Caucasus

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This article is about the geographic region in Eurasia. For other uses, see Caucasus (disambiguation) and Caucasia (disambiguation)
Geopolitical map
Geopolitical map
A 1994 map of the Caucasus region, including the locations of valuable resources shared by the many states in the area: alunite, gold, chromium, copper, iron ore, mercury, manganese, molybdenum, lead, tungsten, zinc, oil, natural gas, and coal.
A 1994 map of the Caucasus region, including the locations of valuable resources shared by the many states in the area: alunite, gold, chromium, copper, iron ore, mercury, manganese, molybdenum, lead, tungsten, zinc, oil, natural gas, and coal.

The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus ) is a geopolitical region located between Europe, Asia & Middle East. It is one of the most linguistically and culturally diverse regions on Earth, home to Europe's highest mountains ( Mount Elbrus, Mount Kazbek ). Caucasian culture & languages are considered to be some of the oldest in the world, often featured in ancient Greek mythology ( Prometheus, Argonauts ) and represented in the Ancient Olympics. The region gave its name to the Caucasian race, where Europeans are thought to have originated.

Historically, the region has been fiercely independent, resisting invasions of Roman, Arab, Persian, Mongol and Russian armies, contributing to a formation of legendary warrior culture among the Caucasian highlanders symbolized by the Dzhigit warrior. The term Caucasus usually refers to the region and peoples of modern North Caucasus, but is also applied to the nations south of the Caucasus mountains.

North Caucasus comprises of:


South Caucasus comprises of:

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[edit] Etymology

Caucasians are descendants of Caucas, who was a son of Targamos, grandson of Biblical Noah's third son Japheth. According to legend, after the fall of the Tower of Babel and the division of humanity into different languages, Targamos settled with his 12 sons between two inaccessible mountains. Caucas was Targamos's seventh son.


[edit] Geography

The Caucasus Mountains are generally perceived to be a dividing line between Asia and Europe, and territories in Caucasia are alternately considered to be in one or both continents. The highest peak in the Caucasus is Mount Elbrus (5,642 m) which, in the western Ciscaucasus in Russia, is generally considered the highest point in Europe.

The Caucasus is one of the most linguistically and culturally diverse regions on Earth. The nation-states that comprise the Caucasus today are the post-Soviet states Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Russian divisions include Krasnodar Krai, Stavropol Krai, and the autonomous republics of Adygea, Kalmykia, Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia, Ingushetia, Chechnya, and Dagestan. Three territories in the region claim independence but are not acknowledged as nation-states by the international community: Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh and South Ossetia.

The Caucasus is an area of great ecological importance. It harbors some 6,400 species of higher plants, 1,600 of which are endemic to the region.[1] Its native animals include leopards, brown bears, wolves, European bisons, <a href="/wiki/East_European_red_deer" title="East European red de