Abkhaz

Locations

Identity

The Abkhaz (self-name Apsua) are a Northwest Caucasian people of the eastern Black Sea coast, whose homeland, Abkhazia, is a breakaway region of Georgia recognised as independent by Russia, Syria and a few other states. Their language belongs to the Abkhaz-Adyghe family, closest to Abaza and the Circassian languages, and the Abkhaz are closely related to the Abazins and Circassians in descent and custom. After Russia conquered the western Caucasus, most Muslim Abkhaz were expelled to the Ottoman Empire in the 1860s-1870s as muhajirs; their descendants in Turkiye, Syria, Jordan and Egypt, often called Abaza, now outnumber the Abkhaz of Abkhazia (125,434 in 2021) in some estimates. Since the 1992-93 war with Georgia, Abkhazia has run a repatriation programme for this diaspora.

Culture & traditions

Traditional Abkhaz life is ordered by the Apsuara code of conduct: hospitality, respect for elders, restraint, and duties to a wide kin group. Village life in Abkhazia rests on cattle, maize, viticulture and beekeeping, with large family feasts led by a toastmaster. In the diaspora the Abkhaz live alongside Circassians, share their associations, dances and wedding customs, and have largely shifted to Turkish or Arabic.

Religious practices

Abkhaz in the homeland are mostly Orthodox Christians in name, but many also honour the native faith (the supreme god Antsua, the thunder god Afy and the seven shrines served by priestly clans), whose public rituals officials attend; a minority are Sunni Muslims. In the diaspora the Abkhaz are Sunni Muslims of the Hanafi school, like the Circassians around them.

Gospel access

An Abkhaz New Testament, translated by the poet Mushni Lasuria and published by the Institute for Bible Translation (2015), is available, with Old Testament books (Jonah, 2024) in progress and a Jesus Film dubbed in Abkhaz. These are in Cyrillic script and reach mainly the homeland; the Muslim diaspora uses Turkish or Arabic.

At a glance

Language: Abkhazian
Language family: Northwest Caucasian (Abkhaz-Adyghe)
Affinity bloc: Eurasian Peoples
People cluster: Caucasus
Primary religion: Christianity - Orthodox
Bible status: New Testament
Jesus Film: Yes
Audio recordings: No
Gospel recordings: No
Radio broadcasts: No

Religious breakdown

Religion	%	Denomination	Notes
Christianity	c. 60% (Abkhazia, 2003, all residents)	Abkhazian Orthodox	Majority in the homeland, often blended with native practice
Islam	c. 16% in Abkhazia; nearly all of the diaspora	Sunni (Hanafi)	Muslim Abkhaz were the ones expelled as muhajirs in the 1860s-1870s
Ethnic religion	c. 8% (Abkhazia, 2003)	Abkhaz native faith	Revived since the 1990s; seven shrines with priestly clans

Presence by country

Türkiye (Turkey)NativeVerified presence

Population: ~40,000-150,000
Location: Some 228 villages, densest in Düzce and Sakarya, also Eskişehir, Bilecik, Bolu, Yozgat, Adana (Tufanbeyli), Zonguldak, Samsun, Sinop and İzmir; large urban communities in Istanbul, İzmit and Ankara

Türkiye holds the largest Abkhaz diaspora in the world: 200,000-500,000 Turks descend from Muslim Abkhaz expelled by Russia between 1864 and 1878 and settled by the Ottomans in about 228 villages, above all around Düzce and Sakarya, though only some 40,000-150,000 still keep an Abkhaz identity. They call themselves Apsua and their homeland Apsny, while Turks call them Abaza. Some dialects of Abkhaz, such as Sadz, now survive only in these Turkish villages, though most younger people speak only Turkish. Families still mark the Abkhaz New Year in January with a hearth ritual and serve guests abısta, a maize porridge eaten with cheese and the red pepper paste acıka. Many follow Abkhazia's politics closely and campaign for travel links and recognition of the breakaway republic.