Speaker of Parliament Anatoly Bibilov, KGB officer Alan Gagloyev and current head of the republic Leonid Tibilov are running for the post of President of South Ossetia. It was he who repeatedly came up with the initiative for a referendum.
Therefore, voters will also have to answer yes or no to the question of whether they agree with the amendment of part 1 of Article 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Ossetia as follows: “The Republic of South Ossetia - the State of Alania is a sovereign democratic state created as a result of self-determination of the people of the Republic of South Ossetia ... The names "Republic of South Ossetia" and "State of Alania" are equivalent. "
- President of South Ossetia Leonid Tibilov
- RIA News
According to Leonid Tibilov, he made the decision to hold the referendum "guided by the desire of the people of the Republic of South Ossetia to restore the ancient name of their state as an integral part of the cultural and historical heritage and their identity."
On April 7, Georgian Foreign Minister Mikhail Janelidze and the US State Department condemned the fact of the referendum, calling it illegitimate.
Right to Alanya
Iranian-speaking nomadic tribes of Scythian-Sarmatian origin are called Alans. The unification of the Alanian and Caucasian tribes led to the emergence of the kingdom of Alania, which existed in the I-XIV centuries and fell under the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols. Historically, Alania was the name of the territory occupied today by Ingushetia, Chechnya, Kabardino-Balkaria, partly Dagestan and North Ossetia.
So, in the fall of 1994, the Republic of North Ossetia added the word "Alania" to its name.
In 1998, the authorities of Ingushetia gave the new capital, founded in 1994, the name Magas - the same as the capital of historical Alania. In the opinion of the Ingush, a new city was built in its place.
In 2015, on the initiative of Mayor Magas Beslan Tsechoev, the triumphal arch "Alanskiye Vorota" was erected. At its official opening, the head of the republic, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, said: "Alan Gates" should serve as a reminder of the glorious history of the people, our ancestors. "
- Arch "Alan Gate" at the entrance to the city of Magas
- RIA News
At the end of February 2017, a petition "Rename the current Republic of Ingushetia to the Republic of Alania" was published on the Change.org website.
The reaction from the Ossetian society was not long in coming. On March 5, in the capital of North Ossetia, Vladikavkaz, about 500 people protested against the renaming of Ingushetia. Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, in response, assured the Ossetians that there was no question of renaming Ingushetia into Alania.
Claims to the Alanian inheritance and Karachay-Cherkessia. Here are the preserved monuments of the Alanian period - the complex of Zelenchuk temples in the area of the village of Arkhyz. The Karachais are convinced that the capital, Magas, was located there, and not on the lands of modern Ingushetia. In February 2017, the Karachais even appealed to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with a request not to allow South Ossetia to be renamed Alania, as this "fundamentally contradicts the real facts of history."
History and political context
It is interesting that from a historical point of view, most likely, everyone is right: the ancestors of both the Ossetians, the Ingush, and the Karachai-Balkars were part of the tribal union of Alans, which became the basis for the formation of the influential Alanian kingdom. Both the republics within Russia and the partially recognized independent state of South Ossetia want to be the true heirs of Alania.
“Historically, it was believed that the heritage of the Alans is the only ancient state that existed in the North Caucasus, which has a certain powerful and warlike image. Of course, many peoples would like to adopt such a legacy of their ancestors, "Yevgeny Krutikov, a political scientist and expert on the problems of the Caucasus, emphasized in an interview with RT.
In his opinion, for South Ossetia the change of name could really become a turning point in its history: “The question is not only in linguistics, but in the fact that the president who will be elected could produce a new economic reconstruction program relying on his own strength. All this can be presented as the creation of a new Alanian state ”.
There are many examples when countries renamed themselves for ideological reasons, the expert continues.
“Of course, the people will vote on emotions for the most part without going into the political component. People are annoyed by the very word "Ossetia", because it is of Georgian origin. And so they can already say: "We are building a new state - Alania", - said Yevgeny Krutikov.
Igor Dulaev, a political scientist, a member of the expert council of the Ministry of Ethnic Affairs of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, adds that, most likely, this will be followed by the expansion of economic cooperation between Russia and South Ossetia, the deepening of partnership in the defense sphere.
