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NORTH OSSETIA
Land area: 8,000 km² (North Caucasus)
Population: 664,000 (1995) (53 per cent Ossetian, 32 per cent Russian and Ukrainian)
Historical Overview:
Ossetia was annexed by the Russian Empire in the 18th century, despite fierce resistance, as Russia expanded into the Caucasus. In 1922, Ossetia was divided into a northern part, which became an autonomous region in 1924, and South Ossetia, which became an autonomous region within Georgia. In 1936, North Ossetia was upgraded to an Autonomous Republic within the RSFSR, with its capital at Vladikavkaz.
Among the peoples banished en masse by Stalin for alleged wartime collaboration were the Ingush. Following the deportation of the people of the traditionally Ingush Prigorodny District, it was resettled and attached to North Ossetia. The Ingush returned to their homelands in the mid-1950s.
As conflict broke out in South Ossetia after 1989, Ossetian refugees flooded into the north, arousing national sentiment against the Georgians. There was some support for the idea of reuniting with South Ossetia. In March 1992, a national guard was formed in North Ossetia and in June martial law was declared as the North Ossetian Government threatened to intervene on behalf of the South Ossetians.
In the same month the Ingush declared an Ingush Republic, formed out of part of the territory of Chechnya-Ingushetia, and this fomented Ingush sentiment in the Prigorodny District. By October 1992, clashes had developed between the Ingush and the Ossetian populations in which several hundred were killed. Both the Ingush and Ossetians seized hostages from the other side and the Ossetians drove an estimated 80,000 Ingush across the border into Ingushetia. In November 1992, President Yeltsin declared a state of emergency in North Ossetia and Ingushetia and despatched 10,000 troops to the region. He appointed a succession of administrators to oversee the return of refugees and prevent the re-emergence of conflict. At elections in January 1994, Akhsarbek Galazov was elected as North Ossetian president.
Language:
Ossetian is of the North Iranian language group. Previously written in Latin script, it has been transferred into Cyrillic. Russian is widely spoken.
Cultural and Religious Differences:
The Ossetians are of mixed Sunni Muslim and Christian background. Although of roughly equal numbers, Christians predominate in North Ossetia, most of them of the Orthodox Church. However, traditional polytheistic beliefs remain strong, strengthened by the persecution of religion in the 1930s. Other Caucasian minorities in the republic are mostly Sunni Muslims, including the Ingush (among whom Sufism retains a strong influence).
The Russian and Ukrainian minority is mostly of Russian Orthodox background. Slavic Cossacks also regard Prigorodny as part of their traditional lands.
