It was not until the late 19th century that the Chechens started using other than wooden, brass and earthen tableware. Village artisans had polished their skills to perfection in making household utensils. Glazed crockery featured geometric or floral designs. Bowls were usually big. And the shape of a bowl depended on what they would put into it. A pitcher with a narrow neck contained melted butter. A pitcher with a wide neck was meant for milk and sour milk. The neck of a water pitcher was so narrow that only a child's fist could fit in. Water pitchers had big handles and wide circle-shaped bottoms: they would be carried on the shoulder from the river that could flow far enough from home or in a canyon. A special kind of earthenware held grain. Demand was high for the well-made Chechen pottery.Wooden tableware was made with a lathe. The hardest sorts of timber - oak and maple - went for tableware. Some household utensils were also made of wood: barrels, wheel spikes and other parts of wheelcarts. Cradles were made of wood in such a way as to enable a Chechen mother to strap it to her back and carry it out to the field. Its accommodating design and loyalty to the national tradition explain why some Chechen women still put their babies in such cradles. Other things made of wood: trays, mugs, spoons, churns - have also survived till nowadays. 19th century brass washbowls, mugs, tubs and pots are still used by the Chechens. The Chechen home looks traditionally simple, if not ascetic. There was an absolute minimum of furniture: portable wooden beds and small tables. But household utensils that do credit to the village artisans adorned the rooms. There were things made of wood and brass, crockery and, in addition to all that, things made of wool and felt. Felt was indispensable. Chechens used it for mattresses, blankets and wall rugs and as insulation lining. Multicolor Chechen rugs are usually decorated with red and blue fringework. Felt capes offer good protection against bad weather and may be used instead of blankets. Making a felt cape was a time-consuming process and a woman's job. It took a Chechen woman 8 days to one month to make one felt cape. Chechen capes were quite thin and weighed next to nothing. They sold well all over the Northern Caucasus. Chechnya used to be the main cape production center of that region. Chechen broadcloth also won renown in the 19th century. Uniforms of government officials were made of it in central Russia. Lengths of broadcloth were made at a special weaving loom, soaked and braked in warm water, rolled out with a special roller and, finally, left in that same roller to dry. Mats, rugs and baskets were made of reed and willow twigs in the plains of Chechnya. Famous Chechen tanners ran six workshops in 19th century Grozny. They turned out footwear, mattress sheaths and warm sheepskin coats on the order of today's Astrakhans. Chechen jewelry - bracelets, necklaces, spiral and other finger rings, pendants - were, in the olden day, made of bronze. It was not until much later that the Chechens started making things of silver. They made, among other things, a typically Chechen kind of wedge-shaped buttons for the decoration of the bodice of women's clothes.
(more...)

Famous Chechens

A womans life at a time of political upheavals is always more difficult than that of a man. Nevertheless, a great number of women have become heroines of their time, among them Fatima Arsanova. A girl from a poor Chechen family, Fatima looked at the revolutionary events in Russia of the early 20th century as a difficult way to a free, just and happy future. Fatima and her elder brother Saidbei Arsanov, a future writer, took part in rallies and demonstrations in Vladykavkaz. In 1917 Fatima joined a self-defense unit. She never hesitated to take up the most difficult of tasks given by resistance fighters, was a connection, then joined a medical team and showing unbelievable courage and will-power helped the wounded. Fatima the paramedic became a legend spoken about all across the North Caucasus. In August 1918 fighting was on in mutinous Grozny and both Russians and Chechens were dying on the barricades. Though it was next to impossible for Fatima to get into the besieged city, she and several other girls made their way into Grozny and immediately went to the frontlines to save the wounded. The slim girl wearing a mens suit and carrying a medical bag was flying about like an angel reaching for everyone hit by a bullet. She was admired and her courage was inspiring. They said Fatima on the frontlines was a symbol of good luck and the soldiers were doing all they could to protect her against the bullets. Fatima was tirelessly dressing the wounds from sunrise to sunset rushing to attend to every fighter. At one point, during a battle near a railway station, she fired a machine-gun to inspire Red Army soldiers panicking at the sudden appearance of an enemy armoured train. She was only 20, when she was killed in a battle in the autumn of 1918. Fatima the paramedic is the legend of the North Caucasus Fatima Arsanova is a Chechen hero.
(more about famous chechens...)

