Udi people
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Udis | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total population | ||||||||||||
| Regions with significant populations | ||||||||||||
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| Languages | ||||||||||||
| Udi and Russian | ||||||||||||
| Religions | ||||||||||||
| Armenian Apostolic and Georgian Orthodox Christianity [6] | ||||||||||||
| Related ethnic groups | ||||||||||||
| Lezgins, Tabasarans, Avars, and other Northeast Caucasian peoples |
The Udis (also referred to as Udins or Udz) are an ethnic group native to the Caucasus. They live in Azerbaijan (the Qabala and Oguz rayons), Russia (the Rostov Oblast and the Krasnodar Krai), Georgia (the Kvareli district of the Kakheti province), and Armenia (the Tavush marz). Their total population is about 8,000 and they speak Udi, a Northeast Caucasian language.[7]
The Udis are considered to be the descendants of the people of Caucasian Albania. According to the classical authors, the Udis inhabited the area of the eastern Caucasus along the coast of the Caspian Sea, and a territory extending to the River Kuba in the north, as well as the ancient province of Utik, which many historians believe was named after them.[6] The Caucasian Albanians were a Christian people whose alphabet is derived from Armenian and Georgian.[8] Even today, most Udis belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church.[9][6] Centuries of life in the sphere of Perso-Islamic culture made a relevant impact on the Udi culture and mentality. This trace is noticeable in Udi folk traditions and the material culture.[6]
[edit] References
- ^ The Sociolinguistics Situation of the Udi in Azerbaijan - John M. Clifton, Deborah A. Clifton, Peter Kirk, and Roar Ljøkjell
- ^ a b "Ethnic Groups in Georgia # 3 – Udis", The Georgian Times, 2008-04-17. Retrieved on 2008-04-17.
- ^ "Population by ethnic groups" The State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan
- ^ Ethnical composition of the Population of the Russian Federation (2002)
- ^ "Muslim Kurds and Christian Udis", Hetq Online, 2006-11-13. Retrieved on 2006-11-13.
- ^ a b c d The Red Book of Peoples: The Udis
- ^ An Ethnohistorical Dictionary of the Russian and Soviet Empires - Page 665 by James Stuart Olson, Lee Brigance Pappas, Nicholas Charles Pappas
- ^ Endoclitics and the Origins of Udi Morphosyntax - Page 198 by Alice C. Harris
- ^ Dictionary of Languages: The Definitive Reference to More Than 400 Languages - Page 110 by Andrew Dalby
