Do you consider the Caucasus to be European?

[StonyArabia]

Iraq is Arabian genetically with minor Iranic input they have nothing to do with the Caucasus. Iraqis are very distant from Europeans and even Caucasus folks.

The people from the Caucasus are Europeans closest genetic relatives.

[Osweo]

Not quite, but it's not a simple question by any means. It's simultaneously a periphery, an overlap, and a world of its own.

I've only been in the north western Kavkaz, and in my travels there I went between laid back provincial Russia to towns of nosey Greeks and bustling Armenians, to steppeland auls of muslim Kabarda, and Afghan-style mountain passes and gorges inhabited by slitty eyed Turkic shepherds. All of that in a very small area - roughly the size of Yorkshire, in fact!

[Hess]

It didn't fail us in the past.

Nope, not once

[StonyArabia]

The Turkic people of the Caucasus are the Karchay-Balkars they do indeed have a lot of Mongol admixture, especially those that reside in the North West Caucasus. Though many of them look no different than their Adyghe cousins. They claim descent from the Kipchak and Cuman tribes that merged with the Alans. They became Sunni Muslims under the influence of the Crimean Tatars like most of the North West Caucasus; originally they worshiped the Sky god Tengri mixed with some elements of Zoroastrianism.

The Caucasus can not be called European accept for Armenia and Georgia. The rest is mostly because they are influenced by Turkic or Iranic culture and the Islamic faith. Also Europe is tied with Christendom. Calling them Middle Easterner is wrong because they are not in the Middle East. They are region in their own right with distinct culture and traditions. The most European areas would be Gerogia and Ossetia and Armenia to lesser extent. However Adyghea and other North West Caucasian areas not, based on the culture and traditions. However genetically they are Europeans closest relatives.

[Logan]

Rather Eurasia, Europe actually being a promitory of the greater Asian continent.

[StonyArabia]

Rather Eurasia, Europe actually being a promitory of the greater Asian continent.

If the Caucasus had not come under Turkic or Iranic influence it would have been part of Europe by default. The people usually don't look much different from Europeans at all they are genetically the closest group to Europeans. However since many Caucasus groups were heavily influenced by Turkic or Iranic civilization they are not part of Europe with the areas however that kept the Byzantine culture and Christianity are seen loosely part of Europe.

[Dario Argento]

If the Caucasus had not come under Turkic or Iranic influence it would have been part of Europe by default. The people usually don't look much different from Europeans at all they are genetically the closest group to Europeans. However since many Caucasus groups were heavily influenced by Turkic or Iranic civilization they are not part of Europe with the areas however that kept the Byzantine culture and Christianity are seen loosely part of Europe.

They always were quite appart from Europe. They always were quite Pagan with quite different traditions from Europeans. They were also tribalistic until a more recent era than most Europeans were. Their languages are also very different from anything.

This has nothing to do with Muslims, Turks, Persians, etc. People from Caucasus are not really Muslims. They have many Pagan traditions and un-Islamic things.

[Sikeliot]

If the Caucasus had not come under Turkic or Iranic influence it would have been part of Europe by default. The people usually don't look much different from Europeans at all they are genetically the closest group to Europeans. However since many Caucasus groups were heavily influenced by Turkic or Iranic civilization they are not part of Europe with the areas however that kept the Byzantine culture and Christianity are seen loosely part of Europe.

For whatever it's worth I have read that Armenians perceive themselves as culturally close to Greeks more than to Turks or Iranians.

[Portukalos]

They always were quite appart from Europe. They always were quite Pagan with quite different traditions from Europeans.

Actually Armenia was one of the first Christian Kingdom. But I guess you're one of these guys who think Christianism is a European religion , nevermind.

[Dario Argento]

Actually Armenia was one of the first Christian Kingdom. But I guess you're one of these guys who think Christianitism is a European religion , nevermind.

I'm not talking about Armenia. I'm talking about Chechens, Adygei and Northern Caucasians. By the way, Armenia isn't even on proper Caucasus. The nations directly in Caucasus are Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russian Caucasus ( Abkhazia, Adygea, Cherkessia, Chechnya, Ossetia, Ingushetia, Dagestan)