The article presents the result of a comparative analysis of the materials of the kamensko-liventsovskaya group of monuments the final of Middle Bronze Age. The discovery of Liventsovskaya and Karataevskaya fortresses in the lower reaches of the Don in the 1960s by S.N. Bratchenko allowed a new look at the antiquities of the final of Middle Bronze Age. The two fortifications, situated on the right bank of the Mertvyi Donets river, are a single defensive complex. When comparing the Lower Don fortress materials with finds from the Kamenka settlement in the Eastern Crimea, S.N. Bratchenko came to the conclusion that they differ from other synchronous phenomena. As a result, the scientist distinguishes these monuments into a separate culture – the kamensko-liventsovskaya group. Similar materials were also found in the settlement and burial complexes of the North Caucasus. The discovery of new monuments of the final of Middle Bronze Age in the Northern Black Sea area and the North Caucasus made it possible to consider the kamensko-liventsovskaya monuments differently in the general interconnection of the post-Cathacombian cultures. On the basis of comparative and comparative method similar to the kamensko-liventsovskaya materials are given and as a consequence the reconstruction of possible contacts between the territories of the Lower Don – Northern Black Sea Region – Northern Caucasus.

The historian, bibliophile, writer and enlightener, lieutenant general of the Kuban
Cossack army, I.D. Popko’s main professional occupation was not archival research and writing
historical works, nor the organization of libraries and museums, but the military - political and administrative
details that occurred in the North Caucasus and partially in Transcaucasia. It was professional
activity that enabled I.D. Popko with financial freedom, allowing him to engage in all the
above cases, which was another undeniable ability of the Caucasian Cossack chronicler. The article
attempts to explore the life and activity of I.D. Popko through the prism of his professional activity,
which lasted over three decades. The material for the article was the official correspondence of the
general and his personal documents (letters).One of the first invaluable contributions to the study
of the historian and ethnographer's life and work was made by S.V. Farfarovsky and E.N. Kozubsky,
who published some biographical information about I.D. Popko [Farfarovsky-
Kozubsky 1910]. B.M. Gorodetsky published an essay on his bio-
bibliographic heritage [Gorodetsky 1912]. 
An article by V. Zagorskaya [Zagorskaya 1910] was devoted to the archive of the late general. 
The work of N.G. Volkova [Volkova 1965] was devoted to the history of the creation of the museum of the Pskov Regiment, its founder, organizer and ideological inspirer, I.D.
Popko. 

An article by I.P. Maksimov [Maksimov 2011] is devoted to completely unknown or little-known information from his vivid biography. The life of the general and his
accompanying military and administrative career became the basis
of a historical and bibliographic essay by G.N. Shevchenko [Shevchenko 1991] and an article by T.A. Kolosovskaya
[Kolosovskaya 2014]. His creative legacy is the subject
of an article by B.A. Trekhbratov [Trekhbratov 2005]. A.I. Slutsky devoted his research toIgor V. Dubinin1, Igor G. Ivantsov2
1 Dinskoy Mechanical and Technological College, Dinskaya village, Krasnodar
Territory, Russia, titlo@mail.ru
2 Krasnodar Higher Military School named after S.M. Shtemenko, Krasnodar,
Russia, IIG23@yandex.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3820-3642

SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE MILITARY-POLITICAL
AND ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES
OF GENERAL I.D. POPKO IN THE CAUCASUS (1847-1878)
Igor V. Dubinin1, Igor G. Ivantsov2
1 Dinskoy Mechanical and Technological College, Dinskaya village, Krasnodar
Territory, Russia, titlo@mail.ru
2 Krasnodar Higher Military School named after S.M. Shtemenko, Krasnodar,
Russia, IIG23@yandex.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3820-3642

Based on archival documents and materials of pre-revolutionary periodicals, examples of political use of the Kabardian public sum are examined. This financial institution was formed as a monetary fund, which was managed by the authorities of the Central Caucasus Line. court deputies were involved in its management, and later the drawing up of decisions on allocations from the public fund became the function of the congress of entrusted rural societies, whose decisions were approved by the crown regional or all-Caucasus superiors. Within the framework of the considered theme, allocations from the means of sum for maintenance of the activity of public officials, payment of expenses on participation of the Kabardian and Balkarian proxies in various public-political events, financing of various forms of political socialization and ideological maintenance of the subject political culture were revealed. At the expense of Sum funds, technological modernization of the communication capabilities of the district authorities and local self-government was carried out. The conclusion that in the practices of the congresses of confidants, Sum acted as a key financial resource through which the co-financing of regional political tasks was provided is substantiated. In the socio-state interaction organized by crown authorities and local self-government, first through the congresses of trusted rural societies, the political and cultural experience of Kabardinians and Balkars in organizing and improving the management of joint life within the framework of the Nalchik district expanded.

