Ossetians

The Ossetians and Ossetia received their name from the Russians, who had adopted the Georgian designations Osi (ოსი, pl. Osebi, ოსები) and Oseti ('the land of the Osi', ოსეთი), used since the Middle Ages for the single Iranian-speaking population of the Central Caucasus and probably based on an old Alan self-designation As, which is cognate with the Jassic self-designation Jasz, both probably being based on the Scytho-Sarmatian name of the Iazyges, or Yazigi as they called themselves. Since Ossetian speakers lacked any single inclusive name for themselves in their native language beyond the traditional Iron–Digoron subdivision, these terms came to be accepted by the Ossetians as an endonym already before their integration into the Russian Empire.[34]

This practice was put into question by the new Ossetian nationalism in the early 1990s, when the dispute between the Ossetian subgroups of Digoron and Iron over the status of the Digor dialect made Ossetian intellectuals search for a new inclusive ethnic name. This, combined with the effects of the Georgian–Ossetian conflict, led to the popularization of Alania, the name of the medieval Sarmatian confederation, to which the Ossetians traced their origin and to the inclusion of this name into the official republican title of North Ossetia in 1994.[34]

The root os/as- could also stem from an earlier *ows/aws-, whose meaning is unknown. This is suggested by the archaic Georgian root ovs- (cf. Ovsi, Ovseti), documented in the Georgian Chronicles; the long length of the initial vowel or the gemination of the consonant s in some forms (NPers. Ās, Āṣ; Lat. Aas, Assi); and by the Armenian ethnic name *Awsowrk' (Ōsur-), referring to an Alan tribe dwelling near modern Georgia by the time of Anania Shirakatsi (7th century AD).[35]

Ossetian tribes (according to B. A. Kaloev).[36][37]

• Iron in the east and south form a larger group of Ossetians. They speak Iron dialect. Irons are divided into several subgroups: Alagirs, Kurtats, Tagaurs, Kudar, Tual, Urstual and Chsan.
  • Kudar are the southern group of Ossetians.
  • Tual are in the central part of Ossetia (see also Dvals).
  • Chsan are in the east of South Ossetia.
• Digoron in the west. Digors live in Digora district, Iraf district and some settlements in Kabardino-Balkaria and Mozdok district. They speak Digor dialect.
• Iasi, who settled in the Jászság region in Hungary during the 13th century. They spoke the extinct Jassic dialect.

The Ossetian language belongs to the Eastern Iranian (Alanic) branch of the Indo-European language family.[33]

Ossetian is divided into two main dialect groups: Ironian[33] (os. – Ирон) in North and South Ossetia and Digorian[33] (os. – Дыгурон) in Western North Ossetia. In these two groups are some subdialects, such as Tualian, Alagirian and Ksanian. The Ironian dialect is the most widely spoken.

Ossetian is among the remnants of the Scytho-Sarmatian dialect group, which was once spoken across the Pontic–Caspian Steppe. The Ossetian language is not mutually intelligible with any other Iranian language.

Prior to the 10th century, Ossetians were strictly pagan, though they were partially Christianized by Byzantine missionaries in the beginning of the 10th century.[47] By the 13th, gradually most of the urban population of Ossetia became Eastern Orthodox Christian as a result of Georgian missionary work.[33][48][49]

Islam was introduced shortly after during the 1500s and 1600s, when the members of the Digor first encountered Circassians of the Kabarday tribe in Western Ossetia, who themselves had been introduced to the religion by Tatars during the 1400s.[50]

According to a 2013 estimate, up to 15% of North Ossetia’s population practice Islam.[51]

In 1774, Ossetia became part of the Russian Empire, which only went on to strengthen Orthodox Christianity considerably, by having sent Russian Orthodox missionaries there. However, most of the missionaries chosen were churchmen from Eastern Orthodox communities living in Georgia, including Armenians and Greeks, as well as ethnic Georgians. Russian missionaries themselves were not sent, as this would have been regarded by the Ossetians as too intrusive.

Today, the majority of Ossetians from both North and South Ossetia follow Eastern Orthodoxy.[33][52]

Assianism (Uatsdin or Aesdin in Ossetian), the Ossetian folk religion, is also widespread among Ossetians, with ritual traditions like animal sacrifices, holy shrines, annual festivities, etc. There are temples, known as kuvandon, in most villages.[53] According to the research service Sreda, North Ossetia is the primary center of Ossetian Folk religion and 29% of the population reported practicing the Folk religion in a 2012 survey.[54] Assianism has been steadily rising in popularity since the 1980s.[55]

The Northern Ossetians export lumber and cultivate various crops, mainly corn. The Southern Ossetians are chiefly pastoral, herding sheep, goats and other cattle. Traditional manufactured products include leather goods, fur headgear, daggers and metalware.[33]

Outside of South Ossetia, there are also a significant number of Ossetians living in Trialeti, in North-Central Georgia. A large Ossetian diaspora lives in Turkey and Syria, Ossetians have also settled in Belgium, France, Sweden, the United States (primarily New York City, Florida and California), Canada (Toronto), Australia (Sydney) and other countries all around the world.

The Ossetians are a unique ethnic group of the Caucasus, speaking an Indo-Iranian language surrounded mostly by Vainakh-Dagestani and Abkhazo-Circassian ethnolinguistic groups, as well as Turkic tribes such as the Karachays and the Balkars.

The Y-haplogroup data indicate that North Ossetians are more similar to other North Caucasian groups, and South Ossetians to other South Caucasian groups, than the two are to each other. With respect to mtDNA, Ossetians are significantly more similar to some Iranian groups than to Caucasian groups. It is thus suggested that there is a common origin of Ossetians from the Proto-Iranian Urheimat, followed by subsequent male-mediated migrations from their Caucasian neighbours.[56]

• 
  Ossetian woman in traditional clothes, early years of the 20th century
• 
  Ossetian women working (19th century)
• 
  Ossetian Northern Caucasia dress of the 18th century, Ramonov Vano (19th century)
• 
  Three Ossetian teachers (19th century)
• 
  Ossetian girl in 1883
• 
  Gaito Gazdanov, writer
• 
  Sergei Guriev, economist
• 
  Nikolay Bagrayev, politician
• 
  South Ossetian performers
• 
  Ossetian man in 1881
• 
  Soslan Ramonov, wrestler
• 
  Shota Bibilov, professional footballer
• 
  Ruslan Karaev, professional kickboxer
• 
  Vladimir Gabulov, Ossetian goalkeeper
• 
  Valery Gergiev, conductor

• Alans
• Asud
• Digor (people)
• Iazyges
• Iron (people)
• Jassic people
• Alexander Kubalov
• Ossetians in Trialeti
• Ossetians in Turkey
• Peoples of the Caucasus
• Sarmatians
• Scythians
• Terek Cossacks

• Foltz, Richard (2022). The Ossetes: Modern-Day Scythians of the Caucasus. London: Bloomsbury. ISBN 9780755618453.
• Nasidze; et al. (May 2004). "Mitochondrial DNA and Y-Chromosome Variation in the Caucasus". Annals of Human Genetics. 68 (3): 205–21. doi:10.1046/j.1529-8817.2004.00092.x. PMID 15180701. S2CID 27204150.
• Nasidze; et al. (2004). "Genetic Evidence Concerning the Origins of South and North Ossetians" (PDF). Annals of Human Genetics. 68 (Pt 6): 588–99. doi:10.1046/j.1529-8817.2004.00131.x. PMID 15598217. S2CID 1717933. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 January 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2006.

• Ossetians.com – a site about famous Ossetians