On April 9, simultaneously with the presidential elections in South Ossetia, a referendum will be held on "returning the republic's historical name." In addition to the current name of the republic, it is proposed to give one more, equivalent - "State of Alania". The head of the republic, Leonid Tibilov, declares that the renaming "will create conditions and prerequisites" for the republic to become part of the Russian Federation. Kommersant correspondent NATALIA KORCHENKOVA studied the mood in South Ossetia on the eve of the voting day.
South Ossetia has been living with an undefined legal status for the third decade already. Apart from Russia, its independence has so far been recognized only by Nicaragua, Venezuela and the Pacific islands of Nauru and Tuvalu (as well as other unrecognized and partially recognized republics, including Abkhazia, Transnistria, LPR and DPR). South Ossetia even has an ambassador to Nicaragua and Venezuela. True, in order to save money, the diplomatic mission is based in the capital of the republic, Tskhinvali, which is here called "Tskhinvali" - in the Ossetian manner. The republic's budget mainly consists of financial assistance to Russia (see reference).
Simultaneously with the presidential elections in South Ossetia, a referendum will be held on the return to the country of its "historical name" - Alania. Leonid Tibilov said that the renaming "will create conditions and prerequisites for the entry of United Alania into the Russian Federation." Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili called it "the next step towards the subsequent annexation of the occupied territories."
Partially recognized candidate
Eight and a half years after the "five-day war" houses reminiscent of battles - riddled with shells, with pierced facades or completely destroyed - are not uncommon here. The Tskhinvali department store, which burned down in August 2008, was never rebuilt. But the State Dramatic Theater is under construction, in the Vincenzo cafe you can connect to free Wi-Fi, and advertising flashing with colored lights invites you to enter the Adrenaline club on Stalin Street.
Three are registered as presidential candidates: the current head Leonid Tibilov, the head of the South Ossetian parliament, Lieutenant General Anatoly Bibilov and the republic's KGB officer Alan Gagloyev. Eduard Kokoity, who ruled South Ossetia in 2001-2011, was denied registration. The Central Election Commission (CEC), and then the Supreme Court of the republic, found that his candidacy did not meet the residency requirement. This requirement was introduced back in 2001: only a person who had permanently resided in South Ossetia for ten years could become a presidential candidate. Under Eduard Kokoity, a clarification was introduced: "the last ten years." Now, almost every day, supporters of Mr. Kokoity gather for rallies demanding to restore his registration and dismiss the government: according to the ex-president's supporters, an average of 3,000 participants attend rallies. According to the administration of the republic, ten times fewer people go out on the street. But law enforcement officers still, just in case, guard the city center with the support of paddy wagons.
On a weekday, at the headquarters of Mr. Kokoity, a meeting of supporters came - not less than one and a half hundred people. The leader appears amid cheers and applause, and urges "not to give up": according to him, "serious consultations are underway in Moscow" on "equal conditions" for all nominated candidates. Eduard Kokoity assures Kommersant that the protests will be exclusively peaceful: “Our task is to prevent an aggravation of the confrontation, where, on the one hand, and on the other hand, the people who defended South Ossetia achieved recognition of its independence. These people have military experience behind them. and I would not want them to apply this experience now. " He calls the refusal of registration "unprecedented". For example, as evidence of non-compliance with the residency requirement, the court was presented with “falsified journals” about crossing the border. "Our border guards don't wear white gloves. And here the paper is white and white. Near the magazine, which supposedly spent a year at the post in the mountains," says the ex-president. In addition, he adds, there is virtually no registration of those entering the republic. Eduard Kokoity says that "he was less involved in" social and political life "by agreement with the administration of" South Ossetia: "It was considered that Eduard Dzhabeevich was not in the republic."
The ex-president is persistently seeking a meeting with his successor: Leonid Tibilov allegedly promised to meet, but "the next morning he renounced his words." In addition, Mr. Tibilov hid the Chevrolet Niva car in his election declaration, says Mr. Kokoity, and in general "is completely under the control of those external forces that want to deprive the people of South Ossetia of the right to choose." Eduard Kokoity admits that he is referring to the aide to the President of the Russian Federation Vladislav Surkov: “He completely failed and is failing the instructions of the President (Vladimir Putin.— "B") in all directions. Donetsk, Lugansk, Abkhazia, South Ossetia - tell me, where is it calm, where is it stable? "
At rallies in support of Leonid Tibilov, Eduard Kokoity is asked "not to interfere with development and stability." In an interview with Kommersant, the head of South Ossetia notes that Eduard Kokoity himself is the "author of the wording" (about compulsory residence in the republic "for the last ten years"). "The court decision is final and, of course, no one will change it," the president emphasizes, and he could meet with an opponent if he stopped "holding meetings and disturbing public peace." “I am making every effort so that there is no tension in society,” emphasizes Leonid Tibilov.