The article reveals the main stages of the life path of the last Karanogay manager Philip Iosifovich Kapelgorodsky (1882–1938) – a person whose merits in the arrangement of the Nogai steppe at the beginning of the XX century are unfairly forgotten. The little-studied aspects of his activities as an imperial administrator are highlighted with the involvement of archival data and memoirs. Separate episodes from the biography of F.I. Kapelgorodsky, which determined the turns of his life. His significant contribution to the organization of education in the Nogai steppe, the study and description of the culture, customs, way of life of the Nogais is indicated. A brief description and analysis of his activities during the Soviet period is also given. In addition, the track record of F.I. Kapelgorodsky in 1915, extracted from the funds of the Russian State Military Historical Archive, which allows us to clarify some biographical data.

The article is devoted to the problems related to the possible military-political alliance of the White Guards of the south of Russia and the mountain liberal figures during 1918-1919. It is proved that the prospects for such a combination of efforts were fully justified. Throughout 1917, the mountain and Terek Cossack leaders established quite successful relations based on a general rejection of the growing influence of the Bolsheviks in the Caucasus region. Attention is focused on the successful episodes of the anti-Bolshevik struggle: the Provisional Terek-Dagestan government, the Terek anti-Bolshevik uprising of 1918, the armed struggle against the Bolsheviks in the North Caucasus. Conclusions are drawn that despite the obvious mutual benefit from joining forces to fight the Bolsheviks, the political ambitions of the leadership of the White Guards and mountain activists prevailed and eventually led to the defeat of all anti-Bolshevik forces in the North Caucasus.

This article is devoted to the history of the delegation sent by the Mountain Republic to France, to an international conference (1919). The delegation’s purpose is the obtainment of international recognition as an independent state. This study was conducted based on archival documents discovered by us in France. This paper throughly analyzes the name of the delegation, its composition, and activities in Constantinople and Paris during the 1919-1920’s. The role of A.M. Chermoyev and G. Bammat is revealed, and the struggle of the new North Caucasian leaders formed in emigration with the delegation of the Mountain Republic is studied. The author believes that the end of the delegation’s activity can be dated back to 1930. It has been determined that it played a significant role in shaping the socio-political ideology of the North Caucasian community in France, reinforcing the position of North Caucasians in the region's political sphere, and creating a new generation of North Caucasian politicians.

The article explores an urgent issue - the system of medical care for the population of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic during the Great Patriotic War. Based on new archival documents and other sources, the features of public health protection in extreme conditions of war have been studied. A comparative analysis of the personnel, material, and technical support of medical institutions of the republic at the beginning of 1941 and the post-occupation period (1943–1945) was conducted; problems and their solutions were identified. The role of state authorities and the public in organizing the treatment of wounded soldiers in hospitals and helping them improve their living conditions is considered. The experience of the work of state authorities, health care institutions and public organizations in providing medical, preventive and anti-epidemic assistance to the population of the republic is summarized. The indicators of infectious diseases, infant death, vaccination of the population for 1943–1945 are analyzed. The main causes of the epidemic have been identified. It is concluded that, despite the great difficulties of wartime, by virtue of the activities by state authorities, health care institutions and public organizations, it was possible to ensure the protection of the health of the population in the republic.