Chechen cuisine

Mutton or beef (pulp) - 130 g , Lamb gut - 70 g , Onion - 60 g Pork fat - 50 g , Rice - 15 g , Salt - 5 g , Ground black pepper - 1 g Dough: corn or wheat flour - 160 g , water - 90 g Garlic gravy: garlic- 25 g , meat stock - 30 g , salt - 3 g , ground black pepper - 0.05 g Filling: chop meat and fat finely with knife, or pass both through meat mincer with big openings in grate. Wash rice in hot water, add salt, pepper, mix thoroughly with meat. Let lamb gut soak for 30 to 40 minutes in warm water. Wash well. Stuff lamb gut with meat filling. Tie up gut ends. Add hot water and put to boil for 1 to 1.5 hours. For ravioli, see Zhizhig galnash. Put ravioli to boil for 20 to 25 minutes in salted water. Serve sausage with corn or wheat flour ravioli. Crush garlic with salt. Add small quantity of fat meat stock. Serve in separate bowl.
more about chechen cuisine ...)

Issue 35
18.10.02

News from Chechnya

18 October 2002  Red Cross helps North Caucasus

The International Red Cross Committee has been handling charity efforts in the North Caucasus for ten years now. More than 250 000 people are receiving medications, food, and other aid from the organization. The committee has spent 27 million dollars for humanitarian programs this year. Projects for the next year are already on the drawing board. According to head of the Red Cross mission in Russia Michele Minning, there will be more help in 2003 going to refugee camps in Ingushetia and to Chechnya. The Red Cross is going to focus on the most underprivileged strata, namely the disadvantaged, orphans, single mothers, and families with many children. The committee had to reshuffle the lists of aid recipients for that. We are determined to continue our operations in the North Caucasus in close cooperation with other humanitarian organizations, said Michele Minning.
(more news from Chechnya)

18 October 2002  Success on the fields and vineyards of the Shelkovskaya region

A harvesting campaign has wrapped up in the Shelkovskaya region, like all over Chechnya, with 22 thousand tons of wheat from 10 thousand hectares. According to the head of the local administration Hussein Nutaev, his administration is focussing on how to realize not only wheat but also tomatoes, melon and gourds grown by individual farmers. Farming is obviously unprofitable without its own, at least preliminary processing of production. Hence, the local authorities are discussing how to set up multi-profile processing enterprises in the region. Speaking about prospects for the farming in general, the head of the Shelkovskaya regional administration stresses the importance of the farms that succeed in harvesting perfect crops of vegetables, perennial herbs and fodder grain, cultivating unfertile soils. Measures have been elaborated to uphold individual farmers, including technical decisions to develop a united system of irrigation and canal cleaning. Special attention is attached to restoring vineyards though there are certain obstacles to resolving the problem, firstly because the sector is very expensive and labor-intensive about half a million rubles must be spent to grow one hectare of vines. However, there are positive shifts on this score A five-year target program for promoting vineyards has been drawn up, under which 250 hectares already available and 100 hectares more have been planted with vines expected to produce a good harvest next year.
(more from Chechen diary)

17 October 2002  Islamic organization closed down in USA

The activity of Islamic non-profit organization Benevolence international organization has been stopped in Chicago, USA. The organization has been financing Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Chechnya for many years under the guise of charity. According to the data of the US general attorney office published in the Chicago tribune newspaper, the Benevolence international organization allocated 685 000 dollars to Chechen militants in 2000. The US authorities are also aware that in the late 1990s, the Benevolence branch in Chechnya was led by a notorious international terrorist Saif al-Islam el Masri, member of the management council of Al Qaeda and allegedly a key defense aid of Osama bin Laden. The American prosecution is on record as claiming that the Chicago-based organization has employed its financial means to purchase large batches of automatic rifles and grenade-launchers that were eventually transferred to terrorist camps across the globe. Alongside a recent joint effort with Russia to stem terrorist financial networks, the US authorities closed down several organizations that engaged in fund-raising for Chechen militants under the label of charity funds.
(more from Chechen diary)

16 October 2002  Chechen farmers won high acclaim from the Russian president

President Putin has spoken highly of the achievements of Chechen farmers, who reaped a record 350 thousand tons of grain this year. For the second year running Chechnya has been self-sufficient in grain and even sells it to other regions. When he met with representatives of the Russian farming sector on October 12th President Putin awarded Chechen Agriculture Minister Dukuvakha Abdurakhmanov with Order of Friendship and thanked everybody who is working to restore peace in Chechnya. The president assured the Chechen leader that the federal authorities would be paying more attention to the republics needs. The people of Chechnya, Mr.Putin said, should feel protection from the state. The president agreed that law enforcement structures in Chechnya should be strengthened, since they become the main target of militants. Law enforcement has to be underpinned, he said, so that Chechen men could take power in their hands and guarantee security to the people.
(more news from Chechnya)