Referendum on Russian territory
On February 6, Leonid Tibilov signed a decree on holding a referendum in South Ossetia - voting will be organized on the same day as the presidential election "in order to save money," he explained to Kommersant. It is proposed to approve for the republic a second, equivalent name - "State of Alania". Part of Russia, North Ossetia added Alania to its name in January 1995.
The renaming is fundamentally important for the Ossetians, who consider themselves the descendants of the ancient Alans. "Having appeared in the 1st century AD, by the 10th century the so-called Alanian early feudal state was already a fairly large state association. It then included all the peoples of the North Caucasus, the population totaled 2 million people. But after the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols, Alania as such disappeared, "the first president of South Ossetia, chief researcher of the Department of Cultural Anthropology of South Ossetians at the Vladikavkaz Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ludvig Chibirov, tells Kommersant.
The attempts of other peoples to call themselves Alans are jealous here. When a petition appeared on the Internet in early March 2017 about "renaming Ingushetia to Alania", a protest rally was held in Vladikavkaz. In the absence of such plans, the protesters had to convince the heads of both republics. "People who can write or read in elementary fashion - all of them have become historians today," Ludwig Chibirov says indignantly. He supports the renaming of South Ossetia: "We have a common history, language, culture, and the common name will bring us even closer as a single ethnic whole. Unification with Russia is the age-old dream of our people." North Ossetia does not object to the inhabitants of the south getting a similar name, confirms a member of the National Policy Committee of the North Ossetian parliament Vitaly Cheldiev (Patriots of Russia): the Ossetians in the north and in the south are a "single people" who simply live on different sides of the Main Caucasian ridge.
Holders of South Ossetian passports will also be able to vote in elections and referendums at consulates in Abkhazia, Moscow and North Ossetia, where many people from the south live. According to official data, the population of South Ossetia is about 53 thousand people. But in fact, it is home to 35-37 thousand, the interlocutors of Kommersant in the republic admit: many have moved to Vladikavkaz and other cities of Russia, and even more could have illegally obtained South Ossetian passports. After a discussion on the illegal issuance of documents that unfolded in early 2017, the KGB of South Ossetia stated that "under the previous government, more than 10,000 passport blanks were stolen," but all these passports are "on the wanted list."
In North Ossetia, it was planned to open two polling stations (both at the consulate of South Ossetia), but in early March, the Central Election Commission of South Ossetia announced the opening of a third - in the Prigorodny District. Leonid Tibilov approves of this decision: "There were a lot of appeals from the residents of North Ossetia. To deprive them of their right to vote would be against the law."
In the office of Anatoly Bibilov in the office of his party "United Ossetia" - a portrait of Sergei Shoigu, painted in oil. The candidate tells Kommersant that they decided to open an additional site after the expiry of the legal deadline. "We have a consulate. Why open a site somewhere else? It is absolutely illegal to distribute passports of the republic, which many compatriots need in order to register a car in South Ossetia (customs clearance of a car in the republic is several times cheaper than in the Russian Federation.) - "B") ", - explains the candidate. But people who" do not live in the republic, are not engaged in solving its problems, "" should not have the right to elect its president. "
A political strategist who worked in the South Ossetian elections told Kommersant that the main field for "administrative resources and machinations" is in North Ossetia, where polling stations are less well controlled by observers. “The passports of South Ossetia are marked with voting marks. But a person can, for example, vote in the north and, without receiving this mark, go to the south to vote again on the same day (this is three to four hours away. - "B") ", - says the source of Kommersant. At the same time, Anatoly Bibilov, the technologist notes, is conducting an active campaign. A couple of days after Leonid Tibilov's meeting with Vladimir Putin, he met with the head of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko.