The article presents an analysis of the peacekeeping activities of the International Circassian Association for resolving military conflicts in the Republic of Abkhazia and the Chechen Republic at the end of the 20th century. It was revealed that during the Georgian-Abkhaz war (14.08.1992.–30.09.1993), the ICA, together with the Circassian public organizations of the Republic of Adigheya, the Kabardin-Balkarian Republic and the Karachay-Cherkessian Republic, conducted stirring activities to support the people of Abkhazia: it condemned the aggression of Georgia against Abkhazia; made the statements and appeals to the leadership of the Russian Federation, the leadership of the regions of the North Caucasus, to the highest officials of some countries and to international organizations (UN, UNPO) with requests to take immediate measures to peacefully resolve the conflict; participated in the organization of humanitarian aid to the people of Abkhazia. The peacekeeping activity of the ICA to some extent contributed to the victory of the people of Abkhazia. In the post-war period, the ICA appealed to the leadership of the Russian Federation and the UN with requests to take measures to ensure that the Georgian side observe the ceasefire agreements of 1993 and 1994 and the prevention of a new confrontation between the sides, on the lifting of the economic blockade from Abkhazia, established by the Council of Heads of the CIS Member States in 1996. The peacekeeping activities of the ICA contributed to the lifting of the economic blockade of Abkhazia.

The ICA also conducted activities to prevent and resolve the military conflict in the Chechen Republic by peaceful methods: the making of statements and appeals to President R.F. B.N. Yeltsin and other officials with requests for a peaceful resolution of the conflict. ICA President Yu.Kh. Kalmykov, who was the Minister of Justice, a deputy of the State Duma, a member of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, opposed the resolution of the conflict in Chechnya by military methods and suggested using only peaceful means.

The article is devoted to the study of some issues of historical metrology of the Karachay-Balkars, inextricably linked with their economic activity, which occurred in the mountainous conditions of the Central Caucasus. This article contains examples of used length, volume and square measurement units in the Karachay-Balkars’ traditional metrology, found in historical records. It is shown that it is necessary to start research on the socio-economic history of Balkaria in the 19th century from the study of historical metrology. The system of weights and measures was necessary for a clear regulation of feudal duties, “payment for blood” and wedding payments. But firstly, it was determined by the specifics of the economic activity of the people.

The most common way to measure volume was to determine it through the capacity of a vessel. The name of the vessel was transferred to the name of the measure. Volumetric and approximate units of measurement were widely used: “cart”, “arba”. Mountainous relief determined the use of such length measurement units as the distance of “hearing one cry” or “accessible to human vision.” The measure of the area of the land plot was or the labor costs for cultivating the land, or the volume of grain sown, or the volume of the harvest. The most commonly used crop measure was the mountain shock, «gorskaya kopna». This metric gradually obtained a meaning associated with the tithe. Mowed lands were estimated by the volume of hay harvested, and pastures by the number of livestock that could be kept on them.

The article covers Kabardian funeral customs in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic. The Kabardians have three stages of funeral practice: pre-burial, funeral, and funeral rite. To identify transformations, pre-burial rites are analyzed in most detail, where ideas about the soul, attitudes towards the deceased and his body, as well as prohibitions associated with death are clearly traced. A detailed description and interpretation of modern rituals is necessary to identify and analyze the transformations occurring in the spiritual sphere of Kabardian society. The last decade has seen an increase in Islamic traditions in Kabardian funeral rituals, despite globalization and changes in ethno-cultural values. 

The article examines the Emperor’s Nicholas I of Russia travels through the Caucasus in a difficult situation.. By the end of the 30-s XIX century, the need for radical transformations in politics in the Caucasus was realized not only by local officials but also by St. Petersburg. The emperor planned a trip to become acquainted with the state of events in the Caucasus. With Nicholas I’s tour across the Caucasus, hopes for the conclusion of the Caucasian War and the region’s final “peace” were intertwined. There was no unity in the mountain community; one faction favored reconciliation, while the other supported the continuation of military opposition to the Russian Empire’s growth in the region. The purpose of the trip was to get to know the highlanders and negotiate with them. The highlanders presented to the emperor were in the category of “peaceful,” many of them had military ranks, some went through Amanatstvo. Most of the deputies contacted the military or civil administration in the Caucasus, had ideas about Russian culture.The list of deputies identified in the Russian Military Historical Archive and delivered to the Emperor in Vladikavkaz, Stavropol, and Yekaterinodar is included in the appendix. These lists are of significant scholarly relevance because they allow us to declare with certainty that by the end of the nineteenth century, the Caucasian administration had inspected the ethnic composition of the North Caucasian peoples. The documents in the appendix have been published while retaining the original’s stylistic and archaeographic qualities.

