Circassian writers on the Dzhigeti/Sadzians, with regard to their ethno-linguistic affiliation Several Circassian historians and researchers broached the issue of the origin and linguistic affiliation of the Dzhigeti/Sadzians [here, two are referenced, from the Eastern (Kabardian) and Western (Adigean) Circassians, respectively: the researcher Zhiroslan Kagazezhev (Къэгъэзэж; Qeghezezh), and historian/writer Samir Hatkho]. They all identify the Dzhigeti with the Zikhi, the principal Circassian nation from which, they claim, the national name “Adige” derives. The attached historical map [18th-century reconstruction of 10th-century AD Caucasia] shows Zichia as the abode of the Western Circassians, and Abasgia, as the historical domicile of the Abkhaz-Abaza [Casachia is the country of the Eastern Circassians, the Kassogs, the ancestors of the Kabardians]. The Dzhigeti nation-tribe was represented by a star (out of 12, representing the Circassian nation-tribes) on the national flag of the Circassians, fashioned in the first half of the 19th century. The Ubykh refer to the Circassian Abzakhs as “Dzhikhi”, and a prevalent view is that the Dzhigeti are an extension of the Abzakh that underwent some assimilation/mixture with the Ubykh and northern Abkhaz. The consensus of the Circassian writers and intellectuals is that the Dzhigeti are essentially a Circassian nation-tribe. Zhiroslan Kagazezhev (2011) includes the Dzhigeti in the twelve Adiga (Circassian) nation-tribes: Dzhigeti; Khegakay; Zhaney; Hatuqway; Kemirgoy; Bzchedighw; Kabardians; Beslanay; Shapsugh; Abzakh [джигеты; хегаки; жанеевцы; хатукаевцы; кемиргоевцы; бжедуги; кабардинцы; бесленеевцы; шапсуги; абадзехи]. Samir Hatkho refers to the Evliya Çelebi material on Sadsha-Abaza, and concludes that the language of the Sadsha (Dzhigeti/Sadzians) is Circassian, not Abkhaz [Photograph 2; essentially in agreement with the analysis presented earlier on this page, reproduced in Photograph 3]. For Hatkho, Çelebi’s mother was Dzhigeti, as opposed to Abkhazian, which made him perfectly poised NOT to confuse the Dzhigeti language with Abkhazian or Ubykh. Hatkho refers to the trilingualism of the Dzhigeti: in Dzhigeti, Circassian, and Abkhaz. So, the linguistic situation of the Dzhigeti was pretty involved. Hatkho allows for a complex process for the ethno-genesis of the Dzhigeti, in which Abkhaz, Circassian, and Ubykh ethnic and linguistic factors are involved. [Samir Hatkho, “Sadzians/Dzhigeti: Origin and Historico-cultural Portrait of an Abaza Sub-ethnos” (“Садзы-джигеты. Происхождение и историко-культурный портрет абазинского субэтнос”) [natpressru.info/index.php?newsid=6398]. However, in the same article when discussing the Dzhigeti in Georgian sources, Hatkho states “According to Vakhushti, Dzhigetia is a country like Abkhazia in everything, but that “everything” does not include the language [“По Вахушти, Джикети является страной «по всему абхазской», но в это «все» не включен язык”]. This sounded very promising as another source to “prove” that the Dzhigeti language was not closely related to Abkhaz. However, after reading the referenced Vakhushti Bagrationi’s book “Descriptive Geography of Georgia”, it turned out that although for Vakhushti Dzhigetia was a separate country, differentiated from Abkhazia, he did emphasize the similarities between the two countries, but the language issue was not broached. So, Hatkhos referenced sentence might be viewed as “misleading”, since it gives the impression (for some, perhaps) that Vakhushti did state that the Dzhigeti language was different to Abkhaz. One needs to be very, very, careful when reading things “Caucasian”, and nothing should be taken at face value. Vakhushti’s description of Dzhigetia (Djiketh) will be covered in the next entry. [For the eager reader, heres the description in French: https://books.google/books?id=ldFCAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA409&dq] Reference: Kagazezhev, Zh. [Кагазежев, Жирослан В.], “Ethno-territorial Separation of the Circassians in the Late Middle Ages” [“Этнотерриториальная сепарация адыгов в позднем средневековье”], in “Issues of History” [“Вопросы истории”], No. 7, 2011, pp. 154-158.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 10:28:03 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015