Several hundred of his supporters come to the pre-election meeting with Anatoly Bibilov in Tskhinvali. The flags of United Alania, a youth movement supporting the candidate, fly over the crowd. In the Ossetian language, the candidate urges "not to divide people on the eve of the elections into Tibilovites, Bibilovites and Kokoitites": "We need to unite and bravely, with great love for the Motherland and our people, show a worthy example to the younger generation!" After the rally, the participants gather in a circle and perform the Honga folk dance.
Not everyone in South Ossetia agrees that the renaming into "State of Alania" will help to unite under one flag with North Ossetia
"There is practically no entertainment in the republic except elections"
For the fact that South Ossetia should become a part of Russia, everyone in the republic is without exception. But not everyone agrees that the renaming contributes to this. Anatoly Bibilov believes that the new name should not contain the word "state". "People do not divide South and North Ossetia and want our republic to be called similarly: South Ossetia - Alania. We always say that we are a divided people, and we must show this division even in the names of our republics," the candidate explains. He is convinced that this will hinder the potential entry into Russia: "What will the state do in the state? There is no such entity in the Russian Federation that would be called" the state of Chechnya "or" the state of Kabardino-Balkaria ", which means that there can be no state of Alania . This is a referendum. Give the people a choice! "
Leonid Tibilov assures that the wording "State of Alania" will not prevent "the republic from joining Russia when making such a decision in the Russian Federation." "Personally, at the very beginning, I thought that the republic should be called identical to North Ossetia," he says. But then "historians and legal scholars studied the issue" and came to the conclusion that after the disappearance of the state of Alania "it has been 600 years since we lost our statehood." Eduard Kokoity believes that the republic should have only one name "State of Alania", and the nationality "Alan" or "Alanka" should be indicated in the passports: "There is no need to take half steps."
In fact, the referendum is intended to ensure a high turnout, and at the same time can add popularity to its formal initiator Leonid Tibilov, Kommersant's interlocutors in South Ossetia say. This is a good pre-election move, because residents "associate the topic of integration with Russia with security," notes Vitaly Cheldiev. The level of political participation in the republic is already quite high. For example, the 2011 presidential elections were held in two rounds and ended with protests and the appointment of a repeat election. The new presidential elections in April 2012 were also held in two rounds, in both of which the turnout exceeded 70%. A political strategist who worked in South Ossetia says that "the people perceive the elections well, because they lack action - there are practically no other entertainments in the republic." expectation of change and sacredly believed in politicians. "
"I tell them: stop celebrating, start working"
Kommersant's interlocutors, close to the leadership of South Ossetia, have no doubt that the issue of the republic's entry into Russia will be postponed: Russia does not need either tension in the North Caucasus or new economic sanctions. In the republic, rubles are already used, the majority of the population has Russian passports and, accordingly, the right to vote in Russian elections, and South Ossetian military units will be able to be part of the Russian Armed Forces (Vladimir Putin approved the corresponding agreement on March 14).
The first deputy chairman of the parliament of North Ossetia, United Russia member Stanislav Kesaev, believes that it is more profitable for Russia to work with South Ossetia as a partner than as a "subject in its composition." Russia resolves its strategic issues in the republic, including placing a military base there. "If NATO members come very close to my borders in the Baltic States, so that they drop into Ivangorod, then why can't Russia look like this into the city of Gori, a strategic point of Georgia?" - he argues. In addition, if the budget is distributed between the regions of the Russian Federation according to the principle "I first take it from you, and then sprinkle it from top to bottom, like a magpie, white-sided," then there is no direct obligation to the "strategic partner": you can assess whether "he is able to feed himself or no, "says the parliamentarian.
The border of the republic with Russia is already "quite symbolic", and nothing prevents it from developing even now, notes Mr. Kesaev: "I tell them: guys, stop celebrating, start working. The misfortune of all these small" banana republics "is that no matter how money is invested in them, this money goes to no one knows where. " Anatoly Bibilov says that "the aid from Russia is great," but in the republic "there is still no efficiency factor": the investment program for the development of the republic is visible "only in budget items." “They can tell me - here we are building a theater, schools, kindergartens, - he explains. - Yes, we are building, and tomorrow we will again turn to Russia: our dear brothers, help us, we cannot maintain these buildings, help we still have money. But the Ossetians have never been people who ask for alms. "
“If we compare what happened in 2008 and what we have today, there are two big differences,” argues Leonid Tibilov. years ".