The article handles the medieval epigraphic monuments problem using petroglyphs and unidentifiable writings on the territory of the North Caucasus. We consider the main known epigraphic monuments of Karachay-Cherkessia, discovered from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day. The accumulated research experience is considered and the main methods of fixing and documenting the detected objects are characterized. The features of the interpretation of these monuments in the scientific literature and several key methodological problems are identified. Despite the cultural and historical significance of monuments for the region, today the problem of their fragmentation and the lack of a set of monuments in a single information system remains. The need for the use of modern information technology methods for further documentation of monuments and their advantages in the study and classification of inscriptions are being updated.

Literature on such a trend as postmodernism in the second half of the twentieth century took a leading position. It captured the crisis of modern thought that was brought on by rapid advances in science and technology, as well as disillusionment with the notions of European humanism.

The expression of the crisis, the cultural rift in literature, occurred mainly through the form of a literary work – its destruction, deliberate “wrongness”, the blurring of genre boundaries and the lack of clear structures. In addition, techniques such as imitation, stylization, literary play, and the use of simulacra come to the fore.

Postmodern approval was difficult in Russia in the 20th century due to socialist realism in literature. The first postmodern novel in Russian is considered being “Pushkin House” by Andrey Bitov. However, back in 1840, a novel was published, which includes numerous techniques and principles, later attributed to the poetics of postmodernism: this is the “Hero of Our Time” by M.Y. Lermontov. He often depicted the worldview of a person in a crisis era in his works. Elements of literary poetics, which will later be called postmodern, we find not only in the designated novel but also in the whole corpus of Lermontov’s texts: “Mtsyri”, “Demon”, the essay “Caucasian” and others related to the so-called Caucasian corpus of Lermontov’s texts. This article attempts to identify these elements, analyze the pragmatics of their use, and study the forms of literary play used by Lermontov.

The optics we have chosen – Lermontov’s Caucasian works – is not accidental: many researchers have noted that in his work (especially in later works) the topos of the Caucasus outgrows the role of romantic orientalist scenery and gives an artistic conflict additional depth and fullness, saturates with unexpected and vivid details.

This work publishes for the first time the memoirs of representatives of first generation Soviet teachers, an expert and collector of Adyghe folklore Khazesha Shogenov about his friend, poet and playwright Pshikan Shekikhachev. The memoirs are translated into Russian and are preceded by several comments. In particular, based on archival data, the biography of the author of the memoirs is summarized. Semantic accents are revealed due to the need to meet the ideological expectations of that time period in which Kh. Shogenov recorded his memories, and regarding this, stereotypes are revealed, fixed in the assessments of P. Shekikhachev’s ideological attitudes. Some names and details concerning the time of stay of P. Shekikhachev and Kh. Shogenov in Dagestan are being clarified. Described by Kh. Shogenov compares the image with the characteristics left by other contemporaries of P. Shekikhachev.

The article is the first attempt in the Karachay-Balkar literary criticism to analyze the historical dramas of Zh. Tokumaeva “The Plague” and D. Mamchuyeva “Akbilek – the last star of Alanya”. This category, having arisen at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries, has not become the object of research by specialists yet. Its appearance was because of large-scale developments in society and a visible increase in interest in issues of ethnic identity and self-identification. The transition to a new evolutionary stage of national drama naturally began with an appeal to previously forbidden topics, during that time, several tragedies were created immediately devoted to deportation, religious issues, previously closed moments in the history of the Karachay-Balkarian people.

Conflict institutionalizes stage literature to a much greater extent than any other genre, which determines the purpose of this article - to identify various types of conflict and conflict typology in works from the perestroika and post-perestroika periods.

Several types of conflict opposition were identified during the research, using genre-typological and comparative-historical approaches: unconditional antagonism, struggle for power, clashes between feeling and duty, between “their own”, love, political, moral confrontation, and so on. It also became clear that historical drama is not limited to depicting only significant moments from an ethnic group’s heroic past, military actions - these plays are relevant and contemporary to the social, socio-political, and philosophical issues raised in them thus far. National dramatists with no experience in mastering this topic failed to complete the task set for them equally successfully (Zh. Tokumaev), but D. Mamchueva in the play “Akbilek - the last star of Alanya” overcame all the difficulties of the tragic genre and created a highly artistic work that meets the requirements of drama theory.