16 October 2002  The UN World Food Program boosts activity in Chechnya

For several years the UN World Food Program (WFP) has been providing help for the North Caucasus sending humanitarian cargoes primarily to Chechnya and Ingushetia. A total of 300 thousand people receive its aid, 160 thousand of them are Chechen refugees who found shelter in the neighboring republic of Ingushetia. Since September of 2001 the WFP has been running the food for schoolchildren program that allowed Russia to regularly supply food for 47 thousand Chechen school boys and girls. In late September 2002 the WFP in cooperation with its partners among non-governmental organizations distributed about 1.5 thousand tons of food in Chechnya. The UN agency also has offered 20 thousand tons of food for Grozny on the fringe of the food for hospitals and kinder gardens project. In the course of the recent visit to Moscow WFP executive director James Morris discussed with Russian officials further activity of his food agency in the North Caucasus. He pledged humanitarian aid for Chechen refugees as they return to their homes. Mr. Morris is quoted as saying the WFP calls that Chechen residents will come back voluntarily and all necessary living condition be created in Chechnya. Speaking after a news-conference on the outcome of Mr. Morriss visit to Russia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Yuri Fedotov said since the start of the food program in the North Caucasus the WFP has provided over 100 million dollars of worth help for the region. (more from Chechen diary)

Chechen ethnos

The chechens after the caucasian war

The drawn-out Caucasian war left an imprint on the Chechen economy, family and society, Remembering that "all Moslems are brethren," numerous representatives of the ethnic communities of Daghestan and other neighboring regions had moved to live on the fertile land of Chechnya. Up to one third of the Avars, Darghis, Andis, Kumyks, Circassians, Tartars, Kurds and others moved to live in Chechnya. Tsudakhar, Andi, Kumyk, Tartar and other communities have preserved their identity in Chechnya. The Chechens welcomed representatives of other ethnic communities, protected them and rendered them all the necessary aid and assistance. They marked off territory where the newcomers could build their homes. The Chechens and the newcomers enjoyed equal rights in the use of meadowland, community pastures and other vitally important places. They danced on rare occasions now that many families were mourning their dead and everyone felt the economic strain of the war effort. Simplified wedding rites got to take less time. That was a positive development in the life of Chechnya. On the other hand, Shamil was trying to raise the defensive potential of his Imam ate, and his people were to follow to the dot his rules for family relations and in the economic and social fields of life. Transgressors against those rules faced up to capital punishment. All male Chechens were obliged to fight the imperial troops. People were forbidden to hire mourners for funeral ceremonies. A funeral would be over after a prayer and a few words of condolence. The slightest disregard for the Shariah ban on alcoholic beverages and smoking was severely punished. No girl could stay single if she had come of age. Neither could any grown-up man. Bride ransom (kalym) was reduced because people were encouraged to get married. But the law of Shariah practiced in the Imamate affected little, if at all, the highest-lying communities. They stuck to the older tradition. With the defeat of the Imamate, attempts were made to revive the ancient customs and traditions. The elders, Sheikhs, mullahs and alims again became the most honored of men. The Czar of Russia would not share his control over the Northern Caucasus with anyone. But apprehension of new uprisings and fear of Islam forced him to make some concessions . A Chechen court of law was instituted under the military administration of Chechnya. But its limited rights had been continually reduced to all the more limited ones as time went on, until it was replaced by district courts of Chechen law. The mullahs and elders, whose moves could hardly be controled by the military administration, retained their influence over the people. They collected taxes - zakat - under the law of Sharia', held clandestine court hearings, opened schools of Islam and determined the character of relations with the colonial administration. What was officially labeled as a military-popular government may be more accurately described as military occupation of Chechnya. The courts of Chechen law were forbidden to hold hearings of serious cases, such as blood feudcases. Nonetheless, Chechens would still turn to mullahs and elders for help in the settlement of complicated problems. The neighboring Russian and Cossack villages exercised a beneficial influence on the economic traditions of the Chechens. Chechen life took a turn for the better when the Chechens had learned to use such a revolutionary invention as steel plowshare, the so-called Lithuanian scythe, roof shingle, window glass, glass- and chinaware, and steel forks and spoons. The Chechens got acquainted with the samovar, the accordion, sugar, potatoes and factory-made broadcloth. The kerosene lamp enabled them to work longer hours. But it took them a long time to write the bottom lines under the old way of life and isolationism. Blood feuds and "gui kheikhar" - the outlawing, to the accompaniment of gunfire, of a village or several villages - had been reported till 1917.
(in detail...) 

Copyright © CHECHNYA FREE.RU