Mr. Tibilov is confident that as soon as Russia "is ready to accept South Ossetia into its space," the republic "will receive an appropriate signal": "For now, we would not want to give a political burden to our strategic partner." Asked by Kommersant whether the republic is offended by the fact that Crimea became part of Russia immediately after the referendum, Leonid Tibilov replied: “We are absolutely not offended, we are happy for our friends. The fraternal people of Crimea have found their refuge.”
Leonid Tibilov emphasizes that the results of the 1992 referendum, when 99.89% voted for "reunification with Russia" with a turnout of 96.9%, "has not been canceled." But Anatoly Bibilov is convinced that the desire to join Russia needs to be reinforced with a new referendum: "In 2006, another referendum was held - on the independent development of the Republic of South Ossetia - which neutralized the results of the 1992 referendum." According to him, "if you did not knock on the door, no one will open this door for you." “There is an agreement between me and the president that such a referendum will take place after the presidential elections in 2017. It turns out that we must hold it literally within the next nine months,” says Mr. Bibilov.
During a direct line in April 2016, Vladimir Putin said that if "the people of South Ossetia want such a referendum," then "we cannot ... resist this": "But we do not yet know what will be the basis of this referendum. How the questions will be formulated in their final form - depending on this, we will continue to think. " After the meeting between Mr Putin and Leonid Tibilov on March 21, 2017, the topic of South Ossetia's joining Russia was not mentioned in their statements.
TSKHINVAL, 21 Feb - Sputnik, Maria Kotaeva. Historians and politicians of South Ossetia discussed the upcoming referendum on renaming the republic. The politicians considered the decision of the head of the republic and the renaming option proposed by Leonid Tibilov correct. The academic community did not agree with the wording of the referendum issue and considered it wrong to combine the referendum and the presidential elections.
Leonid Tibilov on February 7 signed a decree calling for a referendum to be held on the same day as the presidential election - April 9. Citizens are invited to vote for amendments to Part 1 of Article 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Ossetia, stating it as follows: "The Republic of South Ossetia - the State of Alania is a sovereign democratic rule of law, created as a result of the self-determination of the people of the Republic of South Ossetia. The names Republic of South Ossetia and State of Alania are equivalent." ...
Head of the Department of History of Ossetia and Caucasian Studies of the South Ossetian State University, Professor Yuri Gagloty questioned the appropriateness of the word "state" in the new name of the republic.
“I am confused by the word state, and I don’t understand who is the author of this project. As far as I know, there were three options for renaming the name of our republic, and none of them featured the word“ state. ”For us, it would be more logical to rename the Republic of South Ossetia - Alania. We already have a precedent in the north. On the map this is the territory of one ethnic group. And if we unite with North Ossetia in the future, there should be one name, "Gagloti said.
Irina Gagloeva, head of the IR media center, lecturer at the South Ossetian State University History Department, called the presidential decree on renaming the republic unprepared and opposed the combination of elections and referendum.
"I doubt that the option" State of Alania "has been chosen as suits the majority of the residents of our republic. Holding a referendum and presidential elections on the same day is considered as a measure of saving budget finances, but we are put in a framework when we are forced to vote and forced to vote with this wording the issue of renaming may affect the results of the referendum, "Gagloeva said.
Deputy head of the presidential administration Kosta Pukhaev supported the presidential decree on renaming the republic and said that "the name of the state of Alania will restore the historical rights of the Ossetians."
He noted that the very idea of holding a referendum has already entailed a reaction from the Karachay-Cherkess Republican Public Organization "Congress of the Karachai People", which expressed their disagreement in a letter addressed to Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
"Nobody can dictate to us how to call our republic and infringe on the facts proven by historians," Pukhaev said.
The presidential decree was also supported by the head of the South Ossetian Foreign Ministry Murat Dzhioev, the judge of the Constitutional Court Alan Dzhioev and the rector of South Ossetia Vadim Tedeev.
"Equivalent use of the" state of Alania "along with the Republic of South Ossetia fully meets the aspirations of the Ossetian people. Leonid Kharitonovich mentioned this name back in November 2015. Since then, expert councils have been held more than once, at which this issue was discussed, among others. I am convinced that this is the correct option, "the head of the South Ossetian Foreign Ministry said.
