Caucasia
Caucasia is an isthmus bounded by the Black and Caspian Seas and by the steppes of the southern tier of the Russian federation and Iran. The region is dominated by the Caucasus Mountains. Historical Caucasia encompasses not only the central region of Georgia and the southern region of Armenia but also Caucasian Albania and Azerbaijan in the east and the diverse peoples of northern Caucasus. The preeminent communication and commercial arteries are rivers, especially the Terek in the north, the Kura in Georgia and Azerbaijan, and the Araks in Armenia. Caucasia's historical importance rests upon its central position in Eurasia and the endurance of local cultures in the face of tremendous imperial pressures.
To medieval Arab geographers, Caucasia (al-Kabk) was "the mountain of languages." Although Armenian belongs to the Indo-European linguistic group and Georgian anchors the separate Caucasian linguistic family, both languages show evidence of intimate contact with Persian and with one another. Connections between Georgian and Sumerian and between Georgian and Basque (ancient Greek writers referred to both ancient Spain and Georgia as "Iberia") have been hypothesized but remain unproven. Many of the languages of northern Caucasia—including Chechen, In gush, Avar, Lak, Lezgian, and Udi—belong to the northeast subgroup of the Caucasian family.
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