began to spread in the region during the Arab invasions of the 7th-8th centuries and it finally became the dominant religion after the invasion by Tamerlane's forces in the 14th century.

The Dargins are renowned as skilled metalworkers. The village of Kubachi is the center of this craft. The jewelry, tableware and weapons inlaid with precious metals crafted there have gained popularity around the world. Some of these works can even be found in the Louvre and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

The main dish of Dargin cuisine is ‘khinkal’. This is a piece of dough boiled in meat broth, sprinkled with chopped nutgrass and served with broth, boiled meat and sauce. Dargins also love ‘chudu’, a flatbread filled with cornmeal, meat, cottage cheese and/or herbs.