The article examines the literary heritage of one of the founders of professional Balkarian literature, the poet and writer Akhmadia Ulbashev (1905–1965), his traces the stages of life and creativity. Albeit the fate of A. Ulbashev developed dramatically (in 1935, he was arrested and exiled to Kolyma for 20 years on a false denunciation) he reacted sensitive and bold to the difficult circumstances of life and tragic collisions of the historical era. In his work, a mirror reflection of the picture of the restless time in which he lived was found. The main object of the analysis is his collection of poems “Cherek” (“River”), perceived by the astute reader as a confession about the life of the “punished” author. The title of the book is symbolic: a person’s life is like a river, which “making its way through steep mountains, opens a wide road for itself” (“Chyngyl kayalany talap, zhyryp, // Kesine keng zhol achkhancha ...”). The poet’s work reveals the depth of philosophical reflections on the meaning of life, good and evil, death, freedom, the fate of the people. As seen from the contents of the collection, the thematic range of A.Ulbashev’s lyrics is wide: poems about the fate of the people (“Mingi Tau” (“Elbrus”), “Ullu palakh” (“Big Trouble”)), the nature of the native land (“Chyrpyla” (“Bushes”), “Shaudan” (“Spring”), “Tabiygat” (“Nature”) alternate with philosophical (“Kyadar” (Fate"), “Otun” (“Firewood”), “Sokur kel” (“Blind soul”), “Cherek” (“River”), “Mounds of kimdi?” (“Who is happy”?)) and love lyrics (“Meni syugenim” (“My beloved”), “Baldyrgan” (“Anis”)). In several works (“Katyn” (“Woman”), “Zhashlag” (“Guys”), “Adam” (“Man”), “Mytyrny zharsiuu” (“The Suffering of the lazy”)) moral issues are being actualized. In fables written in the genre (“Beryu” (“Wolf”), “Oyumsuz” (“Unreasonable”), “Tulkyu blah adak” (“Fox and Rooster”), “Kishtik” (“Cat”) and fairy tales (“Mamai blah emegenle” (Mamai and the Monster"), “Indian zhomak” (“Indian fairy tale”)) human vices are exposed.

Many of A. Ulbashev’s poetic works are full of aphorisms. The two-lines, capacious in meaning, convey the essence of the author’s thought, containing everyday folk wisdom. The verses “Sabiy” (“Child”), “Kiyim” (“Clothes”), etc. abound with moralizing sayings. The central place in the poet’s creative arsenal is occupied by the autobiographical poem “Aliy” (1939-1956), the prototype of the main character of which is the author himself, who survived the unbearable hardships of exile life on Kolyma. It reveals the bitter truth of life, praises the unshakable courage, the strength of the hero’s spirit in a distant Siberian exile. The article also examines the writer’s stories (“Seyir uchuu” (“Interesting flight”), “Ege ana” (“Stepmother”)), identifies thematic and artistic features of the works. Because of the research, A. Ulbashev’s persistent striving in his work for a truthful reproduction of reality is noted, which contributed to a deep realism in the artistic coverage of the dramatic fate of a person / people.

The work uses historical, comparative methods, the method of literary analysis.

Among the key zoomorphic images in classical literature, the horse occupies a special place. In this article, a comparative analysis of the image of a horse in Russian and Kabardian poetry is performed. The results of a comparative analysis of the national-cultural specifics of the image of a horse based on the material of the Russian and Adyghe languages are presented, a variety of hippological motives related to issues of fatalism and freedom, ethics and aesthetics, as well as human environmental consciousness are considered. Figurative comparisons of the horse in Kabardian and Russian poetry, regardless of their genetic relationship, contribute to the identification of similar and different features, especially their organization and functioning. The conclusion is made about the important role of the image of the horse in Russian and Kabardino-Circassian poetry, since the horse is a long-time faithful companion of human life, it is a complex, multifaceted and not completely clear symbol.