Zoya Bitarova, professor of the Department of Philological Sciences of South Ossetia, believes that the addition to the name of the Republic of South Ossetia "the state of Alania" will strengthen the historical reality and added that the issue of renaming South Ossetia into Alania appeared for the first time in the 90s, during the Georgian-Ossetian conflict, but " then it was not a primary task due to the difficult situation. "
Former parliamentary deputy, head of the department of the Ossetian language and general linguistics of the South Ossetian State University Yuri Dzizzoity called the holding of the referendum on the day of the presidential election "undemocratic."
"The referendum should not be tied to the presidential elections. This is not in any state, and is contrary to the norms of democracy. Parliament or the president must take responsibility for postponing the referendum to another date," said Dzizzoity.
Director of the Museum of Values of North Ossetia Mikhail Mamiev said that "pulling the Alan blanket" in the Caucasus is a special project, behind which are certain persons interested in fomenting destabilization in the North Caucasus.
"In world history, the question of identifying Alans and Ossetians has not been raised for a long time, and the ethnogenesis of the Alan people does not require confirmation for the Ossetian neighbors. It is clear who is behind the Alanian heritage project, which is aimed at inciting interethnic destabilization in the Caucasus," Mamiev said.
I read a lot of articles and comments that we are Alans! We must rename ourselves to Alans, and the state to Alania!
But besides this, I read the comments to other articles, where the same Alans stoop to insults, swearing and swearing at each other. Sometimes even women.
If we want to call ourselves Alans, if we want to be worthy to bear their proud name, then perhaps we should start not with shouts of renaming, but with ourselves?
After all, it is enough just to adhere to simple human truths, values and principles that our ancestors followed. They are even formulated today. Someone calls them the Code of Alanian Honor, someone calls them a charter, but I liked the name "Allon afsarmy home". I will give the text below. But here's what I'm getting at. Look at your comments on any news related to the upcoming elections, any news that carries at least some political aspect. To me personally, really, it is disgusting to read it. To what we are sinking. And at the same time we shout that we are Alans! Do not discount this word, how long ago they began to discount the word "aegdau". Start by working on yourself, start to correspond to the image of an Alan man or an Alan woman, and then it will not matter at all what our republic will be called, if the spirit inherent in our ancestors will live in us inside.
1) Remember always and everywhere, you are a descendant of an ancient and noble people, and therefore you have no right to an unworthy act.
2) Know and honor the history of your people and region - this knowledge will strengthen your spirit, magnify your soul, give strength in difficult moments of life.
3) Do not consider yourself an Ossetian (Alan) until you master the language, customs, song and dance art of your people.
4) Constantly work on your physical improvement. Temper and strengthen your health to be worthy of your great ancestors.
5) Know and remember your pedigree from the founder of the clan. Treat the old people with great respect, and most of all to the parents who gave you life.
6) As the highest commandment of your ancestors, assimilate the truth - the greatness of an Alan (Ossetian) was never measured by wealth. And only a measure of courage and labor, given in the name of the Fatherland.
7) Always remember that everything good and bad that you do in life will turn to you a hundredfold.
8) In conversation, listen more, talk less and never brag. There are many people among people who are smarter and stronger than you.
9) Beware of the thought: "How are you better than me?", Which destroyed Alanya many times. If you are a true patriot, prove it by deed.
10) Avoid quarrels and scandals. In a quarrel with a fool, you will become stupider, and it is more useful to just listen to an intelligent interlocutor.
11) Be moderate in food and drink - this is one of the requirements of Alanian ethics. Celebrations and commemorations are not a reason for gluttony.
12) Choose a bride (groom) not only by the beauty of the face and body, but by the presence of intelligence and honor, according to the traditions of the surname and family.
13) Never insult anyone's national or religious feelings. Every nation is a gift from God.
14) Be proud and honest. Neither hunger, nor cold, nor fear of death should break your spirit, if you are a true son of the Alanian people.
15) More death try not to enter this canon of honor. May the Lord save you from poverty and shame.
Historical competition among the peoples of the Caucasus for the Alanian heritage reaches a new level
At the beginning of this year, a long-term discussion about which peoples in the North Caucasus can claim the status of direct descendants of the Alans and the Alanian kingdom received a new impetus.
Tibilov's initiative
This impulse is connected with the fact that the President of South Ossetia Leonid Tibilov signed a decree on holding a referendum on renaming the Republic of South Ossetia into the Republic of South Ossetia - the State of Alania. The referendum will be held on April 9 - simultaneously with the presidential elections.
