On Christianity in Dagestan

Abstract

Despite its significance, the problem of in Dagestan remains one of the most unexplored in the relevant literature. For a long time there has been no actual materials on this subject, it has been only given a casual reference. Nonetheless, certain aspects of this important issue have been touched upon as early as in the first half of the 20th century, i. e. before the discovery of the Christian traces in Dagestan's archaeological relics. P. K. Uslar, who had studied the folklore and the languages of the peoples of Dagestan, could hardly discover traces of the Christian religion in Dagestan, but in his opinion its role had been very significant.' He explained the faint distribution of in Dagestan by its disconnection from Georgia and Armenia, the hearths of the Christian religion in the area. In the opinion of A. V. Komarov, too, had not enjoyed a wide spread in Dagestan: in his report to the 5th Archaelogical congress in 1881 he ascribed the old Georgian inscriptions from Avaria to the captive Georgians.! Materials on the Christian Religion penetrating into Dagestan are cited by M. M. Kovalevsky,3 who regards even the relics from Avaria to be accidental finds. Data on Christian temples in the Avar Koysu valley are also reported by M. Alikhanov-Avarsky, though, according to him, Christianity has never penetrated into Dagestan.4 Some materials on in Dagestan are contained in the work by G. N. Prozritelev. I A number of valuable statements on the ways of Christian ingress into Dagestan were offered by A. Gasanov in comments to the publication of Asari Dagestan.6 Multiple data on the spread of in Avaria was collected by the expedition of N. Yakovlev.' One of the recovered written relics related to has been published by Nicolas Marr.8 Of great value are the publications of A. S. Chikobava9 and T. E. Gudava'? on crosses in Avaria bearing the Georgian and the Georgian-Avarian legends. An indispensable source for research on the Christian penetration into Dagestan is the archaeological data by D. M. Ataev.1 A significant contribution into the subject of in Dagestan was done by A. R. Shikhsaidov,'2 based upon the written sources, epigraphic materials and a vast literature. It is general knowledge that originated in the mid-Ist-century Eastern part of the Roman Empire. Later the Christian Religion became the state religion of the Roman Empire. In Armenia the Christian ideas were preached as early as the 2nd century. Penetrating into Armenia from Syria and Asia Minor were the Syrian and Greek Christian preachers. Records have been retained on a Bishopry and the clandestine Christian communities organized in many districts of Armenia in the 3rd century. In 301, was announced in Armenia as a State religion. In Kartli that occurred in 337, in Caucasian Albania in 323. Thus, there existed three centres of the spread of in Dagestan: Albania, Armenia and Georgia. Since as early as 2nd-3rd centuries autonomous possessions have been emerging in Dagestan incorporated into Albania, so that found its way from Armenia, Albania or Georgia depending on the geographic disposition of those areas. Of great significance for the elucidation of this subject are the Armenian, Syrian and Georgian written sources and archaeological materials. A history of Christianizing the littoral Dagestan, the Hun tribes in particular, was for first time described by the Armenian historiographer Pavstos Buzand.'3 Also significant is a report of another Armenian author of the 7th century Movses Kaghankatvatsi '4 on the Christian mission of an Israeli bishop to the Huns, via the Chor (Chogh) Gate, close to Derbent. Analysis of this text is given by Suren Eremian, who is drawing the map of the mission.'5