This article is devoted to the archetypal image of the “horse” and the features of its artistic implementation in the poetic work of Alim Keshokov, a classicist of Kabardian literature. The article contains two logically interconnected parts. The first part provides a brief overview of hippological plots in the historical and ethnographic works of foreign and domestic caucasologists, as well as in the prose of M.Yu. Lermontov. The second is an analytical part in a systematic form, through the prism of historical poetics, the typology of the symbolic images of the “horse” in the poetry of A. Keshokov is studied. The content of the article is determined by the alignment of the diachronic cut of hippological motifs from naturalistic zoomorphic samples to astral ones. The results of the analysis, the following forms of semantic conceptualization of the mythologeme “horse” in the works of A. Keshokov were established - “rapid pace of life”, “nostalgia for the patriarchal world”, “resistance to civilization”, “emotional connection with the motherland”, “proximity to nature”, “ creative individuality of the artist”, “actualization of ecological collisions”, “priority of the spiritual over the material”. The article also notes a single case of deformation of the archetypal image of the “horse” in the practice of literary translation.

This article examines the historical and cultural stages of the development of Kabardino-Circassian children’s literature. The main attention is paid to the inseparable connection of education and upbringing of children. The work focuses on the fact that children’s literature is a part of fiction, with its own characteristics arising from its educational and academic tasks: it enriches young readers’ understanding of the past and present of their people, helps to assimilate high moral principles, reveals the beauty of a man’s feat in the name of the Motherland. The study of the evolutionary development of children’s literature is dictated by the requirements of deep scientific coverage of literary process and tasks of further development of national literature. The relevance of the research is determined by the insufficient study of children’s literature, the need to fill the existing gap in modern Adyghe literary studies. This article also defines the term “children’s literature”, provides views of Russian and foreign scientists, examines the first works in the Adyghe language of Circassian educators. During the study, a set of scientific methods was applied, including comparative-historical, description, literary analysis. The results obtained can be used in further research of the history of Adyghe (Kabardino-Circassian) children’s literature, as well as the development of special courses and research in the field of national philology.

The article summarizes some observations made by the author on the texts of authentic materials and gives conclusions related to the genesis, history of evolution, characteristics and distinction criteria of Nogai fairy tale epic genres: fantasy fairy tales, animal fairy tales, and home-life fairy tales. Based on well-known works of researchers-structuralists, relics of ancient rituals and rites, myths, and ancient beliefs surviving to the present day are highlighted in the texts of Nogai fairy tales, while also emphasizing their relationship with the social history of tribes and peoples. Since the genesis of folklore genres dates back to a quite distant pre-national period, and as the genres undergo then a long process of evolution common to many peoples, the Nogai tale is studied as part of the world and Turkic fairy tale epic. Observations and conclusions are illustrated with materials taken from the original texts of multi-genre Nogai fairy tale prose. A significant place is given to unpublished archive materials and newly recorded texts of Nogai fairy tales. 

Poetics is an an essential component of literary and folklore works, and therefore, the appeal of this literary problem is relevant. Some issues of the poetics of Abaza fairy tales were touched upon in the works of V.B. Tugov, but as an independent scientific problem, it is posed for the first time, which ensures the novelty of the work.

The purpose of the article is to study the verbal and figurative structure features of the national fairy-tale prose texts. The direct tasks include comprehending such significant compositional elements as: a fantastic verse, the ways of manifestation of the narrator, the antithesis technique, realistic and psychological details, portraits of people and animals, landscapes and their functions, semantic content of the names of the cardinal directions, images of a hill and a furnace, toponyms, hydronyms, phytonyms, food names.

The research material was three main collections of the Abaza fairy tale epic: “Abaza fairy tales” (Mineralnye Vody, 2015), where two independent editions of T.Z. Tabulov, 1947 and 1955, are brought together; “Tales of Abazashty” (Stavropol, 2016), which is also a reprint of three collections released at the time by V.B. Tugov; “Abaza folk Fairy tales” (Cherkessk, 1986), compiled by V.N. Meremkulov. In some cases, we turned to the fairy tales included in the book “Abaza materials A.N. Genko” (Sukhum, 2019) and “Abaza Folk Tales” (Moscow, 1985), which is a book of Abaza fairy tales translated into Russian.