Historians of South Ossetia have repeatedly stressed the need for such a renaming. Because in South and North Ossetia they are convinced of the inexorable unification of the two Ossetian republics. And renaming to Alania is seen in Tskhivanl and Vladikavkaz as an important step towards this goal.
However, we previously wrote in detail that this initiative is not unambiguously perceived by everyone in South Ossetia itself. Since some of the residents believe that in this way Leonid Tibilov is gaining political points for himself before the elections and distracting the population from the more real and difficult problems of the republic.
In addition, such initiatives of the Ossetians meet with deep rejection from other peoples of the Caucasus. We have already written about the course of a long-standing discussion between the three peoples of the North Caucasus about who owns the Alanian heritage - Ossetians, Ingush or Karachai-Balkars.
Historical competition
Let us recall that the medieval kingdom of Alania existed in the Caucasus from the beginning of the 1st millennium to the middle of the 14th century, until it fell under the invasion of the Mongols. The history of its emergence and flourishing occupies the minds of not only scientists, but also a huge number of social activists, bloggers and activists of the Caucasus.
Since many want to be considered the heirs of one of the most ancient and powerful states of the Caucasus. Therefore, three peoples of the Caucasus at once - Ossetians, Karachai-Balkars and Ingushs - claim to be considered the descendants of the legendary kingdom.
It so happened that the Ossetians in this dispute managed to achieve more politically. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, it was the Ossetians who in 1995 added the word Alania to the name of their republic of North Ossetia.
Having staked out the Alanian brand for themselves in other cultural and political niches, the Ossetians managed to ensure that the majority of Russians began to steadily associate precisely the modern Ossetians with the heritage of the ancient Alans, as the descendants of the ancient Iranian-speaking people.
Alanian relay race of the Caucasus
However, other peoples of the Caucasus, claiming the Alanian heritage, have succeeded a lot. Thus, in 1998 the Ingush authorities managed to assign the new capital of Ingushetia, founded four years earlier, the name - Magas.
This decision was with a distant historical and political aim. Since Magas is the name of the capital of the ancient Alanian kingdom. So, according to the medieval author al-Masudi "the capital of the kingdom of the Alans is called Ma'as, which means piety."
However, the Karachay-Balkarians living in the two neighboring republics of the Caucasus - Karachay-Cherkessia and Kabardino-Balkaria - were still destined to say their word in this dispute.
Due to the multinational character of the republics of their residence, the Karachais and Balkars, like the Ossetians and Ingush living in the mono-national republics, could not secure the Alanian heritage by political decisions.
However, the Karachais and Balkars called their native language among themselves Alan throughout this period, and themselves Alans. Nevertheless, this did not in any way fix the Alanic heritage of the Karachai-Balkars in the minds of the rest of the peoples of the Caucasus.
Karachay protest
However, in November 2014, a very representative International Scientific Conference "Ethnogenesis, History, Language and Culture of the Karachai-Balkar People" was held in Moscow on the basis of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
As a result of the conference, many articles, interviews, programs and stories were published. The main purpose for which this Conference was convened was to confirm the 1959 thesis of the linguist Umar Aliyev about the Alanian origin of the Karachai-Balkarians.
In North Ossetia, the reaction to these claims of the Ingush and Karachai-Balkars to the Alan heritage is ambiguous: some believe that the neighbors of the Ossetian people are making attempts to rewrite history, others do not see anything shameful in the fact that the neighbors want to identify themselves with the ancestors of the Ossetians.
And then, against the background of Tskhinval's preparations for the historic referendum for South Ossetia on renaming the republic into Alania, Karachai public activists came forward with an official protest against such an initiative and sent a letter of warning to Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
The leadership of the Congress of the Karachai People insists that the very renaming of South Ossetia into Alania contradicts historical facts, threatens that this initiative will cause tension in the Caucasus in interethnic relations and even in the international sphere, as happened in the case of the Republic of Macedonia.
At the same time, it is also understandable why the letter of protest was sent to Moscow and not to Tskhinval. Since all political processes in South Ossetia are closely monitored by the Kremlin and the Russian White House. This fact was once again emphasized by the recent visit of the aide to the President of Russia Vladislav Surkov to Tskhinval.
Boris Semyonov
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