Ahmad ibn FadlanAḥmad ibn Faḍlān ibn al-ʿAbbās ibn Rāšid ibn Ḥammād, (أحمد بن فضلان بن العباس بن راشد بن حماد; commonly known as Ahmad ibn Fadlan (or Ibn Foszlan in older European literature), was a 10th-century Muslim traveler, famous for his account of his travels as a member of an embassy of the Abbasid caliph, al-Muqtadir of Baghdad, to the king of the Volga Bulgars, known as his risāla ("account" or "journal"). His account is most notable for providing a detailed description of the Volga Vikings, including eyewitness accounts of life as part of a trade caravan and witnessing a ship burial.
ChersonesusChersonesus (Khersónēsos; Chersonesus; modern Russian and Ukrainian: Херсоне́с, Khersones; also rendered as Chersonese, Chersonesos, contracted in medieval Greek to Cherson Χερσών; Old East Slavic: Корсунь, Korsun) is an ancient Greek colony founded approximately 2,500 years ago in the southwestern part of the Crimean Peninsula. Settlers from Heraclea Pontica in Bithynia established the colony in the 6th century BC. The ancient city is located on the shore of the Black Sea on the outskirts of present-day Sevastopol on the Crimean Peninsula, where it is referred to as Khersones.
SudakSudak (Ukrainian & Russian: Судак; Sudaq; Σουγδαία; sometimes spelled Sudac or Sudagh) is a town, multiple former Eastern Orthodox bishopric and double Latin Catholic titular see. It is of regional significance in Crimea, a territory recognized by most countries as part of Ukraine but annexed by Russia as the Republic of Crimea. Sudak serves as the administrative center of Sudak Municipality, one of the regions Crimea is divided into. It is situated to the west of Feodosia (the nearest railway station) and to the east of Simferopol, the republic's capital.
KarachaysThe Karachays or Karachai (Qaraçaylıla or таулула, tawlula, 'Mountaineers') are an indigenous Caucasian-Turkic ethnic group native to the North Caucasus. They are primarily located in Karachay–Cherkess Republic, a republic of Russia in the North Caucasus. Research by Boulygina et al. (2020) shows Karachays' genetic connection to the pre-historic Koban culture. A recent genetic study states the following: "Balkars and Karachays belong to the Caucasian anthropological type.
Ashina tribeThe Ashina (; Middle Chinese: (Guangyun) ʔɑʃi̯ə˥nɑ˩) were a tribe and the ruling dynasty of the Göktürks. This clan rose to prominence in the mid-6th century when the leader, Bumin Qaghan, revolted against the Rouran Khaganate. The two main branches of the family, one descended from Bumin and the other from his brother Istämi, ruled over the eastern and western parts of the Göktürk confederation, respectively. Primary Chinese sources ascribed different origins to the Ashina tribe.
KrymchaksThe Krymchaks (Krymchak: кърымчахлар, , кърымчах, ) are Jewish ethno-religious communities of Crimea derived from Turkic-speaking adherents of Rabbinic Judaism. They have historically lived in close proximity to the Crimean Karaites, who follow Karaite Judaism. At first krymchak was a Russian descriptive used to differentiate them from their Ashkenazi Jewish coreligionists, as well as other Jewish communities in the former Russian Empire such as the Georgian Jews, but in the second half of the 19th century this name was adopted by the Krymchaks themselves.
Oleg the WiseOleg (Ѡлегъ, Ольгъ; Helgi; died 912), known as Oleg the Wise, Oleg of Novgorod, or Oleg of Kiev, was a Varangian prince of the Rus' who became prince of Kiev and laid the foundations of the Kievan Rus' state. According to the Primary Chronicle, he succeeded his "kinsman" Rurik as ruler of Novgorod, and subdued many of the East Slavic tribes to his rule, extending his control from Novgorod to the south along the Dnieper river. Oleg also launched a successful attack on Constantinople.
AtilAtil, also Itil, was the capital of the Khazar Khaganate from the mid-8th century to the late 10th century. Known to have been situated on the Silk Road, in the vicinity of the Caspian Sea, its precise location has long been unknown. In 2008, a site at Samosdelka, a village in the Volga Delta that is some 30 km south-west of Astrakhan has been identified as the site of Atil. The name Atil is from the Turkic phrase meaning "great river", a name of the Volga River. Atil was located along the Volga delta at the northwestern corner of the Caspian Sea.
SubbotniksSubbotniks (Субботники, "Sabbatarians") is a common name for adherents of Russian religious movements that split from Sabbatarian sects in the late 18th century. The majority of Subbotniks were converts to Rabbinic or Karaite Judaism from Christianity. Other groups included Judaizing Christians and Spiritual Christians. There are three main groups of people described as Subbotniks: Judaizing Talmudists: Subbotnik converts to Rabbinic Judaism, also described as "Gery" (Геры), "Talmudisty" (Субботники-Талмудисты), or "Shaposhniki".
Giovanni da Pian del CarpineGiovanni da Pian del Carpine or Carpini (Iohannes de Plano Carpini, anglicised as John of Plano Carpini; 1185 – 1 August 1252) was a medieval Italian diplomat, archbishop and explorer and one of the first Europeans to enter the court of the Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. He is the author of the earliest important Western account of northern and Central Asia, Rus', and other regions of the Mongol dominion. He was the Primate of Serbia, based in Antivari, from 1247 to 1252.
