Caucasian Albania: a journey into the past

Approximately in the V century BC. On the territory of Azerbaijan and Southern Dagestan, a state was formed under the name of Caucasian Albania. This country was inhabited by the ancestors of the current Dagestan Lezgian-speaking peoples. It should be noted that the final formation of the geographical boundaries of Dagestan occurred only in the 60s of the 20th century, during the Soviet period. Then, the northern regions of Dagestan were annexed, therefore, not all the peoples inhabiting Dagestan currently belong to the pureblooded descendants of the inhabitants of Caucasian Albania.

A huge number of various political events occurred in the ancient state of Albania - its history and is still ambiguous interpreted by scientists.

Initially, the country was formed as a confederation of twenty-six kingdoms, but in the 12th century it disintegrated into small principalities and existed in this form until the 17th century AD until it entered the Russian Empire. Arab historical sources claim that the last political formation, which continued the traditions of ancient Caucasian Albania, was present-day Azerbaijan (in ancient times - the historical region of Arran).

In the territory of Dagestan in the IV century, eleven leaders of highlanders or kings, and also the king of leks, ruled. At the very beginning of the 6th century, Caucasian Albania was divided into several political societies that inhabited various parts of Dagestan territory. In the southern part of Dagestan, in the mountains, south of the Samur River, lived Lairan. The plateau, located south of Derbent, inhabited the Maskut. The territory, located to the north of the Samur River, as well as the Gulgerychay River basin, was chosen by Lakz (modern Lezgins, rutuls, aguls, etc.). And to the north-west of Derbent, near the Rubas River, the Tabasaran association lived.

The Derbent emirate was part of the state of Caucasian Albania. It was formed on the Caspian trade route, and its center was the city of Derbent. It was the main center of trade in the Caspian region and a short time - the capital (Albania later acquired another capital city due to constant raids on Derbent from the "north").

After Derbent, the capital of Caucasian Albania was the city of Kabala (Kabalaki), whose ruins have been preserved to the present day in the territory of Azerbaijan. After the Azerbaijan Republic switched to the Latin alphabet, the Russian letter "K" was replaced by the Latin "Q", therefore, the ancient capital of the Lezghins was called not Kabala, but Gabala (Gabala radar rented the RF).

Being at the junction of civilizations, migration and caravan routes, the Caucasian Albania, In fact, constantly had to defend its independence. Albania fought against the Romans (the legendary campaigns of Pompey and Crassus to the Caucasus), with Sassanid Iran, Huns, Arabs, Khazars and Turkic tribes, who, nevertheless, succeeded in completely destroying the Caucasian Albania as a state.

Hard times survived the Lezghian people and in the 50-60's of the twentieth century. The ruling "elite" of Dagestan, on the eve of the all-union population census, shared them, promising each nation the status of "sovereignty." But from this "sovereignty" the Lezghian peoples remained only in the losers; They succeeded in obtaining the promised alphabets only forty years later, after the collapse of the USSR. All these years they remained unwritten; Instead of native Lezgin, were forced to use a new "native" language - Russian.