The main method of research is descriptive: the authors record observations, reinforce them with examples from various works, comment and draw conclusions. As necessary, a comparative method is used when studying the image of the furnace in Abaza and Russian fairy tales or when correlating individual folklore phenomena with literary ones. In some cases, a psychological method is used when the emotional state of the characters is considered, and a method of motivational analysis is used when studying the motives of ingratitude, betrayal, and cruelty.

This article is devoted to the study of Karachay-Balkarian simple verbal paremic statements about dances in terms of their formal semantic structure and ethno-cultural significance. The paper emphasizes that syntactic constructions structure an incomplete paradigm according to the purpose of the utterance, which includes narrative and motivational expressions. The affirmation/negation paradigm is no less significant. The formal semantic structure of these statements is primarily determined by the lexical meanings and grammatical features of words that occupy the positions of the predicate or predicate. These lexemes include verbs of movement, action, knowledge, skills, vision, etc., which in the sentence structure open positions for subjects, objects and circumstantial specifiers of the corresponding semantics. They reveal significant concepts for archaic choreography contributing to the understanding of ethnic cultural specifics of the Karachai and Balkars. The proverbial and archetypal fund of the people presents several cognitive characteristics inherent in national dances, as well as dancers participating in various kinds of solemn and other events, determined by the mentality of the ethnic group.

For several centuries, the national question has remained a complex problem for Russia, inhabited by representatives of more than a hundred nations. As you know, one of the multinational and multi-confessional regions of the Russian Federation is the North Caucasus. The study of ethno-political processes in such a complex multi-ethnic region is determined by their high dynamism. And this factor requires increased attention, analysis of the current situation and monitoring of ongoing changes.

The article is devoted to the analysis of factors contributing to the aggravation of interethnic relations in the North Caucasus. Particular attention is paid to the implementation of monitoring studies of regional ethno-political processes in order to identify and prevent conflict situations.

Based on the study, the article concludes that, in general, interethnic relations in the North Caucasus are developing positively, maintaining manageability and stability. It is shown that the emerging conflicts in the interethnic sphere are caused by socio-economic and property-land problems. The materials of the expert survey conducted by the author make it possible to meaningfully interpret the influence of the above conflictogenic factors on the emergence of interethnic contradictions and disputes in the region. This article also uses the data of a mass sociological survey conducted by the RCEI FERC RAS ​​and aimed at studying interracial, interethnic (interethnic) and interfaith relations, the socio-political situation in the Republic of Dagestan.

Measures to adjust interethnic relations in the North Caucasus region are proposed.

The XXI century has witnessed the European Union's heightened focus towards transitioning to an eco-friendly economy rooted in energy sector that is both efficient and environmentally sustainable. In spite of the ongoing efforts, an energy crisis commenced on the European continent in 2021. This was caused by the swift substitution of hydrocarbon energy carriers with renewable energy sources and the sudden cessation of nuclear energy. The situation has been significantly worsened by anti-Russian sanctions and bans on the import of Russian energy carriers.

The article shows the main milestones of the EU’s general policy towards the states of the South Caucasus in the XXI century, discusses the plans of the EU leadership to use the energy resources of the South Caucasus to bring the energy sector out of the current crisis. Azerbaijan’s export opportunities in terms of energy carriers are analyzed, as well as the role of Georgia and Turkey as transit states. The presence of serious problems related to the capacity of existing oil and gas pipelines has been revealed. It is concluded that Azerbaijani energy carriers will not be able to replace Russian ones in the near future.

This review paper assesses the collective book regarding the events linked to Peter the Great's Persian campaign and the resulting policy of the Russian Empire in the Caucasus-Caspian region. The components of the book that cover matters associated with military-political, administrative and economic facets of society are outlined. The central and regional archives, combined with a strong historiographical basis, allowed for a thorough examination of the global geopolitical confrontation occurring on the recently established southern border of Russia. Detailing the successes and disappointments of the burgeoning realm, attempting to acquire a lucrative trade route to the lands in the south. Moreover, we examine how these events are remembered by the inhabitants of Dagestan and their assessment of the Russian monarch. The work enables one to comprehend the development of a Russian-North Caucasian historical relationship, and the experience of reconciling disparities that arise during integration.