Highlanders - who is this? Highlanders: freedom lovers of nature

About these peoples there is not much interesting information, because they have long preferred to live apart and in conjunction with nature. Who are the mountaineers? This will be the main topic of our study.

Great story

In the past centuries, the Russian people wandered a lot along the vast expanses, opening horizons, edges and steppes, conquering new territories. The first mention of the mountaineers goes far back in history. At the end of the XVIII century our ancestors-compatriots came to the right bank of the Kuban River in the North Caucasus. And they saw a picture of the settling of peoples calling themselves mountaineers. So for the first time, the designation of these people appeared, which has survived to this day. It is often said that mountain people are people living in the mountains. This is undoubtedly true: for life they choose predominantly high mountain areas.

Geographical location

A century later the Caucasus stabilized. Its north-western part was inhabited by a large number of peoples. They divided among themselves the entire territory of the picturesque region: the Black Sea coast, the upper reaches and the interfluvial rivers Belaya and Laba. If, for example, the Tapan people chose the Kuban plains, the Caucasian mountaineers remained in the mountains. For a long time they were deprived of the opportunity to engage in familiar things in full. The powers were still fighting for the Caucasus. Periodically the areas covered epidemics, raging diseases. One of the lessons remained cattle breeding. Not wanting to be in the center of the slaughter, at first the mountaineers bypassed the central regions, where they could fall under the bloody wars of the conquerors. Therefore, given the nature of their behavior, it is correct to say that mountain people are residents of mountain and foothill massifs.

Battles for the land

But to say that they did not take part in wars, it is impossible. The most famous of their battle is the Caucasian War, which lasted from 1817 to 1864. At that time, the Highlanders occupied the Main Range, and when the Russians were getting closer to the Caucasus, they exerted powerful resistance. But if the Russian soldiers were prepared and moved slowly but cautiously, the mountaineers, who did not possess impressive means of protection and weapons, often preferred to sit out in the mountain forests.

However, during the last years of the prolonged war, the mountaineers were fiercely and more actively defending their territories. They kept the Russian battalions in suspense, organized attacks and insurrections, took possession of the Mikhailovsky fortification, Lazarevsky and Nikolayevsky fort, and later built small factories for the production of cannons and weapons, which nevertheless remained to a level lower than those at the disposal of the Russian army.

Remain free

In the XIX century, a mass census of the population began. Data on the number were approximate. The mountaineers did not keep records, meeting such attempts very harshly. It is known that they did not like to let outsiders come. The ideology of these peoples considered it a sin to reckon. They feared that the data would reach the reigning authorities, which could increase tax oppression, impose a compulsory military appeal or even take measures to destroy the mountaineers. Their numbers have not been officially confirmed. But unequivocally, that it underwent changes due to the involvement of civil strife and the battles for defending the territory. Highlanders left their districts in search of a new life; Adjoined to other nationalities, of course, without any documentary registration.

Past and present

In the modern period, ethnographers often wondered: "Who are the mountaineers?" To trace the history of their development and formation, to compare with the current situation, they often went to the areas in which they lived. For example, near the city of Nalchik lived a large colony of Jewish highlanders. The travelers paid attention to the order in which they kept their modest dwellings. Cleanliness by right distinguished them from many European nations.

Carrying out the description, in a more generalized version, we can say that the mountaineers are wild tribal peoples with their own life principles. They were often called "children of nature." At the same time, this does not in the least diminish their humanity, spirituality, and sometimes even completely destroys the emerging stereotype of hermits. This people is known for its cheerful disposition. They were marked by readiness for peaceful relations, which, however, were often violated by wars. Highlanders participated in exchange yards, fairs, bazaars, supported the traditions of kuna-culture, formed their customs and way of life.

Lovers of the word, connoisseurs of beauty

Among the mountaineers there were good poets. They do not like to throw words into the wind. But especially focus on the surrounding landscape. Songs of highlanders certainly praise the face of their native land. Nature took part in everything that happened in their lives. In the songs the mountaineers often turned to rocks, rivers, forests and roads, believing that they could be asked for help, to find solace.